While checking out my latest posts, she asks "Will people even know what "Bushcrafting" and "Bushlore" even is, I didnt".... Hmmmmm.... Gee, why didnt I think of that?!!
Bushlore, and Bushcrafting, basically are knowledge and skills that are as old as the Human Race. It is what has kept us alive in harsh environments, what has put food in our belly when we were hungry, and even gave us the upper edge against our enemies when they attacked in OUR neighborhood.
It is knowing how to build a fire without a Bic lighter... How to shelter for the night without a credit card and a Motel 6... How to craft tools by hand, then using those tools to build better tools...
All one has to do is a simple Web search on "Bushcraft", and a million suggestions will pop up... Some are just simple blogs like this one, others elaborate sites that have thousands of members from around the world.
Most have great information, and great people. Some have some real jerks and "Cliques" that if you dont fit into their mold, you'd be better off playing the "lurker" role and just reading. They eat their young on a regular basis and many relish newcomers who try to share "knowledge" with them... How dare they. Anyway, you will soon find the good sites from the bad. The informative from the "Zombies will soon overrun the world, stock up on your M-16's and MRE's" type of site. But just about all of them have great information to glean.
""But how do I know I would even like that kind of thing"
Just about anyone who has camped, been a Boyscout or Girlscout, or simply spent time in the woods has more than likely participated in Bushcrafting, whether they realized it or not.. How many of us spent the night in the woods with nothing but our Knapsack, a frying pan, our camping knife (you know, the one with the spoon and fork attached along with a zillion other gadgets?), and a tarpaulin? A few feet of rope, 4 whittled stakes, and you had a comfy (for a kid) shelter.. A cut up potato, a couple hot dogs, and cooked over the fire, you had a meal fit for a King!
It was those experiences that brought about my love for the outdoors, and Bushcrafting in general. My best friends Steve and Joe and myself would pack our little rucksacks, grab the .22 rifles, and off we'd go... Destination? Anywhere where we were tired of walking.. Sometimes just across the field from my house. Sometimes 3 miles from Steve's home in the middle of the woods. Sometimes half a dozen miles down a set of railroad tracks (dont think "Stand by Me" the movie didnt bring back waves of happiness)....
Back then, there were no video games. Kids didnt get nabbed in their front yards. You could take a hike (literally) out in the middle of nowhere, only give a genralized description of where you would be to your parents, and always come home dirty, hungry, tired, but with a deep satiated feeling that only those who have experienced it would understand...
Bushcrafting and Bushlore are not just for men. Or kids. It's for anyone who loves the outdoors, who loves to work with their hands and tools, and those who desire to pass on skills that if it were not for Bushcrafters, probably would have disappeared a long time ago....
Making your own walking stick
You can use old-time gear
right next to the latest
technology.
You ALWAYS create
lasting memories, and
make GREAT buddies
along the way!
Never hurts to learn about the
local wood, what its good for,
what can you make with it...
And NOTHING beats
good old meat cooked
over an open fire pit..
Pamela and I cooked
all winter on this "crude"
cooking pit. From these
Brats, to a Pork Butt
that made THE best
Pulled Pork Sandwiches.
Give it a try... Leave the Cruisliner Motorhome parked for once. Take a tent and minimum equipment. Of course, read up a bit and learn some Bushcrafting/Bushlore beforehand, and give it a try... I guarantee you, when it is all said and done, you will either have the best memory and warm feelings you have ever had, or you will be disgusted and swear you will never again go roughing it without the 5th Wheel and full hook-ups...
But my guess is, a good majority of you will be in the first group... Go on, give it a try... I dare ya... ;-)
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