The Practical Woodsman

Ep 11: The Woodsman & DOGS. Plus: 7 Secrets for Staying Warm in the Cold Woods

Without a dog, you can't be fully equipped as a woodsman. My dog Bradbury ("Braddy"), his passing, and some stories of our adventures together. New puppies, new beginnings. Dogs as an early-warning system: They can sense what you cannot. Getting bitten by a timber rattlesnake. Training a companion dog for the woods starts right away. Lies and myths about neutering. I hate being cold, yet winter is my favorite time in the woods. Seven secrets for staying warm. I tell you how eerie the sound of packs of coyotes in the woods is. The way wool heats you as opposed to goose down. Getting myself in trouble with some sexist-ish statements. The right way to sleep with your dog and a sleeping bag.  
 
Join our online community at thepracticalwoodsman.locals.com, or by downloading the Locals.com app from the App Store and searching for The Practical Woodsman. 
 
#dogs #woodsman #wilderness #backpacking #ladnerbmc #lousianacatahoulaleopard #blackmouthcur #death #backcountry #survival #bigfoot #hybridvigor #stayingwarm #winter #freezing #cold #coyotes #physicalexertion #synthetics #polyester #wool #clothing #properdress #hiking #gear #exertion #snow #insulation #collapsibleshovel #shovels #sexist #shelter #sleepingbag #goosedown #freedomofmovement #emergencies #yotes #restrained #benefits 

Ep 10: Nineteen Tips for When You’re Lost

Nineteen tips for when you're lost. Why burning a bit of your plastic in the wilderness is ok. Why 'cooking' in packaging is stupid. The wisdom of carrying a kettle. The good and bad about Bear Grylls. Building rafts in real life ain't anything like you imagine. Hypothermia and hyperthermia ain't anything to take lightly, or to walk around thinking is some imaginary thing that only happens to others. The 'heat reflectors' you see all the 'bushcraft' guys building is total bullpoopoo and an instant indicator that they are full of horsepoopoo. How simple it is to wash out your cooking gear, stop making it more complicated than necessary. Destroying the environment? Not any more than what you are doing.
 
Join our online community at thepracticalwoodsman.locals.com, or download the locals.com app from the App Store and search for The Practical Woodsman.
 
#bushcraft #emergencyfood #beargrylls #freezedried #hypothermia #hyperthermia #farnorthbushcraft #caves #cookinggear #trash #burn #fire #environment #survival #backcountry #wilderness #backpacking #hiking #wood #backcountrycooking #firemaking #firekit #gear #exploring #camp #shelter #campcooking #appalachia #appalachian #practicalwoodsman #bcbwaterbottle #bcbcanteen #crusadercup #natocrusadercup #norwegiankettle #backpackingkettle #landfills #mountainhouse #survivalmeals #survival #survivalfood #backcountry #wilderness #bushcraft #plastics #rice #beans #potatoes #survivalfood

Ep 9: Food, Booze & Gadgets

This was recorded primarily for video format. Please subscribe to The Practical Woodsman on YouTube, Rumble & Locals to view. Filmed (recorded) in November, right before The Practical Woodsman, Adventure 10: 'A Few Tricks in the Frozen Backcountry'. Published now for your enjoyment. Food, booze, gadgets and more for winter excursions. Things to think about while you're packing. Some of the types of food I gravitate towards. Why I never cook my just-add-water-meals in their packaging, and what I do instead.
 
Join our online community at thepracticalwoodsman.locals.com, or by downloading the Locals.com app from the App Store and searching for The Practical Woodsman.
 
Some stuff I show off: The Big Blue 28W Solar Charger. The Silverant 400ml titanium bottle. Mountain House meals and how to pack them. My Birch Burl Kuksa cup. My personal fire kit. Hunters orange, and why to keep it in stock. I complain some more about the Appalachian Trail and why I don't consider it anything serious. Boundless Voyage 1.4L Titanium Backpacking Kettle. BCB British Water Bottle & NATO Crusader Cup. The flexibility of taters. A whole big discussion about Mr. Booze, hootch, Kentucky Bourbon and how to carry it in the woods.
 
#bigbluesolar #silveranttitanium #mountainhouse #kuksacup #birchburl #firekit #huntersorange #appalachiantrail #boundlessvoyage #titaniumkettle #bcbwaterbottle #britishwaterbottle #crusadercup #natocrusadercup #whiskey #whisky #bourbon #kentuckybourbon #backpacking #planning #food #flask #survival #backcountry #wilderness #backpacking #hiking #woods #backcountrycooking #firemaking #gear #exploring #camp #shelter #campcooking #thepracticalwoodsman #appalachia #appalachian

Ep 8: Seven Things Wrong with Your Bug-Out Bag

7 Things Wrong with Your Emergency Bug-Out Bag. My four primary areas of preparedness. The concept of being able to help without taking a personal loss. A comprehensive look at my personal emergency bug-out bags, and the reasons for why I include certain things and not others.
 
Some of the gear featured here: L.L. Bean Ridge Runner 26 backpack, Boreal 21 foldable bucksaw, Eagle Products Norwegian Backpacking Kettle, BCB British Water Bottle Osprey 58 Pattern & NATO Crusader Cup, Lixada 750ml stainless steel cup, REI Coop Stowaway backpack, Ektos 100% Wool Blanket 5.0 lbs, Hiluckey Outdoor Solar Charger 30,000mAh, Portable Emergency Hand Crank Radio with LED Flashlight AM/FM NOAA, Ferrocerium Rods, Fatwood, L.L.Bean Softshell Men's Mountain Classic Windproof Fleece Jacket, Pathfinder Stainless Steel 1l Water Bottle, Mountain House meals, Flexsolar 20w Solar Panels, Gomboy Silky Saw, Coghlan's Acrylic Featherweight Mirror, REI Coop Merino Wool Long John bottoms, REI Balaclava, LEDLensor flashlight, Humangear GoBites Uno Portable Titanium Spoon Fork, Swiss Army knife EvoGrip S17, Frogg Toggs Rain Poncho.
 
Join our online community at thepracticalwoodsman.locals.com or by downloading the Locals.com app from the App Store and searching for The Practical Woodsman.
 
#bugoutbag #emergencybag #headlamp #petzl #energizerheadlamp #goosedown #downblanket #preparedness #llbeanridgerunner #llbeanbackpack #kentuckybourbon #mountainhouse #emergencyglowsticks #flexsolar #silkygomboy #bakingsoda #lixada #coghlans #solarpanels #froggtoggs #whiskeyflask #freezedried #waypointsurvival #pksmountainlion #highcarbonsteel #beltknife #survivalfood #swissarmyknife #pathfinder #bcbbottle #crusadercup #pksknife #pathfinderwaterbottle #boreal21 #borealfoldingsaw #spicekit #bushcraft #survival #backcountry #wilderness #backpacking #hiking #woods #backcountrycooking #firemaking #firekit #camp #shelter #campcooking #thepracticalwoodsman #Appalachia #appalachian

Ep 7: Why Complicate Wilderness Survival?

Simple and easy is almost always best when in the woods, but all of the messengers want to convince you of the opposite: They want you to get sucked down the black hole of what is most elaborate or complex. Don't overcomplicate your fires, your food, or anything else for that matter. GPS can overcomplicate things. Not knowing how to use your cutting saw properly can overcomplicate things. Carrying food without considering its calorie count can overcomplicate things. Only carrying food that needs preparation can overcomplicate things. My simple fishing/sewing kit, and everything you need to know to make your own. 
 
Join our online community at thepracticalwoodsman.locals.com, or download the Locals.com app from the App Store and search for The Practical Woodsman. 
 
#woodsman #survival #bugoutbag #emergencybag #emergencypreparedness #prepared #selfreliance #selfsufficiency #bushcraftsaw #bowsaw #silkygomboy #gomboy #boreal21 #ramennoodles #freezedried #freezedriedmeals #emergencymeals #trailmix #gps #topomaps #topographicalmaps #fishingkit #sewingkit #backpacking #wilderness #hunting #mountainhousemeals #calories #thepracticalwoodsman #camping #paultawrell #swedishfire #torchfire #firebuilding #firekit 

Ep 6: Backpacking Water Filters Are A Gimmick

Finding Clean Drinking Water in the Backcountry. Some brief discussions about what is the most important consideration in the woods. What is most important: Shelter, food, fire, or water? The mountain lion I encountered. The time I had a parasite under my skin. The reason backpacking water filters are a money-making gimmick. How to find clean, natural drinking water in the wilderness. Understanding the nature of water in the woods. How to make water clean to drink. The many reasons water filters are not reliable, and why no approach to the woods should be reliant on unreliable things. 
 
Join our online community at thepracticalwoodsman.locals.com, or download the Locals.com app from the App Store and search for The Practical Woodsman. 
 
#water #parasites #waterfilters #grayl #katadyn #hydrapak #backpacking #wilderness #bushcraft #survival #woodsman #woodsman #fire #shelter #food #priorities #redrivergorge #kentucky #rivers #creeks #streams #brooks #selfreliance #appalachia #appalachian #thepracticalwoodsman

Ep 5: Bushcraft, Survival, Backpacking, Corrupted!

Watch me eat lots of crow, admit I'm wrong, and ask for forgiveness. I plead for your help with something I am working on and I appeal to others who share similar attitudes to me. Terminology has been corrupted - why 'bushcraft', 'survival', 'wilderness backpacking' have strayed from the ideals that they once represented. John Muir. Simon Kenton. Why short-sleeved shirts will mark you as a silly greenhorn in the woods by woodsmen. Stinging nettle. Why the Appalachian Trail is nothing for you to go bragging about to true woodsmen (and woodsladies). 
Join our online community! Go to thepracticalwoodsman.locals.com. I ain't gonna lie to you - it is as dead as a forgotten graveyard there right now. But it doesn't have to be! And I'm active there. 
#eatingcrow #bushcraft #survival #wildernessbackpacking #backpacking #trekkingpolesarestilldumb #woods #backcountry #wilderness #intimacy #mountains #stingingnettle #appalachiantrail #shelters #mileage #topomaps #topographical #johnmuir #simonkenton #terminology #help #feedback #corrupted 
 

Ep 4: Trekking Poles are Dumb

The difference between hiking, backpacking, and 'camping', and sex with no intention of ever having an orgasm - what's the point? Modern camping is not a real outdoor activity. 
Wilderness backpacking as an activity inherently includes both hiking and camping. But hiking as an activity does not inherently involve backpacking or camping at all. And camping as an activity does not inherently involve backpacking or hiking at all. Confused yet? 
Would it be realistic for a character in a book to survive until morning without frostbite if he or she collapses in the snowy woods in the middle of the night? Trekking poles are really, really dumb. A brand new regular feature for the show: Campfire stories! My little brother once slept all night perched high up in a pine tree next to Taco Bell.
I'm a big fan of floorless, tipi type tents for their superior weight savings, space offerings, head room, stability in foul weather, and more. Two of my favorites are the Black Diamond Mega Light and the Luxe Hiking Gear Hexpeak 2P Tipi Tent. I show them off a little here. Also, I talk about cooking (and more) with the BCB NATO British water bottle and NATO Crusader Cup. 
There's no such thing as bad weather, only of not being properly dressed. Wind, elevation, temperatures and other considerations. I hate having to make conversions between Fahrenheit and Celsius. 
Walking sticks and trekking poles do not make hiking easier. The first time I heard of trekking poles, I said to myself, "There's no way on earth people will actually spend money on those things." Boy, I should have known better. 
Ever hear of Pet Rocks? 
Which attitudes better compliment the purpose for being out in nature in the first place, and which attitudes further contribute to alienation? 
Join our online community at thepracticalwoodsman.locals.com, or download the Locals.com app from the App Store and search for The Practical Woodsman. 
#hiking #backpacking #camping #tipitents #campcooking #sex #trekkingpoles #blackdiamond #blackdiamondmegalight #luxehikinggear #hexpeaktipitent #bcbwaterbottle #britishcanteen #bcbcanteen #natocrusadercup #crusadercup #practicalwoodsmanstew #timberrattlesnakes #rattlesnakes #snakes #campfire #campfirestories #thepracticalwoodsman #survival #bushcraft #snow #appalachia #appalachian #campstew #thepracticalwoodsman

Ep 3: Outdoor Hats Ain’t For Indiana Jones Make-Believe

All about outdoor hats for survival, bushcraft, and wilderness backpacking. Do 'outdoor hats' like fedoras, cowboy hats, Australian outback hats, and so forth, serve legitimate purposes out in the backcountry? Or is it all for vanity and show? Is it just part of an 'outdoorsman costume'? Are there good reasons to make a brimmed hat a permanent part of your outdoor gear? 
 
In this episode I show off a multitude of different brimmed hats and talk in detail about them: Fur felt fedoras, wool fedoras, leather fedoras, genuine Panama straw fedoras - both rigid and roll-up types - toboggans ('beanies' or knit hats), and even paper fedoras. I show off an actual Indiana Jones fine wool fedora made to the same specifications as the hats for the film Raiders of the Lost Ark. We talk about Miller Hats, Stetson, Hats In The Belfry, and Borsalino. I talk a bit about the Stetson Bozeman Outdoor Hat. 
 
I'll tell you all about where Genuine Panama Straw Fedoras come from and how they got their name. It involves a man named Theodore Roosevelt and a visit he made to the Panama Canal. 
 
Join our online community at thepracticalwoodsman.locals.com, or by downloading the Locals.com app from the App Store and searching for The Practical Woodsman. 
 
My favorite places to shop for hats: millerhats.com, stetson.com, hatsinthebelfry.com
 
#outdoorhats #survival #indianajones #bushcraft #fedoras #cowboyhats #australianoutbackhats #brimmedhats #woolfedora #furfeltfedora #genuinepanama #genuinepanamafedora #leatherfedora #raidersofthelostark #millerhats #stetson #borsalino #rolluppanama #stetsonbozemanoutdoorhat #stetsonbozeman #tractorsupplyco #tractorsupply #strawhat #stetsonstrawhat #mosquitos #horseflies #deet #campfire #gnats #appalachian #appalachia #thunderstorm #beaverfur #beaverfurfedora #dumpsterdiving #ecuador #teddyroosevelt #theodoreroosevelt #panamacanal #backpacking #wilderness #backcountry #outback #survival #bushcraft #thepracticalwoodsman
 

Ep 2: Overlooked Survival Tips

Why practicing bow-drill fires is impractical and silly in most cases. The true nature of most true survival situations. Why emphasis on catching wild game in true survival situations is ridiculous. Five practical tips for how to normalize the idea of eating bugs for yourself, and why this is important. The basic items I always carry in my right pocket. Knots are cool and never-ending, yet you only realistically need to learn three or four of them, total. The principle of never entering the woods without multiple ways to start fires. Why getting into the habit of always having a few simple tools on you is much more practical than practicing skills you’re never going to use out of true necessity. Why learning the basic principles of things is often better than lots of details. I don’t depend on water filters, I’ll tell you the reason why and what I depend on, instead. We’ll talk about mezcal and John The Baptist.
 
Some of the gear shown throughout the video version of this show: The fantastic Black Diamond Mega Light Tent. Victorinox Swiss Army Knife Evolution Grip S17. Ektos 100% Wool Blanket 5lbs. Klymit Insulated V Ultralite sleeping pad. The Luxe Hiking Gear Hexpeak 2P Tipi Tent Shelter. The BCB British NATO Osprey 58-pattern water bottle and the NATO Crusader Cup. My Merrell Work Cham 8 Stretch Tactical shoes make an appearance. The kettle is the iBasingo or Boundless Voyage 1.4 L Titanium Kettle. 9TiEDC Flint Fire Starter with Whistle. My pocket pouch is by Hide & Drink from Amazon.
 
References are made to REI Co-op, Cabella’s, Cody Lundeen, and Survivorman Les Stroud, which is sure to put a hair in a lot of people’s biscuits, but that’s ok. Join our online community at thepracticalwoodsman.Locals.com, or by downloading the Locals.com app from the App Store and searching for The Practical Woodsman.
 
#eatingbugs #knots #emergencykit #blackdiamondmegalight #victorinoxswissarmyknife #osprey58pattern #merrellcham8stretchtactical #ibasingotitaniumkettle #boundlessvoyagetitaniumkettle #swissarmyevolutiongripS17 #ektoswoolblanket #crusadercup #klymitinsulatedultralite #klymitsleepingpad #natocrusadercup #hide&drink #hideanddrink #bcbbritishwaterbottle #blackdiamond #firestartershistle #reicoop #cabellas #luxehikinggear #hexpeaktipi #hexpeaktipishelter #lesstroud #survivorman #codylundeen #wilderness #bushcraft #survival #backpacking #ferroceriumrod #ferrorod #backcountry #woodsman #survivortips #bushcrafttips #wind #bowdrill #hiking #woods #backcountrycooking #firemaking #camp #shelter #gear #appalachia #appalachian #thepracticalwoodsman