Camp Cooking

Simple Camp Stakes With Crossbeam

"Another method to suspend your billies is by an overhead stick supported by two forked stakes driven into the ground at either end of the stone wall" (p. 81).

This is a simple system to suspend billie cans over a fire. The boys and I went on a little jaunt in the woods and decided to eat some beans.

This is not rocket science. What would have made this more effective was some adjustable pot hangers.

This is my sons first attempt at the camp stove. I'm very proud of him!!!

Fishing Spear (Part 1).

Fishing Spears

"The best spearing is over shallow sandy shallows at night with an acetylene torch or very powerful five or six cell electric torch. With fish spearing the aim is to pin the fish down with the spear rather than thrust at the fish. Move the spear slowly till it is over the fish and then jab suddenly in the strike. Fish spearing by day can be either done from a boat or raft or coracle, or from a rocky ledge. In any case you will need a sea glass or underwater goggles so that you can see clearly without any interruption by surface ripple. A sea glass can be made by cutting the bottom out of a tin and simply looking through the hole the tin provides. This will protect the water within the tin from surface ripple. Or, better still, you can put a glass bottom to the tin and secure it with sticking plaster or scotch tape. When fishing from a boat, spear as nearly vertical as possible. In spearing for fish move slowly and quietly, and allow for the angle of distortion of the water. Remember that fish have a natural protective colouring and at first they will be difficult to see. They are easiest to detect when they move, or by their shadow against the sea bottom. Fish spears should be multi-pronged for greater efficiency, and, if made of wire, are more certain if barbed" (p. 293-294).

We started out with a simple 6 foot stick.

We then split it four ways with this Bear Grylls Plain Edge Survival Knife.

Two cuts splits the stick four ways.

Tap two spacer sticks to splay out the spear points.

Sharpen the spear points (to be continued).

Bush Hoe (part 1)

Bush Hoe

 

"Select a dead or half-dead branch of hardwood, 4" to 6" [10 to 15 cm] thick, with a side branch from 5' to 6' [1.5 to 1.8 m] long and an 1½" [3.5 cm] thick coming off it at a fairly wide angle. Trim the side branch so that it is smooth. With your machete or tomahawk, trim the main branch so that it is a "hook" to the handle part. See that it is sharpened to a chisel edge. This bush hoe is quite an efficient digging tool, particularly if the digging end is fire hardened" (p. 111).

 

This project was lots of fun but did take a little bit of "sweat equity."

 

We found a Spruce tree with a long side branch (5 feet or so).

Then began cutting out the hoe using a Gransfors Bruks axe.

 

 

Slowly cutting away.

 

 

Moving around to the other side.

 

 

Once we had a notch cut around the hoe I used a Coghlan folding saw to cut it off and here is the rough product. In a future post I'll show you the finished Bush Hoe.

Fire Tongs

This was a fun project and one we were looking forward to make and use.

We cut two stickes about 3 1/2 feet long. One straight stick and one with a "Y."

Tie the two together using natural cordage. We used creeping roots found everywhere in the Seattle area. Now you have a set of fire tongs (p. 84).

Pegs & Stakes

Pegs And Stakes

"Campcraft without equipment is totally different from campcraft with equipment... and in some ways 'doing without' can be more fun. This Bushcraft book shows things that you can make and do in camp when you have no equipment except a cutting tool. Some items will be new to even the most experienced camper, and there will be much that is of value to the Boy Scout and his brother in woodcraft."

"Camping without equipment calls for a really sharp tool and a good deal of common sense. A good machete is probably the most useful of all tools for bush work. Mostly you will want sticks, either for pegs, stakes, forks or hooks and these generally can be cut from windblown branches close to the site of your camp. It is always preferable to use dead timber rather than growing wood. By using dead (but not rotten) wood you are clearing the forest floor of debris, and by avoiding cutting green wood you are helping to conserve the forests."

Bush Campcraft
 

"Even a simple item like a stake or a peg must be cut properly, and if it is to be driven into the ground it must have the head bevelled and the toe properly pointed."

 

"This is the right way - this stake will drive cleanly into the ground. It will not split when being driven be cause the head is properly bevelled" (p. 76).

Making a tent peg with a Council Tool Velvicut Hudson Bay Axe is a dream come true. It is beautiful, sharp, lightweight, and simply awesome!



Tent pegs are very easy. Notice the profile of that Velvicut Axe... a very fine edge.

 

Forks

"Generally the correct sort of fork to select is one with a perfectly straight drive from the head to the toe, and with the forked stick coming off at an angle. A fork which is to be driven into the ground must have the head bevelled and the toe pointed."

"There is a perfectly straight drive from the bevelled head right through to the toe. This fork will drive into the ground and stand securely."

"Most beginners think that the wrong way will work out all right... everyone does... the first time; then you learn that it pays to spend five minutes find the right shaped stake or fork, rather than trying to make do with a poorly selected stick" (pps. 77-78).

We wanted to "kill two birds with one stone" by picking just one stick. We then cut it in half and trimmed it up.

Here is the finished product ~ very easy ~ using a Council Tool Velvicut Premium Axe.