Steampunk Boone?

[ex-member BareThrills]

I dont think there is a crossover if im honest. I think it comes back to kit facilitating a function. a flint and steel will light a fire just as well a turbo lighter and a ti mug will let you brew up just as well as a tin billy. We all kip under something, in something and on something and have something to cook with and eat out of as well as something to carry it all in. I think it comes down to how you enjoy the bushcraft experience and what you want to take from it.

I love the diversity of bushcraft and every meet i go to provides me with new things to consider. I think we all need to remember its a broad subject with lots of facets and respect different methods of enjoying the woods.

Right im off to the lakes for the weekend with lots of modern stuff. I have packed my brass parafin lantern and swiss folding candle though cos LEDs just dont cut it when you want a romantic weekend with jacko1066

 

[Big Stu 12]

I dont think there is a crossover if im honest.
Right im off to the lakes for the weekend with lots of modern stuff. I have packed my brass parafin lantern and swiss folding candle though cos LEDs just dont cut it when you want a romantic weekend with jacko1066

I am with you... as far as the kit goes, in this moden day yes we use both to suit our needs, and our requirments, and our feelings.

As far as Boone goes... thats what made guys like them the men they were...... its what they had to get on with their lives in the envorioment... very differnt to man these days...

its easy to hypothersis and say if Boone had this... simples he did not....

One of the Suffolk Guys did say that he wish he could do the Boone Challenge because he liked the romnace of it... really to be honest thats all it is... the romance of the old times.... just like the glow from an old style candle, or the glow of the fire... it makes us feel good.. and if it does that.....mmmmmmm, thats good with me.

 

[rg598]

Following up on my previous post...
If Daniel Boone had axess to 21 century kit for his job then he would go light. He would have:

Tarp tent of some sort
Light weight rucksack
Light weight sleeping system
He would use a wood fire for cooking as much as possible but may carry a simple "low smoke/odor" stove for use when indians are nearby
He would carry a light rifle with scope to supplement his rations which would be mainly carbs and fat
A light fishing kit for the same as above
He would forage when possible but mainly as a means of adding vitamins and nutrition - not for calories
He would carry some sort of tool(s) so that he could easily cut firewood, improvise shelters and other things when necesarry.

This list is not complete but my point is that he would carry as light kit as possible but still be able to be partly self sufficient in order to expand his range as well as being able to "make it back" if his kit fails or is lost.
A modern lightweight backpacker with some means to live off the land as well as survive an equipment loss/failure...

You are right about Skurka. He does not hunt, and I am not sure if he fishes on any of his trips. He does resupply on long distance trips, but so did Boone. I think his gear otherwise is a good measure of what someone who travels long distances on foot would carry. If you want more in debt discussion of appropriate hunting gear for such conditions, check out Rokslide or other places that focus on backpack hunting.

I think the list you give of the gear he would have used is spot on. The only thing I will say is that the more of the gear on this list you have, the less important tools become. With a tent and sleeping bag, a large axe for wood gathering, something which would have been a necessity for surviving the night in the past, becomes much less relevant. I know we always say "what if", but the truth is that if I have lost all my shelter because my pack is now floating down river, my axe is almost certainly strapped to that pack right next to the tent and sleeping bag. Cutting tools are certainly needed, but they decrease significantly with the availability of other gear. As much as I love axes, all of my wood cutting needs these days as required by my shelter system are accomplished with a Bahco Laplander and a knife.

I think weight considerations would have been central in gear selection, much like they were at the time Boone actually lived. Or... who knows. Maybe his first gear purchase if he was around now would be a hollow handle, saw back, gut hook, cerated edge knife with a 10 inch blade.

 

[Husky]

I dont think there is a crossover if im honest. I think it comes back to kit facilitating a function. a flint and steel will light a fire just as well a turbo lighter and a ti mug will let you brew up just as well as a tin billy. We all kip under something, in something and on something and have something to cook with and eat out of as well as something to carry it all in.

I think that sums it up very well actually. Boone and his peers did the way they did because they had to and when we in the space age, with all the new kit available to us, try to do the same thing it turns out that it is still the best way to do it. If you cut your kit down to the simplest, most effective minimum then the only difference is material and even there we are going back to merino wool and ventile cotton. Ultralight backpacking seems to be a sort of convergent evolution - a different goal but the same result...

 

[Husky]

..its easy to hypothersis and say if Boone had this... simples he did not....

One of the Suffolk Guys did say that he wish he could do the Boone Challenge because he liked the romnace of it... really to be honest thats all it is... the romance of the old times.... just like the glow from an old style candle, or the glow of the fire... it makes us feel good.. and if it does that.....mmmmmmm, thats good with me.

You seem defensive and somehow insulted by this thread. That was definitely not my intention and I don't understand why you would take it that way.
Hypothesizing about Boone having modern kit is in no way diminishing neither him nor your recent challenge - quite the opposite! Boone had it right and you guys realized this and had a go at it which has got the rest of us thinking. That it makes us feel good is THE point! Not to prove if something is better or not.

 

[Big Stu 12]

You seem defensive and somehow insulted by this thread. That was definitely not my intention and I don't understand why you would take it that way.
Hypothesizing about Boone having modern kit is in no way diminishing neither him nor your recent challenge - quite the opposite! Boone had it right and you guys realized this and had a go at it which has got the rest of us thinking. That it makes us feel good is THE point! Not to prove if something is better or not.

Na Not defensive or insulted by the thread, and I did not mean to make it sound that way, and I think most that know me would know I am more likely walk away from an argument..and like a good discussion, it furthers understanding,

I apologize to every one if it has been taken that way,

I ran the challenge and added a twist to Sam's original, I think everyone that did it was quite surprised how much came out of it,

I am speaking to the landowner at the moment on running another next year, to push things further.. more info to follow...

 

[ex-member BareThrills]

Na Not defensive or insulted by the thread, and I did not mean to make it sound that way, and I think most that know me would know I am more likely walk away from an argument..and like a good discussion, it furthers understanding,

I apologize to every one if it has been taken that way,

I ran the challenge and added a twist to Sam's original, I think everyone that did it was quite surprised how much came out of it,

I am speaking to the landowner at the moment on running another next year, to push things further.. more info to follow...

Ill be up for that Stu. Hopefully ill have lost enough weight to fit in my Czech bed roll and be comfortable lol. I like your comment about the romanticism of the old ways. modern kit deffo doesnt have as much soul as traditional gear and I always like to feel the love

Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk 2

 

[Big Stu 12]

Ill be up for that Stu. Hopefully ill have lost enough weight to fit in my Czech bed roll and be comfortable lol. I like your comment about the romanticism of the old ways. modern kit deffo doesnt have as much soul as traditional gear and I always like to feel the love

Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk 2

You'rd be welcome Paul, it a great experience, and I have to agree with my mate about the Romance, and as you say the kit does have more soul

 

[Tengu]

Whats to say he wouldn't give up the woods and have a nice comfy job in a warm office?

 

[Husky]

The thoughts that initiated the thread were about what kind of development of equipment has happened since then and what would a similar undertaking look like today.
I hadn't put much thought into it when I threw it out there and was hoping for some different perspectives. Perhaps a better way to phrase the original question is: what is the modern equivalent of D.B.?
There have actually been some similar exploration done in recent times where people have not only tried to do something ridiculous like "be the first to climb peak X on a unicycle".
As said the crossing of the entire amazon on foot was a first because it has not succeeded before rather then never been tried. Others like Janne Corax crossing of the Chang Tang plateau are examples to perhaps have a look at. So far my conclusion, which was actually pointed out to me by an other poster, is that what mainly has changed is weight.
I would have guessed that it would be something more technical...

 

[Husky]

Sorry, double post and can not seem to be able to delete...

 

[Husky]

Whats to say he wouldn't give up the woods and have a nice comfy job in a warm office?

Because what you learn to love as a child stays with you all your life and Boone loved the outdoors from the start.

 

[jacko1066]

Hi guys, I don't particularly no a lot about Boone but I do get the idea.

For me I think there is a cross over between modern and the older kit.

I think that those guys would have taken the lightest most durable equipment that was within there budget, and that's exactly the same thing I do now.

The only difference being is the choice we have now compared to those guys in the Boone era.

Another facisinating way to look at it would be to see what the guys before Boone and co took on there long hunting trips and then compare it to Boone and then to the modern day.

I think if titanium and good lighters were available for Boone he would have taken it for sure as it makes his life far easier at camp.

Sorry if any of the above has been posted before or if I have completely missed the point above.

But a brilliant thought inspiring thread, thanks to the op for starting it.

Atb
Steve

 

[mrcharly]

The thoughts that initiated the thread were about what kind of development of equipment has happened since then and what would a similar undertaking look like today.
I hadn't put much thought into it when I threw it out there and was hoping for some different perspectives. Perhaps a better way to phrase the original question is: what is the modern equivalent of D.B.?.

One thing that has changed hugely is communication. Sat nav and satellite phones make everything very different.

There is a lass attempting to circumnavigate the world solely under human power (walking, cycling, rowing, kayaking). She's just become the first person to row from Japan to Alaska. It took 4 months! Her mental stamina is just incredible.

I'm talking about sarah outen, if anyone is curious.

 

[rg598]

The thoughts that initiated the thread were about what kind of development of equipment has happened since then and what would a similar undertaking look like today.

Well, I think the answer at least in part depends on what you mean by "a similar undertaking". I think the reason why we are getting such different answers is because we are each interpreting that differently. Do you mean an undertaking of similar difficulty level? Do you mean an undertaking requiring similar physical endurance or bravery? Do you mean an undertaking which requires you to be in the wilderness for a similar length of time? Do you mean an activity which requires a similar level of suffering? There are modern equivalents in each category.

The way I interpreted the question was in terms of the equipment required to conduct a similar length trip into the wilderness. Using that interpretation, there have been numerous advances which a long distance traveler through the woods would utilize.

The weight reduction of gear is an obvious one, but that weight reduction also has a clear effect on many other aspects of gear selection. For example, lower weight for insulation means that one can travel in very cold weather without the need for large wood processing tools. They are no less useful, but the need for them is not the same. One can travel faster, not just because of the lower weight, but also because it takes less time to set up camp, cook food, etc.

Separate from that there are definite developments in technology which increase the range and capability of the traveler. Ice axes, crampons, pack rafts, satellite navigation, waterproof clothing, medications, etc. make a big difference.

Again, if we that interpretation, there are numerous people who do similar trips these days. We can look at them to see what their choices are. There are plenty of people who go on long distance, long duration hunts. Similarly there are a lot of people who travel over great distances and over difficult terrain. Looking at all of them together should let us create a fairly accurate image of a modern Daniel Boone, and to replicate his exploits to the extent that current laws allow.

 

[Husky]

Well... yes! Good point(s).
What I meant was being out in the wild for a length of time and being totally self reliant.
Perhaps Boone as a long hunter did resupply every few days/weeks but I was actually thinking more of those before, and after, him who went a year or more without resupplying.

One thing that is difficult to recreate is the unknown.
Boone often did not know where he was going and what obstacles he would have to overcome.
Going out for a long distance hunt or a long trek we still have a very good idea of what we need and exactly when we will need it.
We will bring a packraft when we know that we will encounter a river and have chosen to cross it while Boone had to have the tools and skills to make a boat or raft as need arose.

 

[crosslandkelly]

The Inuit and the Sammi live that way now, sure they have access to modern material, but they are living a hunter gatherer lifestyle above the Arctic circle, in much the way they have done for centuries. It's the knowledge they possess, rather than modern kit that allows them to survive. Early American settlers adopted
native American practices to survive and thrive, Boone would have had access to this knowledge.

 

[rg598]

Well... yes! Good point(s).
What I meant was being out in the wild for a length of time and being totally self reliant.
Perhaps Boone as a long hunter did resupply every few days/weeks but I was actually thinking more of those before, and after, him who went a year or more without resupplying.

As far as I know, there were no people before or after who went into the woods with just the gear on their back and lived there for a year or more in a self sufficient manner. They always either had extensive supplies with them, often carried by horse back, or they were with a team which did the same. People who went into the wilderness in those days did it exactly the way modern people do it when they go into the woods. They study maps, try to find information, and then prepare a gear list and food supply for the duration of the trip. Actually looking at journals and reports from that time period, we can see detailed gear lists, food rations, and resupply plans.

The image of a lone woodsman traveling through the unexplored wilderness for years at a time, relying just on his rifle and axe is purely a theoretical one. The reality was much different. It is hard to say what the modern equivalent of an imaginary character from the past would be.

That being said however, if we are talking about such a theoretical character, the main difference in the approach to the wilderness between him and a modern equivalent would be modern laws. While someone a few centuries ago could kill game without any thought about fair chase, bag limits, or tags, a modern woodsman must comply with all those regulations. Even so however, if we look at the right time of year, when such hunting is allowed, we can see modern woodsmen and the gear they carry. Look at a modern elk hunter who is out for two weeks or more, and I think we can get a very good idea of what someone like Boone would have carried.

 

[dave89]

You are all modern day people so if you had to plan a long trip whatever you would take is likley what he would do

 

[The Cumbrian]

Interesting thread.

After reading his books, I think that RM Patterson, Albert Faile and others of that ilk and time ( inter war years ) would have been amongst the last people to have travelled in Boone's way, with equipment that he would recognise. Patterson used an eiderdown in the winter though, and had a sleeping bag made from a Jaeger blanket for less extreme conditions.

As to what Boone would have taken if he had access to modern kit, maybe he was as prone as any of us to be in the travelling light group, or perhaps he would be a traditionalist who loved wool and canvas etc.

Cheers, Michael.