The Bushcraft Magazine Summer 2015

Leshy Guardian of the Forest

Finish braiding your baldric Make an elm bark knife sheath

Filling the ‘Hungry Gap’ Herbs against hangovers

Plus Star Lore, Weather Lore and more...

Volume 11 Number 2 Summer 2015 The Bushcraft Magazine is published by:

The Bushcraft MagazineTM .

Egerton House Cottage, Egerton, Ashford, KENT TN27 9BD Founder: Huw Woodman Editor: Steve Kirk Advertising: Matthew Selfe Webmaster: Paul Bradley Soup Dragon: Cathy Hill E-mail: info@bushcraft-magazine.co.uk Advertising: mafro@bushcraft-magazine.co.uk

CONTENTS 4 FILLING THE ‘HUNGRY GAP’ Carol Hunt has the wherewithal and the means.

8 HERBS AGAINST HANGOVERS Steve Kirk offers relief in a leaf.

12 FINISHING OFF YOUR BALDRIC Paul Bradley twists again, like he did last issue.

16 ‘CRAFTY YOUNG FOXES George Pittman is a bright spark.

22 INTERPRETING LOWLAND WOODLAND Geoffrey Guy translates the trees for us.

26 ELM BARK KNIFE SHEATH Graham Couling has more bark than a beagle kennel.

30 SLOVAKIA’S SPIRIT OF THE FOREST Edward O’ Toole has a supernatural, not alcoholic, entity.

33 THE SNAKE’S PROGRESS Steve Kirk with an update.

35 THE LAST WORD Lloyd Hooper gets the cane for going fishing.

REGULARS 10 STAR LORE 20 WEATHER LORE

EDITORIAL We at the magazine were greatly saddened to hear of the recent passing of Val Lord.

As the gurus in their field, a little while back, during the time when my interest in all things prehistoric was developing, Val and John Lord were an inspiration to me. When they appeared on TV, they were the embodiment of the Stone Age and also of the spirit of discovery, practical reconstruction, experimental archaeology and the like. It is not often one gets to meet one’s heroes but I was privileged to meet Val (and John) at Will’s Prehistoric Experience in 2013 and found her to be utterly charming, as well as a formidable talent. Val could knap flint, craft bone and antler needles, awls, harpoons and knives and was expert in natural cordage and textiles. I am grateful that I had the opportunity to sit at her feet and listen...

Steve Kirk. editor@bushcraft-magazine.co.uk

cover art by Edward O’ Toole

Summer can be a tricky time to forage enough green food to live on. Tender spring leaves have mostly hardened off, turning inedible, and fruits have yet to ripen. It is known as 'the hungry gap' and it applies to certain herbivorous animals as well as human beings. A flexible and nomadic approach is required that takes you from woodland and hedgerow to the coast and perhaps back again. Plus, a touch of inventiveness with your cooking makes less go further...

Filling th This makes a nice starter dish.

Serves 2 500g Common Mallow leaves 2 or 3 cloves of slow roasted garlic* (see method, right) A little oil for frying 150g Wild Rocket leaves A small carton of creme fraîche Seasoning - Fresh ground sea salt and peppercorns to taste 500ml vegetable stock 1 large carton of double cream Choose large, clean and unblemished fresh mallow leaves. Thoroughly wash them, then tear or chop them coarsely.

Choose a deep heavy bottomed pan and squeeze the pulp from the slow roasted garlic cloves into it. Add a small amount of oil and toss them with the shredded mallow leaves over a low heat to wilt them and then pour in the vegetable stock.

Bring the pan to a low simmer, cover it with a lid and then begin preparing the rocket cream (a stick blender is ideal for this if you have one, although you can settle for simply chopping the leaves very finely and mixing them in with a fork).

Put the crème fraîche, or cream cheese, into a bowl and blend it to a smooth paste. Add the rocket leaves a little at a time and blend them in also (be sure to keep a small bunch of whole leaves back, to garnish the finished dish).

Creamy Mallow Soup with Rocket Cream

Check the flavour of the rocket cream and add any additional seasoning if you feel it is required.

Check the saucepan with the mallow leaves which by now should be softened and pulpy.

Take the pan from the heat and allow it to cool a little before blending the contents to a smooth paste. Add the cream a little at a time, blending in through the mixture thoroughly. Season to taste.

The

Common Mallow (Malva sylvestris) has a delicate almost bland Serve hot with a few coarsely chopped rocket leaves stirred into flavour and a soft, mucilaginous texture when cooked which makes it a very good base for a creamy textured soup. Adding the soup and a generous swirl of the rocket cream. Garnish with a single rocket leaf. slow roasted garlic gives a greater depth to the flavour which contrasts nicely with the peppery, raw rocket leaves and gentler swirl of rocket cream garnish.

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g the „Hungry Gapâ€&#x; Carol Hunt

Slow Roasted Garlic

*

Leave them to roast slowly and gently until the aroma begins to permeate the kitchen, then test an exposed bulb with the tip of a knife.

This is really very easy to make and I find the soft texture and mild flavour of the roasted cloves invaluable in cookA properly cooked bulb will have a deeply aromatic ing and far superior to the coarseness you often get with aroma and a soft, pulpy texture. Once you are happy that fresh cloves. they are fully (and gently) cooked, remove the heads from the oven and leave them to cool.

Take a couple of whole heads of garlic with the skin on and using a sharp knife, chop off the tip of the bulb so To use, break as many cloves as you desire for your that you can just see the end of each individual clove recipe away from the bulb and gently squeeze the pulpy within. contents direct into the cooking dish. Any leftover bulbs of garlic can be sealed in a plastic bag and stored in the Carefully place the heads in a square of foil - cut side 'fridge. uppermost - then drizzle a tiny amount of oil over them and place them on an ovenproof dish or tray. Place the Use any remaining cloves within a week (they are dish in the centre of a medium/low oven. especially good in pasta sauces).

By early to mid-summer common hogweed plants are producing an abundance of sheathed flower buds which may be picked and steamed (or poached) until they are bright green and just cooked through and here their unique tang partners well with the strong flavour of the blue cheese.

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Photos by the Author

Hogweed Buds

Bushcraft Magazine

test this by gently pushing a knife blade through one).

Place them in a bowl of cool water and set them to one side.

Cut a couple of thin slivers of the blue cheese and set them aside too, then crumble the rest into a bowl.

Gently crush the crow garlic head under a wide bladed knife to break it up and release the individual bulbils.

Harvest smallish, uniformly sized buds so that they all cook evenly, and allow a generous handful per person.

Crow garlic, recognisable at this time of year by its distinctive, tall, bulbilcrowned stems also favours scrubby grassland and so it is not uncommon to find the two growing in the same habitat.

Steamed Hogweed Buds in a rich

Whilst common hogweed is frequently used as a wild edible, be aware that it has coarse hairs and sap that can cause irritation particularly if you have sensitive skin, so consider using gloves and wear long sleeves, especially if you are picking the plant on a particularly sunny day.

Please take also great care over correct identification of this plant. Common Hogweed (Heracleum sphondylium), must not be confused with Giant Hogweed (Heracleum mantegazzianum) the sap of which can cause severe and painful skin-blistering and may result in permanent scarring.

Blue Cheese Sauce on Tagliatelle Using a whisk, blend the cornflour with enough water to form a thin smooth paste. Stir it thoroughly to break up any floury lumps.

Fill a pan with water and place it over a medium heat. Once it is simmering, add the tagliatelle. Turn the heat down a little and place a lid on the pan.

Put the milk into a saucepan and add the cornflour paste then put the pan onto a low heat, stirring occasionally with a whisk to make sure that the contents don't stick or form lumps as it thickens.

The

If you have not picked common hogweed before I suggest that you fully familiarise yourself with the different characteristics Add the crumbled blue cheese to the cornflour and milk and of each plant before you proceed. continue stirring, it will gradually amalgamate with the sauce.

Check the tagliatelle, stirring it again so that it does not clump.

Serves 2 As soon as it is al-dente, strain off the pasta, place it in a You need: lidded dish and toss it with a light drizzle of oil.

150ml milk 75g blue cheese Increase the heat on the blue cheese sauce a little and add the 200g Fresh, young Hogweed buds (Heracleum sphondylium) hogweed buds to the pan. Allow it to just simmer, stirring continuously until the buds are warmed right through.

1 heaped teaspoon of cornflour 2 or 3 Crow Garlic bulbils (Allium vineale) Transfer individual portions of the tagliatelle to a serving plate and spoon over the blue cheese and hogweed mixture.

Pack of dried tagliatelle Seasoning to taste (fresh ground sea salt and peppercorns) Sprinkle the loose crow garlic bulbils over the top, add a little garnish and serve immediately.

Trim and wash the hogweed buds, then steam or poach them until they are bright green and just cooked through (you can

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If you enjoy the scented sweetness of chocolate-coated Turkish Delight then this richly delicious recipe should appeal. It is dairy free and vegetarian and easily adapted to suit vegan and raw food diets too.

Add the cocoa powder a spoonful at a time, pulsing the purée between each addition to mix it through and scraping down the sides of the mixer from time to time.

Check the flavour and add more powder if needed until a really thick mousse with a good chocolaty flavour is Don't be fooled by the unusual ingredients, it's simple to achieved. prepare using a blender or food processor and the method really works I assure you.

Now add heaped tablespoons of the pre-prepared rose petal purée to the mousse and once again pulsing the Serves: 2 power button, mix it through thoroughly.

You Need: Check the flavour of the dessert after two spoonfuls 1 or 2 medium sized fully ripe avocados 2 to 3 heaped tablespoons of unsweetened good quality have been added, as the paste is quite sweet, and stop adding once a nice rich Turkish delight flavour is dark chocolate powder (you may substitute raw cacao achieved (I find up to 4 usually works best but if you powder if you prefer) find it too sweet or strongly flavoured use a little less).

500 to 750g clean, fresh, deeply coloured and strongly And that's it! scented rose petals - I usually harvest pink Ramanas Rose (Rosa rugosa) I find that this dessert is even nicer if it's made the day 450g jar of clear runny honey (substitute maple syrup or before, which gives time for the chocolate and rose flavours to really develop. agave syrup to make this suitable for Vegans) Serve well chilled with a little grated dark chocolate First you will need to prepare the rose petal paste. If sprinkled over it, a small dollop of rose paste and a fresh possible choose deeply coloured red or pink ones which rose petal to garnish. will give the most pleasing end result.

Pour the honey, maple or agave syrup into the blender jug. Feed small handfuls of petals into the blender, pulsing the speed button so that they are fully chopped into the syrup. You will need to scrape the sides of the blender carefully from time to time, pushing any whole petals back down if they stick. Continue the process until you achieve a thick, deeply coloured and richly rose scented paste. Decant the paste into either a sterile jar or plastic container with a well-sealed lid.

You need up to 4 heaped tablespoons of this paste for your recipe.

Any remainder can be stored. The fresh paste will keep for about a week in the 'fridge, or may be frozen in portions in an ice cube tray and kept in the freezer for later use.

Rose and Chocolate Mousse 'Turkish Delight'

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Now for the chocolate mousse.

Halve the avocados and chop the flesh roughly, placing the pieces in the blender and pulsing the blades until you achieve a smooth green purée.

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Herbs against

Steve Kirk

What exactly is a hangover? It is a complex set of symptoms resulting from intoxication – that is to say poisoning – of the body by alcohol, which occurs usually on the following day. Symptoms include dehydration, stomach upset, nausea, (sometimes accompanied by vomiting), giddiness and of course, throbbing headache, general lethargy, sensitivity to light and to loud noises. All of these occur to a greater or lesser degree depending on the amount and mix of alcohol consumed and the pre-disposition of the self-inflicted victim.

Just as where there are people on the planet there is a local brew, so too there is often a local cure. Both originate from the same source. Plants. Although the active ingredients of many of these herbs are endorsed by modern science, use of the following traditional and folk remedies for medical purposes must be very much a matter of personal choice.

Watercress – Nasturtium officinale, is a tonic at any time but has gained a reputation as a hangover cure. With Culpeper claiming it will “help headaches, and consume the gross humours”; with the Mahuna Indians and Costanoan of California using it as a liver remedy and its continued use specifically for liver and digestive disorders in parts of Turkey and elsewhere, it is not fanciful to suppose that it will alleviate the worst symptoms of a hangover. As well as being generally beneficial to the digestive system, it helps to cleanse waste products and toxins from the body, particularly by stimulating and supporting the functions of the kidneys and liver. At home, it may be juiced; otherwise munch on a bunch of the fresh leaves – but only if you are sure livestock are not grazed in the area, or you will risk contracting liver fluke. Blanching the leaves for 30 seconds in boiling water will eliminate any parasites and the cress will retain its crunch if you quickly rinse it in cold.

Milk Thistle – Silybum marianum is one of the most popular healing herbs wherever it occurs. It preferentially seeks out dry, rocky habitats, being native to the Mediterranean and semi-arid places East at least as far as Pakistan, but it is widely cultivated elsewhere, especially in Europe and has naturalised in many parts, including Britain, since the Middle Ages. It is a magnificent, stately plant, sometimes taller than a man, with dark glossy green leaves patterned with a broad white network that, tradition holds in many countries, was created by a drop of milk from the Virgin Mary whilst suckling the infant Jesus when sheltering in a protective bower provided by these thistles.

The young flower-heads, leaves and stems can be eaten but when the plant matures you will be hard pressed to find a herb with leaves more tough, leathery and fiercely spined. It is the seeds that are of particular interest, as there the greatest concentrations of silymarin, a complex bio-active compound and its purified derivative, silibin, are to be found. These are used in both traditional and modern herbal medicine as well as conventional allopathic treatments principally as a regenerator, strengthener and protecter of the liver in a diverse range of diseases such as hepatitis, cirrhosis and jaundice, as well as poisoning induced by alcohol, venomous animals or even Death Cap fungi.

The

In 2012, over two thousand years after its virtues were first touted, it gained a folk-popularity all over again. In December of that year, with New Year celebrations impending, social media acted as a wildfire word-of-mouth campaign, spreading endorsements of this plant‟s efficacy as a hangover cure and preventative, and sales of over-the-counter milk thistle capsules reached record levels in the UK. Quite a testament to this herb and to the knowledge of our forefathers.

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In „Anatomia Sambuci‟, his treatise devoted entirely to the properties of the Elder – Sambucus nigra, written in 1677, Martin Blochwich records how a little elderflower vinegar applied to the temples, crown and forehead (in the manner of essential oils) affords relief in the kind of headaches that follow drunkenness. The vinegar is simply and easily made, and is delicious, fragrant and uplifting. My method differs from Blochwich‟s own: Pick the flowers on a warm day and shake them free of pollen beetles. Lay them close together, face-down in a bowl containing 150ml white wine vinegar.

Submerge only the blossom and keep the bitter stems out of the liquid. Cover the bowl with clingfilm and leave in a warm place. After half a day squeeze the vinegar out of the blossom and refill with fresh flowers. Repeat this over 2 days; strain and bottle. While you wait for a hangover to turn up use the vinegar on salads and in sauces. It is extraordinarily pleasant.

Despite its common occurrence on cliffs all around the coasts of Britain, this plant has received little attention from either learned medicine or folk tradition, with the exception of some of the far northern islands. Perhaps desperation led to experimentation or perhaps they brought back some indigenous knowledge from somewhere on their voyages but, once upon a time, hung-over sailors on South Uist in the Outer Hebrides would dig up a bunch of Thrift – Armeria maritima, and boil it, roots and all. When cooled, they would drink the liquid slowly, as a remedy for their discomfort.

Thrift was used medicinally in Orkney to treat the ague and TB. Elsewhere, the edible leaves have been used in the treatment of obesity, some nervous disorders and urinary infections and extracts of the above ground parts of the herb are recognised as skin conditioners by the EU Commission ingredients database. The roots are known to contain a bitter and astringent principle and to yield iodine and salts of soda.

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„Headache Flowers‟ is a folkname in Norfolk for the Corn Poppy – Papaver rhoeas, on account of the seeds being chewed there to cure a hangover. In other places they are simply known as „Headache‟ for their ability to bring relief from pain in the head, tooth or ear. When I was growing up I was always told that they gave you a headache, though I have since eaten many poppy seed rolls without ill effect. A syrup made from poppy petals was at one time more generally employed in herbal medicine as a cough treatment.

PLANT LORE

All parts of the cultivated and Wild Carrot – Daucus carota are medicinal; all parts are edible too, including the roots of the wild plants, though they are too wiry for many people.

A tisane (herbal tea) of the leaves is very cleansing for the body and is good for the urinary and digestive systems, but carrot is used to treat a wide range of ailments from diarrhoea and dysentery to coughs, diabetes, skin problems, scalds and burns, and of course, strengthening the eyesight. The aromatic seed especially has a long history of use as a specific in the treatment of jaundice. It contains an essential oil, which is extracted by hydrodistillation (see TBM Vol. 10, No.3 Autumn 2014) and comprises some very bioactive compounds. These act on the liver, strengthening, protecting and detoxifying it. The essential oil is potent and should not be used by pregnant women (heavy drinking not recommended, either!), as carrot can cause the foetus to abort.

Traditional practitioners in parts of Israel and India use a root decoction as a jaundice remedy instead and this, given the „circumstances‟ (see symptoms), might be the route to follow in your hour of need.

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BUSHCRAFTER‟S

It seems fitting that the star pattern of the Scorpion should lurk along the southern horizon, half hidden, much as the stinging arachnid that it represents creeps along the ground. To see the beast in its entirety one would have to be a good deal further south than the British Isles, to Latitude 40 degrees or below. It is compleSCORPIUS, tely visible from nether France, THE SCORPION and better still from the Canary Islands, for example, but the constellation never rises free in Britain. Still, it cuts a striking figure in the summer night sky with its red heart rivalling Mars and its raised claws quite clear to see, albeit disguised as a set of weighing scales.

ALMANAC

NEW MOON

FULL MOON

AUG 14

14:53

AUG 29

18:35

SEPT 13*

06:41

SEPT 28

02:50

OCT 13

00:06

OCT 27

12:05

NOV 11

17:47

NOV 25

22:44

DEC 11

10:29

DEC 25

11:11

METEOR SHOWERS

Name

Dates

Peak

Hourly rate

Delta Aquarids July 14 - August 18

July 27-30*

18-20

Perseids

August 10-13

60-100

July 17-August 24

* Moon interferes THE PLANETS Jupiter reappears in the morning

Venus becomes the Morning

in September.

Star through late summer and Autumn.

Mars becomes visible in the morning in August.

Saturn is in Scorpius to

Mercury

the SE, rising at sunset, but soon settin.

returns in August.

SUNSET

SUNRISE

LON

CAR

EDIN BEL

LON

CAR

EDIN

BEL

AUG 1 04:24

04:36 04:16 04:34

AUG 1 19:48 20:01

20:21

20:25

SEP 1

05:13

05:25 05:16 05:30

SEP 1

18:47 19:00

19:08

19:16

OCT 1

06:00

06:13 06:15 06:25

OCT 1

17:39 17:51

17:49

18:01

NOV 1 06:53

07:06 07:19 07:25

NOV 1 16:34 16:46

16:33

16:48

A Partial Solar Eclipse will be visible from South Africa, Madagascar and the Antarctic on Sep 13

A Total Lunar Eclipse on Sep 28 will be visible from the UK beginning at around 01:12 UT (02:12 BST)

Note that one more solar and one more lunar eclipse will occur in 2015 but neither will be visible from the UK.

Note that all times are Universal Coordinated Time UTC /GMT. Add 1 hour to convert to British Summer Time.

Known to the ancient Sumerians as GIR.TAB, ‘the Scorpion’, it is thought to be one of the oldest constellations to have maintained its designation. Perhaps this is because it is so easy to picture the creature that it represents from the flowing juxtaposition of its component stars and because the southern lands that see it most clearly will be infested with its small, venomous namesake. The curled tail with its sting sparkles in a patch of the Milky Way, while above it an eye-catching red star, Antares – meaning ‘like Mars’ (called Ares by the Greeks) – was seen as the Scorpion’s heart by the Greeks, Romans and ancient Arabs and still conjures that impression somewhat, today.

Scorpius is a sign of the Zodiac, which means that the Sun passes through it annually, although these days it rather briefly crosses the narrowest part of the constellation’s modern boundaries. The ecliptic, the plane that the Sun and planets follow, passes a few degrees above Antares so that, from time to time, the equally red planet Mars does pay a visit to Scorpius and will be back there in late March, 2016.

Currently, however, orange-coloured Saturn is crossing this sign at a snail’s pace and will remain there until January 2017.

A planet’s appearance within a constellation can cause confusion for a time, by disrupting an otherwise identifiable and clearly mapped pattern.

Saturn moved into Scorpius from the adjacent zodiacal constellation of Libra. This grouping was once joined to the Scorpion, although often named separately as the Claws, and you can see why. Aside from it making the Scorpion rather large, it completes its form beautifully; otherwise, in the more modern depiction, the pincers of the scorpion go unmarked by stars.

By the 1st century A.D., some Roman writers had already called the Claws Libra, the Balance, but according to the myths of the time and times before, the whole of the constellation was originally put in the sky as a form of balance that was both metaphorical and physical. On one side of the sky you find Orion, the Hunter, and on the other, Scorpius, his slayer! In late Spring, as the Scorpion rises into view, Orion quietly slips out of sight. The placing of both in the night sky, it was said, was deliberate to remind men not to become overconfident. Such was Orion’s crime.

The

Summer Solstice occurs at 16:39 June 21, 2015

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In the earliest known version of the Greek myth, written down nearly 3000 years ago, and therefore likely to have been part of a much older oral tradition, Orion, whilst hunting in Crete with the goddess Artemis and her mother, Leto, claimed to be able to kill any creature that the Earth produced.This arrogant boast was taken as a threat by Ge (a.k.a. Gaia – Mother Earth) who, angered by this, sent up a giant scorpion that stung and killed Orion. According to Hesiod , in the Evelyn-White translation “After this Zeus, at the prayer of Artemis and Leto, put him among the stars, because of his manliness, and the Scorpion also as a memorial of him and of what had occurred.”

Zubeneschemali‘s counterbalance in the scales is Zubenelgenubi, another Arabic contraction, meaning ‘Southern Claw’.

The star Dschubba is so named from the Arabic for the ‘Scorpion’s Forehead’; Acrab derives from a word that originally referred to the whole constellation in the same language; Shaula, meaning ‘the Scorpion’s Stinger’ comes from the Arabic, also. There are Babylonian, Greek, Roman and Arabic star names but perhaps the most intriguing are the survivors of the ancient Sumerian language that pre-dates Babylon.

Girtab is one such. Once meaning the whole constellation, it became part of the curl of the Scorpion’s sting. Nearby Sargas was ‘the Great Smasher’ of the Sumerian god Marduk.

In another version of the myth, however, when they were hunting together on the island of Chios, Orion tried to force himself upon Artemis. To punish him, the eternally chaste goddess sent out a scorpion from a hill, it stung Orion and he perished. Zeus placed the scorpion in the night sky so that from that day forth men would be reminded of its strength and power. These two shapes in the stars, long since recognised as a mighty hero and a deadly, stinging nemesis of mankind, and being at opposite ends of an axis, easily conjurs an irresistible symbolism to sky watchers, that somehow urges you to weave a story that joins them together.

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Zubeneschemali (whose name is a form of contracted Arabic meaning ‘Northern Claw of the Scorpion’) has more mystery attached to it. It is the only star reputed to be green in colour to the naked eye, by some observers.

Others claim it is merely white or perhaps bluewhite. The only way to be sure is to observe it for ourselves.

STAR LORE

Star names are like ‘Chinese Whispers’. By the time they reach us a great many of them bear little or no resemblance to what they started as or were intended to mean. On their long journey through thousands of years of time, via many cultures, translations and mistranslations, mis-spellings and erroneous transcriptions they have been corrupted into today’s names and shared worldwide. Graffias originally meant the claws, as in the part of Scorpius that has become Libra, but became applied to a single star in error, for example. In the case of Lesath, the name evolved into something meaning the sting or bite of a poisonous animal from something in Greek that meant a ‘foggy conglomeration’, The heart, head, sting and outstretched claws of Scorpius are intended for the nearby Ptolemy Cluster. Being in the Milky easily perceived if you include the stars of what is nowadays Way, Scorpius is beset with fuzzy patches. Two near the tip of known as Libra (and I recommend that you do). Much of the the tail, The Ptolemy and Butterfly Clusters are quite easily body is lost in the UK but when seen in its entirety from more picked out on moonless nights and are beautiful in binoculars. southerly countries the faint curve of the tail and body is not hard to find. Eye-catching, orange-red Antares is the brightest The fully restored Scorpion waves its claws at Virgo, star, though curiously, in the Catasterismi or immediately to the West, while close beside Scorpius on the ‘Constellations’ (2nd century BCE*) it was recorded that ‘the other side is Sagittarius, mired in the horizon. Above the bright star on the northern claw’ of the Scorpion, (nowadays Scorpion is Ophiuchus, the Serpent-bearer, in all its glory. known as Zubeneschemali, in Libra) was the brightest. Ptolemy, cataloguing the stars some 350 years more recently than There is something irresistible about this star figure with its that, had them of equal brightness, while at present Antares tail poised ready to sting, claws aloft. In the circumstances, is nearly four times the brighter and is the sixteenth brightest keeping a watchful eye on it seems the natural thing to do. star in the night sky as a whole. Whether one has dimmed and * Before Current Era the other brightened, no one can say.

Scorpius, restored

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Finishing off your B Previously we started a leather knife baldric; we will now finish it off and create a method for attaching it to a knife sheath. Now, not

with some wrappings of waxed thread and seal the ends of the paracord with a flame. We are going to tie a 5x4 Turk’s head knot over the wrappings and then double it.

everyone has access to leather lace and it can be quite expensive, so as a variation on this project we are going to use gutted paracord. I have discovered, like many before me, that if you remove the inner 7 strands from a piece of paracord then it collapses flat and can be braided very much the same as leather lace.

The advantages of course are that nylon paracord is much more weather-resistant, there are a lot more colours and it is hugely cheaper and more readily available.

The tools we require are scissors, lighter, paracord and a permalok needle or fid.

Improvise one if you don’t have one.

To add a bit of bulk to the knot we will retain the inner strands on the length used for the knot. We need about a six foot length for a doubled knot. Although we can tie the knot directly on the project, sometimes it’s easier to tie on a mandrel and then transfer and tighten the knot. For the purposes of this article we are going to use bright red on a piece of white conduit.

Turk’s Head 1

So, having replicated our leather baldric in two colours of green paracord we now have a 14” length of flat 8 strand braid, changing to 8 strand round braid.

3

2

Bring the working end back round and over the standing end to the left.

6

5

...and over the next.

The

Pass back round and over itself to the right forming an x.

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Pass back behind the mandrel and back up beside the standing end on its right, passing underneath the strand in the same way.

Always rotate the mandrel towards you.

Start with the standing end on the left and pass the working end over the mandrel to the right

4

Bring the working end back to the left passing under the next strand...

7

Pass over the next strand, bringing the working end to the right.

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Photos by S. Kirk

The back side of the baldric needs to reach to about your waist and will terminate in a Turk’s head knot. Secure the end

r Baldric

Paul Bradley 9

Bring the working end back to the left passing over then under a strand ...

...and back underneath

12

11

13

Pass under the next strand careful that you pick up the right one as it may have slipped back into the knot.

14

Then pass over one under one ...

17

Here’s the half completed knot placed on the baldric

You should be able to tell, as at this stage we are following a strict over under sequence.

15

16

...with the working end going to the left.

Passing over the last strand bring the working end back up next to the standing end on its right...

18

19

To double the knot follow the standing end on its right...

...which completes the 5x4 knot.

Following to the right of the standing end, pass over then under a strand ...

Once you have the knot completed, using your fid, start at the beginning ...

DO IT YOURSELF

...then over another to bring the working end to the right.

Photos by S. Kirk

10

...following the over and under sequence exactly as it does until you reach the start point again.

and following the strand around gradually tighten the knot to your satisfaction.

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The front we will braid in the round for about 16”, split into two 4 strand round braids for about 1” then rejoin to 8 strand round. This will give us an eye to pass through the Turk’s head knot on the other end. We could make two of these if we wanted to build in some adjustability, for example for use over a larger coat. we will then divide the strands into two again to

create two tails which we will terminate with small knots, these tails can be used to attach our sheath.

To create our eyes or button holes we take one end of our baldric with its eight strands and divide them into two sets of 4.

Button hole or eye 4 3

5 6

2 7 1

1

2

The natural way to do this would be to divide them into 1234 and 5678 but I find that this leaves an untidy back.

8

3

We braid 3456 first for at least two complete sets of moves.

I have found that it is better to divide them into 3456 and 1278

We then need to turn the whole braid over, arrange 1278 into their correct over under orientation and then braid them to the same length as 3456.

4

5

6

It is important that both braids end at the same orientation.

This allows us to combine the two fours into eight with the correct over under sequence ...

8

9

The

Continue this 8-strand braid for about an inch or so and add another eye if required.

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We then split the 8-strand to two 4-stand groups again and braid four about four inches to create our tails. Secure the ends with a simple clove hitch of thread.

7 ...to continue our 8-strand round braid. (see TBM Vol. 11 No.1, Spring 2015)

10

To terminate these tails we will use a terminal Turk’s head.

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Terminal Turk’s Head To make this easier to see how it’s tied we will use 4 different colours.

Hold the tail as shown, with the four strands arranged in a cross.

1

2

Pass each strand to the opposite side creating a loop, through which the strand to its right will pass through, creating its own loop, until you end up as shown.

Then take the red strand and pass it round the blue strand and up through the middle.

3

4

The next strand is the yellow, pass it round the base of the tan and again up through the middle.

5

Do the same with the blue, passing round the base of the red...

6

...and finally the tan, which passes round the base of the yellow and up through.

The baldric, ready for use.

Then carefully tighten the strands and pull taut.

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The

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Bushcraft Magazine

George, Taming the Dragon George Pittman Waterproof matches.

Mastery of fire is an important goal in bushcraft. George Pittman, still in only his twelfth year, demonstrated outstanding knowledge, preparation and skill in this area, during our 2015 May Meet when he took an assembled audience on a tour through his fire-making kit. Luckily, I was there with my camera to capture some of the highlights.

Below are some sage words from George on the subject.

Preparation

Lighting a cotton ball with a fire steel.

When making a fire, one of the most important things to do is to prepare. If you don’t then you will be stuck with a burning bit of tinder which, by the time you rush about and collect your kindling, will have already gone out. This very piece could have been your last bit of tinder leaving you with nothing to light. So before you light your fire make sure you collect enough kindling to sustain the fire whilst you collect larger logs. What I always do is collect small twigs gradually building up to larger sticks and arrange them in neat piles so they are easily accessible for when you need them.

Fire Science Cotton balls dipped in petroleum jelly burn for much longer. If you don’t have any petroleum jelly then candle wax works as well.

Fire is made up of three things known as the fire triangle; fuel, oxygen and heat in equal measures. If there is not enough fuel then the fire will go out. If there is not enough oxygen the fire will start to smoke and also go out. This is known as incomplete combustion and if a fire has no heat then it will not light. So always make sure that there is plenty of each by using enough kindling, but not too much that you smother the fire, and by using good tinder that burns well.

Tinder

The

The cramp ball, another kind of mushroom tinder, will stay alight for hours when dried out.

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16

There are many types of tinder; some are natural and some are nonnatural but they will all get your fire lit if you know how to use them well. Some examples of natural tinder are pine cones, which burn well because of the flammable resin inside. You can also use birch bark, and this is probably the most important piece of tinder to have, as it burns very well and will catch a spark even when wet. Finally, there is a mushroom called the birch bracket fungus which grows on the side of trees. To collect the tinder off of these you have to cut thin strips from off the bottom and dry them out until they become very soft like velvet, which will then take a spark. Many non-natural tinders also

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Create a small dent and pour the glycerin in and then mix them together.

Potassium Permanganate will ignite spontaneously when mixed with glycerin, and burns pretty hot.

work just as well as natural ones and can even be simple household objects, such as cotton wool balls. These are already a good tinder that can be made even better by dipping them in petroleum jelly, which is flammable and makes the cotton balls burn for longer. Another non-natural way of creating fire is mixing two chemicals which both have many different uses. One is potassium permanganate; this will ignite spontaneously when mixed with glycerin, and burns pretty hot. Potassium Permanganate is also an antiseptic, it can be used to treat athlete’s foot and generally disinfect stuff. You can use it to purify water but you have to be careful as it is poisonous in large amounts. It also stains everything purple and could be used for marking snow as an emergency signal.

Hand sanitizer is also a good tinder as the alcohol in it is highly flammable and is especially good if you carry a small bottle in your first aid kit.

Thick smoke appears and then it bursts into flames.

If you carry alcohol-based hand-cleanser as part of your first aid kit, then it can be used as a great way to get from spark to flame with all sorts of materials.

Ignition To ignite your fire there are many ways, such as using a fire steel.

These can come in many different forms, like the commercially available, store-bought fire steel or even a home-made one. You can also use a flint and steel by striking the flat edge of the steel on the sharp edge of the flint, creating a spark onto a tinder such as char cloth or amadou.

Another way of igniting fire is with friction. This can be done in different ways such as bow drill. This is done by using a bow to spin a rounded stick in an indent in a block of wood to create an ember. This ember is then placed into a ball of straw and blown until it ignites. This method can also be done by turning the stick with your hand instead of a bow and this is called hand drill.

Rubber inner-tube doesn't take a spark, but burns furiously even when wet. You can cut the tube into bands to wrap around something, in this case a box of matches

You can even magnify the sun onto tinder with glasses, a magnifying glass or just a polished tin can end.

If it was a real emergency you could arc a battery from a mobile phone or torch.

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The

Magnesium burns very hot and bright but also very quickly.

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Contributor List Jason Sears emberleaf.com mooandtwo.com benandloisorford.com bushcrafttools.com cowleysfinefood.com www.davebudd.com www.bushcraft-magazine.co.uk www.wildernessgathering.co.uk www.wilderness-survival.co.uk www.moonrakerknives.co.uk www.sharkdesigns.co.uk www.survivalschool.co.uk www.woodland-ways.co.uk www.blueangelical.me.uk www.endicotts.co.uk www.greenmanknives.com www.bisonbushcraft.co.uk oldmanwoodcraft.co.uk/shop www.thebushcraftjournal.com www.spooncarvingfirststeps.com www.dorsetwoodlandblades.co.uk www.traditionalmaterials.co.uk

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Ben and Lois Orford bodgers.org.uk

Traditional Materials

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The Stickman

Jason Sears

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John Arthur

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Jon Mac

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Bushcraft Magazine

WATCHING THUNDERSTORMS FR

9000m

Cumulus 3000m

A well-defined Cirrus „ceilingâ€&#x; with low and intermediate clouds helps to give a sense of perspective to the envelope of air that we live in, known as the Troposphere.

Warm moist air near the surface and cold dry air aloft makes for an unstable air mass. Warmed by the Sun, explosive Cumulus Congestus with cauliflower tops, is rising so quickly with nothing to impede its progress that it resembles a volcanic eruption.

Changes take place in the upper storeys of the cloud. It becomes misty, losing definition. This is known as glaciation and is the process of the top turning into ice crystals.

The horizontal winds also start to take effect and the top of the cloud starts to stretch out in the downwind direction.

Not the same storm as previously. but a stage further along in its decay. When upward convection is outstripped by the higher level winds, the top gets blown off and is left producing weak rain, virga, or in this case, mamma.

The

Photos by S. Kirk

Towering Cumulus

Cirrus 12000m (12km)

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At night the inner structure of the cloud may be illuminated by cloud to air lightning. Count the seconds and divide by three to estimate how many kilometres distant the storm is.

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S FROM AFAR WEATHER LORE

Within seven minutes the cloud fills and touches the Cirrus „ceiling‟, spanning all levels of the Troposphere from the realms of the lowest clouds to the highest.

Precipitation - rain or hail - will have started to fall.

The upward convection is so strong that the top of the Cumulus cloud overshoots the icy Cirrus layer despite fierce horizontal winds.

The top of the cloud is adding to the Cirrus layer, with thicker but equally icy cloud spreading left and right and away from the observer. The process thus far has taken 33 minutes. This is the dissipating stage, when the storm expends its energy in the form of rain, hail and thunder and gusty downdraughts of wind.

Forked lightning arcs from a patch of anvil Cirrus to a shelf cloud, while multiple flashes of sheet lightning flicker inside the main updraught and outflow column.

Lateral and downwind spread of the anvil is many kilometres in this distant Cumulonimbus. Pendulous mamma are visible suspended from the anvil underside. This indicates that the storm is losing energy and weakening.

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The

This is how the characteristic thunderstorm „anvil‟ forms and is clearly visible here, although not all thunderstorms have them. The storm is likely to be quite heavy at this stage.

Bushcraft Magazine

Interpreting Lowland W As bushcrafters we like to spend time in the woods. Yes, there are many bushcraft skills which relate to life and survival in desert, taiga and seashore, in fact every environment on our planet – but woodlands seem to be the bushcrafter‟s niche in the UK. The draw of woodlands to bushcrafters in these islands makes sense, as once upon a time the landscape of the British Isles would once have been dominated by woodland.

Those woods have been managed in one form or another since prehistoric times and even now, in those areas where woodland management such as coppicing is carried out, many bushcraft skills are still being used today.

Such management leaves signs, just as a passing deer or badger leaves signs. We can learn a great deal from the species of tree and plants we see, their shape, the pattern in which they are planted and many other things. We can learn how they have been managed, what the land had been used for previously, and we can gain an insight into how long a woodland has existed.

Lowland woodlands throughout the British Isles are dominated by broadleaved deciduous trees, that is to say, trees which lose their leaves each winter and grow them again in spring. They are distinct from most of the evergreen trees in the UK as they have broad leaves instead of the needle-like foliage of the conifers; pines, spruces and firs that we are familiar with in plantation woodlands. In fact, we only have three conifers native to The British Isles; Yew (Taxus baccata), Juniper (Juniperus communis) and Scots Pine (Pinus sylvestris). The main one of these that you are likely to find in lowland woodlands is the Yew, that famous tree which provided the wood for the English longbow.

planting began, so it may be possible to research whether your wood is ancient or not. In addition, a list exists of AWVP's (Ancient Woodland Vascular Plants) and the number of these species which are present in a woodland can be used as an indication of its age.

However, while a high AWVP score is an indication of diversity and can give an indication of age, it is not necessarily proof that you are in Ancient or Primary woodland.

Some of the AWVP‟s which might be particularly relevant to the bushcrafter include; Ramsons (Allium ursinum). A tasty wild food, unmistakeable by its smell although be careful not to confuse it for Lily-of-the-valley before it flowers.

Large Bitter-cress (Cardamine amara). A nice addition to wild salads.

Pendulous Sedge (Carex pendula). Potentially a sign of wet woodland (a particularly rare habitat) and a useful source of carbohydrate if you harvest the seeds.

Pignut (Conopodium majus). A tasty tuber can be found at the bottom of its spindly stem if you are careful.

Hornbeam (Carpinus betulus). A great wood for mallets and tool handles, very hard and solid.

Greater Chickweed (Stellaria neglecta) I like to use chickweed to bulk out nettle soups and as a fresh or cooked wild green. This particular species is rather uncommon, however.

Wood-sorrel (Oxalis acetosella). An easy one to spot and to teach; “the one that looks like clover” and a The Scots Pine is also present in some specific lowland tasty addition to wild salads. areas; so what can we learn from Scots Pine? The Scots Pine, like most other conifers, is a species which This is just a very brief excerpt from the list of tolerates and actually needs more acidic soils to thrive AWVPs, so I would highly recommend having a look than deciduous trees, so when you find Scots Pine you at more literature on the topic, in particular an article can be fairly sure that you are in an area of acid soil

by Francis Rose titled Indicators of Ancient Woodland conditions. Now, in lowland areas that will probably in the April 1999 issue of British Wildlife (pgs 241mean you are in an area of heathland; have a look 251). around you, what other species can you see? Heather, gorse, birch? If you can see these species and are under Features of Managed Woodlands 300 metres elevation, then you are probably in an area Woodlands have been managed, or mismanaged, for of heathland. If you are over 300 metres then you are hundreds of years; thousands of English Oak (Quercus in moorland. robur) were felled to build the English Naval Fleet.

Thousands of acres of woodland were managed as part After that brief example let us step into the woods of the hunting 'forestes' or chases maintained by proper and see what we can learn there; Mediaeval royalty after the Norman conquest. Baskets, charcoal, brooms, furniture, fruit and nuts all Ancient Woodland Indicator Species hurdles, came from our lowland woodlands on an organised, if not quite industrial, scale.

An Ancient Woodland is a wood that has been in

The

continuous existence since before 1600, the time when reliable maps were first produced and extensive

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There are some clues as to the past use of woodlands which we can see if we are observant.

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d Woodland

Geoffrey Guy Yellow Pimpernel

Wood Sorrel Moschatel Bluebell

Toothwort Early Purple Orchid Wood Spurge Guelder Rose

Stinking Iris Wood Speedwell

Herb Paris Wych Elm

Wild Service Tree

LANDSCAPE LORE

Red Currant

bank and ditch number of different species but hornbeam and beech (Fagus sylvatica) are common.

There are some banks to be found in woods and forests which are much older; in Salcy Forest, Northamptonshire, as well as other places there are examples of ditches which were dug either to protect coppiced woodland from deer or to keep deer in a 'park' where they could be hunted. Even though that once coppiced woodland may no longer be there, the banks still remain to show where it was. Nowadays, if we want to protect coppice woodland from deer we might use wire fencing or chemical deterrent, or we may have to cull deer to reduce their numbers. However when these banks and ditches were established culling may not have been an option, during much of the Mediaeval period of the British Isles deer were deemed to be the property of the Crown and were not to be harmed by any other than nobles, and even then only when permitted by the Crown.

old coppice The multi stemmed trees above are a sign that the woods have been coppiced in the past, but the fact that the stems are so large, or appear tangled and overgrown shows that they have not been coppiced for a long time.

Straight lines and smooth trunks indicate a much younger plantation of trees; these are often planted on farmland to shelter fields or as the products of woodland creation schemes or grant funding to encourage environmentally friendly farming but they are not old woodlands. They may consist of a number of species but will normally be planted with a mixture of native species.

The

The ditches and banks shown top right are often found around old woodlands, but they may not actually be that old; maybe around 200 years, meaning that they are not related to any judgement about whether a woodland is ancient or not. According to Oliver Rackham they were mostly created to demarcate the ownership of woodlands when estates were separated; they may be planted with a

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well managed coppice Above is what you would expect to see in a well managed coppice woodland, one that is not molested by deer or other pests and which is kept in regular rotation.

It is harder to make any judgement on the use of a woodland based on its species composition. Yes you might be able to say that what you have identified as an oak coppice might have been harvested for bark for leather tanning, or an area of sweet chestnut coppice was probably coppiced on a long rotation to produce building material, or that a hazel coppice was used to produce rods for hurdles or thatching spars. It's easy to guess what the trees in a wood were used for though if you know a little about what types of wood were put to different tasks but to say based on the

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tree species in a wood it must have been managed a the various tree species of the UK and what those tree certain way is much harder as the trees you find in you species were traditionally used for. local woodlands will depend very much on where in the country you are and the underlying soil and geology in your area.

To help you 'read' the woodlands of the British Isles, here is some guidance on where you are likely to find Normal Habitat and Distribution

Uses

Alder (Alnus glutinosa)

Damp ground, wet woodland, marsh and water courses.

Durable when wet, traditionally coppiced for charcoal and gun powder production. The wood has also been used for sluice gates and pipes.

Ash (Fraxinus excelsior)

One of the most common trees in Britain and common throughout Europe as well. One of the dominant canopy species in a lot of lowland UK woodlands.

Coppiced for firewood and charcoal, makes excellent tool handles as it is shock resistant and very strong. It burns green due to the oil content in the wood.

Beech (Fagus sylvatica)

A species of free draining chalky soils, where there is a lot of beech there is often very little growing beneath the canopy as the dense carpet of leaves and nut husks and the shade of the dense canopy suppresses most other growth.

Fuel, furniture-making, tool handles, the nuts are edible and beech trees were often planted to mark boundaries. They are now also often used as hedge plants.

Birch; Downy (Betula pubesens), Silver (Betula pendula)

The two British Birch species are very similar and often hybridise. The Downy Birch is more common in Scotland but both are common in down and heath land and are among the first tree species to colonise grassland and scrub-land which will eventually revert to woodland.

Birch is one of the bushcrafter’s friends, the bark from these trees makes excellent tinder but was also once used to tan leather.

Blackthorn (Prunus spinosa), Common Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna) and Midland Hawthorn (Crataegus laevigata)

All thorny species yielding edible flowers and fruit.

Commonly planted in hedgerows.

Walking sticks and tools, charcoal and woodwork.

The wood of all these species is incredibly hard and tough.

Elm (Ulmus sp.)

We have a number of elm species in the UK the English Elm, Smooth Leaved Elm, and Wych Elm. All have suffered to one degree or another from Dutch Elm Disease but are now most commonly found in hedgerows and some woodlands. There are very few large mature elms left anywhere in the UK.

From a bushcraft perspective the bark can be put to use as cordage and containers. The wood is particularly tough and useful in applications which bring it in contact with water. It has been used to make pipes and also in turnery and woodwork.

Hazel (Corylus avellana)

One of the most commonly coppiced species it is found throughout the UK in lowland areas often forming dense stools.

Thatching spars, hurdles,

Lime (Tilia sp.)

Common to lowland Britain and present throughout most of the Northern hemisphere, it is very rare to find woodland dominated by lime today. Limes prefer moist but well drained soils.

Exceptionally good for carving and the bark makes excellent string. Lime sprouts strongly at the base with or without coppicing producing long straight stems which can be easily harvested.

Oak; Sessile (Quercus patrea) and Pendunculate or English (Quercus robur)

These species are superficially similar and do hybridOak was traditionally a building timber, boats, ise, they can be distinguished by the shorter leaf stalks gates and beams for building. It is also used in and long acorn stalk of the English Oak. expensive furniture and flooring.

The bark is used in leather tanning and the wood burns long and hot for excellent cooking fires.

Sweet Chestnut (Castanea sativa)

An introduction to the UK (probably during the Roman The species coppices easily and is useful for buildoccupation) but planted extensively since the 18th ing, fencing and green wood crafts.

Century.

Sycamore (Acer pseudoplatanus)

Another introduction to the UK but common enough to be very important to people who spend time in the UK woods.

Sycamore can be coppiced easily and for those concerned with the spread of a non-native species coppicing it does prevent it from setting seed. It does produce useful wood for craft projects.

Willow (Salix sp.)

There are many species of willow in the UK and all favour wet habitats.

Willow produces soft wood some of which is durable and the larger species can be used for traditional crafts, cricket bats are traditionally made from Willow. Willow coppice can be used to produce withies for weaving and basketry.

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The

Species

Bushcraft Magazine

How to make an

Elm Bark Knife S

When you compare the typical thickness and durability of English birch bark to that from birch growing in colder climes such as Siberia or Sweden where there is a historical record of its use for craft work, it‟s apparent that our birch is often significantly thinner and weaker by comparison. However many other barks are worth a look, both native and naturalised. Bark working is reliant on materials readily available in springtime, due to the sap “rising” as it‟s mistakenly called, (sap actually flows down the tree after photosynthesis and water rises to fuel this), which makes the bark far easier to remove from the stem. This means if you want to experiment with bark work during the year it helps to gather materials in sufficient quantity in springtime. However, it‟s not entirely impossible to remove bark from some species at other times of year. With the help of hot water and a blunt pointed wooden chisel made from a stick, I have removed Birch in October, and Sweet Chestnut (Castanea Sativa) in June for example, and it seems where trees grow in more shade, the bark stays loose later in the spring/summer, than those of the same species growing in direct light.

The

The impact of gathering Bark from a growing tree is likely to

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be the death of the tree, (or stem on a coppice stool/pollard), and even if it isn‟t ringbarked, the tree will most likely succumb to decay within the next few years due to fungal spores entering the tree over a large area and overwhelming its natural defences. It makes sense then, to try your luck whenever the opportunity arises to get bark from wood already felled, fallen or windblown, even if the season says it shouldn‟t come off with ease. Which is exactly what happened to the English Elm bark (Ulmus procera), I have used for this project.

It also negates the negative impact of sourcing bark if you can gather materials from wood being cut anyway for other reasons. Volunteering in your local woods is often a good way to access materials like this. Under no circumstances take bark from a living tree without seeking the landowner‟s permission first.

Before removing the bark it‟s a good idea, (though not essential if the bark isn‟t too thick), to remove the tough outer bark, scraping with the back edge of your knife, or the back of a saw blade, or even carefully with your axe, but avoid digging in through too many fibre layers of the inner bark.

The easiest way to remove the bark is to cut the branch/stem first. Then run your knife as straight as possible up one side of the log cutting, through the bark. Open the edges of this cut

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e Sheath

Graham Couling

and gently lift, working all the way along the length repeatedly as you work further around the stem carefully. To do this use either your fingers or a stick with a blunt chisel tip, carved from greenwood. Take care to follow the contours of the log around and not push the chisel straight through the bark sheet. Work progressively along the edges of the cut and then back around the log in passes, so at no point do you move too far around the log in one place, or you will put too much tension on the bark and a hole will tear. Continue until your hands meet under the log all the way round, and then it can be lifted clear of the bark sheet.

Once it‟s been removed, the bark needs to be cut into two strips. One must be slightly wider than the widest point of your knife, whether that‟s the blade measured edge to back or the handle. This strip must be slightly more than 2 x the blade length plus 2 x the total length, (blade and handle), as it will be folded into an M shape to make the main body of the sheath.

The second strip wants to be quite thin, 5 or 6mm (1/4 inch) is ideal, and needs to be surprisingly long to wrap around the section of the sheath enclosing the blade to secure the sheath together. I would suggest ideally about 120cm (4 feet) as a good minimum length for most bushcraft knives, always better to have spare to trim than be too short to cover the sheath. A wider bark strip will require less length, but it won‟t conform quite as well to the shape of the knife.

dry bark

sizing up your blade

2

scoring

3

4

2] Once we have cut two neat strips we are happy with, the wider of the two, which has been cut to the widest point of the knife now needs to be carefully scored and folded as follows. It helps to lay the knife on top of the strip to measure the first fold, and then continue to measure the strip against the knife as you make the subsequent scores and folds to get a nice accurate fit.

3] From one end of the strip, the first crease line is made at the same distance from the end of the strip as the blade length, and is made on the inside of the inner bark. The height of this strip determines the height of the front side of the sheath, and therefore the part of the knife that will be entirely enclosed, so size it against the blade to get it right. Use the back edge of your knife point, or a pencil to score a straight line here across the strip to aid bending without the bark fibres snapping.

4, 5] Now fold the strip back on itself and crease to fold at the

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The

Photos by the Author

first of two folds

1] If you intend to use the bark straight away it is still a good idea to let it dry first and rehydrate it by a quick dip or short soak in water before use, (thinner bark from small diameter rods can require just running through your lips and against the tongue for enough moisture to be absorbed). This is because when the bark dries for the first time from green it will shrink more than it does when subsequently moistened for working and re-dried.

DO IT YOURSELF

1

Straight neat strips make for a nice, neat finished item so it‟s important to get the strips cut accurately and of uniform width.

You can use a straight edge for this, or make a strip cutter by driving a small wedge in between the growth rings of a tree stump. Drive your knife in point first, 6mm away in an adjacent growth ring. You can now pull your bark sheet through your improvised cutter to produce uniform strips the width of the gap between the blade and the wedge. Once cut, the strips can be rolled up and dried, and then stored for use later in the year. The bark used for the sheath in the photos was found having retted off a fallen log naturally. It was rolled up and stored for over two years and was still perfectly pliable once rehydrated.

Bushcraft Magazine

the second of your folds

5

6

the side profile is ‘M’ shaped

7

‘M’ shape closed up around the blade

same length again so the strip will fold back over on itself. You have just made the part that will hold the blade, now the remaining strip needs to be measured against the total length of the knife and handle x 2 plus 20mm (¾ inch), for the curve that will be the top of the belt loop.

The next bit of our strip will go up the inside of the sheath between the knife and the wearer‟s hip, before curving back on itself at the top to make the belt loop at the desired height, and then running back down the back of the belt and sheath against the wearer‟s hip to the bottom of the sheath. Cut at the same length as the front of the sheath, or leave an extra bit of length to put a second layer around the end of the sheath so it is double thick over the knife tip. I score the belt loop on the inside with two lines very gently about 6mm (¼ inch) apart. Don‟t cut, just score to accommodate a curve rather than a fold, which would pinch the belt, and prevent it from sliding along the waist when repositioning it for comfort during use.

6, 7] The body of the sheath is now complete and if viewed from the side, should look like a capital „M‟, the left arch of which is shorter.

The bottom of the „V‟ in the middle holds the knife, point downwards, and the right arch of the „M‟ is taller, its height rising to form the belt loop at, or above the height of the knife pommel when in the sheath, depending on personal choice.

8] We now need to take the thinner strip, and about 8mm from the end you wish to secure, score and fold to make a securing tab, which is then tucked onto the bottom of the sheath between the outer and inner layers of bark either front or back.

securing the wrapping strip

8

wrap...

9

tuck...

10

9, 10,11] Ensure the bark is secured so the outside will face out when you wrap around the sheath, and then take one and a half turns around the outside of the sheath, pinning the first part of the wrap with the final bit before securing this first wrap by threading the strip between the inner and outer layers of the wider strip and pulling tight.

12, 13] Pass back between the layers of the wide strip on the opposite side of the sheath, completing an inside wrap before doing one full wrap around the outside of all 4 layers, which is again secured as before with a tuck between the layers for the next two half -turns. Now as before, complete another full wrap around the outside again, followed by a wrap between the layers. By this point the repeating pattern of wraps when viewed from the side of the sheath should be apparent and quite easy to follow.

14] Continue wrapping alternately around the outside, then securing with the wrap inside between the 2 wide strips on each side, work each pair of wraps as tight as possible after each inner wrap, continuing the pattern until you reach the desired height. Consideration needs to be given to ensure you go high enough to prevent the knife falling out if you lean over, climb a fence etc, but at the same time if you continue the wraps too high, the knife will be difficult to remove once the sheath has dried and hardened, as it will shrink a little and be very robust and woody again.

The

15,16] Once you reach the desired height, take the thin strip to the back of the sheath, around the belt loop once and tuck through the outer wrap below and make a simple single overhand knot. This might seem insufficient when the bark is wet, but once dry it‟s very secure and is quite a flat profiled knot, avoiding a big uncomfortable

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pull tight

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repeat the patterns of wraps 12

lump on the inside of the belt loop.

Trim off any excess after the knot, and take a moment to check the alignment of the knife in the sheath. Whilst still damp you can flex, reposition and shape a little with your hands, so optimise the fit and alignment between handle and belt loop now so it dries correctly.

Having constructed the sheath with the knife inside it, leave the knife there whilst it dries hard. If your blade isnâ€&#x;t stainless steel, a little wipe with oil first will ensure no marking as you will need to leave it in at least overnight. If the wraps are of the correct height you should find the slight shrinking provides a near perfect friction lock when the knife is fully inserted into the sheath.

the finished sheath 13

final wrap 14

take through belt loop...

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Polaris Wilderness Adventure Ltd Graham holds the Level 4 Bushcraft Leadership award , and has been Chief Instructor at Polaris Bushcraft in Hertfordshire since 2012. He has a particular interest in ethnobotany and primitive technology and also teaches stone age living skills at Celtic Harmony Iron Age Heritage Centre.

Graham is also a qualified Archery Leader.

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info@polarisbushcraft.co.uk www.polarisbushcraft.co.uk

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tie off

Bushcraft Magazine

Leshy - Slovakiaâ€&#x; s S Edward Oâ€&#x; Toole

In most modern civilized countries, the forest is a place for recreation and relaxation. It is a place where one can safely reconnect to nature, camp or just walk around soaking up the ambiance and birdsong. However, it wasn't always like this and, in some more remote locations, it still isn't.

Historically, the woods were an essential provider for daily life, giving everything from building materials to medicine to food, but it was also seen as a dark and dangerous place. No sane villager would have ventured into a forest at night, and even during daytime there were plenty of things to fear beneath the boughs.

When Julius Caesar arrived in Britain, it was said that a squirrel could jump from tree to tree, from coast to coast.

Thanks to centuries of deforestation and the virtual extinction of native wildlife, woodland in the UK, save for pockets such as the New Forest, has been reduced to little more than ornamental parkland, groves bordering farmland, or sterile coniferous plantations. A far cry from the mist-enshrouded jungle which the Gauls believed to be the Isle of the Dead.

Along with the dense canopy and animal population, another essential aspect of the forest which became little more than a historical footnote was the otherworldly. Our ancestors shared their daily lives not just with trees, beasts and birds but also with spirits and gods. These were as real to them as X Factor celebrities are to modern man. They were part and parcel of daily life and something to take into consideration when venturing into the woods to forage, hunt or fell. Often times, these mystical beings could be placated by a simple phrase or gift or mundane ritual, but some took pleasure in confusing, frightening or even harming the unwary.

Now, with our concrete and asphalt roads, brick houses, electric lighting and mobile phones, we no longer fear or even believe in the other denizens of the woods. The modern world, education, religion, and technology have dimmed our senses to their presence, and their habitat has been so vastly reduced and altered that within a few minutes walk we can be out of their range and back into the relative safety of a dual carriageway or geneticallymodified oil seed rape field.

This does not mean that these beings are not still there.

The dryads, nymphs, gnomes, woodwose, even Herne, exist only partially in our dimension. We've just forgotten how to see them. Seeing is believing and, conversely, believing is seeing‌

The

Over in the States, there have been recorded sightings of

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Spirit of the Forest unusual forest creatures since pioneer days and, with camping and hiking becoming more popular in their massive national parks, more and more people are experiencing one form of contact or another. Mostly, deducing the lack of knowledge and experience with forests on the part of the contactee can help to debunk many apparent encounters as being misidentification. Aside from the more exotic cryptozoological creatures such as Mothman or the Jersey Devil, Sasquatch is what most contactees claim to have

would help eliminate many such claims. The Skunk Ape's howl could be that of a bird or animal, particularly an owl. Lynx wail like old women and a vixen's yelp can be terrifying at night. “What does the fox say?” If you've ever heard one then you'll know what I mean. The wood knocking, which bizarrely seems to be the major identifier of Bigfoot, sounds remarkably like a stag beating its antlers against tree trunks to mark its territory, and a bear standing on its hind legs can easily be confused with a giant bipedal primate.

Don't get me wrong – I'm not saying all of these signs should be dismissed all of the time as witness error, just that to the unaccustomed, or the overly enthusiastic, the unusual to many people can often have a more mundane origin.

“When you have eliminated the impossible then, whatever remains, no matter how improbable, must be the truth” - Sherlock Holmes

Another Dryad

Dryads

encountered, or at least its tell-tale signs experienced.

However, a little bush lore

In the dense forests which cover the Carpathian mountains and hills, forests which are still inhabited by the beasts which roamed Britain in the Dark Ages, such as bear, bison, wolves and boar, there are many spirit creatures according to local lore.

For the pagan Slavs, the principal 'god' of the forest was Veles, who is something combining Cernunnos and Hades – a huge horned man who ruled animals, the forest and the Underworld; arch enemy of Perun, the Slavonic Zeus. When I enter the forest here, I

FOREST LORE

That's not to say Sasquatch doesn't exist or doesn't roam the forests – some Native American tribes (such as the Cheyenne Arapahoe) have a close, spiritual relationship with the creatures – just that it's more likely to be more of a spiritual creature (such as the Ojibwe tribe believes) than merely a flesh and bones one – or for at least part of the time.

According to Yurok tribal tradition, Bigfoot is only an occasional physical visitor to our dimension and usually resides in the “Valley of the Big People”, similar to the old Celtic tradition of the Fae visiting us from their world via barrows, cairns, caves, and holes under trees.

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Photos by the Edward O‟ Toole

Bushcraft Magazine

The Leshy, in character and physical description, would most closely resemble the ancient Woodwose, or Green Man, or Bigfoot, or the Russian Avdoshki, or the Australian Yowie, although the Chinese Yeren, Himalayan Yeti, and Sumatran Orang Pendek are more likely real hominids. However, it is usually not seen, only its presence felt or heard.

It is when you see something enormous move between the trees in your peripheral vision, or think you saw a head peeking from behind a tree at you. It is the unrecognisable and terrifying scream, grunt or howl that shakes the forest. It is when the forest goes deadly still and silent as though you'd stepped into an audible vacuum. It is when a branch or a rock lands by your feet, seemingly thrown from nowhere. It is when you know in your bones that something, or someone, is stalking you deep in the bush and you have a desperate urge to get out to the open space of a meadow.

Herne the Hunter by Adam Relf am entering his domain and I always say a little polite greeting and ask that nothing bad should happen to me whilst on his turf. The forest here often has thick brush encircling it and stepping in from an open meadow, into the dark and damp, truly is like entering another world. I met him once in a dream in which I descended into a torch-lit burial mound. I'd never heard of him before and he was a truly terrifying man-beast. He told me his name and I named my Bullmastiff, born on Walpurgisnacht, after him. It is wise to pay your respects to the local deities when you plan on spending time in their domain.

The

The Slavs have many spirits – the domovoi, spirit of the house, similar to the Roman genius loci; the dvorovoi, spirit of the yard who, if not appeased, causes vindictive mayhem; the kikimora, an old woman with chicken's legs who lives in the rafters or behind the hearth and whose appearance announces an impending death in the family; the polovoi or meadow spirit; the vodnik, a green skinned spirit who lives in water; and the Leshy, the spirit of the forest.

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I have spoken to many people here over the years, each who have spent a lot of time in the forest and know its inhabitants, who've had experiences they cannot explain by rational means. There is a pattern to their tales and some are much scarier than others. When I compare them to what I've experienced, sometimes with family members or friends, it becomes clear that there is an intelligent entity at the root of these encounters and that entity is the Leshy.

There have been times when I have been left shocked and even frightened, although most often dumbfounded, when I've seen, heard or felt something out of place in the forest. I could list several events which stick out in my mind, none of which I have a rational or plausible answer for, but I think that most bushcrafters and lovers of the woodland have had their own personal experiences and can, on some level, relate.

Whether it is Sasquatch in the States, Woodwose in the UK or Leshy in the East of Slovakia, quite often when we go into the forest we're not as alone as we think.

There are other, older beings watching us and these Guardians of the Forest, as they're described by native tribes, sometimes even interact. They don't leave behind their bones or bodies because they slip between worlds as they always have done and you're as likely to experience one in a copse as you are in a rainforest.

Wherever there are trees...

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The snake’s progress Steve Kirk Life in the wild takes on a whole new perspective when, by evolutionary design or by Eden‟s curse, you must make your way through it forever upon your belly.

watch as it adjusts its pose to mock-dead, once more, then the game is up, the fraud exposed!

Extra senses are needed, therefore, alternative navigation.

So the serpent‟s lot is to eat the dust, the dew and the air, and taste all changes with a flickering tongue. As it plunges, blinkered, under the undergrowth it is guided by a perpetually sampling palate. The smiling head is earless, but not unhearing. With chin to the ground, the transmission of vibrations through the bones of the jaw brings sound to the inner ear. It knows what it knows, in its own way.

snout all along your length and worse still, not a limb with which to scratch. No choice but to snuggle up to the raking teeth of bramble stems, to weave a path that snags your old clothes, while you escape naked. Or to squeeze into a tootight mouse-tunnel; to push through and come out shining new. Leaving behind a long, perfectly peeled, inside-out one-fingered snake-skin glove; head protruding at the end where the course began the and tail tip at the exit.

The smith that forged the armour left little room for manoeuvre. There comes a day when the scales no longer balance. The snake may wake from lidless sleep with Quickened by spring sunshine warming its inconstant clouded vision, the eyes opaque. A milky fluid has spread blood, the grass snake has been roused from wintry between skin strata, loosening old from new, a kind of incapacity. With high set eyes and tapering snout the snake unglue. Sealed into that head-skin are transparent scales, can look forward (though perhaps not to the future) and up, the portholes through which the snake peers out, and which once more to regard the world with a worm‟s-eye view. keep the eyes from ever closing. For a few days the snake Despite the permanent stare, those eyes are not far-seeing, remains blind of eye, but not senseless. much of the time. A field of grass must appear as the densest maze does to us, only to part like curtains onto Imagine, next, the vague sensation that your skin no longer more curtains. fits your body and an oh so unreachable itch from your

The farm pond, garden pond, the damp ditch, churchyard, wood or meadow – wherever the frog or toad will not desiccate, the grass snake, too, may be found. „Never eat anything bigger than your head‟ my mother always said, but even the flexible frog is of improbable girth compared to the slender serpent. The toad, he may inflate himself and stand on tiptoe to seem too great to swallow and still the snake is undeterred. It will seize its prey and grip with tiny back-curved teeth; no need for fangs or constricting coils to subdue the mild amphibian. Then it becomes apparent why the smile extends beyond the eye back to the elastic, enveloping jaws. Self-satisfaction at its own capacity!

On Nature‟s Trail

When every rising object is a bar to vision, an obstacle to steer past, a sinuous body form has its advantages. On land, the grass snake weaves its way using muscular waves that ripple down the body, pushing the horny skin against bumps or stones or grass tufts. This is „serpentine‟ locomotion, to slide, without the aid of slime, an easy ship on a solid ocean. In water it becomes a graceful, lazy, undulating „S‟.

The grass snake‟s beauty goes more than skin deep. The slough is plain, translucent brown, but the snake‟s body emerges bright as a new tattoo. A shade of olive – green, brown, or grey with a double row of crisp, black, spots along the back and evenly spaced black bars along the sides. Behind the head is a bright yellow collar bordered by stark black patches often misread as a „V‟. By popular wisdom this denotes „viper‟. However, since time immemorial we have been obliged to mistrust and misinterpret where the serpent is concerned. Adders are squat, stocky and graphically marked, with a „V‟ or „X‟ on top of the head and a bold black dorsal zigzag. They are also scarce and shy of humans. They should be neither handled nor harmed, but may be admired at arm‟s length.

So, practise your scales. When we are prone to such deep-seated ancestral fear, innocents may suffer in error.

Consider the slow-worm; apparently cast in brass or burnished bronze; not a snake but a lizard moulded in snake -fashion, though, mostly, we little heed the difference. The small baggy eyes that can blink or close in sleep; the unyielding jaw that dines on slugs; the chip-fork-shaped tongue and the tail that can wriggle in mock-life when parted from a mishandled body.

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As the initial gagging bulge turns to slow digestion the snake must take care. It is no longer nifty or slim. The swift exit through a wire mesh fence has become, on occasion, a The slow-worm suffers as the snake. Accidental hurt, snare around a bloated belly, enabling easy capture. intentional injury, habitat destruction and loss. The gulf set between serpentkind and mankind is a double punishment, The grass snake is undeserving of our enmity or fear. It is the anathema afflicts us both. Therefore the snake‟s defenceless in our hand, save for squirting a stinking juice progress is inextricably bound up with our own. Nowadays, from some unspeakable gland at its body‟s end. It may hiss to crush a serpent‟s head or break its body is against the and thrash and mock-strike but never bite and if all else law. Perhaps one day it may become against our nature. fails, sham death. The mouth gapes loosely, the tongue hangs limp and the snake turns belly up. Convincing enough to persuade us to leave it be, the damage accidentally done. Unless, that is, we turn it round and

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Fishing, in the Past Lloyd Hooper “Hey, Lloyd, fancy a day‟s fishing?”

really get back to basics. Proper bushcraft fishing.

After a few more smaller fish, conversation and some valuable still moments in the glorious sunshine, we “Hmm ,” I thought to myself, “I‟ve said yes to going decided to pack up. As my hands felt the cane rods slipping back into the tatty canvas cases, my thoughts coarse fishing but I‟ve never really done it before. I have a little rod that I picked up in “Woolies” when I went back to my old Grampa. He would be proud of me using his old fishing rods. Then I pictured him was a kid back in the „seventies‟, when the town with the blurred image you get from a distant memory flooded and they sold off all the damaged stock cheap. That rod should be okay.” Then I remembered – his bald head just above the top of his favourite chair, the smallest black and white telly you could my Grandfather‟s fishing rods that I had inherited after my uncle had died. “Now they would be good to imagine on a shelf and a small little radio pressed to his ear, (he always said the commentary was better.) try.”

And the words I can only ever recall him saying to me: “Sshh! The crickets on... Your Nan‟s in the So after a rummage up the attic, there are a set of kitchen .” split-cane rods, a wicker creel and a tweed deerstalker. Now, I can‟t wait to go.

“Sounds good to me. See you there.”

So we meet up, a glorious late summer morning, a pot of worms from the compost heap ...and the thought that I have never been very successful whatever type of fishing I have tried.

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I was amazed how well the cane rods had worked and it was great to use natural materials in a time when rods are made from Space Age stuff, (not that the rod from Woolies is very Space Age). But it did get me thinking that it would be great fun to one day have a go at making a rod out of materials from the hedgerow and

Photos courtesy the Author

First cast. After a couple of minutes the little float starts bobbing and I reel in a fish that sits in the palm of my hand. But I don‟t care; it‟s a fish. After a mixed bag of various fish up to about two pounds, I hooked a Carp that ripped off a fair amount of line and after, I would like to say „skilful handling‟, I landed the fish. My mate said it must weigh three and a half pounds. I‟d say it was closer to four; but it could get even bigger with time!

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