Getting into Bushcraft/Wilderness Survival without breaking the
bank
It is so easy to get caught up in the glamor and romance of
Bushcrafting and Wilderness survival, but all to often many normal folk get
frustrated and discouraged when they see Bushcrafters on youtube or other
videos using and wearing high-end expensive gear.
Well I’m here to tell you, you don’t need that high-end
expensive gear, though I will be first to admit that I do have high end
expensive gear. Only because I scrimped and saved for them, or traded for it
for skills that I taught. Quite frankly, this high-end “glamor” “Glamping” bushcraft
that a lot of us see, has come about only recently, maybe in the past ten years
or so, maybe more.
It wasn’t to long ago that many wilderness survival
practitioners and Bushcrafters, either made their own gear, or used surplus
items. Hell, when I first started this I used to get stuff from surplus stores.
Even the late Ron Hood used to go to thrift stores for some of his gear. That
shoulder bag you see him wearing in his videos? He got that at a thrift store.
So there you have it. You don’t need to spend a large
amount of money to start out in wilderness survival or bushcrafting. I mean,
bushcrafting when broken down into its original form, was making your own gear.
That’s the essence of it all. Should you get top quality gear if you can afford
it? Absolutely… However… I must add is that you get your skills down and know
what you’re doing before getting that high-end gear. It’s heart wrenching to
see someone starting out with a high-end expensive tool break it because they
didn’t know what they’re doing. By starting out simple, if you mess up, its not
the end of the world. And it’s not a big hit in the wallet either.
The four essential items you need, need to cover the main
basics. A knife, water container for drinking and cooking, shelter, and bedding.
Of three of the four, you don’t need to spend a lot of money on your gear. The
one that you will need to take a hit in the wallet on is the bedding.
Knives: Yup, welcome to
what could be called an obsession by some. I call it seeing what works for me.
;) But, for starting out go basic and simple. Of which, I suggest the
ubiquitous Mora. Great thing about them; aside from being cheap, they’re actually
quite tough knives. Cody Lundin has had one for well over twenty years. If you
want to be bushcrafty ;) you can buy the blade blank and make the handle
yourself, something I advocate as it becomes very personal to you. Good example is the one on the left in the picture.
Water container: As of
late, it seems some experts are now advocating having a steel or metal
container. I see their point, but combined with my cooking pot, I really don’t
need a metal water container. But, for starting out, try using a Gatorade
bottle or some other sports drink bottle, as long as its at least a quart and
wide mouthed. 32 oz wide mouthed will do the trick. Added bonus, you can get
the drink cheap. I’ve seen the on sale for .80 cents. From there you can get a
Nalgene bottle, make sure its clear, and wide mouthed. I have one that’s 48 oz.
Cooking Pot: Now here’s a
mine field subject ;) There are many choices on this, but again I say keep it
simple. I have a Mors Bush Pot that holds 2 quarts, and I like it, but
sometimes I do go to my old stand by which is a coffee can. Ron Hood used to
use this on his treks, and they used to make them in 16 oz, but now you’re
lucky to find one that’s in 14 oz, and metal at that. The coffee can pot can be
beaten up, used to dig holes, and still be ready to used. Add a bailing wire to
it and you’re ready to go.
Shelter: Truth be told,
sometimes its nice to do open sky sleeping, but there are times and places
where this isn’t feasible. Either due to weather, or heavy dew. The shelter I
bring with me is the polish lavvu ponchos buttoned together, but they are
getting ridiculously expensive when at one point they were dirt cheap. Still,
starting out I used a 12x12 sheet of plastic of heavy mil quality, which is what I
used on my survival trek with Ron Hood. However, the draw back is it’s durable
to a certain point, then holes start forming etc. I found a nice alternative
for this is a 8x10 tarp. You can make this into different shelter, and with
some cord you can make it into a A-Frame shelter. It also packs up easily and
doesn’t take up much weight.
Bedding: For me a good wool
blanket will do the trip. Its warm, even wet. But now we’re to the part where
if you want to keep warm, you’re going to have to spend a good amount. No way
around it, you’re going to be spending quiet a bit for a good wool blanket.
Yes, there are some that aren’t that expensive and are twin size. I for one
like the large wool blankets, queen size is what I have. You can go for the
ones that are twin size, if that’s your preference. However, I HATE drafts. I
don’t like being woken up with a draft creeping up my leg or back, and I have
to flop around to adjust the blanket. With a queen I can even double wrap
myself which will prevent drafts. But, as I said, you’re going to pay a pretty
penny for one of these, unless you get lucky and find one that size in a thrift
store. I for one have never been that fortunate.
The blankets I recommend are the Pendleton, Hudson Bay, or
any 100% wool blanket. You can find them on line if you do a search.
