Natural World

How To Learn About Fungi Safely

by Barry Smith

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Fungi season is upon us! Although we can hunt for fungi all year round, autumn is the most productive time of the year to get outside and go hunting for fungi. As you get more interested in bushcraft and the natural world around us it starts to become obvious that fungi – an almost taboo Read more...

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The Hadza And The Honeyguide

by Paul Kirtley

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The Greater Honeyguide, Indicator indicator, is a species of honeyguide bird with a distribution that includes East Africa. As both its common name and scientific name suggest, the Greater Honeyguide is noted for its ability to guide people to honey. The bird uses a very specific call to communicate with humans. In fact the call Read more...

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How To Wade Across A River

by James Bath

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How to wade across a river or stream is a question often first asked by outdoors people when they are confronted by a potential water crossing. It is much better to have practiced techniques beforehand and thought about options at the route-planning stage, before heading out. Any potential water crossing, planned or unplanned, should be Read more...

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How to Assess a Water Crossing

by James Bath

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The first rule of water crossings is to avoid them whenever you can. If you can avoid, re-plan or detour around a water obstacle, then it is worth it. If you have no choice, then read on. Acronym Soup A quick perusal of outdoor literature, magazines or websites will uncover various acronyms of varying usefulness Read more...

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The Dangers Of Water Outdoors (& What To Do If You Fall In)

by James Bath

Water is one of the most beautiful and oft discussed of the natural forces. It has inspired countless songs, poems and literature and is vital to all natural life – simply our planet could not survive without it. It is, however, one of the most powerful and deadly forces we can encounter. Annually thousands of Read more...

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The Joy of Tracks

by Paul Kirtley

An interest in animal tracks and sign is something of an affliction. If you become hooked, country walks can become very slow affairs. You certainly have to have understanding walking partners. Once you start looking, there are signs of animal activity everywhere… In fact, after you tune in to the evidence of wildlife activity in Read more...

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How to Use the Northern Lights for Navigation

by Paul Kirtley

The aurora borealis, or Northern Lights, are a phenomena of high latitudes. Science informs us that the aurora are caused by solar wind interacting with the Earth’s magnetic field and atmosphere. Long before modern science formed theories about the northern lights, indigenous peoples of the north observed their usefulness. I have heard anecdotes about aurora Read more...

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Stopped Clocks and Navigation: What An Equinox Tells Us About Direction

by Paul Kirtley

Most of us have known the old adage that the Sun rises in the east and sets in the west for so long that we can’t remember where we first heard it. Somewhat like a stopped clock being correct twice a day, however, this old adage is only correct twice a year. Only on the Read more...

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Natural Navigation: What’s Happening with the Three Brightest Objects in the Night Sky?

by Paul Kirtley

For the purposes of wayfinding, it’s important to have an understanding of the brightest objects in the night sky. The three brightest objects in the night sky are not stars but planets: The Moon, Venus and Jupiter. These planets are up to something rather special in our skies at the moment (read on). It’s at Read more...

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Animal Tracks and Sign: Vole or Mouse?

by Paul Kirtley

While the snow we’ve had over the past few weeks is a great medium on which animal tracks are readily recorded, it’s also a very easy medium on which to track. For much of the year we don’t have the luxury of snow to make our lives as trackers easy. Even so there are many Read more...

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