Gear Review: Jansport Big Bear 82 (2008 model)

This is the first internal frame pack I have owned, and was purchased based on brand familiarity and price (around $60) 7 months ago. Since purchase this pack has seen rolling, wooded hills, flat open prairie, bright sunny trails and a 6 hr steady rain and has done, in my opinion, a stellar job. I would recommend this pack to anyone; in fact after its first trip (a 20 mile round trip weekend) I purchased the Big Bear 63 for my wife. I believe this pack exceeded the manufactures claims

Specs: (from manufactures description)
82 L (5000 cu in)
33h x 15w x 12d
6000 denier polyester
3.14 lbs
Fit’s 18” to 20” torso’s
Ergonomic S-curve shoulder straps
Wide hip belt
Dual side water bottle pockets
Top loading with compression hood
Large front panel sleeve
Mesh wet / dry pocket
5 daisy chain clip points
Ice axe loop
Side compression straps

Pros:Comfort, price, large capacity.

Cons:Top load only, the shoulder strap adjusters slipped when wet.

As a scout leader and moderate backpacker I have always used an external frame pack (the most recent a 4500 cu in pack made by Coleman) due to the ease of packing and the ability to lash on whatever I have needed or felt like carrying, but recently had decided to give an internal frame pack a try. I like the stability and fit of the pack the most (even with loads around 30-35 pounds) compared to the way an external shifts when climbing over logs or ducking below a branch, and feel it is a good trade off for the loss of lashing points (I just started carrying a folding saw instead of a hatchet…lol). I am not sure if I like the top being the only access to your gear and feel a little more care in how you organize your pack is needed to accommodate this. If I had to knock this pack for something I would have to say it was the way the shoulder straps would loosen up after they got wet.

Char Cloth: The Best Primary Tinder

Char cloth (Charred Cloth) or sometimes called Charpaper, is a swath of 100% cotton fabric (linen and jute can also be used) that has been converted through pyrolysis (chemically decomposed by heating or combustion in the absence of oxygen) into a slow burning fuel that will catch and hold a spark creating an ember for ignition of a larger tinder bundle (dry grass, leaves, etc.).

Now that we know what char cloth is, lets talk about what it’s for, how it’s made, and how we can use it. Simply put, char cloth is probably the cheapest and best form of do-it-yourself fire starter ever made. It can be manufactured at home outside on a grill, on camp stove, or on a trailside campfire in your favorite cook pot. When it is finished all you need is a Flint & Steel or Ferro rod to create a spark for ignition and a tinder bundle and you’re in business.

Regardless of how you throw a spark onto it, it is superior to other tinder in that it catches the least of sparks and is not only unhampered by wind, but aided by it. Historically it was the “tinder” in tinder boxes of soldiers, hunters, trappers, and frontiersmen that forged this great nation. By now your probably asking, “So if it’s that great how could it be the cheapest and best tinder for the do-it-yourselfer?” Easy.

What you need:

1. A small candy or Altoids tin with a snug fitting lid.
2. Several pieces of 100% cotton material, such as an old t-shirt or denim cut to fit in the tin.
3. A small nail or punch.
4. A heat source, I use my isopro (isobutane / propane) backpacking stove.
5. About 10-15 minutes to devote to it.
6. And a storage container for the finished product.

How to make it:

1. Using the nail or punch place a small hole in the center of the lid to allow the smoke to escape during the charring process.
2. Place the pieces of material into the tin making sure the lid is closed tightly.
3. Place the tin onto the heat source (this step should be done outside due to the amount of smoke produced during pyrolysis).
4. Wait until the smoke has completely stopped (about 10 minutes), then remove the tin and let it cool.
5. Remove your char cloth and store it in an airtight container (such as a 35mm film canister) until needed.

It is important to note that the finished char cloth should be completely black and have a fragile charcoal quality to it. If not it needs to be left on the heat longer. Another popular form is referred to as char cord and is made from 100% cotton cordage using the same process as above. The advantage of using cord is it tends to be denser than the cloth but also can be more fragile to handle. It is a good choice for use in a Fire Piston.

The following link is provided to show how char cloth is made….Enjoy.

Hiking the Jordan River Pathway in Michigan

In September I had the opportunity to take a friend of mine and his son on their first backpacking trip. Wanting it to be as much of an adventure for me as it was for them, I decided to choose a trail I had been looking at for a while but had not had the chance to do until now. So at 7:00am Friday morning we hit the road heading for Northern / Lower Michigan and the Jordan River Pathway. It was a good drive overall, taking about 2 ½ to 3 hours including a couple of rest stops due to substantial coffee intake. The weather was also on the good side, temperatures in the mid 60’s and nice clear skies, at least for the first half of the trip.

Being a trip of “firsts”, I loaned Tom my loved & trusty external pack and took the new internal pack I had purchased for its first trip as well. Our adventure actually started in the parking lot at the trail head which is also the parking lot for Dead Mans Overlook. A wild Snowshoe Hare was checking us out and thought us interesting enough to come within a foot of me and smell my hand before he wandered back into the woods. So it was, at 11:30am, we headed off down the trail, me still adjusting the multitude of straps on that new internal frame pack. We got an early enough start to enjoy the 5 hours it was going to take to get to our campsite without worrying about how many rest stops we took along the way to look at the scenery or talk to other hikers.

The first day of the trip went surprisingly well for having 2 newbie’s with me. The trail itself was moderate for about the first mile or so then flattened out for about the next 4 miles. During which time we passed from dense, old growth hardwoods, to open pastures, over marshy wetlands with foliage more than 8 feet tall crowding the trail, to bridges spanning small crystal clear lakes and streams, and on into cedar swamps that had logs placed sidewalk like across the trail to keep you out of the deep mud. Then we walked back into the old growth forest and hills for the last 3 miles for the day, with the Jordan River always at our left slowly churning along its way. The last few miles of trail had multiple elevation changes making it the most difficult part of the trail to the campground. Also the quietest, after walking up and down so many hills we were breathing too heavy for idle chit chat. It was about 4:30pm when we arrived at the Penney Bridge State Forest Campground, the only place you are allowed to camp along the trail.

The campground itself was really pretty nice with 15 rustic campsites with fire rings, picnic tables, very clean pit toilets, potable water from a hand pump, and a moderate $5 per person, per night use charge. I wish all the campsites I have stayed at over the years could have been this nice. After we set up camp we took a little time to explore the area around the campground, the river, and the woods to gather some fire wood and wish we had remembered our fishing poles to catch some of the beautiful trout that were swimming back and forth in the sparkling clear river. After dinner we started a fire and spent several hours checking out the abundant amount of stars that could be seen, and then turned in for an uneventful nights sleep.

Day 2 started with a quiet breakfast during what turned out to be the warmest time of the day (50°F) before we broke camp and readied ourselves for the trail back to Deadmans Scenic Overlook. It was about 8:30am when we finally hit the 2^nd half of the trail and immediately we wished we were back on the trail we had followed in. The trail started about ¼ of a mile from the campground with about a 280 foot (estimated) ascent straight up the side of a hill accompanied by a massive sinus headache on my part. But par to the course, about an hour into the hike my headache had subsided and the rain started, making an already difficult trail a little harder. The one bright point to this day was that we traversed the hardest portion of trail in the first hour and half of the hike, putting us back on a moderate trail when the rain started pouring down. Only having about 5 ½ hours to walk in the rain we decided to push on with very few stops along the way. We arrived at Deadman’s Hill Scenic Overlook about 2:30pm and despite the rain took a break for a few minutes to enjoy the spectacular view of the Jordan River Valley that was stretched out before us. Then it was on to the truck and our drive back. About 12 miles from the trail heads parking area, on M-32 is the town of Gaylord which has several restaurants, coffee shops, and hotels to visit after a couple days on the trail and it also has the closest access to I-75. In retrospect I would have to say the trip was a stunning success! We had a good time, the scenery was absolutely beautiful, the trail gave just the right amount heart pounding climbs for a seasoned hiker to enjoy and a newbie to cut their teeth on, and both father and son want to go again next summer. Two more converts to the world of backpacking! I would like to hike this trail again if for no other reason than to see the second half of the trail without the rain… and to have a chance at some of those trout we saw.

Fall - My Favorite Time of Year

I would have to say that the fall is my favorite time of year. It starts with summer like temperatures and green leaves, changes to cooler temperatures and blazing oranges, fiery yellows, and brilliant reds, then ends with cold winds and stark, skeletal trees, and a blanket of brown leaves on the ground. Not to mention today could be a sunny 70°, tonight it could drop into the 20’s, then snow or rain and 40° tomorrow. By far it creates the most dramatic change in the world around us, at least in the Northern states.

If you are a deer hunter, as I am, this time of year has an even bigger hold on you than most. You start the season out hitting the trails and backcountry in search of the elusive Whitetail’s habitats, making fake scrapes and rubs to draw in that monster 14 point buck everyone swears to have seen in your area, setting up stands to give you optimum use of the ever changing winds, and turning your practice target into something resembling a pin cushion. The middle of the season is spent in a tree stand or still hunting along that heavily traveled draw, either way you, the hunter, have the opportunity to see every bit of the color phase the trees will be going through. Then you close the season out by sitting in a deer blind watching the quiet snow flakes slowly drift down to the ground to mark the beginning of winter and all the activities that go along with it.

Like I said before, it is my favorite time to be alive. In fact I enjoy the season so much I named my daughter Autumn! It was truly a coincidence that she was born on the first day of the archery deer season, though I like to tell my wife that she, Autumn, did not want dad to have to miss any of the prime hunting that occurs further in the month. No matter what the reason, hunting, hiking, camping, fishing, sports, or just having a fire in the backyard to roast marshmallows and drink warm cider or hot cocoa, fall is a great time to get outside and live!

Thank You to all those that are or have been in the Armed Services!

On Veterans Day we recognize the sacrifice made by so many of our young men, and women, to guarantee our freedom and way of life, but why should we have to set aside one day a year to recognize them? Why not recognize them everyday? It takes a special kind of person to willingly offer their life to protect thousands of people that they will never even meet, to possibly leave their children fatherless or motherless so that your children, and mine, can grow up safely with us in our home, or to leave their spouse widowed so that we can grow old with ours. Allot of them are young, never having the chance to really experience life before they are handed a gun and sent into a dark building not knowing if they will come back out. Can you really imagine the stress, adrenalin, and fear that are running through their young minds at those times? Many of us can! Many of us have been in those dark buildings, hot deserts, or dense jungles. Looking into the face of their own mortality and wondering if they will ever see the ones they love again but trying not to think of it. Trusting in the guy to your right to cover your back, or get you to safety if you get wounded.

I for one am grateful everyday for those men and women, those kids that have stood up as a wall to block us from the dangers that threaten to destroy us. In them lay our hope for a safe and familiar future. May God keep and protect them always!

For many years Psalm 91 has been considered the Soldiers Psalm or Soldiers Prayer because it gives hope and strength to soldiers in the uncertain times of their service, such as the last few hours before they get deployed to a hostile area or the moment before going into battle. It is a Psalm of trust and is in three main sections.

1.      A confession of confidence in the Lord.

2.       Assurance that those who trust in the Lord need not fear evil.

3.       Promises of Gods protection

Psalm 91

 ¹ Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High
   will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
² I will say of the LORD, “He is my refuge and my fortress,
   my God, in whom I trust.”

 ³ Surely he will save you
   from the fowler’s snare
   and from the deadly pestilence.
⁴ He will cover you with his feathers,
   and under his wings you will find refuge;
   his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.
⁵ You will not fear the terror of night,
   nor the arrow that flies by day,
⁶ nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness,
   nor the plague that destroys at midday.
⁷ A thousand may fall at your side,
   ten thousand at your right hand,
   but it will not come near you.
⁸ You will only observe with your eyes
   and see the punishment of the wicked.
 ⁹ If you say, “The LORD is my refuge,”
   and you make the Most High your dwelling,
¹⁰ no harm will overtake you,
   no disaster will come near your tent.
¹¹ For he will command his angels concerning you
   to guard you in all your ways.

Don’t wait for November 11^Th to thank a Veteran! Thank one everyday for the service they gave or are still giving to our country and its people, and PLEASE remember, many soldiers carry more than physical scars home from the war they were in. Say a prayer for them and their families!

Picture is from: “Solemn ceremony honors war dead” by Courtney Kube, NBC News’

Alone in the Woods

"I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived. I did not wish to live what was not life, living is so dear; nor did I wish to practice resignation, unless it was quite necessary, I wanted to live deep and suck out all the marrow of life, to live so sturdily and Spartan-like as to put to rout all that was not life, to cut a broad swath and shave close, to drive life into a corner, and reduce it to its lowest terms, and, if it proved to be mean, why then to get the whole and genuine meanness of it, and publish its meanness to the world; or if it were sublime, to know it by experience, and be able to give a true account of it in my next excursion.’"       

 -Henry David Thoreau

When written, Henry David Thoreau was describing his own experience living a Spartan life in the woods, for 2 years and 2 months, in a 10’ x 15’, one room house he built himself on a piece of land he borrowed from Ralph Waldo Emerson. In exchange for the use of the land he worked on Emerson’s 14 acres clearing brush, re-planting trees (the result of a 300 acre fire caused by Thoreau and friend Edward Hoar), and building gardens, working an average of one day per week or about seven weeks out of the year. Thoreau used mostly reclaimed and second hand materials that he augmented with natural materials found on the property and at the waters edge giving him a total construction cost of about $28 - $29 dollars. By adjusting for inflation the same structure by today’s standards would cost $1500 to $3000, still cheap by anyone’s standard.

Even in the 1840’s when Thoreau was living in solitude at Walden Pond it was not the sort of endeavor that could be undertaken by a person of average means. Thoreau, a graduate of Harvard, worked most of his adult life in his fathers business, in addition to running his own school for several years which put him in a position, financially, to take a couple years off from everyday life and devote himself to his “experiment in solitude”. I am not saying that he was financially supported by his family, but he was always assured of a place to stay, at his family home, and a source of income, through the family business, that he could return to at any time he chose which allowed him to pursue his dreams with a serenity derived from the certainty of his preservation.

So what about the American dream of self reliance for the average person today? That pioneering spirit that made our country great, that “go west young man” attitude! Is it gone for ever, or can it still be achieved by anyone with enough strength of character and fortitude to give it a try? I think it can. In fact I believe that right now, here in America, bad economy and all, that we are in a perfect place to achieve the “simplicity” that Thoreau sought during his time in Walden Woods through the emergence of alternative energy sources, some of the new “green building” practices that have been implemented over the last few years, good old hard work, and by cutting out the things that we can really live without.

From what I can tell, Thoreau believed that happiness and peace of mind came when all of the “material” distractions were removed and you were left with only the basics. He proved it by living as simply as he could, a fireplace to heat his dwelling and to cook on, a bed and dresser, a table and chair, and a writing desk. It left him free to concentrate on what was important to him, his writing. Though we may not all be writers or deep thinkers, like Thoreau, I believe we can learn something from his experiment that would relieve some of the stresses in life that we face today and give us some of that “simplistic” peace of mind Thoreau was after. Namely, simplify your life!

Do we have to leave everything behind and live in a single room cabin in the woods to do it? No, but it may be fun for a while or as a weekend retreat! I am talking more about the way we look at life in general. Do we have to have a second (or third) car to get around town? How about the newest smart phone or laptop computer? Do they really add that much to your overall well being, or do they make it impossible for you to be disconnected enough to even collect your thoughts? Have we as a people become afraid to spend time alone with nothing but our thoughts to keep us company? Though it is sad to say, we have and the results to our economy and our quality of life as a nation have suffered drastically for it. In the last 20-25 years we have switched from being a nation of manufacturers and innovators to a nation of consumers which has in that short period of time collapsed our economic base and destroyed our children’s work ethic. Through our own greed to get the next raise that “we deserve”, or our lust to have the “latest & greatest” thing on the market we have forced our manufacturing to go to other countries where they can actually afford to produce the products that we want. The problem is, now that we have forced our jobs out of the way, how are we going to pay for what we want or even provide for our basic needs? It has caused us as a nation to stop and take a good look at itself, but in doing so we have to be willing to take the steps necessary to stop our downward plunge and start climbing back to the surface.

That simplifying we were talking about is, I believe, the place to start. For example, when your cell phone contract allows you to “upgrade” to the newest phone (for a small fee added to you bill), take a look at the phone you have. Does it work? Is it in decent shape? It may not have all the latest gadgets but you will save a little by keeping it a while longer. What about your internet connection, with the exception of a few government agencies and financial firms, do we really have to have the fastest connection for $60-$70 a month when we can settle for a mid range connection like DSL for around $30 a month. One of my favorites is the TV, time and time again I have heard someone say “100 channels and still nothing is on”, why spend that much money for cable or satellite when you can get broadcast television for free. Granted, you have a wider range of choices when you want to watch something, but if enough people stopped subscribing to those services how long do you think it would take before Broadcast Television started airing more of the sporting events, and movies people were asking for? They use too! Better yet, how about turning the electronic devises off altogether a few times a week and going outside. You would save money on your electrical bill, get some of the exercise that we all can use more of, and… dare I say it….. have a chance to collect your thoughts! You may even have time to think up the next “Latest & Greatest” thing to hit the market!

To some it up, I will go back to Thoreau and what he thought about his time alone with his thoughts:

"I learned this, at least, by my experiment: that if one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live the life which he has imagined, he will meet with a success unexpected in common hours....

If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost; that is where they should be. Now put the foundations under them."

                                                                            -Henry David Thoreau

(The above picture, Circa 1908, is the site of Thoreau’s cabin in Walden Woods)

The Ripple Effect of Hunting

Michigan was made for outdoor sports. Really, it is surrounded by the largest Fresh Water Sea’s in the world, thousands of miles of sandy beaches, old growth forests, more pine than anyone could ask for, hundreds of miles of snowmobile and ATV trails, thousands of acres of public hunting land, some of the most scenic hiking trails around, miles and miles of streams and rivers to fish, not to mention that you can go from flat agricultural land to rolling hills in just a few hours drive. What more could a sportsman need? Like everything else these day’s….. A better economy!

Studies have shown that hunting alone creates more than 700,000 jobs and supports 704,600 million jobs nation wide (or about 1% of the total civilian labor force), and annual spending by America’s 14 million hunters is around 22.1 billion. To put it another way, if American hunting was a corporation it would have ranked 35^th on the Fortune 500 list of Americas largest businesses in 1996, with the amount of hunters increasing every year since.

While pursuing their sport, hunters require goods and services that not only boost local economies but regional and national economies as well. Think about it. Hunters need a place to stay, camping gear, firearms, supplies, guide services, game processors, taxidermists, licenses, gasoline, the list goes on and on. Along with those purchases at the local level, it increases State coffers in the form of taxes, license fees, and ATV tags. In fact it adds about 1.4 billion dollars (Nationally) to state tax revenues on an annual basis.  

Each dollar spent by a hunter increases another person’s income enabling them to spend more, which increases someone else’s income, which allows them to spend more, increasing someone else’s income…. I think you get the picture. It’s like a small ripple on a pond; it gets wider and wider until it reaches all sides of the shore, or all areas of our economy. Compound that with other outdoor sports like fishing, camping, hiking, skiing, off-roading, shooting, and the rest and it’s easy to see how much something as simple as an activity can effect the country at large.

So, get outdoors, take your kids or a friend, and have some fun! It doesn’t have to be something extravagant, it could be something as simple as packing a lunch and going on a day hike, an afternoon hunt on some public land, or going to your favorite (local) fishing hole to float a bobber. Every time you do, you are enriching someone’s life and helping the economy at large. For myself, I think my kid’s and I will be taking a walk in the rain down my favorite hunting trail today.

(Statistics are from the report: “Economic Importance of Hunting” US Fish and Wildlife Service under Cooperative Grant Agreement No. 14-48-98210-97-G047)

Do You Carry What You Need To The Woods With You?

I had a conversation recently with a fellow sportsman and like most conversations this time of year we discussed our current past time…. Michigan’s Archery Deer Season! Any autumn in Michigan is a wonderful time to be alive, but especially during deer season! The woods are filled with brilliant shades or orange, fire red, crisp yellow, sage green and brown. The air is cool and always has a fresh clean smell. Add to that the thrill of setting 15 to 20 feet in the air strapped to the side of a tree watching the leaves sailing to the ground on the breeze when out of no where a 10 point woodland prince comes walking down the trail, head held high, surveying his kingdom….. I had better stop now or I will end up grabbing my gear, hopping in the truck and heading out for a few hours of solitude in the woods. LOL

Most of the hunting I do here in Michigan is with in a 35 minute drive from my house and very familiar to me. So I have never really had to worry about getting lost while I am out there. As a matter of fact I can’t really get lost in the areas that I hunt. What ever direction I choose to go I will eventually hit a fence line, house, road, or a river, all easy to follow back to my starting point. Does that mean I should be able to lighten my hunting pack by leaving the survival items and compass at home? I think if we ask all the hunters we know we would get as many yes’s as we would no’s! I, for one, would like to weigh in with the no’s. Even though I know the area I am hunting very well, there is always the chance of getting stuck out there for the night or pinned down by inclement weather.

I am not saying that I would carry all the same items that I would for a 3-4 day backpacking trip, but I would definitely carry some of them and the ones I do carry change with the seasons. For example, if I were to shoot a deer and ended up having to track it for a while after dark (which happens to every hunter eventually) and after field dressing it I started to drag it out when I realized that in my following of the blood trail I had lost sense of the direction I had come from. Would I just drag the deer around in the dark until I eventually found my way out? Would I leave the deer, find my way out, then go back and look for it in the morning, hoping a coyote or some other animal does not find it first? Or would I pull the compass out of my pack and get a general bearing to head toward. What if, after wandering around the woods tracking that deer, field dressing it and heading out my batteries died in my flashlight or in tracking that deer I fell while crossing a stream? All good arguments, I think, for carrying some type of kit in your hunting pack or pocket.

What should you carry with you?

That is really up to you to decide based on what you are comfortable with and your skill level. I can tell you what I carry and you can add to it or take away from it as you see fit.

What I carry on my person:

• A fixed blade knife with a 3 ½” to 4” blade.
• A Swiss Army knife in my pocket.
• My cell phone turned off unless I need it (If not it will always ring about the time that ten point is standing broad side to you at 25 yards).
• A lighter.
• A quick snack (trail mix, cereal bar, candy bar, etc.) something to keep your stomach happy until you can get home.

What I carry in my pack:

• Matches in a water proof container.
• A Ferro Rod
• A film canister or zip lock bag with cotton balls covered in petroleum jelly & pencil shavings for tinder (the amount carried changes due to weather conditions. I always carry more in the winter months).
• LED head lamp or flash light.
• Extra batteries for my light (I have had it go dead in the woods, and if it were not for having someone else with me I would have wandered about until I found my way out or ended up staying in the woods for the night).
•  A large piece of plastic 4-6 mil (can be used as a shelter or tied around your deer to make it easier to drag out).
• A drag rope with a web strap (helps save your back if you have to go a long distance).
• 25’ to 50’ of 550 Para cord (like the old American Express commercial use to say “don’t leave home without it”).
• About 10’ to 12’ of duct tape.
• A quart sized zip lock bag with coffee / tea packets, 2 granola bars, durable snack foods, & an instant soup mix in case I do have to spend the night in the woods.
• Extra wool socks (depending on the weather).
• Chemical hand warmer packets.
• Plastic water bottle with a sport top to rinse out your game after field dressing it and cleaning up your hands and knife, or you have it as extra water if your tag went unfilled.
• A military style canteen with a canteen cup and stove to heat water for soup or coffee.
• A compass.
• Small first aid kit.
• A small note pad and pencil.
• A field dressing kit (rubber gloves, hand sanitizer, 2-3 paper towels and a few wet wipes)

I put a heavy emphasis on being able to start a fire if I need one. If you are stuck in the woods over night being able to start a fire could be the difference between making it back home and dying in the woods. Add to that something you can use as a shelter to hold the heat of the fire, block the wind, rain, or snow and your odds are even better (specially in the winter). Water is a given, you have to have it and with a steel canteen cup I always have a way to boil water to sanitize it or melt snow to replenish my supply. You could go a night without a hot meal but having some way to make a warm drink or something warm to eat helps keep your spirits and core body temperature up.

I carry this in a mid sized lumbar pack and usually have room left over for extras I might want to throw in like a book to pass the time, an extra layer if the temperature is suppose to drop, lunch if I plan on being out all day, rain gear, a warm hat, extra gloves, or what ever comfort item I may want this hunt. I know a few guys that use a larger pack so they can carry a wool blanket and a thermos of coffee. Whatever makes you comfortable and confident in the woods is the best kit for you. I would recommend that you at least carry the basics:

1. More than one way to start a fire.
2. A good knife.

3. Something to use as a shelter.

4. Extra water or a way to make water safe to drink.

5. Extra food.

Have fun this hunting season, stay safe in the woods, and good luck!
You can watch the Youtube video that goes with this post at the link below.

http://www.youtube.com/v/tPFy1l_iRpE?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US"></param><param

Fire Test - The Norseman's Challenge

Like most people that enjoy being outside, I tend to focus my “inside” time on pursuits that make my “outside” time more enjoyable. One of the ways I do this is by watching videos on Youtube about bush craft, self reliance, hunting, backpacking, and of course the countless gear reviews that go along with them. In doing so I feel that I am better prepared for my chosen activity, but watching the videos and never actually trying the things they are teaching really does me no good. For example, if I watched a video on how to make pancakes on the trail then 2 or 3 months later go on a 4 day hike with all of the supplies I needed to make pancakes but never tried to make them on my hiking stove at home first I would probably end up hungry or eating a lot of burned pancakes on my hike.  

The same is true for bush craft skills. If you never practice them at home before you need them what makes you think you could depend on them to save your life if you are stranded or injured in the backcountry. That is one of the reasons I decided to try the “Norseman’s Challenge” that Wilderness Outfitters Archery presented to one of its Pathfinder School classes recently. I did not attend the class, but had already watched the video Norseman had posted on the Fire Test a few weeks earlier, and thought it was a great way to hone your fire building / self reliance skills. Like any test, there was a time limit and some rules:

From start to finish the test takes 25 minutes.

1. You had to start with a Ferro rod (or less), water, and a GSI Glacier Cup, a canteen cup, Guyot Designs SS Bottle, etc.
2. You had to start a sustainable fire with in 5 minute.
3. By the 20 minute mark you had to have 2 cups of water at a rolling boil.
4. By the 25 minute mark you had to have extinguished the fire and erased all traces of it.

Sounds easy right? That’s what I thought too! I had a sustainable fire in less than 2 minutes and had my water on to boil… no problem! This was going to be a breeze! I had it all planned out, use small sticks and twigs they burn quick and would be less to put out and hide in the end. The only problem was they burned too fast to produce enough heat to get 2 cups of water to a rolling boil; in fact it never really came to a boil at all. I took it off the fire at the 25 minute mark and chalked it up to a good learning experience. I did take about 2-3 minutes to extinguish my fire and hide all traces before I left, again it was good practice. It was fun and I will be trying it again soon…. I really hate to loose…lol. Who knows, some day I may need to do that to save my butt. Granted, I doubt I would be trying to hide from some enemy soldier or something like that but I could be hunting or hiking in the winter and fall crossing a stream. God knows you only have a few minutes to get dried off before hypothermia starts, and putting something warm inside your body helps to keep your core temperature up where it needs to be. Well that’s it for now, check out the link below for my Fire Test / Norseman’s Challenge video or check out the videos posted here on my blog. Get outside, try something new… I think my next attempt might be with a bow drill….. No Promises.

http://www.youtube.com/v/CZizpE0GWxE?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US"></param><param

The Manistee River Trail / North Country Trail Loop in Michigan

Since blogging is a new thing for me I think I will start out slow and easy. I have a lot of ideas of what I want to do with this site but for now let’s just get started.

In June of this year my kids and I decided to hike the Manistee River Trail / North Country Trail Loop in Michigan for Fathers day…. Wow, I can not wait to do it again!

It was my son’s first backpacking trip so we decided to take slow and do as much of the trail as he was able, and leave the rest for another time. If you have never hike this trail I would highly recommend it. The scenery is breath taking, you have a decent amount of ascents and descents to get your heart pumping, and you will find several marked and maintained campsites along the trail as well as several stream and river crossings on sturdy fixed and suspension style bridges. I would also recommend that you remember your fishing pole. The water was so clear you watch the fish swimming along. It is definitely on my list of trails to hike again, and again, and again.

You can view the video at the link below.
http://www.youtube.com/v/Fr7JzYcO_0w?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US