Bushcraft or Old Fashioned Camping?

[British Red]

There is a point to this.

The truly great people in this world don't categorise, judge or condemn. They enthuse others with their passion for a subject. I count myself as uniquely privielged to have learned a little "Bushcraft" from two men who would have laughed at the term. One was a man who believed in the concept of "one for the pot" and was willing to take a young boy with him on moonlit walks. That boy had the fieldcraft of a drunken elephant. Thank you "Uncle Bert" . The young boy used to "sneak out" for these "poaching" adventures. It was years later he learned that the landowners used to let Bert hunt whatever he wanted and Bert spoke to his parents first.

The other guy (who we have spoken of here before) was a "gentleman of the road" who hung out on Haldon Hill near Exeter. He knew more about shelter building, trapping and "living rough" than anyone I have known since. He looked a lot older than he was and died young, but he did what many of us dream of. Thank you "Smokey Joe"

They didn't care what it was called, but they nurtured a love of the land and its natural inhabitants in a young, naive, and frankly stupid and awkward lad. That lad has a huge debt to repay and will now try not to teach (which he isn't qualified to do) but to try to pass on the enthusiasm and plain joy in a natural life that others were kind enough to pass on to him


Just my thoughts

Red

 

[fred gordon]

Fire Starter - you seem to have a real problem with people who like kit.

When you posted your rant about too much kit talk, I thought you might start some threads on skills but this one seems to be another moan about kit-lovers.
:twak:

So come on, ask something that's interesting rather than trying to wind people up!

Here, Here! Discussions on appropriate kit, advice on the best buys and value for money. are all very much appreciated by people like me. As is advice on bushcraft techniques, tutorials etc. I would like to think that there is room on this site for all of us and all our interests.
Firestarter, Time to put the money where the mouth is and start giving us the benefit of your bushcraft wisdom threads I think.

 

[Emma]

You all label what you do as "Bushcraft" regardless of how you go about it.

*sticks hand up*

Actually, no, I don't.

 

[ilan]

who is happest in the great outdoors the guys with all the kit or the one without ?
each to there own

 

[Fire Starter]

There is a point to this.

The truly great people in this world don't categorise, judge or condemn. They enthuse others with their passion for a subject. I count myself as uniquely privielged to have learned a little "Bushcraft" from two men who would have laughed at the term. One was a man who believed in the concept of "one for the pot" and was willing to take a young boy with him on moonlit walks. That boy had the fieldcraft of a drunken elephant. Thank you "Uncle Bert" . The young boy used to "sneak out" for these "poaching" adventures. It was years later he learned that the landowners used to let Bert hunt whatever he wanted and Bert spoke to his parents first.

The other guy (who we have spoken of here before) was a "gentleman of the road" who hung out on Haldon Hill near Exeter. He knew more about shelter building, trapping and "living rough" than anyone I have known since. He looked a lot older than he was and died young, but he did what many of us dream of. Thank you "Smokey Joe"

They didn't care what it was called, but they nurtured a love of the land and its natural inhabitants in a young, naive, and frankly stupid and awkward lad. That lad has a huge debt to repay and will now try not to teach (which he isn't qualified to do) but to try to pass on the enthusiasm and plain joy in a natural life that others were kind enough to pass on to him


Just my thoughts

Red

I like the forum name "British Red" and I agree whole heartedly with what you are saying. I too have many old mates brought up at the tale end of the war, who lived out of the fields and hedgerows, some of them are still eating from the land and they have a huge bag of knowledge on how to get by in the British landscape.
The one thing they aren't aware of is the term Bushcraft - (fishing is fishing, camping is camping, trapping and snaring is........and so on) What interest me is why in such a short period of time everything that you do outdoors is now called bushcraft. At least when people referred to survival skills you had a rough idea of what they were on about. I suppose my next door neighbour who walks her dog in the woods is a practicing bushcrafter just because she spends time in the woods.

 

[Fire Starter]

who is happest in the great outdoors the guys with all the kit or the one without ?
each to there own

That's good ilan .But the question at the top of the thread was -:

Which one is Bushcraft and which one is just old fashioned camping?

 

[British Red]

Firestarter,

I think the big thing is to sort of shrug and say "call it what you want". Many people get really quite distressed by labels, pigeon holes and trying to categorise stuff. I have been called a "bushcrafter", "survival enthusiast", "wildlife photographer", "camper", "wild camper", "ecologist", "forager", "backpacker", "born again boy scout" and many less flattering titles I'm sure. As you say, its just skills when you come down to it. Some old, some new. I'm reminded of a very wise teacher who once told me "just get kids to read - it doesn't amtter what they read. Their tastes will change and mature the more they read". I quite like the term bushcraft as it now has a positive public perception and doesn't imply you are doing it becuase somethig went wrong. Survival implies an indavertant stumbling into a situation (which isn't the case for many of us).

Many of us have different motivations for getting out and about. Thats okay. We can still all learn form each other (or I can at least - I have a lot to learn - still ). Debates about what to call it just seem to cause anger and resentment and are generally unproductive.

Why not call it whatever you like and give us a write up on whatever is your most advanced talent - I'd love to hear more

Red

 

[Fire Starter]

Here, Here! Discussions on appropriate kit, advice on the best buys and value for money. are all very much appreciated by people like me. As is advice on bushcraft techniques, tutorials etc. I would like to think that there is room on this site for all of us and all our interests.
Firestarter, Time to put the money where the mouth is and start giving us the benefit of your bushcraft wisdom threads I think.

I don't, or have never claimed to have a wealth of bushcraft knowledge. I am the same as everyone else and come on this site to learn about bushcraft.

I have merely made a couple of observations and asked a couple of questions.

I am asking what bushcraft is? To me it appears the same as something I call camping.

Please, you tell me.

 

[boland magyar]

i think it comes down to the individual.......there skills and more inportant there comfort
boland

 

[stovie]

Question - Which one is Bushcraft and which one is just old fashioned camping?

Who cares!!!!

Get out and enjoy yourself, and don't get so hung up on semantics....

Build a tipi for G@*s sake

 

[WhichDoctor]

I am asking what bushcraft is? To me it appears the same as something I call camping.

Please, you tell me.

I think this is my concept of bushcraft, other peoples mite be different.

I would say that "bushcraft" can be best defined as a set of principles I.E. knowledge of your surroundings, respect for your surroundings, careful use of what you have and creative use of what you have around you to get what you need.

You can practice this whilst camping, in the old fashioned way, the two aren't mutually exclusive. Bushcraft is just an umbrella term for lots of things that have always been dun but haven't had a convenient collective term before.

 

[Tengu]

Some people get by with very little

But other are real gadjet freaks. This goes for certain primitives too.

We are lucky because we have access to many different cultures for our methodologies...that and plenty of gadjets.

and some folks realy need a mule train.

 

[rik_uk3]

Who cares!!!!

Get out and enjoy yourself, and don't get so hung up on semantics....

Build a tipi for G@*s sake

Spot on Stovie, you have just about summed it up for me; just enjoy yourself, and respect your surroundings; they will be there long after we have shaken off "this mortal coil" or should be, if we respect the outdoors

 

[dwardo]

This is the only bit that is important to me really, maybe swap the malt for a can or two of bitter though! And add a couple of friends to put the world to rights around the fire too, sounds like an ideal weekend.
People go fishing(coarse angling), it isn't to catch fish to eat, personally when I have been fishing I have not been particularly bothered about catching fish, but it is an excuse to get out of the house and sit around a pond/lake/river for a bit chatting and putting the world to rights. Bushcrafting/camping/"bushkitting"/bushcamping whatever you want to call it is a means to an end for me, which is to chill out in a natural enviroment. If I am doing it with the family I will take literally the kitchen sink, but it means I can't get too far away from the car, going lighter with a tarp and hammock means I have more options than a family campsite, and if I take stuff to make things more comfortable that is my choice I don't care too much whether someone thinks it isn't proper bushcraft or not, as long as I am leaving no trace and not imposing my opinions on people who cares?

I learn new things from everybody at meets wether it is someone with loads of kit or a new way of recycling milk bottles, purists may say milk bottles or beercans arent natural but isnt it just another resource to be used?

Sounds like an explanation i gave without remembering doing so nice one. I fished for years and couldent understand why the not catching thing didnt really bother me

 

[weaver]

What about a man who buys a house 50 miles out in the country, on a nice plot of trees where he is 1/2 a mile from the neighbors. He takes his wife and raises his kids there, they grow up in the woods loving their animals and learning the ways of old.

He has to work in the city but spends every free moment learning to live as a free man unencumbered by modern inconveniences.

He takes the kids camping, teaches them to make shelters, hunt, build fire in the rain and snow, craft anything they want and do fine art for fun. They read voraciously and have a whole room dedicated to library. Make music on instruments they craft and sing like angels.

Do you deny him the title of Bushcrafter?

((Never mind, that didn't make a bit of sense.))

 

[ArkAngel]

I don't, or have never claimed to have a wealth of bushcraft knowledge. I am the same as everyone else and come on this site to learn about bushcraft.

I have merely made a couple of observations and asked a couple of questions.

I am asking what bushcraft is? To me it appears the same as something I call camping.

Please, you tell me.

To be honest i had never even heard the title "Bushcraft" until Mr Mears came along in the late 90's.

All my life (all 33 years of it) as far back as i can remember.....i have shot (with my grandfather, a WW2 sniper who taught me all he knew about shooting, tracking and a general respect for the outdoors). I have hunted, fished, camped, walked, photographed, made things (VERY unsuccessfully ) and had a general good time in the outdoors either with my parents, my friends or on my own. The term "Bushcraft" seems to encompass everything i do into one nice explanation, not that i explain myself very often to people who ask what my hobbies are. My CV lists my hobbies as "Shooting, Martial Arts, Photography and the outdoors". If people ask an explanation i give one, normally the word "Bushcraft" does not pass my lips.

To you "Bushcraft" is camping...a fair explanation i think, if that is what it is to you then thats fine, it's your definition of what you do. Mine is walking with my camera in the countryside or as tomorrow i am off ferreting with my uncle. All outdoor activities that i enjoy.

While it is interesting to get peoples opinions on this i think these sorts of threads have run their course.

If you came on here to learn about bushcraft...ask about it, not the definition but something, a skill that you want to learn. You will find that people will be more than happy to help you in any way they can.

These threads serve no purpose other than to tie us up in silly explanations for a subject/lifestyle we all enjoy. Lets concentrate on a bit more substance shall we?

I'm afraid any more of these types of thread will be "self moderated" by myself and not posted in.
You want help...ask i'll help in any way i can mate
You want a definition...look in a dictionary

 

[ilan]

no i think the bushcrafter is the third man who goes into the woods with just the knowledge no knife etc . The rest are camping

 

[Glen]

I'll aproach your scenarios from a diferrent angle.

That in the first they cooked over an open fire, whittled ( OK may or may not have made anything usefull but they're in a better position to do so sholud the need arise ) provided a proportion of their food themsleves ( albeit using modern equipment ) kinda shows that certain skills (which one may or may not lable with the relitavely recent term "bushcraft" to descibe ) have not died out completely and are still there at a level that they don't really question, amongst people who probably wouldn't even think to use the term.

Having said that I do look from the perspective of someone who lives amongst a set of people many who seem to think that chicken comes off a production line wrapped in plastic and has little to do with the animal called a chicken

As someone pointed out on the other thread, it's a sliding scale, to which I'll add, not a 2 dimensional one either.

 

[typha]

I think the book "northern bushcraft" is a good example of what "bushcraft" should be.There are no hammocks, tarps, self inflating matresses, teepees, trangia stoves, kelly kettles, swanndris, ventile jackets, possibles pouches, hand made knives, rucksacks,gas stoves, lighters, mats, titanium mugs, telescopic fishing rods, reel and accessories, fire steels, sleeping bags, reindeer skins, sporks,gps, head torches, indiana jones bags,air rifles, water filters,petrol lanterns, bottles of fine malt or toilet paper to be found in the book.

 

[Fire Starter]

I think the book "northern bushcraft" is a good example of what "bushcraft" should be.There are no hammocks, tarps, self inflating matresses, teepees, trangia stoves, kelly kettles, swanndris, ventile jackets, possibles pouches, hand made knives, rucksacks,gas stoves, lighters, mats, titanium mugs, telescopic fishing rods, reel and accessories, fire steels, sleeping bags, reindeer skins, sporks,gps, head torches, indiana jones bags,air rifles, water filters,petrol lanterns, bottles of fine malt or toilet paper to be found in the book.

Do you know typha, thats exactly the way I was thinking.