Leaf Debris Shelter

[markwood]

Thought I'd post some pictures from another Bushcraft Course in the UK.

Here's how we made a leaf debris shelter.

First a frame of interlocking and interwoven boughs is created based around a free standing tripod:

Lots of thin branches are used to stop material falling through

Then the frame is covered with a foot or more of leaves. These are beech leaves so there aren't many insects. The mulchy rotted stuff is good as it really sticks and settles.

Stuff that falls through can be recycled for the outside:

Here's the finished shelter:

Here's me sat inside:

Here's the same site after we dismantled the shelter and cleared up:

They are quick to make in the right conditions but alas I've yet to sleep in one!

 

[Millhouse]

Wow, I'm getting a sense of deja vu. Earlier today I watched an old Ray Mears country tracks program and he made the same shelter.

Nice work and pics, and for leaving no trace of your activities.

 

[siguy]

nice work. that looks a bit large for actual use on cooler nights, as there is alot of room to heat up if you were going to be sleeping in it. i would also suggest a smaller opening.

i realize that this one was probably built a bit large on purpose, for the purpose of illustration and practice, and it was well built indeed.

i didn't know about the beech leaves not holding alot of bugs...i suppose it is some sort of natural compound in them?

 

[DOC-CANADA]

Another great thread! Nice looking shelter, Mark.

Doc

 

[mtnfolk mike]

that came out great man..:thumbup: looks nice and cozy..

 

[texastonydobbs]

Great debris shelter,Good job ....May I ask what the Red dots on the trees are for ?

 

[pitdog]

Great stuff !!!!:thumbup:

 

[pict]

Great work. A shelter built like that would need a fire out front to keep warm but it looked like it would handle alot of rain before it worked its way thorugh. In dry conditions though a well made shelter and a well laid fire start looking about the same so be careful.

That shelter reminded me of one I made as a kid. Instead of leaves I had used gaint bark shingles for the roofing with dead logs laid on top to hold them in place. I was very proud of the fact that there wasn't any man made material in the entire structure. That shelter stood for the better part of a year and kept me warm on many nights. It was true survival too, as it was my refuge from a bad situation at home. I had the floor lined with about a foot of long soft pine needles. With a small fire out front it was plenty warm on frosty nights. Mac

 

[philuk44]

Looks great Mark - enjoyed your other post on the Ash bark container too.

Nice to see someone from my neck of the woods posting here

Phil

 

[Erasmus]

Love that shelter, and the photos. Could someone post pics of one that in the proper size for one guy?

 

[ratfrog186]

Howdy guys...
Great igloo here...

Here are recent ones from Frogland...
One man sized as requested...

First one built on this...

On progress...

Finished...

Second one was built for a freezing wet night, so I doubled the shelter with a mylar blanket...

Inside view...

Ready for the night...

Still alive...

Last one was built during a spring week-end...
Was travelling light that time...

Hope you enjoy it!

Manu the frog.

 

[siguy]

hey manu good looking shelters...what is that knife next to the wine?

 

[LittleHairyApe]

Markwood and Ratfrog,
Great pictures. Lots of hours of hours of sweat condensed down to pixels. You make it look easy, but all of those leaves had to take a good bit of time to scoop up and transport. Many thanks.

 

[ratfrog186]

Thanks... A poncho is a good help when collecting debris...

The knife is a short primitive philippino machete...
I like that blade as a "do it all" tool.
Great balance and spring steel (tough though easy to sharpen in the woods)

I was trying a outdoor trip without "plastic" made (or related) stuff... No synthetic clothes, no high tech gadgets and so...
The wine bottle was my obvious liquid container...

Manu.

 

[baldtaco-II]

This thread typifies exactly why a light weight pair of pruning shears so often makes it into my kit. Aside from being the lazy way to take the head an hands of critters there isn't a better tool for me for doing this kind of stuff. I'm much more likely to build something like this, or a simple hide / blind than I am to try to build a big phat communal cabin or split dirty great logs.

 

[markwood]

Great debris shelter,Good job ....May I ask what the Red dots on the trees are for ?

It's a forestry thing to indicate trees to be left or felled - I don't know which way round though!

 

[markwood]

nice work. that looks a bit large for actual use on cooler nights, as there is alot of room to heat up if you were going to be sleeping in it. i would also suggest a smaller opening.

i realize that this one was probably built a bit large on purpose, for the purpose of illustration and practice, and it was well built indeed.

i didn't know about the beech leaves not holding alot of bugs...i suppose it is some sort of natural compound in them?

It was supposed to accommodate three of us hence the size. One of the other groups on the same course started a mansion but of course didn't get anywhere near finished in the same time - big shelters need masses of leaves!

Re the insects - I think that dead beech leaves are just inedible, even for bugs. No food = no insects.

 

[markwood]

Markwood and Ratfrog,
Great pictures. Lots of hours of hours of sweat condensed down to pixels. You make it look easy, but all of those leaves had to take a good bit of time to scoop up and transport. Many thanks.

Thanks from me as well. A sheet or poncho makes life much easier (gloves are pretty handy as well). You can also make a scoop from a jacket and a large forked branch which is supposed to really help but no-one volunteered their clothing!

 

[texastonydobbs]

It's a forestry thing to indicate trees to be left or felled - I don't know which way round though!

:thumbup: Thank you....

 

[DOC-CANADA]

Apparently Beech (Fagus grandifolia) leaves were used in colonial times "to stuff mattresses for they are long lasting, springy, and softer than straw".

big shelters need masses of leaves!

So do little ones!

Doc