I cant find the post about tree saws and rec climbing. I found this link in Treebuzz for anyone who carries a tree saw or is considering carrying a saw into the tree.

Personally, I always carry a folding saw when climbing. However, I usually only climb on my own trees.

If you do carry one, please be careful

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YhEGpamZBJ4

I love this! Excellent testing setup.

My understanding is that there are more injuries requiring stitches from hand saws than there are from chain saws. Handsaws seem so safe, can cause complacency. I cut myself with one my first year of climbing, classic dumb mistake of holding the branch too close to where I was making the cut, saw jumped out of the cut and chewed on my knuckle. Lesson learned.

The video illustrates why always tie in twice when using a handsaw. Rogue climbers can ignore since they never carry hand saws. Rumor is Wild Bill can get through 4" diameter oak deadwood in 1 minute 42 seconds with his teeth! Amazing.
-AJ

Nah! That's my best time for green wood; oak deadwood's a little faster 'cause the chips are dry and don't stick to my tonsils.

Actually, I do have a little folding saw that stays in a pocket on my backpack but I usually don't have it on my harness. The main reason for that is because most forest rangers/woodlands managers that I've run across seem to get awfully nervous and suspicious when they see an arborist saw. They want us to climb wild trees as is, and leave them the same way.

The biggest problem that we rec climbers have ever faced was a situation where some pro arborists joined us for a climb in a federally protected area with some of the biggest trees in the eastern USA. A few of the pro arbs started cutting and dropping limbs from those historically significant trees onto a hiking trail while some little ol' blue-haired ladies in tennis shoes were below. They made a quick phone call to their congressman and we were thrown out of the forest by some grumpy ol' rangers. The head ranger even came up with very specific regulations against any future tree climbs in that area.

That lesson should be re-posted once a month ad infinitum, thanks Bill.
-AJ