DAY 189
10.10.07
TREE 111
I drove to Cherokee Park around 3:45. I went to an area that I had never stopped at to see what trees the area had to offer. I parked on the loop by some tennis courts. It was on the edge of some dense woods. The trees in the clearing were monstrous beeches. Most were very tall with no branches for 30 or 40 feet. Except this wide sprawling beech right on the edge of the road. The large branches diverged from the base of the trunk. It was easy to step on an old broken stub of a branch and climb onto one of the branches that stretch out over the road. This branch in particular is bigger around then 3 or 4 of me. I cat-crawled up to the first branch I could hold onto. I walked further out, the branches not even moving under my weight. When I went back to climb other parts of the tree I went head first on my stomach and slid down where I had cat-crawled up. Very fun. I went to the far right branch attempting to climb for height. But after a few tricky passages trusting tiny offshoot limbs I still wasn’t too high.
I wanted to be in the tops badly but no path presented itself. I tied my ribbon then climbed down, then up the middle branch.
I hung out over the road taking pictures of the cars going by underneath.
Then back down and up on the left limb I had climbed first. Really, I went back so I could slide down on my stomach again. This tree was really fun with lots of options. This would make a good tree house tree. One of these days I will build one of my own.
10-10-08: That really makes me want to go back to that beech tree and slide down the branch again. It was fun. But it is something that is much more fun in long pants and long sleeves. Beech bark is hard and smooth and great for sliding. The branches also can grow very large with low grade slopes. It’s like they were made for sliding and playing. They are also incredibly strong, even the little tiny limbs. Just when I think I have decided what my favorite type of tree is, I remember others that are so good too. I can’t make up my mind.
Yesterday MaryLiz called to see if I wanted to go for a bike ride. It was perfect weather for a ride and I was already planning to head out to climb a tree so I headed her way. We went down the River Walk Trail to Shawnee Park. I brought my camera and tripod with a clear plan to set it on the ground and film my climb in real time, not sped up like I have been doing lately. Because it was going to be real time I wanted to go as fast as I could. I found a good tree for the experiment and set up the camera. Then I hit record and jumped for my first limb. I crawled into the trunk and then raced up as fast as I could go. I could probably go much faster if I knew this tree and had climbed it before, but since it was new I had to take a little time to look for a path and test the banches for safety. I went up to the top, paused shortly to look around, then raced back down. I got back to the bottom branch and monkeyed out and dropped right over the camera and stopped it. I watched the video and was quite disappointed. Monkeys and squirrels just make me look slow and stupid in a tree.
10-9-08 speed climb in Shawnee Park from Todd Smith on Vimeo.