Dublin Bushcraft Group

03/04/2016

https://www.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/blog/2015/07/beat-the-bugs-midges/ -17614

Planning on visiting Scotland? You need to know about the evil, biting midge - and how to avoid them

05/03/2016

An excellent, informative website...

02/03/2016

Very interesting...

A photograph of a wolf pack is commonly shared with an inaccurate description of the behavior of wolves.

21/02/2016

Is there such a thing as a Best Bushcraft Knife?

In my blog I offer my thoughts on the best bushcraft knife out there...

It's not what you think...

Link: http://www.pioneerbushcraft.org/2016/02/17/the-best-bushcraft-knife/

09/01/2016

Take the Tinder Walk - and become a Jedi master of Tinders!

By Sean Fagan . Knowing what natural tinders are to be found in a locality, and just as importantly, how to process them to make them more flammable, is a key bushcraft fire-skill. One very effective way to improve your local knowledge of natural tinders is to take the tinder walk. Read more...

30/12/2015

7 Great Reasons to go Camping and be Outdoors in Winter...

Winter is a great time to be outdoors - Learn 7 reasons to be Outdoors in Winter.
By Sean Fagan.

11/09/2015

BIOPHILIA:

A somewhat controversial hypothesis put forward by Edward Wilson is the idea that humans evolved as creatures deeply enmeshed with the intricacies of nature, and that we still have this affinity with nature ingrained in our genotype.

"I have argued in this book that we are human in good part because of the particular way we affiliate with other organisms. They are the matrix in which the human mind originated and is permanently rooted, and they offer the challenge and freedom innately sought. To the extent that each person can feel like a naturalist, the old excitement of the untrammeled world will be regained. I offer this as a formula of reenchantment to invigorate poetry and myth: mysterious and little known organisms live within walking distance of where you sit. Splendor awaits in minute proportions".

Edward O. Wilson, Biophilia, 1984, p. 139

06/09/2015

Fairy tree, whitethorn, sceach gheal (Irish), the May bush or May tree...the native hawthorn has quite a few names in Ireland.

The hawthorn is a great bushcraft tree - the dense, tough timber is great for carving and as a fuel it burns hot and long.

The leaves can be used as a tea - reputedly good as a heart tonic, while the berries can be eaten raw or processed into a flavour-some, fruit leather.

Old Irish saying "when all fruit fails - there is always haws (hawthorn berries)" - hawthorn berries were often regarded as an inferior food - and were often considered a famine food.

(Text & photo: Sean Fagan)

Website: www.pioneerbushcraft.org
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/pioneerbush/

04/09/2015

Very funny...

Set in the world of a spoofed prescription drug commercial, Nature Rx offers a hearty dose of laughs and the outdoors - two timeless prescriptions for whatev...

31/08/2015

Recent impressions of Portumna Forest Park, County Galway, Ireland.

A great place to visit. Highly recommended.

Website: www.pioneerbushcraft.org

(Photos & Text: Sean Fagan).

30/08/2015

(Mini-Blog) The Importance of the Tinder Walk

(Reading time: 1-2mins)

An experimental mindset, patience and of course, having fun, are key facets in getting to know all the different natural tinders in a given locality.

In the photo, are seven tinders, collected in 15 minutes - from a broad-leaf woodland in Ireland.

They are (from left to right):
Dead grass, dead clematis bark, dead bracken, dead blackberry stalks, dead horsetail, dry horse dung & dead gorse (top of photo).

When it comes to tinders - many will ignite with a flame, some will ignite with a spark or smouldering ember, while a few tinders can even be ignited on damp, rainy days.

Additionally, many natural tinders require some form of processing to make them less coarse and more fine (so as to improve their flammability).

This is all part of getting to know the rich lore associated with natural tinders…

And it’s a key part of becoming a true outdoors person that can get a camp fire going no matter what the weather.

In short, the more natural tinders an individual knows – the more fire-lighting options that are available.

TAKE THE TINDER WALK!

I urge you to take a TINDER WALK – to collect as many tinders as possible in a given area – and try to ignite them with the 3 most popular bushcraft methods of igniting fires…

1. Flame from matches/lighter.
2. Sparks from a good fire-steel.
3. Ember from a wood-friction method of making fires (e.g. bow drill).

Also, see how the different, buffable tinders perform when buffed down to a finer consistency.

For example, dead grass will often not take a spark - but when buffed down (vigorously rubbed between the hands) the resultant well-abraded, fine dead grass will readily ignite from a spark.

Getting to know natural tinders is time well spent - and will undoubtedly go a long way in improving an individual's fire-lighting skills.

In short, becoming familiar with the wide range of natural tinders, and how to process them, is an essential component of an true outdoor’s person’s desire to become as self-sufficient as possible when living close to nature.

To learn more about Tinder Walks, click on link below...

http://www.pioneerbushcraft.org/nature-articles/bushcraft-articles/bushcraft-fire-skills-the-tinder-walk/

(Text & Photo: Sean Fagan)

Website: www.pioneerbushcraft.org
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/pioneerbush/

29/08/2015

Recent photos of some common coastal edibles found on a rocky shore, North County Dublin.

Related Articles:

4 Edible Molluscs of Rocky Shores (click on link below)

http://www.pioneerbushcraft.org/nature-articles/bushcraft-articles/coastal-foraging-molluscs/

Website: www.pioneerbushcraft.org

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/pioneerbush/

(Text & photos: Sean Fagan - Aug/2015)