4 days solo bushcraft trip - canvas tarp, rain, homemade axe and knife, carving eating bowl etc.

4 days with rain and sun under a canvas tarp. Cooking a duck and collecting wild berries, making fire with flint and steel, making a fire reflector and carving a bowl etc. Open the full video description for more information.


----------------------------

Date: August 2024

Day: 20°C (68°F)
Night: 10°C (50°F)

Hours of daylight = 14

Location: Scandinavia, West Denmark - sea, spruce/pine and hardwood forrest. Some of the most remote in Denmark, but limited how remote it can get. A lot of birds and deers etc. No bears, only a few wolves.

_________________

Consuming: Water, coffee, duck, wild berries (crowberries), oatmeal, soup (onions, potato and left over duck).

_________________

A few questions:

1. Who made the tarp?
The tarp is made by Tschum in Germany. I am using an early prototype - here is the final version https://tschum.de/en/tarp156x300.html

2. Why dig the fireplace and why add sand?
Fire safety. It has been dry for a while leading up to this trip. In this area is there no larger stones, only sand.

3. Why use wood between the cord and tree (for setting up the tarp)?
Protects the tree. A canvas tarp is heavy and regular cord (like I am using in the video) will cut into the bark and no guarantee the tree will recover.

4. What did you use for making fire?
Flint, homemade fire steel and homemade amadou tinder. Here is how I made it    • Making fire steel -  blacksmithing, f...  

5.What type of axe are you using?
A classic russian axe design. Homemade - C45 steel, sheath and handle made from ash.

6. What type of knife are you using?
A classic nordic knife, globally mainly referred to by the finnish name Puukko. Homemade - spring steel and birch burl handle. Here is how I made it    • Making nordic bushcraft knife - black...  

7. Why make the wall next to the fire?
Protects the fire from wind and reflects some heat. It is offen referred to as a "firereflector".

8. Why heat the spruce branches before using them to tie the fire reflector?
Fire burns off the sharp points of the spruce needels... The heat also makes it easier to twist the branches into "rope".

9. How long does it take to cook a duck like that over the fire?
2-4 hours.

10. Why do you sometimes hit with the side of the axe instead of the poll?
Keeps the cutting edge away from your face and the larger surface area makes you less likely to miss. I usually use the side of the axe in the beginning (when things can be unstable and or I don't need to hit hard).

11. What is you're kuksa/drinking cop made from?
Birch burl - made it just before this trip.

12. Who made the chisel and gouges?
Homemade - made them just before the trip.

13. Can I buy an axe, knife etc. from you?
No.

14. Why sometimes the black smoke from the campfire?
Fatwood - most of the pine tress in this area is full of resin/fatwood.

15. Who made the cooking pot?
It is a modified 2L Pathfinder Bushpot. Only the handle is homemade.

16. Did you hunt the duck yourself?
No - all food was bought in a local store before the trip.

17. How do you live?
For the last few years - tent or tarp depending on the season. I own a tiny part of a larger nature reserve in Northwest Denmark - I have a permanent basecamp on the property (off grid) with a lavvu/tent (with a wood stove) and a outdoor blacksmith setup. Sometimes it is tent on my property and sometimes is it tent/tarp traveling. I did own a car for a while and it made it easy traveling in Sapmi... For the last few years has it been public transport and a cargo bike (SCO Short John from 1960's).

18. Will you be hunting in future videos?
Near future - no... Maybe at some point.

19. Will you do more videos in Sapmi?
Yes - hopefully next year (spring time) and stay for a few months.

20. Any ticks in Denmark?
Yes - but I am lucky that ticks don't like me.

21. Will you do more blacksmithing videos?
Yes - but first will I be traveling in Denmark/doing bushcraft for a few months.

_________________

Some of the gear used in the video:

Tarp = Tschum
Cuting tools = homemade
Boots - Lundhags Forest
Pants = Klättermusen Gere 02
Hoodie = Unknown
Backpack = Eberlestock Mainframe f1
Sleeping bag = Carinthia Defence 4
Sharpening stone = Gränsfors Bruks
Cooking pot = Pathfinder Bushpot 2L

_________________

Video gear:

Nikon D7000
Nikon 35mm 1.8 DX
Røde videomic NTG
iMovie