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- Jun 3, 2010
- Messages
- 1,516
Posted this on another forum but there is some knife content so maybe people here might enjoy this thread. It was a hot and humid trip but this wasnt surprising given the record heat wave. Somehow I injured my foot a few weeks before. If I walk normally there isnt any problems but any twisting is painful. I came up with a plan that might help to mitigate this. I would do a short hike in, maybe ½ mile and setup camp. From there I would take the detachable daypack for a longer hike through the hills using hiking poles for support.
Osprey Daylite attached to my Argon 85.
Water was in short supply. The heat is sucking everything dry. This stream was the best I could find.
This White Birch has seen better days. They always stand out more than other trees when fallen.
White birch sometimes means chaga. It can be used for incense, firecraft and tea. I am getting low so harvested some with the help of a stick.
Speaking of firecraft I didnt pack any matches or lighters but did bring traditional flint and steel to start my hobo stove. I was thinking about how firesteels are sometimes incorrectly identified as traditional flint and steel by the novice or product marketing like Coghlans so called flint striker. I took my Strike Force firesteel to compare with F&S using char cloth in actual field conditions aka mosquitoes biting my sorry backside. I dont think the char cloth component is all that primitive but thats another topic.
[video=youtube;4J6sLRSsokE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4J6sLRSsokE[/video]
Firesteel compared to traditional F&S. Granted this is old hat to many on this forum. The firesteel has yellow paracord, the chert and carbon steel is near the black char cloth.
This isnt exactly fishing but better than nothing.
Hobo stove acting as a small scout fire. Burns off the ground and leaves no trace.
The classic hammock camp. Even in the hottest weather I will still pack a blanket. The poncho liner was mostly used as a makeshift pillow but it wouldnt take much to get chilled even during the hottest season given the right set of circumstances.
High land scrub.
I found both White and Yellow birch. Both barks work nearly the same for tinder. I prefer chaga from White birch compared to chaga from Yellow birch despite not having any scientific proof to back this up.
Yellow Birch.
Just some flowers.
I really liked the flowering Winter green.
Some wild edibles.
The Staghorn sumac is starting to turn red and despite feeling a bit early in the season harvested some to make sumac lemonade at home.
The berry clusters.
Berries and leaves.
I removed the stems then stirred and soaked the seeds in COLD water. After that used a coffee filter to remove any of the hairs and floaters.
Here is a short video on the Staghorn sumac lemonade like drink. Dont used poison sumac. I dont think the two are easily confused.
[video=youtube;S1XBa8ERWQ0]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S1XBa8ERWQ0&feature=relmfu[/video]
Partridge berries or in this case berry.
I seen the flowering plants back home a few weeks ago so wasnt expecting to find this single berry on the AT. It might have made it through the entire winter but thats just speculation. There were no other berries on any of the plants so who knows?
Black Huckleberries.
These are starting to ripen. I ran into a back bear just before finding the large concentration of hucks. The bear ran off leaving the berries to me.
Blueberries growing along side and mixed in with the Black hucks.
Black berries mixed in with what looks like scrub oak leaves in the higher country.
Blackberries mixed in with blueberries.
It didnt take long before I had a wild berry mix in a bag.
Used the blackberries, black hucks and blueberries for a tri wild berry bannock.
From foraging to fry pan.
[video=youtube;XEo8jcTa9jE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XEo8jcTa9jE[/video]
A few kit items.
My Osprey Daylite is a nice little daypack that docks on my larger Argon 85. My foot was hurting and the heat punishing. I covering less than one mile per hour through the hills. It would have been harder with the larger pack. Took along one 70 oz Platy and two large sports drinks. All got drank by the time I got back to camp. I was a bit short on water.
Mora 746 and scandi Tiger Knapp. Two good UL knives in stainless steel.
Critters.
Given the heat I didnt see much of anything out there. After a passing shower the newts came out and then disappeared again as the sun cooked off the moisture.
I encountered a black bear not too far from the berries but it ran off before I could take a photo. Black bears like many other critters often dont want a conflict with people and for good reason.
Even hard outings are still better than sitting home doing nothing. The ice cold Sumac lemonade drink after the trip was a great way to unwind. Hiking 10 miles through those hills with an injury was the biggest downer but I wanted to get out badly. Maybe next time I will just go care camping if hurt.
Thanks for looking.
Osprey Daylite attached to my Argon 85.
Water was in short supply. The heat is sucking everything dry. This stream was the best I could find.
This White Birch has seen better days. They always stand out more than other trees when fallen.
White birch sometimes means chaga. It can be used for incense, firecraft and tea. I am getting low so harvested some with the help of a stick.
Speaking of firecraft I didnt pack any matches or lighters but did bring traditional flint and steel to start my hobo stove. I was thinking about how firesteels are sometimes incorrectly identified as traditional flint and steel by the novice or product marketing like Coghlans so called flint striker. I took my Strike Force firesteel to compare with F&S using char cloth in actual field conditions aka mosquitoes biting my sorry backside. I dont think the char cloth component is all that primitive but thats another topic.
[video=youtube;4J6sLRSsokE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4J6sLRSsokE[/video]
Firesteel compared to traditional F&S. Granted this is old hat to many on this forum. The firesteel has yellow paracord, the chert and carbon steel is near the black char cloth.
This isnt exactly fishing but better than nothing.
Hobo stove acting as a small scout fire. Burns off the ground and leaves no trace.
The classic hammock camp. Even in the hottest weather I will still pack a blanket. The poncho liner was mostly used as a makeshift pillow but it wouldnt take much to get chilled even during the hottest season given the right set of circumstances.
High land scrub.
I found both White and Yellow birch. Both barks work nearly the same for tinder. I prefer chaga from White birch compared to chaga from Yellow birch despite not having any scientific proof to back this up.
Yellow Birch.
Just some flowers.
I really liked the flowering Winter green.
Some wild edibles.
The Staghorn sumac is starting to turn red and despite feeling a bit early in the season harvested some to make sumac lemonade at home.
The berry clusters.
Berries and leaves.
I removed the stems then stirred and soaked the seeds in COLD water. After that used a coffee filter to remove any of the hairs and floaters.
Here is a short video on the Staghorn sumac lemonade like drink. Dont used poison sumac. I dont think the two are easily confused.
[video=youtube;S1XBa8ERWQ0]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S1XBa8ERWQ0&feature=relmfu[/video]
Partridge berries or in this case berry.
I seen the flowering plants back home a few weeks ago so wasnt expecting to find this single berry on the AT. It might have made it through the entire winter but thats just speculation. There were no other berries on any of the plants so who knows?
Black Huckleberries.
These are starting to ripen. I ran into a back bear just before finding the large concentration of hucks. The bear ran off leaving the berries to me.
Blueberries growing along side and mixed in with the Black hucks.
Black berries mixed in with what looks like scrub oak leaves in the higher country.
Blackberries mixed in with blueberries.
It didnt take long before I had a wild berry mix in a bag.
Used the blackberries, black hucks and blueberries for a tri wild berry bannock.
From foraging to fry pan.
[video=youtube;XEo8jcTa9jE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XEo8jcTa9jE[/video]
A few kit items.
My Osprey Daylite is a nice little daypack that docks on my larger Argon 85. My foot was hurting and the heat punishing. I covering less than one mile per hour through the hills. It would have been harder with the larger pack. Took along one 70 oz Platy and two large sports drinks. All got drank by the time I got back to camp. I was a bit short on water.
Mora 746 and scandi Tiger Knapp. Two good UL knives in stainless steel.
Critters.
Given the heat I didnt see much of anything out there. After a passing shower the newts came out and then disappeared again as the sun cooked off the moisture.
I encountered a black bear not too far from the berries but it ran off before I could take a photo. Black bears like many other critters often dont want a conflict with people and for good reason.
Even hard outings are still better than sitting home doing nothing. The ice cold Sumac lemonade drink after the trip was a great way to unwind. Hiking 10 miles through those hills with an injury was the biggest downer but I wanted to get out badly. Maybe next time I will just go care camping if hurt.
Thanks for looking.
