Georgia- 10 Days of Woodcraft… Southern Style!

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Back from 10 days in Georgia for the Blade Show and some fun in the woods!

I usually try to stay in Georgia with Patrick Rollins before and after Blade show. You know when we get together, especially after Blade show; we’ll have lots of new tools to play with and some interesting gadgets and kits as well. This year, I stayed a few days before and about a week after the show.
We tried out knives from PB&J, Smith & Son’s, Dogwood, James Gibson, and MUD!!!!!!!!!!



Patrick wasted no time cooking it up out in his woods, where he has a very cool cooking range set up.





My desert!



Patrick entertained with a little snake wrangling!






We built a high table and a lower table that served as a work/tool bench.



Mudman Roach Belly Neck Knife



However, we wanted to pimp up the place and go full-on POW camp!
We built a chair using a tripod set-up, then added a swamp bed with the PB&J Parang.




One end of the ridge pole rested in a crotch…


One side was lashed with natural vines…




I trimmed some thin saplings for the mosquito net hanging system.



Completed chair and modified swamp bed!






Lots of woodcraft…



Tools
H&B Forge Hawks, PB&J Parang…



Tiki Torch 1



Cutting the notches with a saw and Smith & Sons OGRE!



This was a cool idea that burned about 5 min…(failure)!








Pond behind P’s woods!







Tiki Torch 2





Then we built a stone oven for cooking inside and on top…



 
We changed locations and camped near a creek in a very ”private” area in the woods!
We had been watching lots of Scrambled O and Survival Russia on Youtube, so we decided to try a few tips from that crazy Danish guy (Survival Russia).





Making this camp was a join effort, building tools to help our cause, as well as building tables, chairs, and a cool fire-lay. One of the first things we did was put up our shelters/sleep quarters, then made up a couple of mallets to help us along.

Made with a Bob Dustrude 30” buck saw and Smith & Sons Tataille knife



A Survival Russia tip for hanging a pot without any Y’s stuck in the ground, especially useful in frozen ground or just plain hard ground!







I did some “quick build” chairs using a saw to cut the poles and Dollar Store zip-ties to hold them together…



SMEAT Snack!



Another great Survival Russia tip- Siberian Fire-Lay.
This is a very versatile fire-lay, allowing for a place to put kettles, pans, and provides cover from rain and snow, which we had none of the days we were out there.



A good water source…



Night was creeping up on us from above the canopy, so it was time to make some quick lanterns out of candles and cans. I saw this about 18 years ago in a Ron Hood survival video…it still works!





Night cooking…



Mr. cooking man showing us a hack. It’s fire, it cooks…that’s a hack!





Nigh time friends…



When it turned LATE, we decided to build a table, however I didn’t take any pictures until the morning.





One pole was left long and served as a tool rack, which was a good way to stay organized and keep the camp safe.



We made wild game stew with red beans & rice and put a healthy dose of Red Eyed Hog for our seasoning!



Stewing…



Stewed for about 7 hours…



Another zip tie chair…



After about 5 hours I added the peppers, red beans & rice!





Appetizer while waiting…




Finished stew…it was pretty good too!




A little bit of naughty water!!!!!!!!!!!!



A copper spoon made by our friend James Gibson!



Summer sausage on a roasting rack…Patrick’s invention!



The fire for our last night was a simple range, complete with a waugan stick in the crotches of two Y’s and a couple of pot hangers over a long-fire.





Of course, no real camp in Georgia could be enjoyed without the music of Band of Horses as our soundtrack. That is when Billy Joel wasn’t playing!
We had a blast building things, cooking, fishing, trying out tools, enjoying the fire and just laughing!
Can’t wait for the next trip to Georgia and to camp with my friend!

-RB
 
Cool. the family friendly BSA term for the naughty stuff is "brown water." :D
 
Love seeing the chairs. Great idea on building that. It presents a compelling case for adding zip ties to my kit.
 
Love seeing the chairs. Great idea on building that. It presents a compelling case for adding zip ties to my kit.

I have thought of this for years, but never tried it. Initially, I wanted to just hold the wood in place so I can lash them together. Instead, I tried sitting and had a few other try as well. It worked, no cordage needed. A very quick way to make camp furniture.

-RB
 
Awesome post RB! Damn it looks like you and Patrick had fun out there. I really like the camp set up. The PB&J Parang is a beast. I have a second Main Course I got from Jake back in April, and I really like their work. Very simple yet very nicely done, and very solid. The ergos are great and they do a really great job on their heat treat. The sheaths are very well done also. It's damned hard to beat the overall quality of their tools, even buy paying more, but especially in their price range. Their knives take me back in time to a simpler place in my life. They remind me of the farm life in my childhood. I sent a couple of sketches to Jake of knives I would really like for him to make for me in this style, and told him if he wanted to add them to his line to be my guest. They do very fine work and take a lot of pride in doing it.
 
Always such great camp setups and tasty looking food! Of course the new sharp tools and whisky just makes it perfect :thumbup:
 
Great post, very fun read with great pictures. You certainly made me hungry that's for sure. Makes me feel like I need to step up my camp cooking game a whole bunch.
 
Awesome post RB! Damn it looks like you and Patrick had fun out there. I really like the camp set up. The PB&J Parang is a beast. I have a second Main Course I got from Jake back in April, and I really like their work. Very simple yet very nicely done, and very solid. The ergos are great and they do a really great job on their heat treat. The sheaths are very well done also. It's damned hard to beat the overall quality of their tools, even buy paying more, but especially in their price range. Their knives take me back in time to a simpler place in my life. They remind me of the farm life in my childhood. I sent a couple of sketches to Jake of knives I would really like for him to make for me in this style, and told him if he wanted to add them to his line to be my guest. They do very fine work and take a lot of pride in doing it.

Not to derail RB's awesome post, but in talking with Phillip at BLADE about my puukko they made he made a comment they've thought about a PB&J Puukko.
 
Your posts are going to make me get a Smith and Sons one of these days. I have had my eye on a Cherokee for a long while now. I am just sort of torn on the D2 I have yet to find a D2 I didn't hate (have not tried Doziers).
 
WOW! Great camp you put up there :thumbup:. Nice set of tools, good food :) and good wood craftsman skills! Very nice, it looks a lot of fun. I also liked the modified Swedish torch. I do that also sometimes, especially in winter. It’s a smart way to have a "real hob" to place pots and pans on without hangers, holders, etc. What type of snake is that? Liked your lanterns as well. Thanks for posting!
 
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