Dispelling The Mythos: Hammocks

 So, this will be the first in what I'm going to call Dispelling The Mythos. At some point, yes, edged tools will be discussed again. But, there are some other myths out there that may be taken as fact, and while not all myths are false, a good many are only true from one perspective. It's the "Look at this I'm doing over here!" while I do that over there thing.

If you talk to most die hard hammock campers, the top reasons they give in defense are they are lighter, set up faster, and I don't need to have flat ground to set it up. Let's take an honest look at these three declarations closer.

A Hammock Is Lighter:

This may have been true ages ago when canvas was the popular material for tents. But in the last 20 years? Nope. Even if you don't use a bug net, a hammock with all the tie outs and a tarp large enough to cover it is going to weigh in at around 3-4 pounds. That's if you make your own tie out stakes. If you carry stakes add about another at least 1/4 pound. If you use a bug net, we're up to 5.5 pounds. Which is pretty light. But, there are a lot of tents out there that weight the same or less. Your basic two person pup tent weighs in at around 3.5 pounds, including the pols, tie outs, and stakes. If you want to shave the weight a little, leave the poles and stakes at home and make them from sticks at camp and you're under 2 pounds, and it's more packable. So for less weight, you get a tent that keeps bugs out, doesn't need a separate tarp to keep the rain off, and affords a little privacy is you want to change your clothes.

Or, if you have the money, there are ultra light tents that weight under 5 pounds for up to a 4 person tent.

I Don't Need Flat Ground:

No, but you do need two trees that are right space apart. You'd be amazed at how the woods don't always agree with us being out there, and don't grow to accommodate us puny humans. For example, at the base camp for the ABB, there's areas to set up more tarp shelters or tents than there are spots to set up a hammock. Between the trees not cooperating, underbrush and growth, it's just not as easy as one would imagine. Even on a hill. So in reality, you don't need a flat spot, but you need a clear spot with the right trees to support the weight and be far enough apart to accommodate the shelter.

I found it rather funny some time ago when a guy using a hammock set up on a fairly steep little bank, and in the morning his gear and boots had rolled down the little hill. 

They Set Up Faster:

I have personally never been able to set up a hammock with tarp faster than I can my tents. I am not great at it, but I have watched guys who camp with me who have been using hammocks for decades. I can set up my tent including setting up the inside with my cot, get a fire going, and be relaxing before they have their hammock shelter set up. The 2024 Fall trip, I had my tent completely set up, coolers and so on at the table, and was getting the canopy up before the two guys using hammocks were done.

Every shelter type has it's pros and cons. From a simple cowboy roll, to a tarp shelter, a tent, or a hammock. It's all personal preference! I just felt I wanted to clarify a few myths that come up often.

This is just my personal opinion on the subject.

Try Stick

 The following pictures are a couple of years old, they are from a challenge I was involved in at that time. This is pretty much a text book example of a try stick. It covers the main notches one may have to carve for use in bushcraft camping.

A Wire Saw & Some Pine Tea

 I wanted to show how those budget wire saws can do, and I figured I might as well make a hot beverage while I was out in the cold. Packed up a haversack and hit the trail They had plowed a couple of other areas so there's a nice change of scenery.

Below is the pitch pine needles. Notice the group of three.

Eastern white pine. 5 needle groups.

A couple of ways to know if pine needles are edible are by how soft they are. If they are somewhat soft and flexible it's usually safe. Also, if you rub them so the oils come out they should smell just a bit resinous with a hint of citrus. But again, I still suggest the book on foraging.

I want to mention that in the following video I accidentally call the pitch pine ponderosa pine a few times. 

No, Sir, I Am Not A Survivalist

 It's not secret I'm not a survivalists. At least, not in the sense of that term that most think of or practice to be. In all honesty, the word/phrase has started to bug me when I hear it attached to bushcraft. Which for the record, I'm not the biggest fan of that word/phrase either, but it does fit the skills I practice and use. Anyway, back to survivalism. This is what Wiki defines survivalism as:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Survivalism

Which is spot on to everyone I know who practices it defines it as. That, does not fit me or why I practice the skills of bushcraft.

If you look up bushcraft, Wiki has this to say:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bushcraft

I like that they add Woodcraft into the definition as that's what most of us are actually practicing.

As one can see, while they are similar, they are not the same thing. A survivalist needs to have some bushcraft skills, but a bushcrafter does not need to be a survivalist. Some might argue that being prepared for a natural disaster is both. But, that's incorrect. Bushcraft is practiced in the woods. It's about being able to go off into the woods and know how to build stuff. Not sit around your house counting rounds of ammo or dusting the bunker in your basement. Yes, many woods roamers should have the skills to get by should they get lost or maybe hurt, so they should be prepared for that type of situation. So in a slight way, you could say your learning survivalism. But, that's also sort of like saying you need art class to survive life after school.

So, the reality is, whether some want to admit it or not, bushcraft and survivalism are not the same thing.

But, as I mentioned, a bushcrafter is prepared to get by in the woods for a short time (or long term) while waiting for help. Perhaps a sort of little kit to aid in this? Hmm.... I am going to call this kit my emergency kit, not my survival it. So the question is asked a ton, what do I need in this kit? Well, the real answer is only you can answer that. That's not a stand by response, that's a fact. I have talked about this so much I sometimes feel like a smurf. A perfect example of what I mean is this: What you put in your kit to be prepared for a night or two lost in the Arizona desert in Winter won't come close to working here in NY in Winter. What someone in MI would need in Summer won't be the same as what someone in GA would need. So, you see, only you know your environment, and more important, your needs. An example of a need, is a knife. Are you proficient using a folding knife for hard tasks, or are you more skilled using a fixed blade knife? Are you able to make cordage from natural resources or would you be better off carrying it? Do you know what plants are edible? Only you know the answer to those three questions.

Are there some base universal items? You bet. Here's what your EMERGENCY KIT should contain at it's base.

●A first aid kit. If you live in venomous snake country a good snake bite kit should be part of that.

●A compass.

●A knife. I suggest a fixed blade. Everyone likes high carbon steels, but here's some food for thought: A stainless blade can be used in a pinch as a signal mirror. Coated blades or knives or high carbon knives with a lot of patina won't work. But, a shiny stainless blade will reflect light the same as a mirror. So, you can eliminate a mirror by carrying stainless.

●A fire kit with at least three ways to make fire. Carry what you know you can use.

●Cordage. At least 50 feet, and strong enough to lash a shelter frame or make a pack frame.

●Some sort of metal container. A single wall stainless bottle is a good option as it can be used in a fire to boil water and as a drinking vessel.

●Water Purification system. A straw, tablets, either or, or both.

●A light.

●A little pouch with some coffee, tea, and couple bouillons is a great idea.

This is a barebones list of items you should have. If you watched my video on the belt kit, that's a great starting point and you can add or remove items that you would need or not need.

If you watched the last video, on what was in the Advent Survival Calendar, I go through what was in that and discuss why some it if was useless and how to make parts of it sort of useable.

I covered a little more than my original topic here, but feel I'm passing along good information to the readers. Knowledge I have learned through trial and error. I also repeat a lot of this information, and too often it seems.

I also want to add, a ferro rod is not a fire steel! A fire steel is sued to smack a rock to create a small spark. A ferro rod is scraped with a sharp edge to throw molten metal into a tinder bundle.

So, you see?

No Sir, I am not a survivalist.