Climbing gear. Throw line. Ascenders. Friction saver. Lanyard. Carabiners. Harness. Spikes. Yes, climbing trees for arborist work requires a lot of gear, and a key part of that gear is arborist climbing rope. While you’ll find countless options for rope available, only a few types of rope are suitable for tree climbing, rigging, and general arborist work. High-quality arborist rope is available in both nylon and polyester, in multiple colors and weaves, with different amounts of stretch, and in different weights. It may seem to be a lot to sort out, but we’ll make it simple here.

Color and Materials

You’ll be confronted with many colors, but the color of your climbing rope doesn’t matter for functionality in tree work. Brightly colored rope, however, is easier to spot in a tree than a black or earth-tone rope and is safer in general. It’s good to be able to quickly spot all the ropes in a tree.

All arborist rope is made from synthetic materials, usually heavy-duty nylon or polyester. Natural fiber ropes are not used for arborist work, as they’re not as strong, don’t wear as well, and degrade with moisture. Nylon is the strongest and most durable of the common materials, offering a bit more stretch than polyester. Polyester, too, is strong, less elastic, and is often used for the sheath on kernmantle ropes with a nylon core, as it has greater resistance to abrasion than nylon.

Some newer materials such as Dyneema are available but they’re substantially more expensive, so not quite as common.

Rope Construction

3-Strand Rope

The simple 3-strand rope is a traditional style, and you’ll find this type of rope made from both natural and synthetic fibers. In arborist work, Samson’s Tree-master and Pro-master are popular ropes made from polyester. Teufelberger’s Multiline II is a polyester and polyolefin composite. Three-strand rope comes in both hard lay and soft lay. Hard lay is firm and the strands are tough to separate. Soft lay looks nearly the same, but it’s softer and the strands are easy to pick and splice. With practice, you can put an eye in soft lay rope in a few minutes. A 3-strand rope is used for rigging and not for climbing, as its twisted construction will set you spinning when you take your feet off the ground.

Braided Rope

A more modern type of rope is braided rope, which can be solid braided or double braided. Solid braided rope cannot be spliced, so it must be clamped. Double braided rope uses a braided core with a braided exterior, and both share the load, though not necessarily in equal amounts. Popular variations of double-braided rope are 12 strand, 16 strand, and 24 strand.

Kernmantle Rope

Similar to braided rope, kernmantle uses a braided sheath to cover an inner core. In this case, however, the core isn’t braided but is either straight or twisted fibers. The inner core (kern) carries the load with its tensile strength, while the outer sheath (mantle) protects the core from abrasion, UV rays, and other environmental factors.

Rope Sizing

Arborist ropes come in sizes from 10-13 mm, which is about 3/8”-1/2”. Any size is strong enough to hold a human, but smaller rope is lighter, though a bit harder to hold onto. Climbers using single-rope technique usually choose a smaller rope.

Tree Climbing Rope vs Rigging Rope

You’ll be using arborist rope for both climbing and rigging, and those tasks can be optimized with different ropes. Static rope, sometimes called “bull rope,” is best for tree climbing, as it has low stretch—no more than five percent of its original length. It’s also chosen often for rappelling because of that same non-elastic quality. Dynamic rope is better for rigging, as it can stretch and absorb some shocks without a hard stop. That said, you can use either type for tree care. It just takes a bit more energy to climb with a dynamic rope, as it stretches when you move.

Types of Climbing Rope

12 Strand Climbing Rope

True Blue is a bright blue 12-strand premium climbing line that can double as a rigging rope. Engineered with a white polyester core surrounded by outer blue polyester fibers, this line provides low stretch and high strength. Available in 1/2" diameter with one or two sewn eyes, it stays firm, round, and flexible with use and requires no milking.

Is Notch Ogre the coolest looking premium 12-Strand out there? Ogre is a 100% polyester rope made with a parallel twisted core for low stretch and high strength. The abrasion-resistant outer sheath is perfect for forestry work and will maintain its shape even after extensive use. This single braid rope is also available with one or two sewn eyes.

Blue Streak is the original and only non-milking 16-strand rope. Samson engineers, in collaboration with world-class champion climbers and professionals at ArborMaster Training to develop the ultimate climbing line. This rope is available with one or two tight eye splices.

Designed specifically for the demanding needs of the professional arborist, Yale XTC Fire is the brightest version of Yale's most popular climbing line. This rope is available with a tight eye splice.

Designed for commercial arborists, Hi-Vee Braided Safety Blue by Teufelberger uses a jacket of 16-strand, tightly plied polyester over polyolefin, with Teufelberger’s trademark twisted parallel blue nylon core yarns. This rope is available with a tight eye splice.

Featuring the same construction as the popular Poison Ivy climbing rope, with a funky blue, red, and black color scheme. The 11.7mm Blue Moon combines the lightweight characteristics of 11mm ropes and the more conventional sizing of ½” climbing lines. You can get this rope with one or two tight eye splices.

With the Tachyon Ash, you’ll enjoy an unprecedented feel and exceptional performance with the latest mechanical devices. This rope’s firm yet flexible design keeps its diameter with hitches and mechanical devices even under load, reducing hand fatigue and stress.

The slightly larger diameter of the high-strength Vortex is easier to grip than the smaller Velocity, and it has the same great feeling of being broken in right out of the bag. Available with a tight eye splice, but due to rope milking issues, Samson does not recommend having two splices put on this rope.

The slightly larger diameter of the high-strength Vortex is easier to grip than the smaller Velocity, and it has the same great feeling of being broken in right out of the bag. Available with a tight eye splice, but due to rope milking issues, Samson does not recommend having two splices put on this rope.

Low stretch, high strength-to-weight ratio, and torque-free performance make the Stable Braid Rope great for the arborist. This rigging rope is highly durable, with excellent abrasion and UV resistance. It’s available with a girth eye splice, but due to rope-milking issues, Samson does not recommend having two splices put on this rope.

Ideal for arborist rigging work, the Kraken is a high-strength double-braid bull rope. The snag and abrasion-resistant polyester jacket protects a braided core that provides incredible strength and durability. Also available with one or two eye splices.

The hollow-braid construction of the Yale XTC 12 provides lower weight and excellent abrasion resistance, and it works well in natural crotches, blocks, and hardware. Its texture allows for better control in your hand, and it’s built to stay round with a 12-strand single braid of polyester and polyolefin. Also available with one or two sewn eyes.

The Tritech is Sterling’s pinnacle product in their arborist line, engineered specifically to be the ultimate in positioning lanyards. It’s an 11mm rope designed with a Technora sheath, Dyneema inner jacket, and nylon cores. Also available with one or two sewn eyes.

With extremely light construction and 32-strand cover, this rope provides ultra-smooth precision during ascents and descents on either single- or double-rope configurations. 11.8mm drenaLINE works perfectly and reliably in both applications.

The Dyneema is one of our all time favorites—made from a low-stretch, lightweight material that’s perfect for a throw line. Teufelberger's Dynaglide Endura 12 throw line is a pre-stretched, tension set 12-strand with a slick smooth finish to glide easily over crotches for better performance with lighter throw weights.

Samson’s Zing-It throw line uses Dyneema for high strength with lightweight, low stretch, and longer wear. Available in two diameters with a proprietary urethane coating for longer life and knot-holding capability.

Dyneema is high strength, low stretch, and lightweight, so Notch chose it for their Accu-line throw line. The urethane coating improves abrasion resistance, and the high-visibility color means you'll never lose track of your throw line. Lifetime warranty on materials and craftsmanship.

The Wrap Star marries high heat resistance with excellent abrasion resistance, with a firm, round shape that gives a fantastic grip. The HMPE core and a braided polyester/Technora cover promise excellent durability.

The 10mm Bee Line from Yale features a Technora and polyester cover for longer wear life. The Bee Line is not designed to be hand spliceable.