Modern bushcraft !?!

[santaman2000]

Fireproof racing suits/overalls are made from Proban, which is a treated cotton.

Not over here. they're made from NOMEX. Just like Combat Vehicle uniforms and Combat Flight Suits.

 

[dump of the stig]

I go bushcrafting too chill out and get away from it all, in an environment we feel at home in.
Just do what you want, I cant chill out when im damp cold and wet, if I cant get a fire going, if I don't get a good nights
sleep, if im hungry or when my foods is burnt on the outside and raw in the middle.
a few holes in your jacket so what? fundamentaly for me its all about getting the hell out of here and finding myself
in the screeches of the vixen and hoot of the owl, the rain thrashing your tarp listening to the fire as it hisses out, will
reading a good book (with that nagging feeling that its not going to blow over by the morning and packing
up is gana be a b**ch) but its ok now because im nice and warm and dry in my bag and im out there doing it!

 

[CACTUS ELF]

I go bushcrafting too chill out and get away from it all, in an environment we feel at home in.
Just do what you want, I cant chill out when im damp cold and wet, if I cant get a fire going, if I don't get a good nights
sleep, if im hungry or when my foods is burnt on the outside and raw in the middle.
a few holes in your jacket so what? fundamentaly for me its all about getting the hell out of here and finding myself
in the screeches of the vixen and hoot of the owl, the rain thrashing your tarp listening to the fire as it hisses out, will
reading a good book (with that nagging feeling that its not going to blow over by the morning and packing
up is gana be a b**ch) but its ok now because im nice and warm and dry in my bag and im out there doing it!

Do you take your phone/laptop with you too? To keep up to date with the latest goings on at bcuk. I dont think anyone has mentioned the use of computers in modern bushcraft. They're great when you want to make shelter, keep warm, cook bannok etc all at the push of a button who needs years of experience in the woods when you have wikibushcraft at your finger tips dont think my phones made of wool or gortex though

 

[dump of the stig]

A HA! see I knew it was in there some where! bushcraft snobbery, like I say just like any hobby or sport!
you have the purists and then you have the mods! each will look down there nose at each other (like you have just done)
Way I see it is you have your cavemen and then you have your modern adventurers.
Im somebody in between, I have no allegiance to either side, I just make my time as comfortable as possible
using the most basic stuff I can, I treat the whole thing as a learning experience, will making my experience
as comfortable as possible. if you want to walk around with a deer skull on your head and a big stick that's fine.
Maybe impress everyone with your flint and steel that's fine. I would never dream about having a dig at you
for that, that is your idea of bushcraft, I thought even basic man used everything at his disposal to make his
life easier, that's how we as a race have come so far, but will say when your clicking away with your bit of
flint after a bad nights sleep and everything is wet, and I make a hot brew on my paraffin stove the answer
is YES! you can have a cup (as long as you throw away that ridiculous stags head because it stinks and its
unhygienic around camp

 

[Jared]

Do you take your phone/laptop with you too? To keep up to date with the latest goings on at bcuk. I dont think anyone has mentioned the use of computers in modern bushcraft. They're great when you want to make shelter, keep warm, cook bannok etc all at the push of a button who needs years of experience in the woods when you have wikibushcraft at your finger tips dont think my phones made of wool or gortex though

How about one of these http://www.meetearl.com/

A Survival Tablet...

 

[CACTUS ELF]

A HA! see I knew it was in there some where! bushcraft snobbery, like I say just like any hobby or sport!
you have the purists and then you have the mods! each will look down there nose at each other (like you have just done)
Way I see it is you have your cavemen and then you have your modern adventurers.
Im somebody in between, I have no allegiance to either side, I just make my time as comfortable as possible
using the most basic stuff I can, I treat the whole thing as a learning experience, will making my experience
as comfortable as possible. if you want to walk around with a deer skull on your head and a big stick that's fine.
Maybe impress everyone with your flint and steel that's fine. I would never dream about having a dig at you
for that, that is your idea of bushcraft, I thought even basic man used everything at his disposal to make his
life easier, that's how we as a race have come so far, but will say when your clicking away with your bit of
flint after a bad nights sleep and everything is wet, and I make a hot brew on my paraffin stove the answer
is YES! you can have a cup (as long as you throw away that ridiculous stags head because it stinks and its
unhygienic

Bushcraft snob? Ha ha it was just a reference to the use of the internet as probably the most common tool in bushcraft in 2013 you tube is probably the first place modern man/woman would visit to gain new skill at the end of the day its 2 am and we're on a forum not in our tent/wool blanket asleep in the woods next to our fire worrying about hot ash floating onto our new jacket or stag's head hat

 

[CACTUS ELF]

Jared, it needs to be in orange and grey, BG style

 

[dump of the stig]

As a Norwegian, I must say you do a lot of weird stuff, but I can't really put my finger on what it is. Sometimes though, bushcrafters are people that really go out of their way to overcomplicate the simplest of tasks. Again I can't really give examples.

yeah google earth hasn't done the British Bushcrafter any favours, knowing our tendency to over plan things,
and then given a satellite view! we will analyse every tree and every puddle given half the chance lol
I think that's half the joy for some of us (me included) "failing too prepare is preparing too fail" as somebody
once said to me, somebody bigger and scarier once said to me.

 

[dump of the stig]

Bushcraft snob? Ha ha it was just a reference to the use of the internet as probably the most common tool in bushcraft in 2013 you tube is probably the first place modern man/woman would visit to gain new skill at the end of the day its 2 am and we're on a forum not in our tent/wool blanket asleep in the woods next to our fire worrying about hot ash floating onto our new jacket or stag's head hat

yeah just conceded a point there LOL. your alreet!

 

[Bumbler]

A HA! see I knew it was in there some where! bushcraft snobbery, like I say just like any hobby or sport!
you have the purists and then you have the mods! each will look down there nose at each other (like you have just done)
Way I see it is you have your cavemen and then you have your modern adventurers.
Im somebody in between, I have no allegiance to either side, I just make my time as comfortable as possible
using the most basic stuff I can, I treat the whole thing as a learning experience, will making my experience
as comfortable as possible. if you want to walk around with a deer skull on your head and a big stick that's fine.
Maybe impress everyone with your flint and steel that's fine. I would never dream about having a dig at you
for that, that is your idea of bushcraft, I thought even basic man used everything at his disposal to make his
life easier, that's how we as a race have come so far, but will say when your clicking away with your bit of
flint after a bad nights sleep and everything is wet, and I make a hot brew on my paraffin stove the answer
is YES! you can have a cup (as long as you throw away that ridiculous stags head because it stinks and its
unhygienic around camp

Me I choose to carry both. I have the butane burner thats fired up using a Piezo igniter that will heat me a cuppy in 100 seconds if I fancy a quick brew,
but its so much more rewarding to light a proper wood fire with flint and steel, and hang a sooty kettle over it. Not because I have to, but beacause I can, and it's fun.

I am not out there surviving, I am out there cooking myself a nice whale stew for dinner on my day off from howling kids that need a diaper change, teen rebellions, nagging wives,
bills, and responsibilities...

If I was a stone age man, transplanted to our time however. I suspect he would deem me completely insane for doing that. He would be
in a house, on the sofa, beer in hand watching the latest Dr. Who episode, with the heat turned on full blast!

 

[Squidders]

Bushcraft snob? Ha ha it was just a reference to the use of the internet as probably the most common tool in bushcraft in 2013 you tube is probably the first place modern man/woman would visit to gain new skill at the end of the day its 2 am and we're on a forum not in our tent/wool blanket asleep in the woods next to our fire worrying about hot ash floating onto our new jacket or stag's head hat

i think you are confusing an interest in bushcraft with the doing of bushcraft. BCUK is not a tool any more than two people having a conversation in a pub is a tool of bushcraft it is merely a forum for people to socialise and share ideas... And push opinions and pass judgement of course.

when the British government discuss healthcare they are not performing surgery!

so when we discuss the subject of bushcraft here we are not including the Internet in its practice or enjoyment and it certainly isn't a tool even if I learn a great deal from experienced members of the forum.

at 2am on a work night it's reasonable not to want to indulge a hobby like bushcraft, it's romantic to think that just involves being snug by a fire but the reality for most starts with a 2 hour fight through rush hour motorway traffic, a long walk in, setting up and that is something I don't want all the time.

 

[John Fenna]

In the woods where I go to play there is no phone signal - if I visit somewhere where there is a signal the phone is off.
I have a phone that only takes and makes phone calls, not one of these mini computers.
I go to the woods to enjoy the woods in the company of live humans (or just the quiet of solitude) and for me that means anyone not there with me is not welcome to intrude.
My valve powered PC stays at home - where the interweb is p*ss poor with a connection that keeps dropping out and is mainly used for work (writing articles etc) and for chatting with friends (you lot) and planning future trips into the woods.
I have no love of technology (though it was my first career choice! - I stayed in programming etc for 1 year then became a poverty struck outdoor skills instructor...) preferring the simplicity of "hands on" work.
Once I am in the woods it is " me time" and I just do what I find fun ... that is all it is about. If you want to take a computer into your woods and use that feel free - but that is not my idea of fun
Most times I go to the woods I use flint and steel to light my fire - if the weather is bad I will have either a meths stove (perhaps a home made one) or a Jet Boil as a back up so that I can be enjoying a brew while I get the fire lit the hard way
I sometimes use fire lighters to help get the fire going - home made ones though, made from recycled candle stubs and sawdust from cutting the domestic firewood supply!
Be comfortable out there!

 

[blacktimberwolf]

On that note; do you think that there is a distinctly 'British' bushcraft ? Not one founded on practices in other countries, but specific to our environments, our climatic variability, etc., ??

M

There is indeed Mary, it's called 'forum bushcraft'...........................in other countries they tend to prefer outdoor stuff......................you know what they say, " those that can do & those that can't talk about it "

It"s a shame that this thread has veered off course, give a forum member the chance to tell everyone 'his is bigger than everyone else's" & this is what you get.
Still, at least I've learnt that sea fishermen feel superior over carp fishermen. :umbrella: & that synthetic clothing can get holed by sparks & flying embers, no they don't, yes they do, nooooooooo never, oh yes they do, no they don't I tell ya, you're wrong they do, you don't know what you're talking about, of course they don't,.... do,..... don't,..... do,... don't,..... na na nana !

 

[Toddy]

That's kind of a sad indictment especially when the reality is that most of the folks I know do get out there and are active outdoors.

This forum is simply the 'virtual campfire' where complete strangers make connections with a wide range of people who share some similar interests.


My original post was more to the intent that the persistant damp (apparantly makes the UK the most difficult place to reliably light fire) the limited free roaming areas, and the restrictions on the uses of flora and fauna, as well as the results of urbanisation of the population, might have helped shape a distinct British Bushcraft.

Back to 'define Bushcraft' again, I suppose ?
So, what bushcrafty stuff have 'you' done this week ?
I've foraged, played in the mud , wee bit of carving, prepped amadou and chaga, made some cordage and sorted out dyeplants. Watched the birds, the ants and the newts Had a nosey around and seen what's growing and where, from pignuts to three cornered leeks.......and I didn't think I'd done much this week. Surprising how all the little bits add up though.

cheers,
M

 

[Elen Sentier]

Toddy said "Carry less by knowing more is an aim rarely attained by most of us.", Crossland too. I'm aiming at that but I find I need to look at and sometimes try gear to see if it works for me, and if I need it! I don't have shed-fulls of kit but I do have some and it ranges from natural fabrics to spinnaker fabric depending what the thing it's making does and what I need it to do.

Because of RA and osteoporosis I can't carry much weight so when I want to go off on my own I need ultralight gear in order to survive ... at the moment! Roll on the Paul Kirtley course in Sept and maybe I'll need a lot less .

When I go to a meet I go for different reasons - learning how to live in the woods, how I like cooking, what I like to eat, making bread in a dutch oven, how I like sleeping, fixing water (Bilbank bag+boil), learning about carving, about how to make fire, how to tie knots, what to use instead of knots, how to make clothes, loads of skill-things. And, of course, the general chitter-chatter of being with like-minded folks. I take more kit because I want to learn about it, play with it, get used to it, decide if it works for me. I'm not out there breathing mountains all on my own or, perhaps, with one special friend. It's a completely different experience and it's certainly not "glamping".

As to "British Bushcraft" ... well, we do seem to do some fierce mossies, it rains a lot, our places are relatively small compared with Asia and america and Oz, etc. Dunno if there's a "special". Britain was part of the Boreal Forest (70 degrees down to 50 degrees which is the tip oc Cornwall) so we can, did, do share all that ... except we've very little forest left and the only reindeer are up in the Cairngorms . We have lots of variety within a very small landmass, no desert though. We can manage high, low, seashore, woods, moorland, rivers, mountains ...

Dunno if any of that helps, Johnboe ... just a few thoughts.

 

[CACTUS ELF]

i think you are confusing an interest in bushcraft with the doing of bushcraft. BCUK is not a tool any more than two people having a conversation in a pub is a tool of bushcraft it is merely a forum for people to socialise and share ideas... And push opinions and pass judgement of course.

when the British government discuss healthcare they are not performing surgery!

so when we discuss the subject of bushcraft here we are not including the Internet in its practice or enjoyment and it certainly isn't a tool even if I learn a great deal from experienced members of the forum.

at 2am on a work night it's reasonable not to want to indulge a hobby like bushcraft, it's romantic to think that just involves being snug by a fire but the reality for most starts with a 2 hour fight through rush hour motorway traffic, a long walk in, setting up and that is something I don't want all the time.

Ok thanks I understand now I thought a tool was someting one used to carry out a particular task? Silly me, O and silly collins and silly google, who knew they were wrong. I think you've confused a bit of a joke with something more serious, i thought "Chill out asap" was what it was all about, maybe i'm confused about that too

I agree, it's very hard for most to get out though.

Anyway, back to modern bushcraft, maybe someone could try setting up two camps. One modern, One traditional. Then do a review.

Unfortunatly, I dont have the kit either way but one day ..............

 

[blacktimberwolf]

So, what bushcrafty stuff have 'you' done this week ?
I've foraged, played in the mud , wee bit of carving, prepped amadou and chaga, made some cordage and sorted out dyeplants. Watched the birds, the ants and the newts Had a nosey around and seen what's growing and where, from pignuts to three cornered leeks.....

cheers,
M

Oh dear..........here we go again, "let's see who can pee the highest !!!!

 

[John Fenna]

There is indeed Mary, it's called 'forum bushcraft'...........................in other countries they tend to prefer outdoor stuff......................you know what they say, " those that can do & those that can't talk about it "

It"s a shame that this thread has veered off course, give a forum member the chance to tell everyone 'his is bigger than everyone else's" & this is what you get.
Still, at least I've learnt that sea fishermen feel superior over carp fishermen. :umbrella: & that synthetic clothing can get holed by sparks & flying embers, no they don't, yes they do, nooooooooo never, oh yes they do, no they don't I tell ya, you're wrong they do, you don't know what you're talking about, of course they don't,.... do,..... don't,..... do,... don't,..... na na nana !

looks like you started it Mr timberwolf
I suggest everyone reads the OP again!

 

[Toddy]

to Blacktimbewolf;
Ehm, no. I don't do that game....wrong gender, y'know ?

My response was simply to your criticisms of the forum and the people.
Not 'all' who chatter only sit on their backsides
I don't do the holier-than-thou, I do do the 'get outside and play', I do do the 'join the conversations' and I do get rather weary of those who only seem able to stir

To quote my Mum, "Away outside and play!"

M

 

[dump of the stig]

a forum thread is kind of like a conversation, and it should be allowed to evolve as such, its no fun
and becomes static if you have somebody sat in the corner telling you must stay on topic.
its a shame when somebody digs in with no content just a criticism of how the conversation is going
I find it confusing as to why somebody would do that?
Any way off to have another crack at bannock bread (see if I cant screw that up for a 5th time)
maybe another blistering go on the bow saw :-/