On The Value Of Backyard Bushcraftin'

    There is just something that is always adventurous when it comes to spending time with my bush buddy Christian. He is all of nine going on twenty and keeps me thinking young. He challenges me and helps me to see that bushcraft and being in the woods is all about being a kid.
    We all know that kids don't have a lot of fun if they are uncomfortable or feel left out or are left alone with their own fears and doubts. So if being in the woods and having fun is like being a kid, and getting in some dirt time is also about being a kid, then it presumes that we are getting comfortable with the bush.
   That is why I do not underestimate the power of the back yard when it comes to bushcraft. It is a taste of the familiar, with a mix of the wild and it works as a place to practice and walk thru the rite of passage into the wilderness. It just takes some imagination and most kids have it in spades.
   A kid just gets really only one "first time" to sleep out under the stars, before he realizes that the next time he does, it won't be his first. It will just be another night, maybe special in its own right, but not like the first. So it was with that in mind, I decided to build a small fire pit in my backyard, line it with some rocks and sand and begin to setup a camp.
   I was going to ready the camp for Christian's first night out under the stars and to spend some time with me bushcrafting, cooking, whittling and in general just having some boyish fun. I knew he was going to like it.
   As I said, I started with making a fire pit, which looks something like this...

 
 I had gotten the fire going with my bow drill set, as I figured it is the first fire in the pit I would start it with something special. Here is the bow drill set I used, a little basswood on basswood...

Then I started on some water to heat up for a good cup of tea which seemed like a good idea...

I used my stainless steel "Little Jon" grill which was made by a good bushcraft friend of mind that knows his welding. Next I put together a pot hook and setup one half of a USGI canvas shelter or "pup" tent...

After making final arrangements to pick up my bush buddy, we went out for a hike along some local trails and then returned to the backyard to cook up some good food for supper. We made vegetable shish kabobs and chicken fillets...

The chicken was looking fine...

After a pleasant evening and eating and chatting and telling stories, we both settled into our open shelters for the night. The temperatures got down to about 53°F and there were very few mosquitoes.

My bush buddy tried to sleep in, but I got him roused and awake for breakfast. He seem to roll off of his mattress pad during the night and got a little cold, so I wrapped him up in my wool blanket...

 We soon had the fire revived and hot water on to boil so we could make some cocoa and hot oatmeal for breakfast. He decided he wanted Campbells Double Noodle soup instead, go figure, but the pot hook worked great with the 10cm Zebra Billy can...

 

   In the end, it was a great time and we grew closer together. I know this will be something we will do again and again and as he gains confidence, we will be able to make that transition to the woods and the wilds and who knows, someday he may just decide to make a solo trip of his own and begin to learn the things that I have learned and to feel the kinship with the landscape and to begin to feel at home with the wilderness wherever he may go. I want him to feel the things that I have felt and to someday, share those with his son. Then I know I will have done him right.

   As the saying goes...

    A USGI Shelter Half... $20

    A 10cm Zebra Billy can...  $30

    Spending a night out under the stars with my son... priceless.

Until next time, Happy Exploring.

Confessions of a Canvas-oholic

Ok, I have to admit it. I am a canvas-oholic. At least the urge to buy canvas items for my kit does not strike me often. But then along comes this gun show and well, you know how it is.

And I don't really consider myself a traditionalist in any way, but I think that ever since my Dad bought me my first canvas boy scout pack, "the Yucca", I have always associated canvas with being in the out-of-doors and being in the wilderness in a real way. So I added this latest find to my collection, which includes my Yucca (still have it), a couple Duluth packs (a #3 and a #4), two USGI shelter halves, a Boyscout Voyager tent (which I just may convert to a hot winter shelter like IAwoodmans did), a Finnish Gas Mask bag (I love that thing and I blame BushcraftUSA member Panzer, thanks a lot brother.) and a couple of miscellaneous canvas pouches of unknown origin for tinder and other gatherings.

So now that you know the extent of my "illness", I still have not pulled the trigger on anything from Frost River nor have I considered any kind of 12 Step program. I don't really have a problem, yet. I console myself with the fact that there are many others who have it far worst than me. I could never pretend to compete with some of them, on any level, for their love of all things canvas.

With that said, here are a couple pictures of my $15 deal from a recent gun show and if you are as fond of canvas and leather as I am, you are probably already trying to think of a few good modifications for it. I will need to repair the shoulder straps a little, but otherwise it is in pretty good shape. I just might have to get the cargo pack that goes with it next. (You see how insidious canvas can get.)

Combat Field Ruck M1945

And yet another photo from the shoulder strap side...

  I think I will have to raise the should strap attachment points a little bit and possibly find a way to make the straps removable so that I can add an "over the shoulder" type strap like I have on my Finnish Gas Mask Bag. I will also consider some padding for the straps and some leather tie downs. This will be a fun pack to take out for some day trips.

   I hope this gets you considering what kind of pack works for you, whether it be a ruck for simple day hikes, something larger for the occasional overnight or the even larger 3 day packs. Whatever you consider, some kind of a container for all you stuff is an important piece of gear to consider and it is a very personal matter. In my opinion, you cannot go wrong with canvas and leather. Happy Exploring.