I always take about 50-70 feet of line with me that doubles for hanging food and lowering my pack. When considering rope strength, remember that a knot will reduce the strength of a rope up to half. I am a small person so I can get by with a thinner line than Jim can! Why would anyone purposely want to go down into a tree well?

Jim- does anyone use the "foating string" anymore in avalance condtions? Before beacons we used to carry a ball of florecscent string to release if caught in an avalanche. It was supposed to float on the surface so if burried someonen could find you. I am not sure if the method was proven ineffective or if it was just replaced by avalanche beacons. Or was this just a local quirk - I hardly hear of anyone knowing about it.