China’s first female expert tree climber transforms fear of heights into thriving career

China’s first internationally certified female professional tree climber has turned a fear of heights into a career spent high in the canopy, pruning urban trees.Yu Yanling, a former track athlete from Xiamen in southeastern China’s Fujian province, was once afraid of heights. Now in her 30s, she has climbed trees as tall as 60 metres.She discovered the sport by chance at university, after seeing students suspended from branches by ropes and witnessing the joy it brought them, according to the mainland media outlet Jizhou Studio.Her athletic background helped her master the skill quickly, and after graduation she began taking on tree-related work.Yu Yanling, above, gets to grips with a troublesome tree in a residential area. Photo: QQ.comUnlike conventional pruning, which is often done from outside the canopy, professional tree climbers work from within, reaching dead or dangerous branches that machinery cannot access.On islands, in crowded residential compounds and in other places where cranes cannot operate, climbers such as Yu are often the only option.During typhoon season, she can spend whole days in trees, cutting back branches to protect nearby residents as well as the trees themselves.According to Xiamen-evening-news" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="126766" data-entity-type="organization">Xiamen Evening News, Yu is often bitten by ants and bees while working aloft and carries medicine with her as a precaution.Yu, above, China’s first woman professional tree climber, gives a talk about her work. Photo: QQ.comA single misjudgment can be serious. If she wrongly assesses the weight or tension of a branch, it could swing or fall towards her face or neck.Yu told mainland media that every time she climbs, she first works out an escape route.She said her body still trembles and her heart races when she is high above the ground, but the fear fades once she is absorbed in a competition or a job.Her work has taken her beyond pruning. Yu has climbed trees to help researchers attach tracking devices to fledglings, and has retrieved drones caught in branches for tourists.Decked out in full safety gear, Yu works her way up the trunk of a tree. Photo: QQ.comAlso, she has reportedly worked with local botanical gardens for years, collecting fruit from hoop pines for scientific research. The trees can grow to 20 metres and have sharp leaves and heavy, spiked fruit.Further ReadingYu’s rise in the niche profession has brought her awards.In 2016, she swept the women’s category at a tree-climbing competition in Taiwan. A year later, she won the women’s title at the China Tree Climbing Championship.She also became the first female tree climber on the mainland to be certified by the International Society of Arboriculture (ISA).But the profession has also drawn scrutiny. Some critics argue that climbing can damage trees or disturb birds and other wildlife.Yu rejects that view.“True tree climbers climb for the well-being of trees,” she told Sixth Tone, adding that the practice is one of the best ways to understand, care for and protect them.She has also faced doubts over whether women are suited to a job often seen as requiring strength and experience at height.On terra-firma: Yu poses for a photograph alongside some colleagues. Photo: QQ.comYu said women can have advantages in awkward positions or on thinner branches, where a lighter, more flexible body can help.“Compared with men, female tree climbers have to overcome more things. You can only keep going,” she once told the media.Her story has cast a spotlight on professional tree climbing in mainland China, a field still unfamiliar to many.“Yu is amazing. This is the first time I have heard of this profession,” one online observer wrote.Another said: “As a girl, I loved climbing trees when I was young, but people always assumed I was a boy. Seeing Yu’s story makes me feel proud of my own strengths.”