A theoretical situation

[Andy B]

Ok here it is.

You awake in a massive temperate forest of deciduous and conifer trees of a variety of native british types. You are naked and have no tools.

You have to make yourself more comfortable but how. I want steps you would take and how you would take them.

Note. "I would make some cord , make some snares catch some rabbits and cook them with a fire started by friction" is not enough, ew want what plants where you go and how you do it,persoanl preferences etc. plans.

This is a good mental excersie and might help you find weak points in your skills.

Thanks for your time people and enjoy.

 

[Stuart]

ooh a good one

well there are lots of weak points in my skills so i don’t know if i would survive this

the first thing i would do is sit down for a few minutes and think though my options.

then i would go for a walk and see what was around, and call out for help
(just in case it turns out I’m only a few hundred meters from a caravan park :-D )

during my walk i would look for a place which provides me with the most resources, I would be looking for a fallen conifer or rock outcrop and along the way i would pick up wood and kindling for a fire (preferably ash if i could find some) along with some tinder’s like birch bark, honeysuckle i would also look for cramp balls (since i'm looking for ash preferably anyway)


once i had found my natural shelter (a fallen conifer or rock outcrop) and added to it until I was happy that it would keep away the elements i would make sure i had collected enough wood I would start thinking about how to make a fire (whilst also wondering where I’m going to get water from :-( if i found birch bark then i could return to see if i could tap them and collect the sap in birch bark containers)

I dont have any tools or cordage so assuming i had not picked up any flint along the way i would be left with the fire plow and a handdrill as options, i would try the handdrill and look for alder and something naturally long and stright for a drill elder perhaps (if i could remember what either looks like :-( ) i would look for a forked branch to us as my hearth and drill at the base of the fork so as not to need to cut a notch

Assuming i found some alder and something for a drill i would prepare all my tinder and kindling as set about trying to make a fire by friction
(i do however think that under these circumstances its unlikely that i would get a fire going) I would persist until I started to lose light

if i succeeded in getting an ember i would transfer it to my crampballs so that i could have several attempts igniting my tinder bundle

then i would build a long log fire in front of my bough bed and build a basic reflector behind the fire

and make sure i had enough wood to keep the fire going for the night
if i did not think i had enough wood

I would also look for some largish stones to heat in the fire and see if i could build a heated bed (depending on how good my natural shelter was and if i think it would be necessary)

I would then take a look at the stars and get myself orientated (not that it would help as i dont know where i am to begin with but it would boost my moral to know which way is north and that i had figured something else out and may help later)

i would then go to sleep (if i had not managed to make fire i would probably be uncomfortable) and think about my plan for tomorrow

Tomorrow i will try to look for a river and prehaps a fig leaf :-D

 

[mojofilter]

I would find a big leaf to hide my modesty so that any women I met wouldnt faint (or die laughing)

 

[jakunen]

Hmm, very interesting.
And possibly not as hard as in 'days of yore'.
Whilst trying to extract the piece of glass from my foot, as I was wondering around looking for site and useful plants (wild sage/hedge garlic/burr-dock etc for flavouring food, hopefully some reedmace for porridge, depending on time of year elder flowers/berries, hazel nuts, crab-apples/bulace) I'd have a nice edged tool for making cordage from honey-suckle vines and cutting any food I find/trap.
If by a river I'd make a funnel trap for fish (can't tickle for love nor money...) and try to either find a hollow log for catching crayfish or try to make a bottle trap from willow or hazel withies.
I'd also look for mosses along with sand to use to filter water .
I'd look for moss and spiders webs to use as 'bandaids'.
If I thought I was going to be there some time, I'd look for a source of clay to make some rudimentary pots for storage and save any fats from any animals/fish I managed to catch, which I could use, along with a wick made from elder pith I could use to make 'tallow' candles.
I'd also stash materials for a signal beacon, a large fire for night and a pile of green material (leaves etc) for a smoke beacon by building a framework from sticks to hold the leaves above a fire.
I'd try to find some stout bark to make some sandals tied on with vines, to protect my feet.
Hopefully I'd survive long enough to either walk to 'civilisation' or be rescued.

 

[Roving Rich]

I think i'd climb a tree and have a look at the lay of the land, see if there is a caravan park 300 yards away ? hills, mountains mean streams and water.
Finding a water supply would be my first priority.
Next shelter, somewhere nearby. No tools are required just sticks and leaves. And whatever natural resources can be put to use.
Having got a base its time for foraging. Food is top of the list followed by cordage materials. Obviously I'd keep my eyes open for any other useful resources, any flint, bowl shaped stones, clay, bones, litter (anything to hold water, or anything sharp)and started gathering tinder. I'd also look for animal tracks, especially around the water supply, see who else is living in the vicinity.
So hopefully i have located somethings i recognise to eat. :-? Beech leaves, hawthorn leaves, ramsons, blackberries, burdock, dandelions, reed mace, nuts.... I've collected some cordage material, rosebay willow herb, clematis, willow bark, pine roots, stinging nettles, wool..
Eat and make some cordage. I would be aiming at some strong cordage for a bow drill, so probably inner bark. I dunno if i could make any strong enough. Bow drill cord is a very tall order, but i have not managed a handrill fire (yet). Next more cordage, for traps and improving the shelter.
Time to go hunting. As many traps as i could set up. Fish traps and night lines for fish, snares and deadfalls for rabbit, pheasant squirrel deer or any other meat. I'd set as many as i could make hoping one would catch something.
The rest of my time is spent trying to get the fire going, pretty essential. Hunting, I'd find a throwing stick, gather some rocks (and sit in a tree above some regular tracks) make a spear and maybe a bow later on.
I'd also be fashioning things for around the camp to improve comfort. Some cooking pots to start with...
Once the traps are set and the fire is going the rest is largely keeping my moral up by keeping busy.
Thats my Bushcraft answer, in reality i would probably try and walk out.
Head in one direction, and hope to find civilisation within three days. And if this is the UK then we're never that far from civilisation. Or I'd get found by a dog walker cold hungry and naked.
Ideally ( i can dream can't I) by the time someone arrived the log cabin would be finished, I'd be dressed in buckskin and wool and there'd be larder full of smoked meats and fish and a productive garden underway :-D
Cheers
Rich

 

[Andy B]

Just out of interest, how does one make a cooking pot?

And those reponses have been inspired, well done!

 

[jakunen]

Depending on resources, you could either use clay to fashion a pot, use green wood hollowed out...

 

[Stuart]

the easiest i know of is to take a sheet of birch bark and after tidying it up
fold it into a bowl (i think this is easier if you boil it first but you dont have a container in which to boil it :-D )

then fill it with water and drop hot stones into the water to get it boiling

 

[the naughty boy]

vow never to drink so much again and start walking.surly youd never be THAT far away from anyone else.

not the answer you were looking for was it? hmm

first thing id do is to get a good long stick and grind a point on it on a rock.then go looking for something to spear like a sheep. then look for a cutting implement like a flint or sharp stone to cut up the meat and skin it for warmth.when it got too close to night fall id begin to build a decent shelter for the night and attempt to light a fire by flint or friction.no point lighting a fire first if you need to be on the move eh?....the rest can be found in any good survival manuel.....this could take pages and pages couldnt it? :-?

 

[jakunen]

True it can all be found by RTFM, but...
I know from experience that a lot of people don't RTFM.
Just goes to show what a switched on bunch us BCUKers are in that we know what to do! :-D
And aprt from thise of us who have the manual on our PDAs, who carries manuals when camping??

 

[Andy B]

Clay pots area good idea of course. I remember an old book i had but have since misplaced by a guy with a big beard about primitive living, one of the pots he made was a coil design made from a string of clay coiled up, anybody rember that book? or does it ring a bell?

 

[jakunen]

Don't know the book, but that is the easisest way to make a pot.
Coil a flat base, then build up walls and smooth out the gaps by wetting the clay and sealing the seams with your thumbs.
You can make all sorts of pots, containers, dishes and cups that way.

 

[Andy B]

Class, I will have to have a wee go at that. Do the clay pots have to be fired or just sun-dried?

 

[jakunen]

They can be sun dried, but firing obviously works better.
If you want to have a go at home, try something like Fimo or clay from an arts shop.

 

[Andy B]

And how does the fire process work, I assume a conventional oven would work as it is a drying process? Or is actual contact with fire needed?

 

[jakunen]

You just use an ordinary oven, can't remember what setting. Should say on the pack.
Or you can make a brick kiln and fire the item over charcoal. Depends how 'woodsie' you want to be

 

[Andy B]

Thanks , i will try that and report back, maybe with a picture!!

 

[jakunen]

Glad to be able to help and pass on some of my knowledge.
The whole point of joining the group!

 

[Tony]

and what would you all use for temper?

 

[jakunen]

a bigger axe?