Bushcraft Club thread

Crapbag wrote: »

Not sure. Maybe February or when the weather gets better. I would like to do our normal meet aswell jas this. Might have a go at cold forging first one first. You up next weekend?

No on my course that weekend. Hopefully the next meet.

neolithic wrote: »

angland27

I'll take the piece of track if it's still going.
Check this out using re-bar http://www.sablade.com/forums/showthread.php?886-Rebar-knives-in-progress-photos some good information although from what I understand the quality of the steel in the re-bar may vary but if you can pick up some it can be good to practice on and you may get very good results.
Either way there is some good information on forging.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rebar

irishlostboy,
Tim , I really like the bow saw pictured (although I'm sure I've met the little fellow before in Cavan.) if you have any input on the forging we would be glad to hear it. Thanks
T.

Have a 14" piece for you. It is heavy stuff. Took 40 min to cut. Will bring to the next meet I get to. J

Im well empressed with the shelters. Sorry I missed the few days. Look forward to meeting up soon.

Hey Chris,

I'd recommend it (almost) without reservation. Blind Horse Knives are brilliant in my opinion. A little heavy but solid. My knife is one that was commissioned by The Canteen Shop and is only sold through their website (see review here) The knife is excellent but the only downside is that the blade cut through the side of the sheath when I put it in the other day. This might have been due to lack of care on my part, or it might be that the blade isn't quite compatible with their standard sheaths, seeing as it is a bit of a custom job.

You might be better off with the bushcrafter by BHK. This is their flagship knife and I reckon the sheath might be better moulded to it.

Jim

Well you know what the bushcraft gurus all say; "A sharp knife is a safe knife". In that case my knives are all VERY safe. Still cut myself from time to time though. Maybe they're not "safe" enough yet.....

jamesieboy wrote: »

Well you know what the bushcraft gurus all say; "A sharp knife is a safe knife". In that case my knives are all VERY safe. Still cut myself from time to time though. Maybe they're not "safe" enough yet.....

As my dad just found out a sharp knife cut deep. Was showing him a knife I just sharpened. Ran his tumb over the edge and brew blood. I had a giggle though.

Am going to cook a leg of lamb in a ground oven today. Got some tips from T. Never tried it before so will let you know how i got on later.

Sorry for the lateness in getting this one up. Couldnt find my camera cable.

Last weekend was a great weekend as the weather and the forgaging were good to us. The Sun shone for the whole weekend and we got a good bit done. This time of year, its definitely time to break out the ID books and get your eye in for useful plants. We saw a huge amount wild edibles

- Primrose
- Golden Saxifrage
- Lesser Celandine
- Wild Ramsons
- Fresh Beech leaves
- Hawthorn leaves
- Wood Sorrel
- Pignuts



and many more! The new shoots were up and peoples eyes were lit up by edibles we havent seen in a year. It looked a little strange seeing 5 people digging through the muck for pignuts but I think everyone enjoyed it.



Other activities we go up to included, trap building, basket making, birch tree tapping, spoon carving and the old trusty bow drill (Fire board)





Special thanks to Paul for supplying the Lamb and doing the ground oven.



We had a great weekend and there was plenty of activity to keep us busy. There is no gathering next month as 11 members are heading to Karlsborg in Sweden for the clubs annual overseas trip.

Crapbag wrote: »

Our annual trip took us to my favourite European Country. Sweden. For me, Sweden has it all from a bushcraft perspective. The Summers tend to be decent, the Winter brings the snow. The people are friendly and most speak decent english. It has such variety throughout its length that it is a great choice to do a cheap foreign trip.

Our plan was to head to Karlsborg. The town is home to a well known Blacksmith in bushcrafting terms. It is also the HQ for the Swedish Military Survival school. So for a Spring trip, it had a lot going for it.

We would camp for the first few days near Karlsborg and then head North to Orebro to meet some friends from Sweden.

With 11 people going, we rented 3 estates and cheap Ryanair flights. Out plan was to camp for the 5 days near the towns of interest

Day 1 started in Stockholm with Blue skies and high spirits. After picking up the cars we headed west and into the rain. It was fairly constant and heavy which put thought in everyones head "Is this the weather for the week?". The first night we set up near Tiveden, the national park. After a quick look around we found an area. Experience and routine meant we had camp ready in no time. It was smokey rain evening and everyone was tired from the 4am start. However people were looking forward to the next day



Day 2 It was a day many had been looking forward to. After ringing up the night before, we got to meet Julius Petterson. Julius supplies knives to Ray Mears and helped Ray develop his woodlore design. From a bushcraft perspective, he is one of the top knife maker. A true gentleman, he showed us around his forge and spent some time displaying his crafts and knowledge. Of course people couldnt resist and a few knives were bought. He decided to join us for lunch and we really enjoyed his company. It was a great day and everyone came out smiling, including Julius





We headed into the national park for a wander. The Sun decided to show itself and we got some gear dried out.



Some using more interesting methods of drying than others. We drove around for a bit looking for a suitable camp spot.

Day 3 Another treat was getting to meet lads from the Swedish Survival Guild whom I know through personal contacts. These guys, both Military Survival and Civilian Bushcraft/Survival instructors, really knew their land. We hike around the Hills of Orebro learning from them and about Sweden and its conditions. They had a great sense of humour and were very generous with their time. Knowledgeable and friendly, they were a pleasure to listen to.





They showed us their area where they run courses and we camped their for the evening.

Day 4 We were on our own time now and decided to use it. Some of the lads fished, others practice trap making, fire lighting using local Swedish resources, wood carving, moose tracking and other activities. Two of the lads caught some Crayfish in the local river which went down a treat that evening.





Day 5 An early start had us up and out early. We headed back to airport but not before we did some shopping. Some got more than they bargined for ... but thats a story for the campfire ;-)

Overall the trip was a great success and everyone had a good time. Our June meet is open to new comers and the dates will be up on our website shortly[/Quote
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Itlooks likeyou all had a great time. Hope on hope to get out soon. Jon

Hello,
I am planning a holiday to Ireland this August and would like to meet up with some fellow bushcrafters as part of my trip. I am fairly new to it all and would appreciate the chance to learn some new skills and chat to like minded people. If anyone knows of any events this August please let me know.
Cheers

Bushcraft ranges a whole host of skills and types of activities. From the relaxing weekends spent swaying in a hammock to the more challenging affair of testing your own abilities using skills which you have learned.

I met up with two friends of mine, Paul and Andy, who run NI Survival school up North. Our challenge was to use only 2 items (a knife and metal cup) with only the clothes on our back for 3 days . We had to achieve the basics of bushcraft which would be Shelter, Fire, Water and Food. A common question that people pose in bushcraft, is 'if you only had one item to take with you into a bad situation, what would it be?' My answer is always, 'a solid person beside you'. I value this more than any piece of kit I could bring. I was lucky in that I had 2.

If you are considering doing something like this, dont be foolish and bring only the items you are challenging yourself to use. Bring a full kit with you in case something goes wrong. You can choose to only use a few items as a challenge but you have the backup of your equipment close to hand. There is no point in making a practice scenario into a really bad situation due to lack of preparation.

I constructed this shelter is no tools. I did find some cut logs for my fire reflector but eveything else was either picked up by hand or broken off. No saw, knife or axe. Andy and Pauls shelter was the same. A good shelter is hugely important. Its a good idea to make a shelter that isnt dependent on fire for warmth if you aren't confident of getting a fire going.



Paul and Andy's Shelter



Our next challenge was fire. After a few attempts with the hand drill, we decided to conserve energy by using the bow drill method. I donated my boot lace for this one. It took over 3 hours and all 3 of us getting involved in both preparing the materials and firing up the set in order to get it to go. All 3 of us have quite a bit of experience doing this and still found it tough. It gives you a new respect for fire when you're cold and hungry.



Next was water. This was the main use of the metal mug. Thankfully we had a river near by which we could get water from. We boiled it both in our mugs and also in a glass bottle we found. Of course, it got a good wash first.



Lastly is food. When you are working hard to make shelters, collect materials, light fire, you burn quite a large amount of calories and get hungry quickly. All food had to be sourced from the wilds. So we foraged for a few plants we knew to try keep the energy up. Your body changes and adapts to a lack of food. When the body has burnt the easy access carbohydrates, it begins to convert fat into a usable energy souce, which is a slower process. When you're tired, its important to listen to the body and rest for short periods to allow the body process and build back up your energy levels.



We scouted the local area for potential hunting spoils. There was plenty out there but unfortunately we were unlucky after a few attempts with primitive tools. It would take a little longer to prepare correctly for hunting and trapping but we did get close on occasion.

It was a great exercise and the 2 lads are a fountain of knowledge. Extremely enthusiastic and experienced. Im lucky to have people like this to call on and head out to the woods with. Congrats on their school being open 1 year this month. Cheers for a great weekend

Hi Jester,
A lot of us use the Thermarest range of sleeping mats. I use the Neoair All Season myself.

Good luck with the Hammock,

Eoin

Jester,
It cost me about €135 which is a lot I know but worth it in my opinion. Not hard to inflate but does take a few puffs. I usually do it in two attempts so as not to get lightheaded...
It packs away small enough. I measured it there but just to warn you, i didn't do a particularly good job of packing it small the other day after using it as the ground was wet.
It measures 25cm in length and 40cm in girth. Can be packed a bit neater too though. A lot smaller than my foam mat!!

Eoin