Gerber Prodigy

My first survival knife, the Gerber Prodigy. I just thought of sharing my views with you all =)

Be it bushcraft enthusiast, "experts" or even knife collectors, there have been alot of love and hate…

Anyone know of any courses etc in the Canterbury region

The skills of lighting a fire with a piece of flint,high carbon steel and char cloth is well documented and widely practiced in bushcraft circles. Generally  the char cloth is made by baking a piece of pure cotton fabric in a low oxygen environment. (in a tin)

Historically materials gathered from the forest were used instead of char cloth. To me, competency at flint steel fire lighting would require the material needed to be gathered from the bush,eg the hard stone and tinder. Most…

Well mid way through last year I got an opportunity through my work with the Red Cross New Zealand to go on a fully funded 3 week course at the Outward Bound School based in Anikiwa, Marlborough Sounds. (Actually only 20mins away from home)

I grabbed it with both hands, packed my bag and arrived one sunny day for what turned out to be one of the most fun and crazy times of my life.

We dump our gear, meet our 13 other watch mates and it's straight out in PT gear for a…

Not sure if you all have heard of this new food bill to be passed, I say to be passed as it must be passed to meet our obligations as members of The World Trade Organisation.

This is effectively going to make it illegal to give away seeds, spare produce etc to friends family and neighours, it also means without permission from government you will be breaking the law if you sell any, eg at markets etc, or as a cottage industry.

It also gives police the ability to raid…

Just a few questions i want to ask people here. What are the laws reguarding stave collection? Hoping to gather a few sapling staves while we go up north early in 2012. 

And particular locations people recommend?

Cheers

Would love to see any pictures of anyones staffs, and hear the different ideas that us Kiwis have for additions etc to them.

I have seen all sorts from other bushcraft sites around the world and was wondering if anyone knows of really unusual woods that are native to NZ that have great grain pattens etc such as curly maple and the like. Seems overseas you have some fantastic looking woods that really stand out, do we?

Hi,

There has been some discussion recently about bushcraft schools in New Zealand.I thought this might be an appropriate time to mention my school

http://cuttingedgebushcraft.co.nz/.

As Ben Jordan stated,the most important thing about a bushcraft school is the background of the instructors

My background is well documented on that website

Basically i have been a teacher and outdoor instructor for many years…

Hi, Ben. I am posting this in reply to your query as to my background, etc. I'd love to tell you that I was a bushman from way back, that my father used to take me hunting and camping every chance he got, and we had the times of our life. But that would be a complete lie. I have never been hunting, either pigs or deer. My sad loss. 

But I have been camping, in the Urewera when I was possum trapping, and in the Raukumara ranges, doing the same thing. I used to camp out in my back yard…

Hi, everyone. I was talking to a friend on facebook tonight about my dream of starting and running a Bushcraft and Survival School here in New Zealand.

This friend of mine gave me encouragement and told me to go for it, and to follow my dream.So, here we are, the first step on my Journey. I am asking everyone out there in the New Zealand Bushcraft community for advice, encouragement, and for whatever help you can offer me.

Here is a basic start to the what I want to head…

Here we go with round two. I had a whole lot of writing done, and was almost finished, when this damn page decided it was going to shut down all by itself! I hate it when that happens!

Now what was i saying? Oh yes, something about getting my pack sorted for summer.

This is depressing. I cant be bothered doing this again, yet I have to. (Crap).

OK. I think I was telling you all about what I was going to put into my pack. Something to do with Dave Canterbury's…

Just thought I would let you guys know that I have been made a Fur buyer in Christchurch for 'The Possum People' or also known as 'Fur Dressers and Dyers'. So if any of you guys are collecting furs and skins let me know, and if you are not near enough for you to sell to me I will put you in touch with our nearest buyer to you, North or South Island. And as of 3 weeks time I will be going back to trapping full time, anyone who is interested in coming out for a trip or even to learn how to…

Hello, fellas and fellesses!

Just an update for your perusal. I will be doing a video soon updating my gear and my kit. I have been acquiring some new things to add to it, along the lines of the 10 C's, as taught by Dave Canterbury. It will change, of course, as New Zealand is a lot different from America.

I have started a new job, I'm doing security, and I work with a great bunch of blokes. We do 12 hour shifts, 5pm to 5am, 4 on, 4 off. Hey, I can handle…

Ok, I'm confused, and slightly annoyed. There are, or seems to be, some buttons missing.

Adding vids from Youtube? No problems.

Adding vids from my computer? Not a chance!

On the How-to page, it says:

1. From the Multimedia tab, select Videos
2. At the top right, click +Add Videos
3. To add videos that are saved on your computer (and that are not copyrighted!), select "Click to Add Videos". We support…

Another cold windy day. Even with the sun shining, its cold. How I wish that summer were here.

Mind you, winter gives us ample opportunity to sort out our gear, update and delete items out of date or surplus to our needs.

I'm watching a lot of Youtube vids, Dave Canterbury, Ray Mears, Survivorman Les Stroud, etc. No matter how many times I watch these vids, I keep finding new stuff to learn from.

Thats the key, I think. What worked for someone…

In the bush at night you wouldn't normally be using the Moon to navigate, but a good understanding of the relationship between the Sun and Moon will help you to make good decisions about travel in the bush. Especially if you are planning to travel by night or you are in a situation where you run out of daylight and a decision needs to be made about whether to stop or continue. In open country you can see quite well without a torch when there is half a Moon or better. But it is also good to…