SRT #6: Dead Branch for Canopy Anchor Houdini Rigging

[@BriarJumper]

Nothing but excellence and safety here!

[@jrbtc]

Thanks for that. When I first devised the Maverick, I didn't realize all the possibilities. This was a very useful discovery.

[@guagesteele2897]

Love your videos Sir. I've spent all kinds of time and dollars with fancy grigris and hand acsenders and they are noisy, heavy, and hard to set up when it's dark and have any difficult weather. No matter how much tape I put on devices and carabiners I can't imagine I haven't cleared out some deer while rigging up. Your sets are minimal on hardware and your knowledge of climbing and helps, I feel, give options that are less expensive, safer, and quieter than other mechanical systems. Now I just need to learn your knots better! It's nice that you show the set up in the woods then go back and show a follow up at the end of the video on the specific way to tie the lines so we can see a step by step close up. I'm not super smart so I need to see, hear, and attempt it a few times so your teaching style serves me well.

[@jrbtc]

Appreciate that my friend. I am doing my best with what time and resources i have, I promise. And I do all I can to think it through and try to deliver a solid presentation. Not perfect, but genuine. Cheers

[@vinceventin459]

Out here in Washington, west of the Cascades, the dominant tree is the Douglas fir. They tend to grow rapidly to reach the canopy and shed branches along the way. As a result, there are typically a lot of dead branches on the way to reaching hunting height (25-30 ft) and their is nothing to tie onto for another 10, 15 feet. Tossing a line into a tree like that is near impossible without snagging everything along the way and without a precisely tuned launcher! If such a tree turns out to be "the tree", it requires preparation, climbing, pruning, and setting a false crotch for later. This "Maverick hitch with Houdini option" would work great for that scenario. Regardless, hunting is not grocery shopping. JRB, thanks for your excellent knots and climbing techniques!

[@jrbtc]

I would love to see your forests! This will only work advancing the loop as high as the first branch. I have an earlier video on the SRT playlist where I am able to use a throwball and whip the rope over Lower dead branches. Scenario 5.

[@vinceventin459]

@@jrbtc I was originally from PA but the SE industrial corner. Didn't get to spend much time in the woods until my family moved to eastern shore of Maryland. Almost all deciduous trees and Tulip trees were common and easy to freehand climb. Lots of fun. I fell asleep in the top crotch of a 70 foot Tulip tree once. The trunk was about 3 inches in diameter at that height. I was a little lighter then. The area was marsh land in between flat farm fields. Out here is much different. My plan is to test making some hybrid "false crotches" that use the Maverick hitch (a false crotch and hoist the Maverick using the houdini). The false crotch won't handle any load. The down side, like I mentioned, is that such a setup will require climbing, pruning away the few or many dead branches in order to set up the false crotch. I guess it would be possible to utilize a branch, if available where needed, but while I'm up there a false crotch is probably better. Oftentimes, getting a clear shot at a branch is not possible. It's all about location. Not to mention, out here we have blacktail deer which are fairly unpredictable compared to whitetails and mule deer (I've heard). They aren't prone to run regular trails so a place to intercept them is tricky. Some baiting is legal as well as calling. I'll try sending a video or two sometime. It's late in the season now but I'll be testing ideas through the year for next season.

[@Sambyler33]

Great stuff man ! I am currently practicing the maverick with pole and garda foot loop and I like the idea of the secondary short bridge for redundancy in the best friend loop , although I have been engaging the munter just below the garda carabiners before removing the garda foot loop to keep the redundancy , thanks for the time and effort in making and sharing these videos, it’s been a great help for me and many others I’m sure👍always looking forward to seeing the latest video

[@jrbtc]

@Sambyler33 the supportive comments motivate me. Thank you and happy to help.

[@ericbrabham3640]

Always ingenious solutions. great video.

[@jrbtc]

Thanks for your comment and support. Now go grab a friend and get him or her tied in... there is always a way to tie in.

[@Schubox62]

This is my second time watching this one, John. This most recent after your latest FB post on the Maverick Pole. Am I the only one that thinks that the Houdini Rigged carabiner is the ultimate location for the placement of the Maverick (or ANY) pole? As soon as I watched this six months ago, I started using a quieted (with hollow-webbed strapping) "Houdini" carabiner for pole-setting the Maverick. It works great! BTW, I agree with another commenter that I read: The ULTIMATE Deer Hunting Maverick Pole would also function as a walking stick and branch trimming saw, and have a loop on the bottom so it could hang off your side between uses. Good day, sir!

[@jrbtc]

Great observation. I tested that location for the pole along with some others. If I included all the things I tried and why I arrived at my recommendations, it would be a very long video, lol. Yes, it works for advancing the hitch. If the end of the pole is a 2 pronged fork, we can simply pull it out... but that can happen accidentally, and then it's a bit more fiddling to get our hitch set where we want it. If the end is a hook, it will stay there and won't be removable until we get our weight off it and that won't work cuz we need our pole for the next anchor before we remove the last one. But the biggest reason is that the methods I described in the Maverick Pole video force the user to make the loop large and the force of the pole will keep it large and that ensures that when we set the hitch and it rolls down a bit, we're not going to accidentally get it all jammed up and not capable of being unlocked. If we use the Houdini location, we have no control over that loop. It might be too small, or it might get rolled over. I also like having an option for removing the pole or leaving it there, and most of the time, I leave it there. As for your other points, I agree. We looked at some other features for the pole but keeping the price down and getting it made in the USA were bigger priorities. A sling is coming. I have some more ideas you will like in future generations of the pole. Thanks for your comment, insights and support. This entire venture is an organic endeavor for me... just friends helping friends via word of mouth is my only "advertising". Cheers.

[@lizard2425]

Brilliant !

[@jrbtc]

We've been busy putting tools in the toolbox lately... but now we get to start using them!

[@kennethrogers1129]

Nice little trick to get the anchor horizontal up near the crotch!! I wish we could come up with a hitch that is a running hitch that would allow DSRT, the Saddle Hunters hitch comes close but it cannot be set with a pole or preset cord as it is not a running hitch. Anyway I’m liking pole hitch srt do much I’m just about to order a Ghilly 9.5 mm rope , 80-100 foot with 50 ft of 7 mm Sterling cord woodland camo. Currently using 8mm resc tech.

[@Transdimentional]

Good stuff John. Awesome trick to bring a hitch up. I’ve been learning the maverick hitch and have it down to muscle memory. I’ve been experimenting with load on load line while tugging on the release line to see how the horizontal hitch behaves. I find that tugging on the release line while the load line is under load tends to “bump” the knot, effectively loosening the initial horizontal setup (loosening the horizontal grip against the trunk; safety risk?). I find that making the release line go around the load line makes tugging against the release line fight against the load line rather than bumping the knot. Thoughts?

[@jrbtc]

I might need a photo to be sure what you're describing. If you leave me a comment on my website, I can email you and discuss it there. Or in my Facebook group. However, if we only have the Maverick unlocked when we start our rappel and if the release cord is a different color and smaller diameter, I Can't imagine a realistic scenario whereby we actually get any load on the release line while we are still on the line.

[@Transdimentional]

@@jrbtc Tx for the reply John. I’ll transit this over to your website and I’ll take a picture. The context is with the maverick hitch locked (softlocked with the release line through the release loop or with a carabiner straddling the release loop and release line as you indicate). What I observe isn’t associated with the release lock coming undone but rather the tugging/pulling doing effectively what it’s supposed to do and loosening the cinch, which can make the horizontal cinch on the trunk slump and angle down even when the load line is loaded. This hasn’t been tested under full body weight yet and wasn’t exercised using a smaller diameter extension to the release line (only tugging on the release line) Regard, Jeff Michaud

[@lisamcqueen8509]

Another good one, John! What camo brand is your shirt, please! Have a great day! Steve

[@HuckFTW]

Kryptek

[@jrbtc]

Yes, i have always been a fan of Kryptek, ever since I saw it for the first time and bought the very hat I am wearing in this video. I bought it at a roadside shop on Rte 322 in Central Pennsylvania. And now, I am proud to be in a position to offer you a discount: use JRB10 coupon code for 10% off non sale items at RnA: www.rocknarbor.com/product-category/outdoors/saddle-hunting/outdoor-clothing/

[@beardedfreedom]

Could you do the same thing but use a girth hitch, considering my rope has a pre sewn loop so a Maverick hitch isn’t ideal

[@jrbtc]

I can't recommend it because it's not going to set as reliably or retrieve as easily. But the loop on the end of your rope is not a problem... you can still form a Maverick with it. The loop will give you a place to attach the retrieval line.

[@madbearproductions8375]

Thanks for the great information. How would you add a bosun seat to your system for all day comfort? Just wondering , thank u sir

[@jrbtc]

Bosun Chair is my oldest innovation... true story: i started out in a DIY bosun... but i didn't know it had a name. It was years later that i found out there was such a thing.

[@seanmoran1765]

Hey John thanks for the videos I learn something new on every one of them, even though im getting up to speed on most. My question that i have for you is…what once throw ball do you find yourself mostly using? Thanks

[@jrbtc]

@seanmoran1765 I prefer a 16 ounce throwball. Simply because some trees have really rough bark and 12 oz doesn't always fall... it just sits up there over the crotch and doesn't have enough weight to overcome the friction

[@seanmoran1765]

Thank you very much sir. Stay safe and good luck hunting

[@Simon-80]

what hitch knot you prefer the most? Or depends this on you climb on srt or dsrt? Or are they all as good and replaceable?

[@jrbtc]

I have a page on my website devoted to this question. A hitch is a type of knot and there are different types of hitches, such a friction hitches vs what we use on a tree trunk vs what we use on a carabiner. jrbtreeclimbing.com/content/favorite-knots/

[@Simon-80]

@@jrbtc Thank you! Perhaps my choice of words wasn't precise, as English isn't my native language. I've spent a considerable amount of time on your website, and I plan to revisit it. Specifically, I was referring to the friction hitches used on the ropes for ascending. Initially, I intend to practice your system as demonstrated, utilizing two stationary ropes-short (2 longhorns with 6mm tendon on a 9.8mm dynamic rope by Edelrid) along with the Garda Foot System, best friend, and the super munter. Thanks again!

[@Simon-80]

I recently visited your website and noticed that you recommend the Agile Hitch rather than the Longhorn Agile Friction for DSRT. Is the Longhorn considered too bulky for this application? I don't recall seeing the Longhorn Agile Friction Hitch being used in DSRT on your platform.

[@jrbtc]

@Simon-80 it's a good question. I updated the page to reflect the rationale for preference. But it does work in that application. jrbtreeclimbing.com/content/favorite-knots/