blog

Nightcap Trip

Sun, 19 Jun 2011 11:04:11 +0100

A few weeks back, I cued up a trip to Nightcap National Park, about an hour from home. I set up a simple shelter and tested out some gear... Nightcap was a great destination, and camping in the rainforest was a dream come true for a frustrated explorer. Read more in my main write up...

Axe Head

Sat, 18 Jun 2011 23:48:38 +0100

Found this the other day:

I'm going to restore it...give it a new handle and re-profile edge. Its actually a very sound head, it just needs some cleaning up. Its a hefty weight, nearly 2.8kgs. It'll make a very effective felling axe. Stay tuned for the end result...

GB

Knife: KA 105

Mon, 23 May 2011 08:13:25 +0100

This one is a gift for a friend.

See more pics here from the Knife Gallery...

GB

Time Lapse

Mon, 23 May 2011 06:32:48 +0100

Stumbled on this recently and was blown away. View it in HD mode if you can. Sit back for three minutes and fall into another world of images. (The video has restrictions on size when I embed it, check his website for a larger version)

The Mountain from TSO Photography on Vimeo.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rk6_hdRtJOE

This guy also has some simply stunning work on the Aurora Borealis. Follow his links above.

GB

BushcraftOz

Wed, 11 May 2011 09:32:39 +0100

You may remember a few posts back I flagged an up and coming forum for bushcraft, based right here in Australia... well its finally a reality and is in full swing! Its going to be a very important site I can tell, so get in to it, sign up and be a part of what will become a very large community of like-minded people. There's sections for bushtucker, edged tools, gear... there's something for everyone...

See the site here.

GB

Mora

Tue, 26 Apr 2011 01:24:52 +0100

For those in the know, Mora has a very distinct place in the world of bushcraft. Recommended, tested and used the world over, these simple and practical knives are a very useful tool and superb value for money to boot. I recently purchased the Mora Scout and is available in five different colours. Here's mine (in red):

Blade: 100mm
Handle: Plastic
Sheath: Plastic/Rubber

Mora of Sweden have long and rich heritage in the knife making business...too long to go into in detail, read about it all on their website here. Mora basically represents usability and value so you'll never go wrong. Loose one and buy a new one, they're that cheap, I got mine for $20.

I'll be using mine at work, so I wont spare a thought for caring for it in great detail...which is ideal. Plastic and stainless steel are virtually indestructible. It comes sharp from the box and ready for anything. Read a more in depth write up on the Mora Scout here on GrayBear.

If you don't own a knife, need a cheap outdoor knife or need a good value replacement for your everyday knife, grab one of these, you wont be disappointed.

GB

Stove

Sun, 19 Jun 2011 10:53:34 +0100

Lightweight, affordable, easy to use and well designed. Thats the sum of this great little stove I bought the other week, there's not much more to it than that...

Splash in a bit of meths to the centre of the stove and simply using a match or lighter, ignite the fuel. Give it a few seconds and the power of physics means the gases expand in the gape between the fuel holder and the outer wall and the pressurised vapours escape in a jet like form through the holes in the top... all very clever. It basically means you get a decent burn time of around 15mins; plenty of time to boil water or cook a meal.

As you can see it also came with a very neat pot stand that folds flat. Very handy. You'd want to buy or make a wind break if you were in a windy area or better still use it in a different stove set up...like a hobo stove. Theres a post to come on one of these...

So back to the start...lightweight, affordable and easy to use...and well designed. Thats the sum of this great little stove I bought the other week....

Stay safe...

GB

Discovery

Sun, 17 Apr 2011 06:33:14 +0100

We had slid and stumbled and fallen and scrambled and shuffled and grasped and scratched our way what seemed like all afternoon. We'd sniffed the cold air till our noses ran; there were twigs in our socks and scratches on our hands, but it was worth it. The steep bank we had just negotiated levelled just enough to reveal the treasure we had unwittingly stumbled upon. It might as well have been Shangri La itself, we didn't care it was probably listed on any map you buy in a supermarket, it was our discovery, our place. I was 14 and it was like I had parted the fur coats in the wardrobe and peered in to Narnia...

Dad and I had cut across the common on the hill at New Bridge on Dartmoor National Park, and found our way to the Dart river as it winds its way off the hills to the sea at Dartmouth in South Devon. The river had cut a gouge out of the granite and swung away to leave a deep pool and an opening gorge. It was late Autumn so no swimming for us, but we vowed to return and make the most of the clean and undoubtably cold water. And return we did. We went back probably every summer, and every time we were entirely alone with no passing ramblers or rangers... 'The Swimming Hole' as it was dutifully renamed was our piece of wilderness, wilderness we had discovered. If you're on Dartmoor anytime soon, try and find it. If not, find your own wilderness and rename it, make it yours, discover something.

GB

Old Trees

Thu, 07 Apr 2011 10:01:31 +0100

Saw these Antarctic Beech trees earlier today at Springbrook National Park. I had some work on the outskirts of the park and couldn't resist a quick look in....excuse the (not so) great quality of the pictures...was stuck only with a phone.

These Antarctic Beech (Nothofungas moorei) are ancient remnants of the long lost continent Gondwana. Preferring cooler climbs they are isolated to a very limited population in southern NSW and here in the Gold Coast Hinterland. They can grow up to 50m in height and be over a metre in diameter in the trunk. What is amazing is this this particular tree is estimated to be over 2000 years old. Thats an old tree.

Check them out for yourself and see some great views while you're there at "The Best Of All Lookout". I gave the lookout a go, but it was enveloped in cloud, so ironically it was by far the worst lookout of all for me today. Still, worth the visit.

GB

Fire #2

Sat, 02 Apr 2011 07:14:24 +0100

So here's another awesome tinder, this time a natural choice… Thistle grows wild in the fields and paddocks over here, and as it seeds it produces a fine cotton like fluff that is the bees knees for tinder. Here's a look at it in the field as it grows:

Once its picked, its best to loosen the fibres a bit before you try a spark. Of course a match makes light work of it, but with a good firesteel you get a great result anyway. You can read about firesteels here.

Check out this youtube video I put together showing just how flammable the tinder really is...

Play safe.