Bushcraft 101 (4 days, 3-night course)
Bush Craft 101
Start time: 8 am (first day of class)
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A confirmation email will be sent after the purchase with all class details.
Scope:
The purpose of this class is to introduce people to the Art of Bush Craft in its truest form. Essentially, camping with a minimal amount of kits while also manufacturing some needed items from the landscape. It also involves many other facets such as tracking, Plant lore, Outdoor Cooking, and Natural Navigation techniques.
We will introduce Bush Craft with the various projects, such as using the landscape to replace or create some of the kits we would normally carry. We will also introduce you to the joys of camp cooking over an open fire by preparing daily meals from raw ingredients, some of which coming from the flora around us.
This is a very LOW-intensity level class with some walking at a slow pace to observe nature, learn tree/plant species and select project materials. Sheltering is another aspect of Bush Craft that we will address in this class on a project basis, but students will be able to camp in tents or hammocks. There are no timed deliverables or qualifications in this class so no pressure.
Projects/Lessons:
Day One:
Knife and Tool Safety: Sharpening a Knife, Saw, Hatchet, Hook Knife
Introduction to safe knife grips for carving
Woods walk for fire material. We will identify tinder sources and collect materials and also discuss the selection of materials for friction fires
Demonstration on primitive fire technique: Flint and Steel - students will create charred material from a group fire and practice flint and steel fire starting
Lunch will be provided: cold sandwiches (made by students from the supplies menu)
Coffee over the fire, we will explore how to make coffee in Swedish fashion over an open fire with no fancy presses or percolators, just good old fashion Bush Coffee (Lemmel Coffee Provided)
Bow Drill: Will demonstrate everything from set creation to ember and birds nest construction
Pinch Pot Pottery, students will be supplied preprocessed clay and make standard pinch pots to be dried for firing.
Demonstration of a Simple Cook Spoon
Student Project making a Cook Spoon
Supper will be cooked as a group with provided materials in Dutch Ovens/Bush Pots (TBD)
Last Stick First Stick Discussion for Direction Finding
Introduction to Celestial Navigation and Nav Stick Exercise 200M Leg Box
Downtime
Day Two:
Breakfast provided, cold cereals, toast w/jams, and fruit (processed by students) coffee as desired, juice mixes also available.
Woods Walk to collect and identify material for making natural cordage
Demonstration and Lesson in natural cordage making (3 feet)
Lesson and project in weaving with provided materials, to create a 12’ strap that can be used for a pack harness
Lunch will be provided: cold sandwiches (made by students from the supplies menu)
Woods walk to collect material for Roy craft or Ladder Pack Frames, Bow drill Kit, and Bucksaw
Discussion and Demos on Proper Notches and Lashing for construction
Students will create a Take-Down Buck Saw
Students will create one Pack Frame of Choice
Demonstration on a blanket pack and pack frame loading
Students will create a bow drill kit from collected materials
Supper will be cooked by the Group in Bush pots with a desert (material provided TBD)
Downtime and Bow Drill practice
Day Three:
Breakfast provided, cold cereals, toast w/Jams, and fruit (processed by students) coffee as desired, juice mixes also available.
Group lesson on shelter building a framed lean and grass thatching
Demonstration on pot crane construction options cooking apparatus
Lunch will be provided: cold sandwiches (made by students from the supplies menu)
Woods Walk to collect natural material for basket weaving (May substitute bark basket - seasonal)
Demonstration and project to weave a small berry basket
Dinner group project of Spit Cooking with provided fowl mixed vegetables in a large stockpot
Fire our Clay Pots from Day 1 project
Day Four:
Breakfast provided, Cold Cereals, Toast w/Jams, and Fruit (processed by students) Coffee as desired, juice mixes also available.
Demonstration on creating a traveling Sun Compass
Woods Walk to collect material for SC-Project
Students create sun compass from 1st Stick Last Stick (set up from Day1)
Short Navigation course 100M legs
Lunch will be provided: cold sandwiches (made by students from the supplies menu)
Trapping Demonstration (one Trigger, 3 Traps)
Demonstration of Cane pole making
Woods Walk to Fishing Hole
Students Fish for Evening Meal
Supper Students will Cook Fish (If Caught) by breading and frying in Steel Pans over open coals (Supplemental fish Supplied) with Hand Made Hush Puppies Deep fried in Cast iron.
Projects finalizing
Camp Cleanup and Farewells