There’s bushcraft.
And there’s equipment.
At the heart of bushcraft is a study of nature and the resources she can provide.
Some resources are obvious and don’t take much skill or knowledge to access; making the most of other resources requires a large knowledge (e.g. fungi) or a high level of skill (e.g. building a birch bark canoe).
And there is much to learn in between.
Given the breadth and depth of the subjects encompassed by bushcraft, it can be a little overwhelming to begin learning some of the techniques.
Where Do I Start With Bushcraft?
The best place to start is at the beginning.
The most important outdoor skill is fire-lighting. Start there. Learn the basics and build on them.
In learning to light fires well you will also learn to identify many tree species and their specific burning properties. You will learn which fungi, plants and trees provide good tinder and kindling. Some of the techniques such as feathersticks (done well) also require good carving skills.
Most people who are interested in bushcraft don’t spend enough time on their fire-lighting skills.
You could spend years refining your fire skills. Don’t be in a hurry.
All The Gear And No Idea
There is a lot of paraphernalia associated with bushcraft these days. Most of it is unnecessary. Much of it is glorified camping equipment.
As your bushcraft gains in strength, you’ll need less and less kit. Not more and more.
Those, such as the Hadza, who are truly skilled in their bushcraft, own virtually nothing. They use cheap knives that a typical “bushcrafter” would be embarrassed to have on their belt. Yet the Hadza’s skill is consummate; the steel composition or whether the blade has a “Scandi grind” is completely unimportant.
If you are a beginner, don’t be put off. Think more like the Hadza and less like a bushcraft shopping channel addict.
What Do You Need To Get Started With Bushcraft?
If you ever go outdoors, then you probably already have some clothes. You may even have a waterproof jacket. If so, then you are already equipped for a day in the woods.
If you want to stay a little longer then, as a beginner, you might need a few extra things.
When I was a kid, all you needed to sleep out in the woods was some basic camping equipment – in my case a cheap 2-man tent (for 3 of us), a rubbish sleeping bag I found in the cupboard, a tin of beans, a bottle of water and a box of matches. Since then, the woods haven’t changed. So this is still pretty much all you need. It’s nothing specific to bushcraft either. It certainly doesn’t need to cost much.
In learning bushcraft, what’s most important is a keen interest in nature. This doesn’t cost anything.
What About A Knife?
Many of the techniques of bushcraft are made easier by having a basic cutting tool. Just like the Hadza, it’s worth having a cheap yet durable knife. Mora make a range of knives that fit the bill.
You can get by with just a knife but, as a beginner, a durable little pruning saw can be helpful until your develop a full range of knife techniques. A small saw will always make some jobs easier than they are with a knife; it will also make some of them safer.
Work On Your Bushcraft Skills, Not Bushcraft Kit
Lighting fires with a small flame is a valuable skill. Practice with matches. Practice in the rain.
Then progress on to lighting natural materials with sparks. This will allow you to explore which materials will accept a spark, which will burst into flame and which will only smoulder. Then you’ll have to learn how to take the smouldering materials to a flame using other natural materials that are available.
Always be broadening the means by which you can achieve a flame. This will feed into the work you did with matches.
To start down this path, invest in a Swedish Firesteel. This will light the widest range of materials of any sparking device. Work on your material preparation and technique.
A Long And Fulfilling Road
Bushcraft isn’t about collecting kit. Learning bushcraft is about attaining knowledge and actively gaining skills.
If you exploit the full potential of the three items above in the pursuit of learning bushcraft skills, you’ll be busy for a long time to come. Your bank balance will be much healthier and your bushcraft skill level much higher.
Less is indeed more.
What do you think? Leave a comment…
Latest posts by Paul Kirtley (see all)
- The Swedish Firesteel - January 5, 2023
- Kevin Callan and Paul Kirtley in Conversation - April 25, 2020
- Kevin Callan and Ray Goodwin in Conversation - April 18, 2020
Windy
Unfortunately ‘kit’ n ‘stuff’ are synonymous with our consumer society. The accumulation of ‘stuff’ then hides the wood from the trees and the true essence of the outdoors is missed.
Its quite sad really.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b01jrlsf/Surviving_Progress/
Everyone reading Paul’s blog should have a watch of the above. Sit back, have a think.
Elen Sentier
Too right, Windy :-). Ta for the article.
Jeremiah Bess
You have captured how simple Bushcraft really is, and how bloated is can easily become. I have the philosophy that Bushcraft is more knowledge and skill, than what you carry in your bag. Dave Canterbury said it best that you want to bring things into the woods that are hard to replicate. He didn’t say impossible, he said hard. Having a great and cheap knife like the Mora allows you to focus on other skills, rather than flint knapping a new knife every time you go out.
Paul Kirtley
Hi Jeremiah,
I like your use of the word bloated; very apt.
I think Dave Canterbury’s point about taking what is hard to replicate is a very good one and worth bearing in mind.
All the best,
Paul
David Atreides
My view on bushcraft. Bushcraft – Knowledge is far more heavier than the pack on your back. Well said paul..
Barry
Paul, Well done for an simple but important article.
Its easy to believe that you need loads of kit and its nice to see an article showing people you dont. Passion and practice…
Baz
Paul Kirtley
Thanks Baz. I want to encourage as many people as possible to gain bushcraft and related outdoor skills. I’m sure some people are put off by a perception that lots of specialist kit is required.
Cheers,
Paul
Paul Shakesby
This sums up all of our experiences over the last few days, and for those who haven’t gone on a course with Paul, i cannot recommend it highly enough.
Each skill begins basic, but the course is cleverly layered so on the last day all of your skills come together.
It is nothing to do with kit!! The best advice would be to save that money and spend it on a frontier bushcraft course!
Paul Kirtley
Well said Paul! 🙂
Par
I was reading Calvin Rutstrums “The Wilderness Life” the other day. In there (in the chapter “The Wilderness Indian”) he mentions meeting up with a Cree familly. At night he mentions his top notch gear (eiderdown sleeping robe, airmattress, superlight cotton tent, all bought at considerable expense) and compares it to their kit (crude canvas tent, balsam bough bedding, rabbitskin robes) and comes to the conclusion that he is no more comfortable than they are, perhaps even less.
And I notice the same thing: I love my mosquito proof hammock and sleeping bag for the comfort, but there is actually more convenience, in a strange way, in wandering the summer woods with just a capote, cookpot and knife. Less kit to carry, less stuff, just me and the woods.
Paul Kirtley
Hi Par,
Thanks for sharing a really nice comment. It made me smile 🙂
Mark H
Thank you Paul….
The knowledge and skills taught by Paul are far more valuable than any piece of kit. Paul really brought home the message for me ,which is contained in this simple statement..”I learned how much of what we think to be necessary is superfluous. I learned how few things are essential and how essential those few things really are” (Bernard Ferguson).
Great blog,
Best
Mark
Paul Kirtley
Hi Mark,
Thanks and it’s nice to see you carrying forward this philosophy with Countrylore.
All the best,
Paul
elen sentier
What is really important needs to be carried in your head :-). I’ve got some of it but want much more. And I want to get the eye, the ability to see and know what is around me and what is useful. Looking fwd to this getting better and better, you never stop learning.
Elen
Paul Kirtley
Very true Elen – you never stop learning. I’m also amazed at the amount of useful information we can get into our heads if we really try. And when we do and it sticks, it’s there whenever we need it….
All the best,
Paul
Terry Halls
Absolutely true! Since childhood, I have been put off getting involved in many hobbies and sports because of the need for (or perceived need for) expensive kit. Having no money has helped me to not fall into that trap with bushcraft, and i find that it becomes more rewarding as I go along. I am currently making a spoon knife from an old kitchen devil….!
Paul Kirtley
That sounds like a great little project Terry. Are you keeping the original handle or creating a new one? I’d love to see a photo of the finished article…
scott
Another top article,thanks…you cannot substitute knowledge for kit.
Paul Kirtley
Thanks Scott!
Richard
Great article, clearly written – as ever. Knowledge is certainly the most useful thing that we carry, particularly as it weighs nothing. Any kit that we use is only there to make us a little more comfortable; we don’t actually ‘need’ it but it can ensure a good night’s sleep, a fire, ready shelter and safe drinking water with greater ease.
I was interested in your view on the ubiquitous Mora knife. I agree: they are superb and great value. Does make you wonder why there are folk who are prepared to pay hundreds for a similar tool, hand-made by Raven Armoury…!
Paul Kirtley
Hi Richard,
Thanks for your comment and the thought-provoking points it contains.
You make the valid observation that additional kit makes us more comfortable/safe. While I’m arguing for simplicity, the point of the article wasn’t to suggest beginners camp out in the woods with only the featured items. It was more that, over and above what most people already have (some reasonably robust clothes), all which is required to start working on specific bushcraft skills are the items in the article. I think you understand where I was coming from but I just wanted to follow on from the first paragraph of your comment so this is completely clear for anyone else reading.
As for the seeming inconsistency of my comments about Mora knives in the light of my design – and use- of the Raven PK1 :), it largely comes down to a consideration of what is necessary and what is sufficient under different circumstances.
An argument I often see amongst bushcraft enthusiasts is that best value means best. This isn’t necessarily so. It depends on how much you have to rely on something (your life?) and for what duration without the opportunity for replacement.
The Mora Companion knife is a great knife to learn with under fairly domestic circumstances but I wouldn’t recommend someone heads off into the wilds with one as their sole cutting tool. In my eyes they are too easy to break to be a reliable wilderness bushcraft knife. I’ve handed out hundreds and hundreds of these knives to students and I’ve seen many ways in which they can be broken. The main weakness is caused by the short tang. This combined with a plastic handle makes them vulnerable to damage. A full-tang knife is much more robust. Better still a full-tang knife with a blade that is at least 4mm thick will be virtually bomb-proof.
Mora knives of this design can fail while batoning even moderately-sized wood. Only last week did I snap the tang of one of my students knives while trying to baton it through a piece of wood in which they had got it stuck. Mora’s response to this weakness is that the knife is not designed for batoning. Fair enough. But batoning is an extremely useful technique if you don’t have an axe. A knife for wilderness use should be strong enough to withstand this technique. On a course I can get another one out of the box in stores. In the wilds of Canada, I can’t.
For most people beginning to learn bushcraft skills, particularly in the UK, they will not be anywhere remote. At Frontier we are clear that we are training people in wilderness skills. This informs what we teach and how we teach it, including thinking hard about what equipment they choose for different levels of remoteness. It doesn’t mean we can’t train with a Mora knife though.
A robust knife need not cost what a Raven PK1 does. Once you get past basic material costs, what you are paying for with any hand-made item is craftsmanship, experience and time. The man-hours that go into a hand-made knife make them very good value compared to paying for the time of, say, a lawyer or an accountant!
I find pens a useful analogy for knives – you can spend pence on a Bic, and this will probably do most of us most of the time. You can probably have a better writing experience, and possibly neater hand-writing on that special card or letter with a (still mass-produced) Parker pen. Some, however, will want to buy a Montblanc for the materials and craftsmanship. That doesn’t mean the rest of us have to. You’ll get 90% of the improvement with Parker.
All the best,
Paul
Par
I am of two minds when it comes to the “batoning level knife”. I have one — a custom job by a semi-renoved maker — but I also have everything from a yard sale wooden handled Mora (SEK 10, less than a pound) to handmade Sami antler-knives (still with Mora blades in at least one case…). The heavy duty knife is more durable, but not at all as nice a working blade for all other tasks as any of the others (ok, the drop point makes it a better skinning knife). Basically the question in my mind is “what do I loose when I pick a knife that is designed to do take over tasks that properly belong to the axe?”. I have no final answer…
Par
But I agree about the plastic Moras, the wooden handled ones with a full tang are better.
Paul Kirtley
That’s a very good question Par. 🙂
Par
Ahh, so you don’t know either. 🙂
Paul Kirtley
haha maybe not 🙂 But I do know it’s easier to keep a knife on my person at all times than it is to keep an axe on me at all times. So, when I’m a long way from home, I like my knife to be robust. If weight allows though, and I think I’ll have time for some craftwork, I might also take a little carving knife in my kit too.
Richard Tiley
Your arguments for both the Mora and for the Raven PK-1 are succinctly and fully explained. There was a certain amount of my tongue firmly in my cheek when I posted the comment and it was a real pleasure to see it answered in such a level-headed manner – thank you for that. In the meantime, I am still waiting for Simon to finish off my PK-1 so that I can get to grips with this wonderfully designed and made cutting tool!
Paul Kirtley
Hi Richard,
Ah-ha! Well I recognised your tongue was in cheek but I didn’t realise quite how far 🙂
Please do let me know how you get on with your PK1.
All the best,
Paul
Julian
I agree keep it small & simple, I’ve even used the my own boot laces instead of strong cord before now, you don’t have to carry the kitchen sink when enjoying bushcraft in the wilds.
Paul Kirtley
Boot laces are an often overlooked resource. I replace mine with paracord.
I think keeping things simple is part of the knack of enjoying the wilds.
All the best,
Paul
Chris Allen
Its a sad fact that so many taking up bushcraft these days are getting the wrong message when they first venture out of their cosy homes, too much emphasis on how big their knives are, what toys they have in their sacks. They forget, or rather they are not aware of the bigger picture. For me its a journey into our primitive beginnings, I think its important to remember that. The thirst for knowledge will never be sated.
Another great article, as always, a refreshing approach. Thankyou.
Paul Kirtley
Knowledge is truly king (and queen). You realise this when you meet people who are able to live by knowledge and little else.
Thanks for your comment Chris.
All the best,
Paul
Dean
Hi Paul,
I agree with everything you say. The saying ‘All the gear and no idea’ seems to sum up around 90% of all bushcrafters you meet, some have spent hundreds or even thousands of pounds on gear but ask them to make and light a fire and… You could also apply this to most sports and hobbies nowadays, it seems the need for more and more gear becomes the main focus and nothing much else. It’s just a sad reflection of our far to materialistic society we all now live in.
All the best and kindest regards
Dean
Paul Kirtley
Hi Dean,
We do indeed seem to have been very conditioned into thinking that we can buy our way into a skill level. We see it everyday in advertising – for example, want to play (enter sport of your choice) as well as the pros? Buy these trainers/shoes/boots….
What got most of the pros good was a lot of very hard work.
Same with most physical skills – you get out what you put in.
All the best,
Paul
danny
thanks for another great article paul.ive always been of the opinion that material possessions once purchased own you rather than the other way round.what always drew me to the woods is the freedom of its inhabitants and the dream that someday i could be as comfortable as them with what nature provides,while im a long way from that goal its clear that all you really need is to be taught how, just as young animals are taught and then the determination through practice to succeed in each of the skills . material possessions are my crutch at the moment but hopefully someday ill be confident enough to throw that too away.thanks again paul for this and all the other fantastic guides. danny
Paul Kirtley
My pleasure Danny 🙂
Elen Sentier
I so agree, Danny :-), particularly that it’s so easy to allow possessions to own you rather than you own them. Choice and learning to choose is what we all need. Gaining skills shows you how to do this.
There’s a lovely story about the famous pianist Alfred Cortot. One of his students came to him for the first time and noticed he just had this apparently beat-up old piano. The student (now another famous pianist) thought, “Poor old man, he must be poor”. Cortot asked the student to play for him so the sutdent, unhappily, did his best on the beat-up old piano. When he’d done, Cortot sat down at the piano and played. The student realised immediately just how much he had to learn as the sweet and beautiful music flowed out of the old piano under Cortot’s skillful hands !
Bushcraft is like that, as I see when I’m fortunate enough to go out with skillful folk like Paul … it’s the skills I need not the flashy kit *g*.
Elen
Paul Shakesby
Not to be controversial, but in terms of the “all the gear, no idea!” I do wonder sometimes
If having everything in one place in the “woodlore” shop helps.
As I said in an earlier post, you would be better saving your kit
Money and spending it on a course!
Paul Kirtley
Hi Paul,
I don’t think it’s a particularly controversial point 🙂 I think the ease of purchase of kit is a double-edged sword. While it’s true that browsing for kit is easier than working on skills (both in terms of available time and effort required – a point Stu made elsewhere in this thread), it’s also true that much of what is for sale in mainstream high-street outdoors shops in the UK cater for a very narrow range of outdoor activities. When I travel it’s interesting to see how different it is in other countries – knives, stoves, tents, jackets, canoes, fishing rods, skis, shotguns, etc can all be found under one roof.
It was once the case (10 or more years ago) that UK bushcraft schools supplied a limited range items (such as those featured in the article above) that were otherwise hard to find. They were outfitting their students with kit necessary for the skills they were teaching. This is no longer the case.
It is interesting that people will less readily part with their hard-earned for quality training than they will for quality kit. The skills will always outlast the equipment. In fact while your kit will deteriorate quickly the more you use it, your skills strengthen the more you use them…
All the best,
Paul
Dave Gregory
Good knife, a way to start a fire & the knowledge to use it is all you need!
Respect to all the followers! 🙂
Paul Kirtley
Thanks Dave! 🙂
Adrian
A knife is an inverse extension of your psyche.
A big, expensive, ‘Rambo’ knife shows that the person wielding it is trying to compensate for lack of knowledge on how to cut with a small knife.
Small knife, small folding saw and axe, tarp, cooking pot, mug, string, rucsac and your clothes… you only need something to sleep in if you’re staying out overnight.
Great article.
Paul Kirtley
Interesting point about the knife. I’d not thought of it that way before.
The article above wasn’t about camping kit but minimal kit to get started with training in bushcraft skills. You seem to have the wider kit down to the bare essentials and, particularly in the context of the article, you’re right to make the distinction about whether you are staying out.
Thanks for your comment,
Paul
Andrew. Ellison
I echo all the opinions in this great article.Sometimes we all get lost in the bushraft consumerism
and forget what is was and should be that keeps us transfixed when in the woods.
The sights, sounds and smells that transport resonate deep within us. Still, I do admire that
new knife though.
Paul Kirtley
Hi Andrew,
I think we can appreciate the beauty of nature and of hand-crafted workmanship 🙂
All the best,
Paul
MIchael Portis
First I am afraid I must partially disagree with the comment of a large knife being an extension of the psyche.A knife is a tool, whether small or large.Depending on design a large knife can be versatile with several different cutting areas for different tasks,but still a tool.
The one item that is necessary and should be carried by anyone is an OPEN MIND.
Paul Kirtley
Hi Michael,
Good to hear from you and thanks for your comment.
Yep being open minded and flexible is a key skill, particularly in a survival situation. And the best knife in a survival situation is the one you’ve got 🙂
All the best,
Paul
Stu B Adger
What a sobering article. Like the back to basics approach. It is easy to get lost in the quest for more gear, even when aware that the aim is to have greater knowledge and skill.
Of course, skill and knowledge take time and effort to grow, whereas it is so easy to browse and buy.
Save your money for face to face learning, I say. Learn from someone with the skills and the ability to teach.
Pleased to say that my firesteel, axe and knife came in handy camping recently. Furthermore I had more time to practice those skills. Making time for these skills is my biggest challenge!
Paul Kirtley
Wise words there Stu
John Swarbrick
You mean I don’t need my: Blow Poker, Ventile poncho, Leather Trimmed Sabre 45 or any of the other ‘Essential Bushcraft’ kit I’ve got ?????
Paul Kirtley
🙂
Adrian White
I entirely agree with this article. Having “kit “may make things a bit quicker or easier; having a stove is a necessity if you are somewhere that fires are prohibited, but a good solid grounding and practise (in which I for one am woefully deficient) in the basics of fire, water and shelter – together with observation, are what gets you through, and helps you to be comfortable in your surroundings.
Paul Kirtley
Thanks Adrian. The more highly trained/skillful you are, the more you can cope with. For example, what for one person is a slightly tricky fire-lighting exercise in the rain at the end of a tiring day’s canoeing, is another person’s survival situation.
All the best,
Paul
Steve Bayley
Lets just spare a moment to look back through Paul’s Blog. There are plenty of articles about choosing good kit and appropriate clothing to be found there. Whilst I agree that Bushcraft isn’t all about kit, the right kit makes life easier. I don’t think anyone regularly goes out to be uncomfortable or equipped in such a way to put themselves at risk. Going out with a minimum of kit is liberating and can be testing but there isn’t a right way and a wrong way to experience the natural world. There are techniques that work and some that are more reliable or efficient than others. Some techniques don’t work or have a negative environmental impact. I think that with this article Paul is trying to point out that knowledge and understanding are the key and that an open and enquiring mind is more important than kit. The keep it simple mantra is a good one as poor kit can lead to problems that at best get in the way, spoiling a hiking trip or leading to missing a mountain top objective for example. At worst shoddy kit can precipitate an accident that can turn a weekend trip into a survival situation. The same goes for techniques and knowledge; consider the implications of misidentifying a poisonous plant for an edible one. Or making a navigational error leading to a fall or having to risk a dangerous river crossing. Good kit is important. Knowledge is important. But you don’t need to have the very best or most expensive kit in order to learn useful skills, be able to identify trees and plants or enjoy watching animals and birds in the wild. To my mind getting the balance right is the real trick. I think that’s an important part of what Paul and his fellow instructors at Frontier Bushcraft can teach us.
Paul Kirtley
Hi Steve,
Good points and very well made 🙂
For the sake of clarity but being in danger of repeating what you’ve already said Steve, I wasn’t suggesting beginners head out into the woods for a camping trip with only these items.
Training in bushcraft skills doesn’t necessarily require the participants to sleep out. Nor does camping out necessarily mean you are practicing bushcraft skills. The two are separate but related considerations.
The article covers what I think people need to start practicing bushcraft skills. Without them, they would find it very difficult.
All the best,
Paul
Dave
Great Artical Paul, it really is this simple as far as Tools go. Cheers
Paul Kirtley
Cheers Dave! 🙂
phil pemberton
A really interesting read Paul,and one that is very true.I always found it amazing when clients turned up on courses,loaded down with shiney things,their rucksacks bulging.By the end of the week, they saw the woods and outdoors with new eyes, and realised that they didnt need reams of kit,but the knowlege and skills they carried in their heads and hands.My saying is travel light,travel far.
Paul Kirtley
You’ve hit the nail on the head there Phil. Seeing nature with new eyes is at the centre of what we try to do with our teaching.
All the best,
Paul
Paul Shakesby
Well said Phil
Paul Kirtley
Indeed 🙂
Dave Gunn
Your wrong about fire being number one. Shelter is always number one. After medical probles.
Paul Kirtley
Dave,
Thanks for your comment (albeit somewhat blunt).
I suggest, however, that you re-read the article.
It isn’t about priorities in survival situations (I’ve written plenty about that). The aim of the article is to encourage people to practise bushcraft skills without getting caught up in kit fetishism.
If it covers any prioritisation, it covers which skills to prioritise in training.
Fire takes longer and more practice to master than shelter. Hence it is a priority in training.
Paul
David Turner
I always find it funny when those entrenched in bushcraft talk about equipment. I’m very much a beginner and only dabble in it, but it seems that the essence of bushcraft is doing everything you can without any gear other than what nature can provide. I’m hoping to start blogging more about bushcraft on my oen site as I learn more. The older I get the more intrigued I am that here we are in our current culture with so much dependence on modern technologies when people lived fine for thousands of years without most of the conveniences we take for granted in our modern era. Great thoughts!
Will
I would say that it comes from the thinking of the USA idea of prepping. For some it is all about having this tool for this job and that tool for that job. Some will even say you need this gun for this action and this gun for that. For a zombie hoard attacking a shotgun and samurai sword.
My view? Nope. If you need to have all of the latest kit then go “glamping”. Case in point is this youtube clip on lightweight backpacking: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XqoEJGSUyEM
Either way a tarp wrapping your kit up and slung over your back is better than a 85L backpack and tiring yourself out in the process.
Midge_fodder
The average person doesn’t go on a polar expedition for the weekend, nor do they ever get enough time of work for a 2 day camp a few miles from home. Yet the average person will still think that a 60-70l Bergen is needed for a 12hrs in the woods. I have been working with the idea that a small backpack I can put an extra layer, a few odds and ends and my lunch/flask in is ideal, and yeah it works. I have been known to take a tarp if the weather looks grim, but that just saves me building a Bivvy. Frankly I’d rather be collecting firewood and tinder, and then working on my carving skills making my 50th net needle (which is important as a skill). OK with experience I have upgraded my knives a bit and have made my own with a very nice blade that suits the way I work with it (heavier works for me better oddly), but that is a treat and not really essential to what I do. Skills, patience, practice and knowledge are the foundations of Bushcraft. We should try to obtain these tools instead of the ones that can be bought.
Paul Kirtley
Hi there,
Thanks for your comment. It’s good to hear from someone else who values their skills over their kit. I particularly like
“Skills, patience, practice and knowledge are the foundations of Bushcraft. We should try to obtain these tools instead of the ones that can be bought.”
All the best,
Paul
Melanie Grenfell
Great article – I use the same three items every time I work on bushcraft skills with my young bushcrafters, but the above quote has really struck a chord- “Skills, patience, practice and knowledge are the foundations of Bushcraft. We should try to obtain these tools instead of the ones that can be bought.” Thanks Paul, and thanks Midge_fodder- I’m going to remind my youngsters of this every time we work together. perseverance is a key quality that we work on.
Paul Kirtley
Great stuff Melanie. I hope you manage to inspire your young bushcrafters even more.
Warm regards,
Paul
DaveBromley
Hi Guys
I am a big supporter of the less is more principle, and on hot summer nights (not very frequent in Manchester, unfortunately) I have been out with nothing more than the clothes on my back and a decent blade.
However to be able to enjoy all seasons in this wonderful country of ours i would suggest 2 additions to the kit mentioned above.
1. decent sleeping bag, my preference is for a synthetic bag that stays warm(er) when wet.
2. small basha/tarp
with these 2 additions you can prolong a stay in the woods from a 1 nighter to a couple of days quite comfortably.
I know i’m going to get slated for adding more kit but i really do think that a certain level of comfort is essential, after all we do this for enjoyment (don’t we?) and being cold and miserable isn’t what i signed on for!
like i said above there are seasons where minimal kit can be used comfortably making use of natural shelters and fires etc. but from someone who has to do a fair bit of stealth camping due to lack of permissions these extra 2 bits of kit can extend the times of the year you go cmping massively.
just my 2 cents
Dave
Paul Kirtley
Hi Dave,
Thanks for your comments.
I don’t think you should be slated for adding more kit! I think the point you make is a valid one and the equipment you suggest is a good addition to the items covered in the article for people wanting to stay out longer.
Just to be clear – I wasn’t suggesting beginners head out into the woods for a camping trip with only these items.
The aim of the article was to cover what I think people need to start practicing bushcraft skills. Without them, they would find it very difficult.
Just as I didn’t cover clothing or footwear, I didn’t cover any additional kit for camping out if that’s what people want to do.
Training in bushcraft skills doesn’t necessarily require the participants to sleep out, although it’s one of the joys of being out in the woods – I always feel short-changed if I can only spend the day out in the woods and go home when it gets dark. But camping and bushcraft are separate considerations, albeit linked: Just as training in bushcraft skills doesn’t require the participants to sleep out, camping out doesn’t necessarily mean you are practicing bushcraft skills.
For people interested in what else might be useful for staying out for longer periods of time and for different budget levels, I’d recommend the following articles:
https://paulkirtley.co.uk/2011/bushcraft-tarp-in-your-day-pack/
https://frontierbushcraft.com/2012/07/06/bushcraft-on-a-budget-kit/
https://paulkirtley.co.uk/2011/bushcraft-camping-equipment/
All the best,
Paul
Elen Sentier
Paul you had me grinning with joy from the beginning. It’s soooo true and we desperately need to stop being gear-fanatics – in every walk of life. What’s in your head will last far longer than what’s on your back and you’re unlikely to leave home without it *g*.
ATB
Elen
Paul Kirtley
Glad you enjoyed it Elen 😉
All the best,
Paul
will Northcote
Sleeping under a tarp in summer can be nice but to truly enjoy a summer camp is to sleep without a tarp over your head.
When I was in Catterick with the Army we had a weekend shooting on the ranges. Most of us just spent a nice summers evening in a field without any cover on the floor as it was a nice early summer night. If you just put out a hammock (like the one you get from DD hammocks in Edinburgh, withthe mesh netting) you can have a decent sleep and wake up looking at the sky. That really is a good way to be out in the open.
Better still use a bivvy bag. The Marines use them as shelters. Case in point is from the youtube channel ColinOutdoors http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W3MHFSUh6OE By having that low to the ground there is less to be affected by wind. Plus you don’t need to worry about stringing up a poncho/tarp when you just guy out a bag and sleeping bag in hand, crawl in and go to sleep.
If you haven’t tried it, go get one and see what it is like.
Paul Kirtley
Hi Will,
Good to hear from you. Agreed – there’s something special about sleeping out under the stars (and still being able to see them).
Interesting to see the pup tent. Personally I find this style of camping for anything more than a night a bit of a faff these days. I used to make bivvies out of survival bags when I was a teenager and loved the adventure. And before I got hold of a decent light-weight one-man tent, I used to do a lot of solo backpacking in the Highlands with a double-hooped bivi bag.
This bivvy kept my pack weight down as well as allowing me to bed down anywhere there was space for me to lie. I had some great nights camped on my own high up on ridges in Scotland as well as the Lakes. The integral mosquito net was also handy duirng midge season. The downside is that there was nowhere to go when it’s raining or the midges are bad, other than to get in and lie down.
I now have a one-man tent that weighs the same. I can sit up, get changed, read and don’t have to pack everything in the pouring rain. I can also easily stow all of my kit, backpack, wet waterproofs and boots in the vestibule. The tent weighs the same as the double-hooped bivvy bag – 1kg.
That said I still love the freedom of bivvying and would always recommend it to people. I just choose a tent in the hills now when I’m going to be out for more than a night or two.
When I’m running courses in the woods, I use an MOD bivvy like the one in the video, often under a tarp but also out in the open. I don’t bother pegging it out. If it starts to rain, you can pull the drawcord tight around your face. If it’s really wet, you can turn the bivvy around and have the closure flap draped over your head as you lay on your side.
It’s certainly good to know all the possibilities with any type of shelter and, as mentioned in Colin’s video, the pup tent could be good as an emergency shelter.
All the best,
Paul
Duane Yates
Very well put Paul.
All the fancy kit in the world will get you nowhere if you don’t know how to use it.
One point that seems to have been missed in all the comments is, buying expensive kit is going to be doubly expensive if you don’t know how to use it properly. Because you are going to have to buy it again when you break it. Even a Raven PK1 can be ruined in minutes by someone with no idea how to care for and use a knife correctly.
Start out with the basic kit as Paul has said in the article and build up your knowledge first. That way you can gradualy build up better kit as time goes by and as you learn what you need and what suits you. Its like passing your driving test and going and buying a ferrari, only to find that what you need is an estate car for luggage space or a 4×4 because you visit granny every day and she lives up a dirt track.
There are many different facets to bushcraft, start learning about it first and you will find out what parts of it interest you and which don’t, then you can start thinking of improving your kit accordingly.
Have to say though Paul you have missed one vital bit of very basic kit off the list. A billy can, even if its just a baked been tin with a wire coat hanger handle or a metal cup such as a crusader. When you perfect your first fire you are going to want to make a brew on it at the very least 🙂
As others have pointed out, get on a course and get the knowledge before you waste a fortune on expensive kit. I can say from personal experience the amount of knowledge you come away with from one of Pauls courses is phenominal.
Paul Kirtley
Good points, well made Duane.
And how remiss of me – an Englishman who forgets about the need to make tea. I’ll have a word with myself. 😉
Paul Shakesby
Yes, I remember the filter coffee made by yourself in a billy can! That is the one skill that keeps Mrs Shakesby coming out camping x
Paul Kirtley
Filter coffee without a filter! Definitely an important campfire skill 🙂
Duane Yates
Filter coffee sounds interesting. How do you do that? Come on spill the beans 🙂
will Northcote
Take coffee and a filter. 😀
Paul Kirtley
It’s even more simple than that! 🙂
Paul Kirtley
Next time I see you Duane. Maybe. 🙂
Hans Gidenstam
To be honest one of the best Survival tips i hear heard were: Make yourself a cup of tea!
That makes you stop, look around for the things you need: water, some way to heat the water, a way to drink the tea.
You will also get some other bonus effects;getting a small rest, time to think ,something hot (and hopefully sweet) into you.
Afterwards when you have made your cup of tea, then you might discover that that is not a survival situation anymore.
Paul Kirtley
A good cuppa is always welcome.
gordon
another great article
i think there is a link here between bushcraft and survival
it seems to me after several discussions online and with friends most of us get involved in bushcraft with some common reasons the need to get closer to nature,adventure,a test of ones resolve and ability,a link with the past to skills that are being lost and finally a urge to survive hidden in the back of your mind to give yourself an advantage if ever the chips are down a head start.
now this is where i love the content of your site the whole bushcraft on a budget is i think the closest (i hope )most of us will ever come to a survival situation
i have wasted loads of cash in the past on all sorts of stuff i have never needed but my new goal is a £ shop challange,i intend later in the spring to pootle off into the local wild on my trusty moped (very cheap) with a kit purchased entirely from poundland
Paul Kirtley
Hi Gordon,
Thanks for your comment. I think you are right about the multiple and often intertwined reasons people are interested in bushcraft skills. In some ways I think it just comes down to being a human being. The desire to be able to look after ourselves using natural resources is part of our nature.
I’ll be interested to read about your moped-poundshop challenge 🙂
All the best,
Paul
Steve Amos
A man who taught me much said ‘Never replace knowledge with kit’. I haven’t always followed this but I’m trying.
Paul Kirtley
Hi Steve, that’s a very good motto and an ideal to strive for. Thanks for sharing it.
Dan
for me the secret is in the name “Bush – Craft” its not wallmart-craft DIY, woodwork, camping, ect.. It may involve parts of all these things along the way, but the more accoutrements you take with you the less bushcraft you are actually doing. Crafting your own flint knife every trip may be a chore but it is valuable bushcraft none-the-less.
As with all things though we all have limitations on what we do, my Gran always told me three things we can never have enough time, money or patience! As I get older I find the need for one often means the sacrifice of another even for bushcraft.
It’s nice to see I’m not the only one needs reminding what its all about, many thanks for the article
Paul Kirtley
Hi Dan,
Great comment. Thank you 🙂
All the best,
Paul
John
Agree to a certain extent although trying different things needs some gear and just because people have expensive gear does not always mean the have no idea for example if someone buys a woodlore saw ,which is very expensive , and using it for bushcraft doesn’t mean they are stupid as the may have a log fire at home which requires a big saw to cut large logs the Laplander couldn’t handle.
But that’s only for certain things where I think not price but quality matters where other things are best bought cheap like zebra billy tins only £15 and last pretty much forever
Marco DL
Now that I am beginning to understand the ethos of bushcraft more each day I couldn’t agree more….I just wish I would have known this a few months ago! In his seminal book “A Journey to the Northern Ocean,” Samuel Hearne says exactly the same thing. If it worked for him in one of the most extreme expeditions ever undertaken, it’s good enough for me. And I have a feeling that back in 1769, on a 4 year expedition into the unknown wilderness of Canada “kit” was just a tad more important than in 21st century Britain!
Cheers Paul, and keep the info coming, it’s of great help.
Ciao, Marco
Paul Kirtley
Ciao Marco,
It’s good to hear from you. Thanks for your great comment. I think you are right to point out that we should all keep things in perspective – people have undertaken some very tough endeavours with only a fraction of the kit a typical camper packs into a rucksack for a long weekend. Those of us who champion bushcraft must look to our skills and knowledge first and foremost.
Cheers,
Paul
Cal B
I’ve built up quite a collection of gear over the years and made use of all of it. Some of it expensive and most of it less than £20. Once I became confident enough in the skills that enable me to spend longer than a day away from home I went through a year or so of slowly leaving items in the house. Over time the kit I carried with me dwindled until I carried only my knife, a flint striker and a metal mug. During the warmer months in areas that I am familiar with I thoughtnothing of spending a few nights out nothing more than those three things and I really was comfortable. Most of the time nowadays I venture out with a rucksack with the essentials in and I have a grand old time. But I do still like to sometimes strip it right down again and head out with next to nowt, sensibly of course (mobile phone etc) just to keep my base skill set fresh. Bottom line is, in my very humble opinion, you can have all the kit you want but if you wouldnt consider going out with next to nothing then you don’t need to buy something you need to learn something…….:-)
Paul Kirtley
Hi Cal,
Thanks for your comment.
“in my very humble opinion, you can have all the kit you want but if you wouldn’t consider going out with next to nothing then you don’t need to buy something you need to learn something…”
Very well phrased. I like it! 🙂
All the best,
Paul
Windy
What a cool way if putting it.
Jimmy
Thank you for the ideas. I’ve often wondered while watching ” you tube” why bushcrafters skip to there gear instead of focusing on the woods with all they offer. Lately, I am more in tune with the resources I find (food, water, fuel and, most importantly, friends). I notice natural shelter, animal tracks, edible plants, sun, wind and rocks. The weather is a hobby of mine, too. We are the bushcrafters and we need to step out away from technology and into the woods.
Julianna
You are so right about youtube and gear. I have combed that site for info about plants and trees, tracking, etc., and it isn’t there. The closest I find (present company excluded from this criticism, of course) is Ray Mears’ classic BBC films, and those are rich on beauty and somewhat short on the 1-2-3 of actual bushcraft. I wish I could find a source that showed people what a plant or tree looks like throughout all 4 seasons, what specific trees look like when they’ve died and fallen (change in bark texture and color), etc.
Mostly youtube has become gear, product placement, and people taking their clothes off to show me the layers they wear. I don’t need that, it strikes me as ego overcoming good sense. I’ve unsubbed to a lot of channels because of idiotic crap. I want knowledge. If the people doing the channels can’t provide that, what’s the point?
Gwyn James
Thanks for being generous with your knowledge! It makes training my scouts and their leaders(especially) much easier.AS many never use any type of tool these days.
Paul Kirtley
You’re very welcome Gwyn. I’m glad you found this useful.
Warm regards,
Paul
Stephen Walker
Most thought-provoking, Paul, and some real sense in replies, especially CalB.
Some folk starting up spend a fortune on kit, even multiples of various items, ‘just in case’.
Yet simple and few carefully selected low-budget items will suffice.
Then it’s all about acquiring the knowledge and skills to use them well, so you can ‘smooth it’ rather than ‘roughing it’, working with nature rather than simply surviving.
Elen makes a great point in ‘getting the eye’, what she sees as ‘the ability to see and know what is around me and what is useful’. Achieving this high level of understanding, being ‘in tune’ with nature, will lead to greater knowledge and, ultimately, wisdom!
And practise those things you find most difficult – what Paul (through Ray Mears) calls ‘attacking your weaknesses’.
Enjoying the process, becoming more independent and deriving significant meaning from your adventures will set you up for, should you wish, gradually changing the basic kit you started out with.
When your knowledge & skills and confidence grow, replace the old budget stuff.
Buy the best you can afford, in the knowledge you can use it wisely.
Paul Kirtley
Hi Steve. Very well put my friend 🙂
Bill Jackson
Agree absolutely, Steve. If you hike in an area where you could end up spending an unplanned night out, then practice doing that, and ensure that you can survive a night of bad weather, possibly with injuries. If you hike where you’re never far from a town and there are always other people around, then learn to deal with minor injuries and whatever conditions might apply.
You can’t just imagine the solutions. If you haven’t practiced them, they may not work for you.
Rune Bjørnsen
As I see it, kit is what enables me to be out out and do bushcraft. I know I can sleep on the ground, perhaps with a £5 tarp that will do an excellent job of keeping me out of the rain, and even snow. But I prefer to be swinging in a hammock under that tarp. I am not out on a survival excercise when I am out in the woods. Am out there having fun. And I prefer to use my little snow shovel (Essential survival kit where I am from) to dig my self a comfortable seat in the snow to soak up those late march sun rays in, rather than use it to dig myself a snow cave to sleep in…while knowing how, and having practiced the snow cave sollution. So that I know how to and when to use that sollution to an immediate survival problem.
For me, knowing how and when to use technology to aid myself when being out is also bushcraft. But the axe does not need to be a Gransfor Bruks, and the hammock does not need to have DD Hammocks stamped to it.
But going out with a stick and a knife is also nice. I just prefer doing it after the hammock and tarp is set up….
Walkie Talkie India
Hi, thank you very much for help. I am going to test that in the near future. Cheers
Julian
Aggghh.. I luuuurve the gear ! I enjoy browsing the next upmarket shinny new piece of kit that will enhance my time in the wilderness ! I love the purchase, the unboxing, the smell and feel of a brand new piece of high end kit ! …. On the edge of Fernworthy forest (Dartmoor), I draw out my woodlore knife…mmm gaze at the Alan wood/ray Mears stamp and process some kindling for my Biolite, or honeystove, if the biolite is on, I’ll charge my iPhone at the same time, so I can watch “American blackout” 🙂 If it’s wet, I’ll break out the sawvivor ( yeh I know every one bangs on about the laplander, but it’s kinda wimpy compared with a sawvivor ) .. and the essee junglas to make processing the larger wood easier…of course I won’t get wet in my £300 ventile jacket (not prone to damage by sparks from the fire either ). Resting in my tera nova laser comp tent (sub kilo) is luxury, when in a down filled marmot helium bag ( sub kilo ) upon my sub 500g inflatable air pad. Mmm luxury ! Night time is fun with my zebralight emitting 200 plus lumens or a moonlight glow to read by..but it’s nice having the fenix tk45 in backup should disaster strike and I need to hoof it out of there 🙂 … The gransfors axe is a nice addition when required. Optics ? Dokter monocular – nice glass. Loving the blue flame turbo lighter that RMears uses with some inner tube…..Also the soto pocket blow torch xt… Primarily and above all …..I agree wholeheartedly with the concept of knowledge above gear…but hey… The gear is a hell of a lot of fun too isn’t it ? Nothing wrong in that I think, it’s part of the fun 🙂 I have to stop now, need to shop !! :))
Randell
I Really enjoyed this post, i learned quite a lot. I really liked this
“Think more like the Hadza and less like a bushcraft shopping channel addict.”
Funny you said that cause a mate of mine that got me interested in bushcraft started by telling me all about his wild new toys. I always wondered why he needed 15 knifes and a bunch of other useless rubbish he was never going to use.
I think you nail it on this post, it’s filled with great information and really simplifies the whole process for newcomers. great work mate thanks much for sharing your knowledge.
Paul Kirtley
Thank you mate. I really appreciate the feedback and glad this post resonated with you.
Go well and enjoy the bush and what it has to offer (rather than the shiny things).
Warm regards,
Paul
Rody Klop
Excellent article with some down to earth questions and advice. My advice would be “the scraplist”. On this list you note the items you (really) missed/needed for tasks which can not be improvised.
Although my closet is also full of “nice to have” stuff, the scraplist safes you weight in the rucksack and learns you to focus on skills and environment, not on gear.
Paul Kirtley
Thanks Rody.
John
I have made the mistake of buying and changing my gear so many times it’s silly. Recently I have seen the light and started to cut back to the basics so I can appreciate my time out more.
Instead of the Bergen I carried I have started using a small shoulder bag and basic bedroll
The hardships I have put up with are dissapearing as I learn to come to terms with what Mother Nature is offering me. The less you carry the more you rely on the resources around you.
I don’t have the skills to forage for food so still rely on taking it with me but one day……….
Paul Kirtley
Hi John,
Great comment. Thanks for sharing.
Warm regards,
Paul
Dave Brignall
Hi Paul
Great article, I became interested in bushcraft as a way of being better prepared for my outdoor journeys and initially started to think that I would have to change a lot of my walking kit, what I have learnt is that much of what I already carried was suitable. I have added an already owned Bacho folding saw its orange in colour, but that doesn’t matter. I have a question regarding cordage, having only previously used climbing ropes /accessory cord, the para cord that I have recently purchased seems to be very loose, the outer mantle is loose around the core, the cord I purchased was un branded and not marked with a country of manufacture. Should I be looking around possibly for a “brand name” or do I have to change my knotting practise? Here in Australia suppliers are thin on the ground making testing a bit difficult, any advise would be appreciated.
Many Thanks
Dave Brignall.
Paul Kirtley
Hi Dave,
Thanks for your message. I’m glad you found this article useful.
In answer to your question regarding paracord, there is a lot of cheap, garbage cord sold as ‘paracord’. Genuine parachute cord is well high quality with a durable outer and multiple – typically 5 or 7 – individual strands inside. These strands provide the strength. You should look for “genuine 550-paracord”, which meets the requisite 550lb breaking strain as well as the other specifications.
I hope this helps.
Warm regards,
Paul
Dave Brignall
Thanks Paul. I found some 550 para cord recently, made by a reputable cordage company, first brief usage proves this to be a lot better quality.
I agree with you re defining kit as being specifically “bush craft”- it is more what you do with what you’ve got. Bush craft to my mind is a skill set not a kit list, and that skill set can contain elements useful to anyone who travels outdoors- last week I demonstrated to a small group of people I was walking with how to make a splint from a full length gaiter, this involved wood cutting, cord work and improvisation- I brought my professional skills (paramedic) and added “bushcraft” skills to solve a potential problem none of the gear I used would be described as bushcraft. Its in this area that believe the bushcraft fraternity have something to offer the wider outdoor recreation community.
Again many thanks for your help,enjoy the blog.
Dave
Paul Kirtley
Hi Dave,
“Bush craft to my mind is a skill set not a kit list” – yes, I like that statement. Plus, as you illustrate with the gaiter example, having a flexible mindset in order to produce something with what you’ve got – on your person, and from nature.
I’m glad you enjoy the blogs. Thanks again for your comments.
All the best,
Paul
Jim
Hi Dave,
Just saw this. Try, if you haven’t already, CAMS Cords based in QLD. Their stuff is genuine USA made COMMERCIAL paracord, i.e. not MIL-SPEC. I just bought a load for our Cub pack to make survival bracelets.
Victor
Hello Paul.
Great article. Bushcraft has become a bit of trend. With its own brands that you have to be wearing or carrying to look the part in the woods. It is not always the case of course but I have noticed it. If I never see another kit report it will be too soon. You know the ones.”this is my main knife” they then proceed on through knives 2 to 10 and how they are essential. Lots of patting of pouches and packs. Zips, cords, belts and buckles. It is funny of course but please lets all get back to to what is important, the skills and passing them on.
Paul Kirtley
Well said Victor 😉
Warm regards,
Paul
Bill Jackson
Amen!
What “bushcraft” is, depends on two things: What’s your bush, and what’s your purpose in being there? Are you camping in Wales, or canoeing in a remote stretch of the Canadian arctic?
In either case, if you’re fascinated by the prospect of proving your manliness, then you may be a bit of a nuisance in Wales and you’ll be a danger to yourself in the Arctic.
Outdoor people enjoy being in the outdoors.
Intelligent people want to be safe in the outdoors.
That’s bushcraft.
James Gohl
Hey guys,
Google “OTSI”! See a real kit.
James Gohl
Correction: it’s OTZI not OTSI.
Mike
Great article. To quote Mors Kochanski, “the more you know the less you carry”. This is what attracts me to bushcraft: the idea that with the knowledge of natures resources one could live indefinitely in the woods. Like martial arts, you hope you never find yourself in a bad situation, but knowing that you will survive is not only confidence building, but allows you to enjoy your time in the woods even more.
Paul Kirtley
Well said Mike 🙂
Warm regards,
Paul
GATORMAN
I’ve been bushcraft and woods trekking my whole life. Along with teaching what my Native American Father and Grandfather taught me. In 50years I think this is the best I’ve heard anyone put it. God provides everything we need if you know where to look. Stay in the wood and protect what he gave us.
Paul Kirtley
Indeed.
Or as I heard a Native American birch bark canoe builder say once in a documentary, when asked about where he got his canoes, “I found them in the forest. Some assembly required.” 🙂
Warm regards,
Paul
rafer coetzee
im sure paul that you dont mind EVERYBODY not praising you? i find your article both interesting AND a little ironic!….. your points are excellent but this from a man whos video i watched on kit for a DAY hike??….you seemed to be carrying enough kit for a week never mind a day hike!…. minimalist??….. i think not. whereas dave canterbury who you say has a good point states that his 5 Cs are enough to be out and STILL be able to survive SHOULD disaster strike. i dont see your pics of the hamda people humping that backpack you had ALL of that gear in??
Jd
Again,
Google OTZI and see what an iceman carried. Beside an ax and a flint knife, he was out in the Alps, in winter with bow & arrow, some medicinal herbs and a fire kit some 3000 years ago.
Perhaps we’ve advanced some since the Ice Age, but you needn’t fault modern man for the comforts he might carry.
Jim
Paul Kirtley
Rafer,
Thanks for your comments. I certainly don’t write these articles to garner praise.
You are confounding two different points. The first is that it is not necessary to purchase lots of gear in order to start practicing the skills of bushcraft. This is the main point of the above article. It is not an article about recommending general kit for any particular outdoor activity or at any particular time of year.
The simple message is that if you want to practice bushcraft – which is fundamentally the study and application of natural resources – buy a knife and go out and start learning.
The second point relates to a video of mine you have watched regarding packing a daypack for people heading out into temperate woodlands/forest. Most people who get lost in temperate woodlands are under-equipped and under-skilled. What will kill you fastest in most of these circumstances is hypothermia. The contents of the daypack largely addresses these circumstances. It is a general recommendation and not one specific to bushcraft or the “bushcrafter”.
I’m an outdoorsman first and bushcraft is a set of knowledge and skills that I have. Just because I am skilled in bushcraft does not mean I have to make an improvised shelter every time I camp or carry only a metal water bottle and a knife when I hike. That would be absurd.
As well as hiking, I canoe, I ski, I cycle, I scramble, I snowshoe. These are all activities I practice the skills for. These modes of transport also take me places, some of them close to home, some of them wild, some of them wilderness. When I visit these places I have a range of bushcraft skills I can employ too.
I choose the most appropriate kit for a trip and the goals I have (for my given skill level).
And I recommend others do the same.
Most people in the general population going out hiking in northern temperate conditions should be packing appropriate rain gear, warm layers, a means of hydration, food and an emergency shelter, a head-torch and navigation equipment as a bare minimum. In areas where fuel is available, a means of lighting fire easily would also be valuable. In the face of the facts of how people die in the outdoors, not to consider carrying these items is, frankly, retarded.
Moreover, I would be irresponsible if I recommended anything other as a baseline set of clothing and equipment.
Now, of course, the higher your level of bushcraft skill, the less you might need to carry but that is a choice you make every time you head out.
And just because you CAN do without, doesn’t make it right for every trip you make. For example, on a multi-day trip if your aim is to cover distance, you don’t spend half your day each day building an improvised shelter. Instead you take a shelter appropriate for the environment, such as a tent or a tarp. This SAVES TIME. It doesn’t make you an idiot for “humping” it. The idiot is the one who thinks it’s not an option because they now know how to make an improvised shelter. There is nothing unworthy about using equipment as appropriate.
Now here’s the big thing, the Hadza live in one environment all year round. They know it very, very well. By contrast, most people reading this blog will spend their time in multiple different environments throughout the year even if that means in the house, at work, and in the woods in their leisure time. Others will travel on vacation to warm places and to cold place (for example skiing holiday).
The Hadza know their environment intimately and need very little man-made equipment to sustain themselves. My emphasis of this is not a point about equipment (again, stop being so obsessed with equipment), it’s a point about moving to a point where you are more able to depend on your knowledge of nature and less dependent on kit.
It’s an ideal. A model to work towards.
It does not mean, however, that every time you go to the woods, you need to wear only a pair of shorts and carry a knife. That is completely missing the point.
Just so it’s clear, people who live close to nature such as the Hdza, provide an ideal, a model to work towards in your own skill and knowledge in relation to the environments you spend time in.
The kit you then choose to take with you is to a large extent independent of this.
Warm regards,
Paul
Noel
Hello
Really enjoyed this article, my unfortunate circumstance is that I live in the small country of northern Ireland. There are little places to practice and less bushcraft instructors over here, at least they don’t advertise themselves well. I took my kids to a local forest last weekend to get them building a shelter and building and lighting fires using a fire steel and we even collected some tinder fungus on the way. We brought nothing but our day sacks with water lunch and some paracord, my knife (made myself from bushcraft mag instructions) and my fiskars camping axe. It was a great day with no equipment
Andrew Casey
Hi Paul,
Thanks for sharing another great article. I’m all too guilty of window shopping for kit and gear when I should be out practicing skills and attaining knowledge. Well that was true until the start of 2015, I’ve been actively been out and about developing skills. Thanks again for the article, it has put into focus again what the core values of bushcraft are!
Andrew
Andrew Casey
Sorry, too many beens, I really need to read through my posts before I submit them!
Paul Kirtley
Coffee beans? 🙂
Paul Kirtley
Hi Andrew,
It’s good to hear from you and I’m glad that this article is resonating with you now, more than ever.
From what I’ve seen on various social platforms and your posting of tree and plant ID homework/findings/research as well as craft work, it does look like you’ve stepped up a gear or several this year.
Keep it up – it will pay great dividends 🙂
Warm regards,
Paul
Andrew Casey
Thanks Paul!
It’s already been very rewarding! It’s thanks to your blog and videos and a few other sources that people like myself have somewhere to gather info on how to be out in nature safely! Keep up the great work!
Many thanks
Andrew!
Smead
Hi Paul,
Thank you for inviting me to comment on this article.
For nearly fifty years, I’ve been blessed by being able to enjoy and endure some of the most beautiful and diverse environments in the world. Here on North America, we have it all. If I choose to, I could wake up in one environment and go to bed in the next. It’s lovely that way. This being said though, I’m getting older now and choose to spend most of my time here in the North Eastern U.S. where the forests and mountains provide every need and possible pleasure I could ever hope for.
I agree with you without reservation. Bushcraft is NOT about kits, or tools or equipment. It’s about knowledge. It’s about practice. And it’s about your ability to train your body, brain and senses to meet your most basic needs in the most simplest of ways regardless of your environment.
As a U.S. Air Force veteran and former Scoutmaster, I too recommend that people start by taking what they WILL NEED and not what they MIGHT NEED. Simply because every gram you take with you requires valuable calories to get it there and back. Knowledge after all, is weightless and will allow you to fill almost any gaps quite nicely. As for those who have doubts about a good $15.00 knife that’s been properly sharpened, cared for, and practiced with having the ability to do the EXACT same work as one of those over engineered ones that look cool and costs $150.00, I say this… Don’t be duped by marketing ploys! You’re doing simple things in the simplest of ways. So, unless the intent is to invest your time and energy in highly advanced Bushcraft like cabin building, canoes or durable hand made weaponry, there is absolutely no need to spend an exorbitant amount of money on anything! Same goes for most other “equipment”. It’s better to purchase what I call “durable doable’s” that won’t cost an arm or leg to replace should they ever be claimed by a flash flood, capsized canoe or an unfortunate and unrealized drop along the way. If people want to spend extra money, I recommend that they spend it on quality outdoor clothing, a great pair of boots and the cost of traveling to the next new place.
As for fire first, I agree wholeheartedly. Depending on weather conditions and available resources, fire making can take a lot of time and energy even for the most experienced. Besides that, a good fire soothes the soul and makes it easier to concentrate on the coming tasks. (Not to mention the ability to make a nice cup of coffee, tea or broth.)
As for knowledge, I learn something new every time I go out. Mother Nature wouldn’t have it any other way. Which is why I love her more than most people. 🙂
My motto is: Keep it simple and get out there.
Smead
Jim
Nice.
Old Codger
Most of the Bushcraft podcasts I’ve tried listening to are almost entirely about kit! I went through about 10 episode of one particular podcast and I don’t remember then actually ever talking about doing anything. I was hoping to hear of their stories of how they were in a forest at the weekend and got caught out in the rain and what they did, what fungi are around at the time of year etc not going on about knife grinds or how a film canister filled with meths-soaked cotton wool makes good “tinder”.
When a tarp costs as much as a small tent you have to wonder what is going on.
Paul Kirtley
True!
offtrail
No matter what your skill level is you still need to carry a kit. Nothing wrong with carrying just what you need or make it in the field. Either way your not going to make a tool then just leave it because you can at some point make another one. No matter how good you are or what your skill level is. Your going to carry that tool until it’s no longer needed. Make a working bowdrill kit, I bet your going to carry that kit till it wears out. Sure you can make containers out of many different materials but non will be as good as the one you buy at the store. Even the Indians the true survivors of the wilderness, once they got a taste of modern living they were never the same. What I’m trying to say is this, my kit will be filled with the best of what I can afford at first. Once that kit gets depleted then I will replace it with made in the field tools and equipment. I’m going to carry at least a tarp so i can set up a shelter quickly in a down pour…try that with a bushcraft shelter and stay dry. I love bushcraft and practice every chance i get. I pride myself in firecraft and have not used a match or a Bic lighter in over three years to start a fire.
offtrail
If I had to describe myself it would go like this. A survival backpack kit with all the equipment needed for a safe trip,short or long term. Backed up with a good set of bushcraft skills from starting fires to primitive fishing kits. I want the ease of man made items but have the ability to replace it with skills in the field…does that make sense? Anyhow that’s me…a little this and a little that.
Paul Kirtley
Yup, that makes sense 🙂
bill jackson
“Bushcraft” in terms of anything useful is just a combination of knowledge, experience and common sense. “Kit” isn’t a term that we use here on the British Columbia coast, but I take it that it just means the set of items that a person should have with them.
The pros for my area are people like the timber cruisers, Canada Parks rangers, fish and wildife officers, some of the search and rescue volunteers, and some of the backpackers associated with responsible organizations. None of the above is likely to depend on making fire drills or stinging nettle twine! Or to look kindly on someone hacking up the wilderness to build a lean-to.
“Bushcraft” in terms of trying to rediscover the skills of an earlier era, that’s a hobby. Provided people aren’t damaging vegetation, there’s nothing wrong with it. It would seem pretty hard though to do some of these things while practicing “leave no trace” principles.
Paul Kirtley
Hi Bill, speaking as a tracker, it’s hard not to leave any trace at all. If you enter an environment, you’ll leave an impression on it.
Warm regards,
Paul
Bill Jackson
Paul, I’ve been reading your articles for some time and have gotten some things out of them. I have to say though, I don’t know what to make of your last comment. Surely, everybody knows what’s meant by “leave no trace”. It doesn’t mean no footprints or bent blades of grass. It means no damage to the environment. Equivalent to the expressions “take only pictures, leave only footprints”. Since the last half of the 20th Century, because of so many people wanting to go into natural areas, it’s been the core principle of responsible wilderness activity.
I’m sure you must know that, so I don’t see in what context I should take your answer to my previous remarks.
Paul Kirtley
Hey Bill, no worries. I should clarify.
I don’t hold with the purist Leave No Trace ethos because many who preach it tend to do it without wider regard for the environment as a whole, as opposed to the local environment being visited.
My point regarding looking at things from a trackers perspective is that whenever we set foot anywhere, we leave a mark. It’s just a matter of the degree to which that is acceptable. And you picked up on this.
Moreover, when someone is very good with bushcraft, particularly tracking skills, then they tend to be more aware of their impact on the environment, not less.
There are many hikers and campers, who carry tents, stoves, dehydrated food and everything they need to have a complete life support system and not depend upon the local environment for anything other than air and water and yet they will leave more trace of their presence than someone well disciplined in the arts of bushcraft.
And that’s before we get into a question of the wider environmental impact of the plastic tent, carbon fibre or aluminium poles (turning bauxite into aluminium is very energy intensive), metal tent pegs (some of which invariably get left behind at each campsite), metal stove, stove fuel (both extraction and combustion), etc and the energy cost of distributing that gear from a manufacturer in China to a store in Vancouver, for example, which then has to be illuminated, heated and staffed (by people who commute).
Believing that not to touch the environment you are in is best is a very modern, urban perspective. It’s what you tell someone who knows nothing – “Don’t touch anything, less you damage something important”.
Believing that not to touch the environment because we have a bunch of manufactured gear on our back as being the best option, is taking a very narrow view and one which I don’t wholly agree with, particularly not in a world (or even country) where hillsides are being clear cut and pristine boreal forest is being scraped off the surface of the planet to expose tar sands for cheap fuel (and poisoning the local water in the process to boot).
The judicious use of natural materials under the umbrella of bushcraft is not the environmental problem we face. As outdoors people we should accept the existence of the elephant in the room…
Warm regards,
Paul
Bill Jackson
I can only say that I disagree with you far more than I agree. The reasons are the number of people using wilderness, and the rather broad swath of the discussion.
Obviously different practices apply in different areas:
I can only talk about my own country (Canada).
-Within a wilderness park, of course, standards are stringent. Building a fire other than in designated sites will probably be illegal, and for good reason. And anything involving cutting wood or pulling up plants will certainly be illegal. Your arguments about impact won’t go very far with Canada’s Parks Branch, I can assure you of that!
– Anywhere in alpine or on tundra, the growing season is short and the landscape is fragile. The straggly-looking trees are virgin old-growth, and the dead wood on the ground is a vital part of the ecosystem. If you must have a fire in these areas you should bring in your own firewood.
On forest land that’s subject to logging, you won’t get permission to practice your “bushcraft”, but whether or not you’re actually doing environmental damage will depend on the local conditions and your own common sense. There are innumerable miles of lakeshore and streamside that are littered with wood from poor logging practices. Nobody will mind if you burn some of that up!
Just please don’t come into our country on an adventure that involves cutting living saplings. I know of no public land in this country in which you would be able to do that legally.
Paul Kirtley
People respectfully applying traditional bushcraft and indigenous skills is not the problem….
http://www.hefty.co/truth-in-pictures/
Andrew Casey
Very interesting points made here Paul. I’ve never gone that deep with my thought processes about how buying ‘gear’ to view the natural world can actually have a negative impact on the environment we want to see and have a relationship with. Wonderful subject this Bushcraft! Thanks for sharing.
Mind how you go
Andrew
Paul Kirtley
My pleasure Andrew. Glad you found this stimulating.
It is a wonderful subject 🙂
All the best,
Paul
danstephensen2.bligoo.com
Your writing talent is actually appreciated!! Thanks a lot.
You saved me a lot of frustration. Amazing post!
mike nixon
excellent post, and very timely as I must admit I was starting to think about heading down the road of loads of stuff myself .
Jim
Hi Paul,
Great site & blog. This article was very informative. It is so true that you don’t need to spend a lot of money on kit. I’m a Cub leader (8-11yr old Scouts) and want to do more overnight hiking with the older Scouts, hence my interest in Bushcraft. While I don’t consider myself a “bushcrafter” I firmly believe that ANYBODY who spends time outdoors, particularly when hiking or camping, needs to learn some basic skills; fire lighting, shelter building, basic first aid and how to find water are petty much the main ones. Navigation skills are also handy. My kit has mostly been bought on sale or from ALDI with the majority of items being under $20 AUD (except for my pack) and covers all the basics I’ll need including a gas stove (fire restrictions can be severe between late spring and early autumn here in Australia) without sacrificing comfort. It isn’t minimalist but it’s not far from it.
Mary
Remarkable issues here. I’m very glad to see your article.
Thanks so much and I’m having a look ahead to contact you.
Will you kindly drop me a e-mail?
gary
Well said Paul! Could not agree with you more. I’ve seen too many that spend thousands on kit and are like babes in the forest with it. Sometimes less really is more.
Ray
Excellent article on what Buschraft is.
Nick Ford
Sound advice. So many of the ‘Bushcraft’ videos one sees are by people promoting a particular manufacturer’s merchandise. There’s a descriptive phrase for the consumer-type: “All the gear, but no idea.”. For me, if you can’t fit it in a rucksack you can comfortably carry all day, you’re not doing bushcraft, you’re glamping.
Jim
Hi Paul,
Further to my previous post, I recently carved my first tent peg/stake out of a sorry, sodden excuse of a stick on a recent Cub camp. Managed quite well with just my SAK Rucksack knife. It wasn’t pretty, nor was it needed, but it was functional and gave me a great sense of accomplishment and confidence that, yes, I can do stuff – I’ll never be a craftsman but I don’t particularly want to be. So, thanks for your great work and knowledge sharing.
Tom Gold
Great piece Paul. If there’s one thing better than having the best kit then its not having it but still being better than the guy who does!
I encourage folk to use tin cans, cheap polytarp, an ordinary box of matches and a B&Q hatchet because you can do 99% of bushcraft tasks just as well as if you were using hand forged steel, waxed canvas and beautifully stitched leather. Its reassuring to hear you say the same thing!
David Nolen
Really love my Mora Classic. As soon as I can get my hands on some antler, I’m going to rehandle it.
Right now, I’m toying with the idea of making a leather combination sheathe for all three blade lengths of the Classic- 2″, 4″, and 6″. Ideally, I would use elk antler on the handles, but maybe I’ll just refinish the handle with Tru Oil.
I’m not going to be buying any other fixed blade knife unless it’s a nice Scramasax or something. Completely sold on these knives.
Thank for share great guide Paul
Richard
After reading your article I have a guilt complex because I am guilty of purchasing quite a lot of clothing and gear. I am in the early stages of this hobby and a complete novice re bushcraft skills, which is another way of saying zero skills. Probably my only saving grace is that I managed to get a place on Paul’s Elementary Wilderness course starting this weekend. I’m sure the course will prove to be quite challenging as there is so much to learn and instilling the skills in me may prove challenging to Paul and his team but hopefully not too challenging!
Paul Kirtley
Looking forward to seeing you Richard. It’ll be a great week 🙂
Warm regards,
Paul
Max Federle
I wholeheartedly agree with what was said and I’ll apologize if this is a very old thread. But I would like to add a couple simple things. 1) some kind of metal container of bottle (a cheap metal water bottle at least). 2) a role of jute twine (also cheap and natural material). And 3) a simple small blue tarp (for making quick shelter or helping waterproof a lean to). Those things don’t cost more that a few extra bucks and increase the number of fun skills to practice on outings.
Steve Debar
Well said an excellent blog.
Benjamin
Having dreamt of living in the woods most of my life I just recently came across the concept of bush crafting. Even with the extravagant kits it was far more minimalistic than i had been taught you would need. Like a full tent with a built in lamp or a gas stove with half the kitchen. Being poor due to poor life choices. It always felt unreachable. Thank you for this post. You have rekindled my childhood dream and with Swedish sparks no less. 🙂
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Stephen Tomlinson
Hi Paul, since I started reading your advice, watching your course videos and blogs my kit has got less! My bag has got smaller, down from a 70 litre plus extra pockets to 45 litre plus side pockets for a week outdoors, My “camp kitchen” has gone from a full Trangia is set to a Nano wood stove, 14 cm billy, nato mug and 1 spoon. I have the three basics you mention Plus a lighter weightsleeping bag and and Jungle hammock, (which I alter depending on weather forecast/ geography) & tarp. Thanks to your food suggestion video I’m taking less food but eating better, and as you suggest it all goes into one side pocket. I carry less water now I can light a fire and boil water I collect. There’s more as I think, but I think you get the picture! In total I’ve reduced my pack weight for a week by over 7KGs. I’m aiming for 10 without compromising my safety or comfort. So thank you for the help and advice.
Colin Little
Great article,I have to admit that I fell into the trap of buying lots of nice shined stuff that I really needed !!
But I didn’t need it,all it did was sit in the loft whenever I went out
So it was car booted and ebayed,now I just have a few things that I need and a couple of things that I like
Paul Kirtley
It’s a normal process Colin. But with bushcraft, less is indeed more! Warm regards, Paul
steve jones
Very succinct Paul thank you for drawing my attention to this matter.
Dave Wright
Very good advice, I have been enjoying the outdoors since I was 7 years old, I am now 54 years old. My first campout was with my sisters boyfriend who took us night fishing at Yalding in Kent, after this my interest sparked into full flame & my ‘kit’ collection got bigger. after joining the Scouts I started going on regular hikes, I was a little boy with a big rucksack, short legs with long miles to walk, it did not take me long to figure out that less ‘kit’ was better, I have been studying Bushcraft ever since & still learn new things on each trip. As my knowledge increased my bag got lighter, unfortunately my bushcraft days are almost over due to a spinal condition which will eventually leave me paralysed, but if I can give anyone any insight for their journey, it would be ‘no matter how much you think you know, keep learning new skills & keep it light but most of all ENJOY your new lifestyle’…
Stephan
Paul,
a wonderful article! I appreciate that you make a statement – like you did with the getting-wet-under-a-tarp issue.
My impression is that the tool addiction comes basically from being afraid of discomfortness. This fear is relieved with every purchase of a cool bushcraft item … and has the adverse effect: I schlepp kilos in the wood, instead of learning from whatever encounters me – to improve and hone my skills.
Thank you so much for this ‘mirror’ 🙂
Stephan
Stephan
Paul,
a wonderful article! I appreciate that you make a statement – like you did with the getting-wet-under-a-tarp issue.
My impression is that the tool addiction comes basically from being afraid of discomfortness. This fear is relieved with every purchase of a cool bushcraft item … and has the adverse effect: I schlepp kilos in the wood, instead of learning from whatever encounters me – to improve and hone my skills.
Thank you so much for this ‘mirror’ 🙂
Warm regards
Stephan
Stephan
sorry … please delete this duplicate
Cogy
Thanks Paul
Yep I aree, when I teach the Scouts. All they need is a knife & what they can carry in their pockets. Many years ago I went out (on reported to be the coldest night of that year) in Southern England with just a knife and a bit of plastic, & Flint. I will always remember that night, shaking because because of the cold. But I survived with a fire. Next morning went in to work. The Scouts of Fareham Hampshire are so so lucky having our own woods only three miles from town, spent so many hours as a teenager in the woods learning simple survival/ bush craft skills with no equipment. Great fun & now I am 60 I still love sleeping rough with just a sleeping bag cover or tarp. And gaining my ‘Mountain Leader” It’s amazing what you can make with old junk, and survive happily. We don’t need all this modern equipment (Not sure if my wife agrees with me!!!) Thanks Paul for GREAT articles Cogy
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Neeman
Paul,
I cannot say how much I enjoy your educated and sustinct writing with an excellent mix of wit
And how your team also write well informed articles
What adds to this is the plethora of replied below your articles, which give a rich and varied perspective
I am new to bushcraft, and cannot quite figure out what it really is
I am old to scouting, cadets, camping, backpacking, long distance winter camping and snowshoeing
You describe someone goes for a walk and the simple gear they has
They camp out overnight, and learn to build a fire to make supper
As they camp out more and backpack, they learn how to carry less gear
Make fires better and cook with raw ingredients
Have we gotten to bushcraft yet because these are surely just simple outdoor skills
So my knife, saw and box of matches are just outdoor tool
Debris huts, leantoos, cordage, knots and lashing, foraging for food, and friction fire
Is this the romantic scent of bushcraft?
Marsha
Perfect Paul! Thanks! I always felt put off because I didn’t have the latest and greatest.
My Mora us the best knife I have in my small kit!
Marsha
Perfect Paul! Thanks! I always felt put off because I didn’t have the latest and greatest.
My Mora is the best knife I have in my small kit!
Paul Kirtley
That’s great Marsha. Get out and use your Mora. Don’t worry about what anyone else thinks…
Warm regards,
Paul
Cain tuckee64
I believe “bushcraft” is our learned skills and muscle memory we aquire as we adventure, and practice living outdoors. No name brand equipment can make you an expert overnight. Sharing our knowledge and skills first hand keeps us sharp… and teaches others respect for the outdoors we love.
Paul Kirtley
Well said!
Jeff Wilkins
Paul,
I totally agree with the great article and love your teachings. My only addition is a word of warning.
Like you I learnt from a young age and my learnings were done quite local and not far from safety. Until you have a reasonable knowledge I think to stay within safe zones is important as an opt-out plan if needs be.
Repetitive skill learning in an environment such as you provide is essential early on and fantastic for development.
Keep up the good work, regards jeff
Paul Kirtley
Hi Jeff,
You make some good points here, both with regards to repetition and remoteness.
Well said.
Warm regards,
Paul
Alan Metcalfe
Paul as much as we talk about having gear or using knowledge to make life easier I can’t get out and use these skills. At the start of this article you say this is all you need to get out for a night in the woods. If only it was that easy! I have found it almost impossible to get a night in the woods. After being told to leave on more than one occasion in England I find my love of bushcraft diminishing. The only time I get out now is when I can organise holidays from work and travel to Scotland and that is usually around a loch in plain view of the public. It’s just not the same as going in to a local wood as I did when I was younger.
Paul Kirtley
I agree Alan. It’s a shame access in England and Wales is such a hassle.
Warm regards,
Paul
Ross McPherson
Hi Paul,
I listened to you say this on an episode of ask Paul kirtley, and on reading this article, I have to admit to being like this, everything I watch has fancy gear and shinny stuff, and I have fell for it, I must also thank you for making me aware of this (even though it stung to hear lol) I have always felt my skills are suffering due to lack of nice equipment, but now hopefully I can begin to improve on my skill not my pack,
Really enjoy your work
Yours thankfully
Ross
Ross McPherson
Hi Paul, I listened to you say this on an episode of ask Paul kirtley, and on reading this article, I have to admit to being like this, everything I watch has fancy gear and shinny stuff, and I have fell for it, I must also thank you for making me aware of this (even though it stung to hear lol) I have always felt my skills are suffering due to lack of nice equipment, but now hopefully I can begin to improve on my skill not my pack,
Really enjoy your work
Yours thankfully
Ross
Gary Bishop
Hello Paul;
I agree with your view on kit. Most of the kit i have, I made myself
including my main knife and sheath. I also carry a Mora for fine work and cooking chores.
I enjoy being in the woods and if I can improve my knowledge of the trees and plants
and basic bushcraft skills then my time out there will be even more enjoyable.
I enjoy the information and presentation of the trees & Plants I.D. course and will be following it with an elementary skills course.
Regards-Gary
Paul Kirtley
Hi Gary,
It’s good to hear from you. Thanks for your comments. Yes, making or even customising your own gear can be very satisfying.
Glad to see you have joined both the Tree and Plant course and the Online Elementary. I’m sure you will get a lot out of both of them.
Warm regards,
Paul
P.S. For anyone else reading this and wondering about my online courses, you can find them via the following links:
Tree and Plant Identification Masterclass
Online Elementary Wilderness Bushcraft
Kevin
Hi Paul, thank you for sharing your article, once again the info you provide is second to none and very informative. Would it be possible to share your article on Facebook with the bushcraft community that I’m involved with,
Paul Kirtley
Hi Kevin, thanks for your comments. I’m glad you liked this article.
Yes, please do share it with your Facebook group. Just copy and past the link in the address bar of your browser.
Warm regards,
Paul
Matt Hartwick
Paul,
Greetings from Richmond, Virginia. I have recently begun to explore the phenomenon that is the podcast at the urging of my 20 something daughters and as I have an interest in the outdoors, I stumbled across your #askpaulkirtley offerings. I appreciate the varied format and information as I am not a social media fan, no judgement but I find my time can be used better elsewhere. This article is consistent with your message on your podcasts, but I also appreciate your guidance on “kit” (new verbiage for me) as I value your opinion through use and experience.
I especially want to thank you for your focus on value, which is much different from cost, I find this the most helpful component on your kit discussion.
Speaking of value, I also appreciate your low/no cost information sharing along with your building of a community committed to the outdoor lifestyle. Don’t let the naysayers get you frustrated or down. You are valued and appreciated. (see the tie in?)
M
Jeff
Thanks Paul. Really enjoyed reading such simplicity from an expert.
I loved Backwoods camping and learning the basics of bushcraft as a kid; making a shelter and carving things to be proud of, how to light a good camp fire & different ways to cook something tasty. We learned the importance of wearing layers pretty fast!
We never had much money in the 80’s (still don’t!) so kit was really basic; a hand-me-down metal frame rucksack, cheap sleeping bag (no such thing as a 2 or 4 season bag back then) and a knife borrowed from dad’s fishing kit, simple but always sharp. So we didn’t have much but we knew we’d always have fun.
Still enjoy camping, alone or with a friend, to improve my own skills but the best kick I get is teaching my own kids & our scouts so they can enjoy bushcraft & camping too.
Your blogs & videos are so helpful to me, and some of our other leaders, to learn good practice and how to teach the kids. We’re going on our annual Group Camp tomorrow so they’ll get to put your tips on knots and tarp setup into practice and show off their skills to the younger ones.
Again, thank you.
Pete Martin
Save money. Get a course that Paul runs, watch his YouTube, get the emails.
Learn from the best. Knowledge is the key. All the gear in a bag and no idea how it works to someone with a bit of knowledge and less gear but can work it is a FAR superior bushcraft.
I really appreciate your emails and your lessons Paul. They are invaluable to me. Thank you.
Pete
Victor
What a great article. I had very little equipment when I started out. I did fall into the gear trap for a while. Now my gear is starting to dwindle and it feels good. Lighter. What a beautiful craft it is.
Dave
Hi Paul. Many thanks for the info. As always succinct and valuable. It is to course common sense, but we need reminding of that fact. Thanks again. Best regards, Dave
Wayne Knight
Thank for this Paul, Having attended your Bush craft and survival foundation course which I fund extremely useful and also made me realize I have far more gear right now that I genuinely have the skill set for, yes it is nice to have the correct gear but without the right knowledge it is pretty much useless. I have been one of the many who have fallen into the category of the having gear and not much idea.
Fortunately for me I have started on the long journey to hone my skills and I will be forever grateful starting on your course, long may mine and many others continue to not only soak up the knowledge you provide but also share and help others along the same path.
Kind Regards.
Wayne Knight
Tim Peacock
Thanks Paul for a very interesting article, I agree that knowledge and skill are the most important tools. This is what inspired my interest in Bushcraft and why I subscribe to your teaching. To have a better understanding of nature and how to work in harmony with her. To learn about trees, plants and animals and how I can use these to obtain my requirements while in the outdoors but to do it in a way that is respectful and to understand what impact I have on the environment so as to minimize any damage I may cause. Like learning how to make a fire but, more importantly, where to make the fire and how to clean up afterwards and instead of buying a knife I learnt how to make one and in doing so gained a better appreciation of what a knife is. Thanks again for your valuable information. Kindest Regards Tim
JOLJ
Great article.
I was raised on a farm & 50 acres of woods around the farm.
I lived there as much as possible, & later worked with BSA until my son became an Eagle scout.
We had rabbit boxes, small snares & hunted every chance we could, sleeping without a tent on clear nights.
I am glad someone said it & did not try to sale us a bush kit.
Nothing wrong with BK, some people just like new gadget, but if your goal is to sale then, this article would fly in the face of those sales.
Thank you for the truth & the Hadza example.
Tom
Hi Paul,
Interesting and thought provoking article.
Like you, I first started with an old tent, and one of those horrible thin blue sleeping bags, with the foam lining, plus a Swiss Army knife. So many a cold night in the woods.
My fire lighting skills along with my mates was usually using a box of matches, to light a single fire. My journey began when my father made me a tinder box, I was fascinated how he took an old tin, some cotton and made char cloth, he then took a lighter flint, put it in a small piece of wood, which I could spark with a needle. I was over the moon with it and it cost nothing but a few items at home. I am coming to a point, we often read of people’s from exotic places loosing their native/survival or just living skills.
I feel that has happened here, look at our fathers and grandfathers, the knew which wood would burn best, how to make a fire and what berries you could it. Today most would have no idea, unless their phone cold tell them. I was lucky enough to have a father to pass on those skills, and of course telling me, if you are going to carry kit, know how to use it, look after it, and in the case of a knife-sharpen it!
Regarding knives, it is the one item we will probably use every day, in the kitchen or workshop, however, hardly anyone, present company excluded, has been taught how to use one.
My final quote is the motto of the Intelligence Corps, “Knowledge Gives Strength to the Arm.”
I think that motto applies perfectly to Bushcraft and Survival.
Gil lamy
Great article Paul. Sometimes people need to read things like this to remind them to actually get out there without investing 3000 pounds in kit. Indeed less is more, and you can not lose knowledge or skill once attained.
Liam Hynes
Thank you very much Paul
Jason r
These posts Never get old .
I’ve been outdoors for most of my life and it’s still good to read these basic posts (or some old books before internet) just to refresh the k,I,s,s idea about keeping it simple because we all get over indulgence in kit and end up with to much stuff .
Paul Kirtley
Thanks Jason. Yes, however long we’ve been at it, it’s worthwhile pausing to take stock and consider these questions against our own practice. It’s certainly something I find beneficially in helping me keep “on track”, so to speak.
Warm regards,
Paul