On Craftin' Some Spoons

   Well here it is, September already, and actually the bushcraft adventures have continued, I have just not slowed down long enough to blog about them.
   My good friend and brother in bushcraft, Shonuffisthemaster, continues to have some success in getting a regular attendance at his Saturday morning meet-ups at the Hyland Lake Park Reserve in Bloomington, MN.
   A few Saturdays ago, I decided to leave my usual Saturday 9AM meet up at the Minneopa State Park, and head up to the twin cities to see just what kind of activity my friend had going on up there.
   I met four very nice people on that day. Well, actually closer to 3.5. Let me explain.
   In the morning, I met Appleshoe and her husband and their baby, Edric. (I think I got that right.) Anyway, we had a great time, with Shonuff' and I showing them the wonders of friction firecraft. After which, we all went out for a hike, looking for wild edibles and medicinal plants, before the afternoon session would get started at 1pm.
   I really look forward to meeting them again. We all shared a great enthusiasm for the outdoors and learning and practicing primitive ways. As a family, they were very much involved in self reliance and sustainability and will bring much to our little group.
   You can read a comment from Appleshoe posted in my previous blog article about "Backyard Bushcrafting."
   Then in the afternoon, I met Donnie. Donnie demonstrated some very good skill with friction fire and cooking and other things. I hope he is able to meet more of the others, including some of the BushcraftUSA members, who have said they plan on coming out on some Saturday.
   As Donnie and Sho' prepared for lunch, I decided to see just how long it would take to craft a wooden spoon out of some basswood that I had harvested while we were out on our hike. My goal was to finish it in the time it took to prep the fire, start the fire, prep the food and cook the food and then serve it up. I hoped it would be done by then.
   I got to work on it and after a bit, with only my SAK Farmer and my Mora spoon knives to work with, I had this rough image of a spoon...

      Within a few minutes after finishing the spoon, lunch was served and the spoon performed perfectly...

   I was really glad to have my Mora spoon knife in my kit and I have decided that it will become part of my essential gear, for with it I can forge containers and those are hard to come by in the wilderness.
   Flash forward a couple more weekends, and it is now Labor day. I had the privilege of getting out on a Saturday morning as usual and meeting with my friend and fellow bushcrafter, Sticker from BushcraftUSA. He and his family were spending a weekend in the same state park where we hold our meet-ups. So naturally I had to visit.
   While I was there, I stumbled on a great piece of basswood that was just begging to be made into a spoon. I decided that I would try for something a little larger, maybe a soup spoon or a ladle and really try to sand and finish it up nice. Here is what the roughed out version looks for now.

   This is still a work in progress and as of right now, I am slowly finishing the outside and am beginning to shape the bowl for just he thickness to allow good soup eating or ladeling.
   I have to say, making a spoon is a great bushcraft project and it sharpens your knifecraft skills to allow you even more control when it comes to making other things.
   I guess next I need to tackle the chicken stick. More on that later of course. Until next time, Happy Exploring.

Another Go With Natural Tinder In The Cold

   Saturday, February 16th, brought with it a chance for redemption for my friend Sticker and I. On our last outing together, we failed to get fire using natural tinder gathered on site and the temperature was in the single digits.
   We also did not expect the snow and ice conditions that would make our day trip such a hazard. We had experienced a few days of thawing weather so the snow in our area had started melting to slush. Then it thawed even further to form large puddles and rivers of flowing water which began running over all the hiking paths and trails. Then in a manner of hours and overnight, it froze. Finally it had started snowing and we were left with this very hidden danger at every turn and on every trail we encountered. I could not help but think of Paul Simon's song "Slip Slidden' Away". We danced a few times on the ice, but in the end neither of us "biffed" it.
   My friend Sticker gathered some cedar bark for tinder on our way out to the new campsite and we continued to pick our way out alongside the trail, following in the footprints of some rather large deer that had gone before us. They too had discovered the trail was slippery and had chosen a different path.
   We worked on making a split wood fire and practiced good fire prep and enjoyed using our latest knives, Sticker with his BK2 and myself with a Becker BK17. Both were excellent tools and got the job done in fine fashion.
   After laying down our fire base, we got it going with flint and steel and then Sticker worked at melting some snow for a cup of tea. We talked of knife mods and how he really would like a heavy cover from Rob Simpson at the Canteenshop, which has of this writing is still out of stock, be we are hopeful there will be some in stock soon.
   We enjoyed the quiet, listened to the birds and enjoyed the comradery and fellowship that comes with finding a good friend. We also enjoyed the tea and in the end, found our way out of the hazardous icy trails and frozen little ponds that made for such a fun and challenging day.
   Here is the video of that outing and I you enjoy the adventure.

This time I practiced a little more with using two video cameras. This did make for a little longer story to tell, but I think it is entertaining. If anything, it is a record of our adventure and I hope any of you my friends, will excuse the length and that it will make you want to get out and enjoy the weather and a little bushcraft adventure, no matter what the conditions. It is fun to try things and to practice and to make new friends. Until then, Happy Exploring.