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I was re-reading Mors Kochanski's Northern Bushcraft the other day and came across something that had niggled me at the first reading of the book. In Chapter 11, 'The Moose', Kochanski states that amongst Northern peoples "A family of four may consume 80 moose a year, compared to about three...

On Sunday afternoon, while I was sitting half asleep and replete after a good lunch and a hard morning's work clearing a tree that had been blown down across the stream, I had a call from a neighbour. A walker had reported an injured deer caught in a fence. Could I come and assist? When I got...

By heck! Today was the wettest day's beating I can remember. It didn't let up all day, and some of those gusts really stung the cheek: felt like hail, but wasn't. I am not a regular beater, but I like to help my neighbour (who runs a shoot) when he is short of numbers. I think I just might be...

Went out to fetch in my wife's horse at about 15.50 this afternoon. Just as I was opening the field gate, I noticed a barn owl quartering down near the hedgerow along one side of the paddock. I stood very still to watch it and held the top latch of the gate to prevent it clanging. The owl came...

Well that's torn it! In the last of his River Cottage - Gone Fishing series, I see that Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall and his chums gave a general thumbs up to the culinary merits of carp. I gather, also, that some of our new-found friends from the EC accession countries of Eastern Europe have...

I do get mightily hacked off when a perfectly good product design is tinkered with by the manufacturers. I was at our local market today and bought a few of my favourite 'Clipper' butane lighters: a couple in 'bushcraft orange' and two in hi-vis pale blue. Upon my return home, and on closer...

"There's a yarn or two in every Swanni." I was told today by someone who deals in these things that Swanndri had gone tits up. I haven't verified this, but my source is an old friend. It always amazes me that companies with established brand names and almost cult followings can somehow (even...

You might think it strange that I mention this, given my condemnation of matches in another recent thread, but here goes... The other day, my wife bought a box of The Orignal Cook's Matches to replace a box of the same kind that we'd had for some time and that had recently run out. I was...

This will seem heretical to many, I'm sure, but I long ago came to the conclusion that matches were a pretty poor option for firestarting in the contexts of camping or wilderness survival. You only get one light from a match. If it's a damp match you get no light and tend to crumble the...

We've just had warning of fairly general snowfall in mainland UK for tomorrow. Could be as much as 6-7 inches down here in the South East. We don't 'do' winter very well here in Britain, do we? We seem to fall apart at the seams with the lightest dusting of snow. How on earth do those...

I would imagine that everyone on these forums would share my sentiments, following the death, last night, of Rachel Mears. Rachel was a lovely lady, with a great zest for life, and she bore her fight against cancer with great fortitude. Our respectful sympathies must go to Ray (her...

This afternoon, I was driving back from taking my Mum and an old family friend to the pub for lunch. I decided the return journey would be via a small back lane near Bewl Water, so that we could look at the primroses and 'wooden enemies' and try and spot some early purple orchids. This...

We have a snow white squirrel in our wood this winter. I first saw it several weeks ago, but then didn't see it for a while until just half-an-hour ago, when I went out with the dogs. Albinism is quite common in mammals and birds, but I can't recall seeing an albino grey squirrel before...

I did a Google search on hypothermia, prompted by the 'Girl nearly dies in a field??' thread. I found this site which has lots of useful information on the subject and links, including a downloadable pdf on hypothermia rescue treatment. Burnt Ash

There are hardly any squirrels in our wood at the moment. This time last year, I could practically guarantee seeing or hearing squirrels up in the hornbeams (after the seeds) every time I went out. I shot quite a few last early autumn, but none since then and I'm sure there should have been...

What is it with this spoons business? I have whittled and carved all sorts of things for outdoors use, but a spoon isn't one of them. Now don't get me wrong: a spoon is a handy thing to have ...when you need one. I usually have one (or a few) in the circumstances where such a thing as a spoon...

I have been trying (In Vain) to find out more about this make of Axe It has a forged head which is stamped with Chip Chop No 1. Gilpins Cannock. The Pol is very thin and does not have a significant wedge profile. I am therefore of the opinion that it is designed for carving or rough shaping...