Sorry I've been busy, teaching busy so that's a welcome change. I love teaching and this is kinda different. The Same that I'm teaching Bushcraft, but Different in that I'm teaching troubled youth. I received a call asking if I could teach last minute, I was free that weekend so why not? Then I got the details, small group about 8, if they could all make it. Even Better I love small groups. "Oh and they can't touch anything sharp" Sorry what was that? I thought you said they can't touch anything sharp or potentially dangerous. Welllllll....... now I need to think. I showed up to find three yo ..read more

So I did it I bought the Grandfords Carving axe, and yes I was ready to eat my words. I have been telling everyone that you don't need a 250 dollar axe to do you work, but I finally cracked under pressure.....Kinda. So this Christmas my parents gave me the money to buy the axe, they said you need to have that fancy axe because you love to carve spoons and so that's part of why I bought it. I also think that there is something to be said about well made tools for certain tasks. So I went to the only place in the city that has them, and bought one from Lee Valley. Before I go any further this is ..read more

Well that's all folks another great event done, Frostbite 2018 is in the bag. So what did we have happen this time around? Well this year was as big as last year, 128 ish people. But this year we added 4 vendors and a food truck! and I think everyone liked it a lot. So of the great things to happen this year were all the classes, but some stand out to me. Jay Seely made leather sheaths for Mora Knives and they turned out amazing! Brenda Holder gave 2 great classes one on salves and lotions and the other on emergency dental care. The dental care workshop was so good a former Army Medic came to ..read more

Well winter has shown it's ugly face and around here in central Alberta that means cold! So cold you don't want to do anything! But that's no good, so I thought I would maybe give you some advice in these cold times. Dress for success , and in this cold that means layers. So we should have on 3 or more layers, these are, hygiene or base layer, insulative layer and shell or cover layer. The first layer closest to skin is your hygiene layer it's sole purpose is to wick away moisture and get it moving to the outside, moisture trapped into your clothes can freeze you right to the bone. So there ar ..read more

So I finally got down to carving a paddle, it's been a project on my want list for sometime now. So I started out with a 2x8 board from the lumber yard and went to town. So the goal was to see of course could I do it with just hand tools, and no power, and with a basic shape in mind I went to town. So there are some challenges to carving something big, first you need a big space. You need to hit the wood from all angles, so there was a spilt coffee and I knocked things off the bench a few times. Next is finding out that the wood you've selected has knots in it that are really in bad spots, the ..read more

Survival-noun-the state or fact of continuing to live or exist, typically in spite of an accident, ordeal, or difficult circumstances. "the animal's chances for survival were pretty low" Bushcraft-noun-skill at living in the bush. So I wanted to talk alittle bit about the 2 words I have in my title, survival and bushcraft. Lately I have seen the 2 used a lot but it seems people might have misunderstood the words they were trying to use. Also I want to explain my name alittle why I didn't use Survival, even though I teach it, and used Bushcraft instead. Survival is just that, surviving and if y ..read more

I was invited to teach at the river free school in Edmonton, and it was a great time. It's a very small atmosphere and the group was awesome! As an instructor you just hope that you've reached the students and that they gained something fun and important. I think that happened. I would say that Map and compass is one of the few things that people seem to all say they wish they knew more about, but no one could teach them. So I committed to another class so I could teach more who want to learn. So if you're in the Edmonton Area next month then I hope I see you there ..read more

Hey folks I just wanted to let you know that I made some new YouTube videos, a quick one on the quickest way to get firewood in the boreal forest, The Next is what to do when you're lost and the Stop Acronym, the last on Man made survival shelters. In the last video I use a Mylar Blanket. I've seen this in so many survival manuals and I see it being used wrong. So I wanted to finish that thought here. So the way the Mylar blanket works is it reflects your body heat back to you the heat source. So your body produces about the same amount as a common candle, so not a lot, unless we put on some s ..read more

So I thought I would share my thoughts on things, but before I start let you be warned! I'm not a writer, and sometimes only I'll know what I'm talking about. But if you like blogs maybe you can leave helpful comments. So why Bushcraft? Because survival sucks! When I looked for a name years ago I was watching Ray Mears and he kept talking about bushcraft. I thought that looks way better then surviving. I have endured a lot of crappy times, and "survival" type situations and they sucked. But bushcraft looked so much better, first there's this guy with a few extra pounds, out on the land, eating ..read more

Sorry I've been busy, teaching busy so that's a welcome change. I love teaching and this is kinda different. The Same that I'm teaching Bushcraft, but Different in that I'm teaching troubled youth. I received a call asking if I could teach last minute, I was free that weekend so why not? Then I got the details, small group about 8, if they could all make it. Even Better I love small groups. "Oh and they can't touch anything sharp" Sorry what was that? I thought you said they can't touch anything sharp or potentially dangerous. Welllllll....... now I need to think. I showed up to find three yo ..read more