Bikepacking, the Australian canoe.

 This blog has been pretty dormant for a long time for a variety of reasons, work, family and so forth.    I've also been pursuing other interests such as bikepacking which is a great way to venture out into nature.  Bikepacking also requires a minimalist approach to camping, just bringing what you need and keeping it light.  You also need to be self-sufficient as the bike allows you to really get out into the heart of the wilderness.   Knowing some bushcraft skills is also obviously beneficial as well as is some basic mechanic skills to keep you rolling.

I found that my bushcraft kit for hiking and motorcycle trips also works well for bikepacking.  For a sleeping system I use a tarp and a Mesh Hood Sleeping Cover bag both purchased from Terra Rosa gear.  There are some posts from many years ago that highlight the Terra Rosa tarp, and yes it's still going strong.   It does suggest that if you buy quality equipment you save in the long run as you benefit from a thoughtful design based on real world use, superior materials, and attention to detail in the construction.   Anyway, I'll show the set up another day.

I guess COVID has also made 2021 an interesting year.  I, like many people have had to work from home.  I was fortunate as this was an option for me.  The silver lining is that without my daily commute I have a few extra hours each day to explore my local surroundings which includes remnant forest.  I have discovered some amazing ecosystems, which goes to show the resilience of nature: I live in an urban environment.

Being confined at home during the initial lockdown, sent me adventuring on the internet where I lived vicariously through the lens of other people's experiences.  Paul Kirtley, the UK Bushcraft guru had some excellent content on Youtube, I highly recommend his channel.  Yes, the focus is the Northern hemisphere and his love is the boreal forest however; there's still a lot of pertinent information to be found.  I must say I'd love to venture into Northern Europe to experience the wilderness. along with the northern lights.

What I found absolutely engrossing was Paul's recent canoe trip along the Berens River in Canada.  

Over 4 hours of content documenting Kirtley's solo trip.  It reminded me of my desire to explore the world of wilderness canoeing in Australia.  I came close to buying a We no nah prospector canoe a few years ago.  I wish I had as the price has doubled since I last looked.   I can definitely see a canoe in my future.

For the time being, I think I'll continue to explore the world of bike-packing and its intersection with bushcraft.  Australia's obviously a pretty dry place and whilst we do have some great rivers, it's not exactly on par with Minnesota or Canada.  I dare say Tasmania could be?  So bike packing in my mind probably provides the closest thing to solo wilderness canoeing adventure.  It's a near silent form of travel, your progress is determined by your own effort,and there are sections where a bike portage is required (carry your bike up, over and around unrideable sections).  Australia is also blessed with some fantastic wilderness to explore by bicycle such as the NSW and Victorian high country, the Tasmania trail, Mawson trail in South Australia, Laprinta region of the Northern Territory and the Munda trail in Western Australia.  

Sunscreen

 As you would have deduced from my last post, I upgraded my day pack.  As I was moving my essential day hiking equipment across to the pack I thought I should go through my first aid kit.  It was a good thing that I did as my emergency supply of pain killers was out of date, some of the bandages were worst for wear, the safety pins were rusted and the suncreen tube was empty.  

So I went to the chemist to buy some replacements. I noticed a  dedicated snake bite bandage for pressure immobilisation which has an indicator to show the correct tension required.  I ended up buying the bandage as I thought it could be used for a variety of emergency situations.  I've been fortunate over my life, I've stepped on a snake on two occasions and avoided being bitten.  Both times the snake (copperhead) appeared as shocked as I was and we darted off in different directions.  I should point out that the incidents occurred whilst working on a farm, moving livestock to another paddock.  I always hate that feeling after sighting a snake, it makes me so hyper-alert for the rest of the day (not necessarily a bad thing).  Perhaps New Zealands absence of snakes is why I like hiking there so much?

Here's an interesting statistic, the actual number of people who die each year from snakebite is pretty low, according to wikipedia around 28 deaths in Australia over the last decade.  In 2019, there were 1415 deaths as a result of Melanoma, so I'd say carrying a tube of sunscreen is perhaps more of an essential item than a snake bandage.  A broadbrim hat and longsleeved shirt are also high on my list for summer outings as is plenty of water and a water filter.

Sunrise

 Nothing like greeting the sun, in the Australian bush.  

Fjallraven Kaipac 28

Maiden voyage of a new backpack, Fjallraven Kaipac 28.  Bought this on sale from Tom's Outdoors online store. I believe they are based in Tumut, which is a beautiful part of the world. My dad used to love this area so we would often pass through Tumut on holidays but also to buy cattle for our farm. 

Anyway, this is the first time I've purchased any Fjallraven gear, it's expensive, but I must say the quality is top-notch.  I stuffed the pack full to the gills with camera gear, stove, water, windproof jacket, poncho, folding saw/knife combo and first aid kit; around 5-6 kg.  All the weight was on the shoulder straps, it does have a hip belt but I didn't use it.  I'd say the most comfortable day pack that I own.  The g1000 material looks like it will be sturdy, I guess time will tell.  A very simple but well thought out design. A nice review here by the Outdoor Gear Review channel  

ML Trail Fighter No 44

I like the old school historical frontier-style designs made by ML knives.  This is a custom knife and truth be told I'm not sure how much I'll use this one.  It was the collector in me that was drawn to this, too heavy for the backpack and bigger than what I need.

Autine Large Forest Axe

Alas I have been missing in action from the blog for a while, 2015 was a crap year for a variety of reasons, the passing of a good mate being one of them and an overload on work the other.  But on a more positive note (apart from the postal stuff up) my Autine Large Forest Axe arrived.  I had an extended wait courtesy of Australia Post returning the package to Latvia without notifying me that it had arrived at the local post office.  When I complained that I received no notification they kept repeating that the system said I was notified, the complaints officer accepted that this hadn't actually happened but regardless they wouldn't pay for the extra postage costs.  The package was sent back to Latvia by ship, 3 months at sea before it arrived back at Autine.    They then forwarded it to me for the second time and it finally arrived.  Must say Autine were really helpful during the ordeal.  Thanks Karline!

Believe it or not I had a similar experience with Australia Post a few years ago with a Frost River back pack from the US.  Australia Post unlike Autine are terrible to deal with.  Rant over...

The axe is simply beautifully crafted.  Everything about this axe is crafted by hand, from the forged head, carved handle and the leather axe head cover.   Talk about sharp, you could shave a wooly mammoth with ease, let alone the hairs off your arm.  It's one axe where poor axe handling could see you with a flesh wound similar to the one in Monty Pythons the Holy Grail.  It's an interesting head design, more European than anything you would typically see in Australia or America.  They make an American pattern forest axe, but the exotic shape of this model caught my eye. 

Check this video on the build process:

I haven't had an opportunity to use it alas, but if it's anything like my Autine hatchet it should be tough as nails.  I'll come back to this post with further feedback down the track.  In the interim enjoy the pics.

Helle Knives

Nice video looking at the production of Helle knives.  A lot of hands on work which surprised me, cool location too.  I've owned a Helle knife for a number of years and they certainly are a well built robust tool. After watching the video I have a new found respect for the company.

MP Knives Drifter

If you have read through the posts on this site you will note that I'm a bit of a bushcraft knife collector.  A knife is a practical tool for anyone that spends time in the bush.  You can use it for fire prep, carving, food prep and general cutting tasks.  Truth be told a $20 Mora will do all of the above (some tasks better than others) and for carving in particular they are hard to beat. However, if you want to spend more money there are some truly amazing bushcraft knives available.

Over the years I became aware of the world of quality cutlery, from production blades from the likes of Spyderco and Fallkniven through to the world of custom blades.  A custom is basically crafted by hand, some use stock removal methods on a blank of steel others use blacksmithing techniques, i.e. a forge a lump of hot steel and a big hammer.

Unwittingly I have ended up a collector.  I love the artistry and craftmanship of customs and I like supporting those people who make a living from knife making.

Whilst I like collecting bushcraft knives, I will only buy a blade that is a functional tool.

On my voyage of discovery I have encountered many a fine knife maker.  This week I took delivery of one of the most exquisite blades I have ever laid my eyes on.  The maker is Matthew M Paul a bladesmith from New York State in  the US.  I asked Matt if he would make me a variant of his Drifter model only a little smaller (based on an older model of his called a woodsman).  Matt used 300 year old Oak sink wood (timber that had sunk to the bottom of the river many centuries ago).  He combined the oak with a carbon liner & a white liner.  The quality of the build is of the highest standard that I have encountered thus far. It has a convex grind that was sharp enough to shave with and the balance of the knife in the hand is perfect.

On the weekend I had the opportunity to use the knife for basic fire prep tasks and it preformed beyond expectation.  It's a hefty guage steel around 5mm, but combined with the convex grind proved to be an all rounder from battoning through to slicing up food for lunch.

Another thing, Matt is such a nice bloke to deal with.  Integrity with a capital I sums up the man.

If you ever contemplate a custom I highly recommend MP Knives Matt also has a vendor forum on the BushcraftUSA site.

I'll post updates as I get more opportunities to give the Drifter/woodsman a workout.

Sheath made by BadgerClaw

Update: more use time with the MP

Really enjoying this knife.  The handle has a perfect contour for my hand and  after processing a lot of wood there was no discomfort.   On this trip into the bush it was raining heavily so in order to start a fire I had to find dry wood.  The only option was to obtain the inner dry wood core of fallen branches. The thick blade excelled at batoning through the wood to create dry kindling. The convex edge also retains a keen edge.  In thinking about this knife and its practicalities the one thing that comes to mind is durability.  I can see myself using this for many years with confidence that it will not let me down.  In other words, I like it, it lives up to and even exceeds my expectations and therefore I'll use it, and in the end isn't that what we hope from the equipment we buy?

Quick weekend escape

Ahh life can get pretty hectic at times.  A mate called a few days back to see if I was keen for a motorcycle trip with some camping thrown in and to be honest I didn't really have to give it much thought before replying in the affirmative.

He was keen to ride the iconic Putty road and I wanted to go to a place called Dunn's Swamp in the Wollemi National Park near Ryalstone.  Years back a local at Mudgee had mentioned Dunn's Swamp, said terrible name but beautiful spot, now was my opportunity to visit it.

Had a question about the Tarp and Bug net.  Tarp is from TerraRosaGear, hand made in Australia and brilliant quality.   Bug net is an Integral Designs Silshelter Bug Liner purchased from Kellys Basecamp 

Amazing place highly recommend a visit.

Feathersticks

Headed off bush for a few hours today.  Practiced creating some feather sticks, certainly an art to it particularly with Australian hardwoods.  So why is this a good skill to have, well a feather stick is a handy way to start a fire, especially if the wood is wet.  By removing the bark you expose the inner core which will generally be a lot drier than the out side layers.  The aim of a feather stick is to get the shavings to roll and to do this you need to shave super thin slices.  The thin curls provide the best surface area to weight ratio and by extension have the best chance of catching fire when compared to thicker shavings.

The secret to success is having a sharp knife (I find scandi grinds the most suited to this task) and a steady hand.  Another important consideration when practicing feathersticks is safety.  Use a knife technique that should you slip the knife will move away from the body.  I take a seated position, or kneel, place the spine of the knife in the fleshy section under the kneecap and pull the stick back towards me.  This offers great control and eliminates the risk of hurting yourself.  It's a great skill to practice and will certainly come in handy particularly when its wet.

Autine Axes

Just taken delivery of an Autine camping hatchet.  This axe was hand forged and this video shows you the steps involved.  A review of the hatchet to follow soon....still haven't had an opportunity to use it.


How to forge an axe: Step by step. AUTINE and bladesmith John Neeman from Autine by John Neeman on Vimeo.


The below photographs were taken by Autine prior to dispatch.  Very impressed by their customer service as well as their craftmanship.  Looking forward to trying out the hatchet next weekend.

I had the opportunity to use the Autine today and here is my initial impression.  First off, it's shipped with a keen edge, which was still nice and sharp at the end of the day, as you would expect.  It's not the lightest hatchet however the extra weight helps make it a great chopper.  The axe head is more wedge shaped when compared with a comparable Gransfor Bruks and as a result it's works well splitting wood.  As I indicated earlier the handle is rather substantial in thickness terms.  I must confess that I had reservations about this however after using it I'm now a convert.  The handles long enough that you can use both hands and combined with the thickness of the handle it affords superb control to the woodsman.  You can also choke up on the head for finer work such as creating shavings.  

My 8 year old son joined me today for a little bushcraft tuition.  A while back I bought him a custom ML Kephart mini which he only gets to use on such trips.  Showed him a few techniques to safely use the Kephart. Reward at the end of the day was toasted marshmallows.  We sat around the fire an hour past sunset.  It was a great day.

More impressions to follow.

More from Mors.......Axe lore

Never tire of listening to Mors Kochanski, renowned woodsman.

   

Terra Rosa Canvas Tarp

My new tarp arrived last week, it's a Terra Rossa Gear Bushcrafting 3x2 m (8oz) canvas, featuring webbing D-ring and leather reinforcement.  It's hand made in Melbourne and it exudes quality craftsmanship.  I haven't had an opportunity to use it, other than to set-it up on the weekend.  I'll report back over the coming months after I take it on a few adventures.