On Thu, 01 Jan 2004 17:43:00 -0600, Cecil Moore
wrote:

Roger Halstead wrote:
I always use a "tag line". which they refer to as an arresting
harness. Actually it's a double line with two clips and they are only
a bit over 3 feet long. So, if I slip I won't fall far, but it's gonna
hurt!

I have my Purple Martin birdhouse mounted on my tower at a height
of about 20 ft. Last year, I wished I had not been wearing my safety
harness when I was surprised by a six foot long rat snake during a
nest check. The harness forced me to face the snake when I would have
much rather jumped. :-)

Everything is a compromise:-)) Although I'd say finding the snake
would require a lot higher odds than seat belts Vs being thrown out of
a car. :-))

Bout all we have in Michigan are Rattle snakes (Missaguga - usually a
little feller) and assorted non poisonous ones. Naturally you know
which kind got me in the upper arm when trimming the hedge around the
house.sigh I was black and blue from darn near elbow to shoulder
although at least it didn't make me sick. Then again it was only
about 14 inches long.

Like you I was looking at a bird's nest, which in this case was in the
hedge. I reached in to look at the birds (4 little ones in the nest)
when I felt a burning on my upper arm. I thought I'd picked up a
splinter and the pine sap was burning until I saw the two little holes
in my arm.

The drawback to tag lines and safety belts at 100 feet is the likely
hood of coming across a Yellow jackets nest inside the mast or boom.
They are nasty tempered little suckers.

I was just looking to see if I had any photos of the nests I've run
across in the back yard up on my web site, but didn't find any. I
have a couple to put up that show one nest about a foot across.

The last two years I have destroyed about 30 to 40 nests a year on our
lot which is only 200 feet on a side.

Roger Halstead (K8RI & ARRL life member)
(N833R, S# CD-2 Worlds oldest Debonair)
www.rogerhalstead.com