BTC Bushcraft: Cedar Stool/Table - DIY Bow Saw - Camp Cooking Tongs - Sharpening Knife/Axe

 Cedar is a marvelously hardy wood and when a large cedar tree fell in the wooded area behind my place after a storm a few years ago it must have sat there for a good number of years before I paid much attention to it. It had fallen across the deer trail path blocking the way so one day I took my chain saw out there to clean up the path for easier walking. A few cuts later and I realized just how hardy that tree was. It's branches had kept the main trunk off the ground so it remained mostly dry and the years had seasoned it. Cedar is probably the most aromatic of all trees and this one still retained its distinctive woodsy aroma. For the past couple of years I have continued to cut small pieces ( and a few larger ones ) from the trunk. It seems none the worse for wear. A few of the larger pieces I cut into round slabs and used them as bushcraft projects making small campfire tables that can also double as a stool.

In this video you will see how I used ordinary tools to build these. I also used the collapsible DIY bow saw I recently made and you can see how it assembles and is used. I've made a couple of bushcraft spoons recently along with a spatula, but I wanted to make a set of camp cooking tongs. You'll see how I managed to do that in this video as well.

I've learned the hard way how dangerous a dull knife, or any cutting tool, can be. Sharpening a knife to a razors edge can be time consuming and there are differing ways to accomplish this. Seems everyone has their own tried and true, and some not so effective, methods to sharpen a knife. Through trial and error I've learned what works for me and in this video you will see how I manage this process.

Hope you enjoy this short bushcraft video. It was a lot of fun making it and doing all the crafty things in the process.

Beyond The Campfire Bushcraft - Building a Campfire Chair

 Even from an early age I've possessed a fascination with things rustic. Way back when I was in grammar school I read a true story about a man sometime in the late 1800's, who spent an extended time alone in the wilderness taking with him absolutely nothing...no clothes, no tools, no blankets, nothing. He made a bet with a friend saying he could survive for several months (I don't remember the exact length of time) with nothing. His friend thought he was crazy but went along with the bet and dropped him off on the edge of the deep woods. All he wore that day was a bathrobe which he promptly tossed back to his friend and trotted off into the woods. The story chronicled how he survived...which he did...and he met his friend at the same drop off point on the designated day months later, strong, healthy, and ready to collect on his bet. That story altered the course of a young boy's life, where the natural world suddenly became something big, exciting, and wonderful, a place to explore and to find adventure, and over the years I've spent countless hours canoeing, fishing, hiking, camping, exploring the wonders of the natural world,...all be it, fully clothed I might add.

In recent months I've embarked on several photographic projects, the most current being Adventure Photography - The Art of Being There, where I explored the natural world near my home and captured it on video and photographs.  It's still an ongoing project and you can watch the video's on this blog, however I've kicked off a new project where I use in the field skills to create and use rustic things from the natural world...Bushcraft, it's called...and I have a lot of ideas and excitement about this project. Although photography will be a part of this adventure, it is more about being there to enjoy what nature has to offer. 

The first project is making a Campfire Chair using a few simple and basic tools. It was a fun project. So please enjoy this video of the process I used to create this unique and useful campfire chair.