What outdoor skills are you working on at this time ?

My wife and I are taking 5 months this winter to practice aboriginal living skills, hunt pigs, spear fish, and just kind of fish in general. We just kicked it off two days ago (two weeks later that we wanted). To put it simply, we are working on many, many skills at one time but we also have a massive amount of time to work on this. I'm not sure how much time you have but I consider body tempurature regulation, water, shelter, and getting food to be the four most important areas. I usually try to put more time into the one that I feel weakest in. Right now, I feel that is aboriginal fire starting skills.
 
pbonanza said:
Winter mountaineering. Not quite bushcraft, definitely outdoors. Avalanche awareness, ice axe arrest etc.

Nav with a map and compass is relatively straight forward, it probably wont take you too long to learn
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Thanks for the info. There are so many things to do outside with a little imagination. I find that the cold limits me somewhat later in the season.
 
Steve6387 said:
Knots. I spent a lot of time refining my other outdoor skills. But I never spent time learning how to tie decent knots for different applications (outside of a few for winter hiking / climbing). A small section of cord/wrap/rope is always in my pack and things like stringing a tarp for a shelter or anchoring things or securing a makeshift lean-to would all have been a whole lot easier if I knew how to tie different types of knots.

--Steve
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I've never known much about knots except that I was great at tying down my old aluminum canoe, and it never moved while on the highway. And I have used the Palomar knot for tying leaders\lures to fishing line for decades. That's it, not much.
 
Chameleonbear said:
Walking! As stupid and simple and basic as it sounds, that is what I'm working on. Getting out and walking instead of hopping in the car.
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Actually I hear you. A woman at work said that I carry my 260 lbs well on a 6'2'' frame, but man, it's 260 lbs ! I think that I lost some weight over the summer\fall because I walked miles and miles every time out while metal detecting. The weight is hard on my lower back though.
 
mrn8 said:
I've been getting my cold weather gear all set for sitting my butt in a tree stand, so I've been working out what works and what doesn't. I actually have a pretty good grasp of this for hunting and cold-weather in general, but I'm working toward doing some overnights this winter. Some of the state parks are awesome in the winter and most have walk-to campsites for winter camping.
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You have the XL nads bud. I just can't do an over nighter out there in winter. Down here at least anyway. It might be different if I was in the Boreal, but maybe I am just BSing myself.
 
Luke. said:
I'm working on being fit enough to survive outdoors! Right now I could run maybe 20 yards before I keeled over from utter exhaustion, LOL
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I figure that if I pop a leg out there that I can live off water and my blubber for a few weeks. :D
 
granitestateofmind said:
Sure. Rub it in for your (almost) winterland brethren. I've decided to work on roughing it by not bathing (so as to cover up my scent from predators)...
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? How does not bathing cover up your scent bud. In two days I smell like week old skunk road kill.
 
Survivormind said:
My wife and I are taking 5 months this winter to practice aboriginal living skills, hunt pigs, spear fish, and just kind of fish in general. We just kicked it off two days ago (two weeks later that we wanted). To put it simply, we are working on many, many skills at one time but we also have a massive amount of time to work on this. I'm not sure how much time you have but I consider body tempurature regulation, water, shelter, and getting food to be the four most important areas. I usually try to put more time into the one that I feel weakest in. Right now, I feel that is aboriginal fire starting skills.
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Sounds pretty cool actually. :thumbup:
 
jobasha11 said:
Working on making different types of snares. All I can really do now is deadfalls.
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I have been farting around with snares, more two winters ago than last. They work well around here for rabbits but I feel morally obligated to check them all the time, and it becomes a pain in the hoop. If left for a couple of days in extreme cold the ravens peck the hell out of them. They go for the eyes first.
 
upnorth said:
? How does not bathing cover up your scent bud. In two days I smell like week old skunk road kill.
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Cause I don't smell human...more like carrion, so all I've gotta worry about are turkey vultures....c'mon man, everyone knows predators don't eat anything they don't kill themselves....
 
Pretty simple:

Lighting a fire with a firesteel. I'm horrible at this. I've done it a few times but it always takes me about 20 strikes and I get super pissed and just want to whip out the bic and toast the tender...
 
granitestateofmind said:
.c'mon man, everyone knows predators don't eat anything they don't kill themselves....
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I guess that I am confused. :confused: Bears and coyotes scavenge any kill that they come across. It conserves their energy and helps to assure survival, particularly in extreme climates.
 
Eero said:
Pretty simple:

Lighting a fire with a firesteel. I'm horrible at this. I've done it a few times but it always takes me about 20 strikes and I get super pissed and just want to whip out the bic and toast the tender...
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I use grass a lot around here bud, it lights well when bone dry. I was out today and I simply could not get my grass to light. I had limited time and was putting in a moderate effort. I did look around for cat tails but none were to be seen. It has been dropping wet snow for the last two days making it kind of tough. I usually have no problem later in the year when it is much colder and dryer out. Strange as it may sound, everything is dryer\lower humidity in very cold weather. Basically I failed today when I decided to just use natural materials, a knife, and a fero rod. I had two small flair ups. One time I had about two inches of flame, the second I had about three inches. I immediately tried to add the top grass which I knew was damp, and it did not light. I should have kept some stuff out of the elements to keep dry I suppose. Not every attempt of mine works and some conditions are worse than others. I try to learn from them though.



 
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