A final summer adventure

Sharing some images from a tree climbing adventure on the last days of summer in one of my favourite trees.

Looking south from the canopy of a mighty beech tree

Everyone has a favourite tree. It might be one you climbed as a kid, or one you pass every day on the way to work. There are so many reasons but for me, at least for now, my favourite tree is a beech. And not just any beech tree, I am talking about a tree that seems to soar into the sky and one which I love to climb and spend time in.

Using specialist tree climbing equipment, I explore trees, often carrying out research work or guiding clients up into the wonderful green world up there. Today was just for fun and, with the sun shining for a last gasp of summer, I was keen to make the most of it before the September storms began.

The two rope system as standard

Looking down to access rope anchor at 20m

Adventures are great. Once thing I often say is that we are doing something dangerous, safely. As a Tree Safety Expert I use industry rated equipment, much of it from the world of industrial rope access.

Flies on a Porcelain fungus at height

Funky branches in the canopy

Every time I climb there is always something new to see. This time, on a lower limb some distance from the main stem, a line of Porcelain fungus showed there was some deadwood there. And some cool looking ginger flies were buzzing around them, using them as a place to find a mate I am guessing or to lay their eggs.

The big curving limb

This tree is full of interesting architecture. I loved this great, curving limb which reach a long way down towards the ground and so I decided to take a route less travelled and find a new way down. Amongst some huge limbs was a way to branch hop between the levels. I even found a way to walk out along the top of a very sizeable lower branch and, with a bit of balancing and criss crossing, down right to the ground. With a last sip of my coffee before packing up, I hiked home in the warm, evening sun, day-dreaming of more adventures to come.

Descending via the south face

The moment just before touchdown!