Tipi Living - The Old Cook Stove

 In the 1800's, people moved into the Algonquin region hoping to find employment at lumber camps. These homesteaders cleared land and attempted to grow crops in the shallow soil. Their homesteads were built on stone foundations; the beams and wood of the home were cut from the surrounding forest. 

Heating the home was done with wood and their cookstove was the heart of the kitchen. 

There is an old foundation which fascinates me on a quiet piece of land close to where I live. I look at the flat rock, piled, row upon row, to form walls and I wonder at the perseverance of the people who built it. This foundation formed the basement of what was once a homestead. 

A water well, hand dug and lined with round boulders, sits just to the west of what was once the front door of the home. The ground is still, to this day, cupped from the passage of humans who once dragged cool water from the well and carried it in a bucket to the kitchen.  

I was digging around in the detritus in the basement and discovered the old cookstove. It had fallen through the now non-existent floor of the home and lay buried by leaves and dirt. I decided to make use of the old relic and dragged it home.

The stove was in bad shape; however, I was able to convert it to a serviceable firebox for my tipi. 

I had no idea that this old stove, which had serviced a family long ago, would prove itself to be still useful one hundred years later. 

As I sit on my bunk and watch the flames within the old stove, I wonder who the person was that used it to cook their family's meal. I wonder if they are watching me as I use the stove to simply live, out here. 

 

A Simple Bench for any Camp.

 I can't help feeling that the world, society, is in a free fall. Everyone is trying to escape to something other than their present situation. In my opinion, the pandemic has increased peoples anxiety to the point where narcissism has reared it's ugly head. 

I have found that using your hands during times of frustration and anxiety can work magic on your overtaxed nervous system. The simple act of creating something, fulfills an ancient need buried deep within our beings. 

My tipi required a simple table which I can use for many camp projects and simple tipi living. 

For the table top, I used a piece of balsam fir which was ravaged by Pine Sawyer bugs (I show one of the larva in this video) and some sticks which were left behind after a beaver had a meal.

Sisal twine bound the lot together and provided me with a sturdy bench which will serve my needs and when rot begins to call the wood to the earth, I will simply use it for firewood.  

In the process of building this bench, I left my anxieties. I soaked in the sounds of the woods and disappeared into the mists of the wilderness where my mind could wander; free of the bindings which society had placed on it. 

If you feel anxious - just get busy. 

That way, you will be

simply living, Out here. 

  

Footprints

 When wandering, I'm always on the lookout for trail cameras. They are generally camouflaged and are tricky to find. Some individuals hang them about eight feet off the ground and point them on a forty five degree angle toward the trail. These are almost impossible to spot. 

Why do I look for these devices? It alerts me to the presence of potential hunting activities which in turn scares the wits out me if I am not in blaze orange. 

No, I'm not trespassing. I have found these cameras in Algonquin and surrounding Crown lands.

Private land owners are now resorting to using these cameras to inform them when a trespass occurs. I have talked to several land owners and the general consensus among them is that people are abusing the land. The destruction of living trees for Youtube shelters, tarps and garbage left to pollute once pristine woods and dangerous fire pits are high on the list of complaints. 

An elder, a long time ago, told me to "just leave footprints", it is a memory I carry with me into the woods every time I wander.

I just wanted to pass along this simple wisdom from a man who taught me how to "see" the forest. 

Happy Wandering. 

 

 

 

How to make a hiking pole

 A hiking pole is a versatile tool that can quickly become indispensable. 

Camping and hiking through the wilderness has challenges that must be experienced to be fully realized. 

A hiking pole can be used for a multitude of tasks. A few example are; hanging your jacket, pole vaulting over creeks, a cooking pot hanger, a shelter support, for pushing a canoe through a shallow marsh or river and as a crude fishing pole. Heck, you can even use it as a monopod for a camera. 

They are simple to make and fun to use.  

Please do not cut live trees to make your hiking pole.

The one in this video was dead stand. 

Always test the pole prior to working on it. Make sure it can bear your weight. It would be relatively embarrassing if you pole vaulted across a creek only to end up swimming.  

Have fun and keep on hiking!