A couple of updates

The Siberian Nutcracker (Nucifraga caryocatactes ssp macrorhynchos) is still alive and visiting our bird table most days

I have seen it eating Sun Flower seeds, fat and bread.

I decided to add a bedroom to the snow shelter I built with Emma.  Firstly I removed all the fresh snow from the back of the shelter and then piled new snow on the back and allowed it to freeze.  Once frozen, I cut a hole in the back of the shelter from the inside

And hollowed out the new snow to make a second room large enough to sleep in.

The bed is raised so that cold air sinks below the level of the bed and the small distance between the bed and shelter roof help to trap warm air.

Emma’s snow shelter

I have been teaching Emma how to make a snow shelter

I am not going to write about how to build one here because I have done it before here.

Here is Emma in the completed shelter or igloo as she calls it

I added a window by putting 4 cms of water in a bucket and leaving it to freeze overnight

I cut a hole at the top of the shelter with my knife and put the window over the hole

Here are Teres and Emma in the shelter at night

Here is the window by candle-light

and here is the shelter by candle-light

 

 

Tentipi Zirkon 15 person kåta

I have just purchased a Tentipi Zirkon 15cp (15 person) tält kåta.

It comes in its own rucksack and weighs 19kgs.

You can set up the tipi on snow but first it must be compressed down (I used my snowshoes)

It took about 15 minutes for me to set up the tipi on my own

I plan to have an open fire when using the tipi

The vent at the top of the tipi can be opened to let out the smoke.

I am thinking to organise a Tentipi gathering here next year.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Gathering wood

We are about to put a woodburning stove in our house, so just before the snow arrived I was out in the forest harvesting wood from the land that we have.

The first task of course was to make fire

It was a very cold day so the coffee pot was cooking all the time

and of course it was nice to get warm by the fire

As I felled the trees I stacked the branches for use in shelter building

and the timber I have stacked against trees to dry and I will collect them with the snow mobile later in the winter

Some of the Pine I used to build a bed

I covered it with a layer of small Birch and then covered the Birch with a thick layer of Pine.

I was hoping to build a shelter over the bed before the snow came, but did not have time.

Rådjebalges/Gränsleden Guiding Course – Part 6

We walked up a rocky slope, through Mountain Birch forest to join the trail

We walked for about 1km and then took a short break to talk about this new section of Rådjebalges/Gränsleden

In the middle of the afternoon we stopped to make coffee and eat some food.

Per-Erik explained that Sami people remove their boots whenever they stop to allow both the feet and boots to breath and dry, reducing the risk of blisters.

We located two old burial sites but I decided not to photograph them.  We also found sites where would have been staying and milking the Reindeer.  Here is one

The pale area of ground on the left of the picture is where the kåta would have been situated and on a flat area of lush green grass in the top right corner of the picture they would have milked the Reindeer.  It was over looking this area that we decided to set up the laavu and make camp

The laavu was soon up and water gathered from a nearby spring

Within a hearth made of stones a fire was made and we made coffee and cooked food

and here is the view from the laavu as I prepared to sleep

Bird migration is underway

More and more open water is appearing on the lakes and rivers

and more birds are arriving/passing through.

On Thursday evening I drove to an area near to Porjus, where I left my car and walked the short distance to the Luspen Bird Tower

As I walked to the tower I found a Chiffchaff feeding on the ground in undergrowth under some small Birches.

Even before I had reached the tower I could hear Common Cranes and Whopper Swans calling.

The tower overlooks the Stora Luleälv (älv means river in Swedish) which is an important migration route for birds breeding further north.

There are two levels inside the tower, the upper being accessed through this trapdoor

and there are large windows which open and allow 360 degree viewing.

I saw; 47 Whooper Swans, 24 Common Cranes, 4 Pink-footed Geese, 1 Kestrel, 2 Goldeneye, 2 Curlew displaying and as I returned to my car a White-tailed Sea Eagle flew low over the trees.

It was great just to sit in the tower and watch and listen

On Friday I saw my first Fieldfare and Redwing returning for the summer to breed and yesterday morning there were many Fieldfares around and some were already singing.

5 days at the cabin in April 2010 – Part 5

We already have some nest boxes in trees near the cabin and around the lake but I decided to use some off-cuts of wood to make more.

All the existing boxes have holes in the front so I decided to make open-fronted nestboxes to see what species use them.

I also made a larger box and it will be interesting to see if or what uses this in the future.

I will let you know what uses the boxes for nesting.

Lapland autumn 2009 – 24th September part 2

We headed off away from the bear den and after walking a while Teres spotted a beer bottle pushed under a fallen tree.  Amazingly she could remember having sat there with her friend when she was 15, drinking the bottle of beer and after they had finished she pushes the bottle under the tree to hide the evidence.

We decided to stop, make fire and cook some food and coffee.  I set up the tarp as a wind break while Teres made fire

The items I was carrying with me were; crusader mug, pouch of real coffee, frying pan, bread, cheese, sausage, a spoon and peanut oil lip balm (carried and used by the Swedish military) which applied to the frying pan, can also be used to cook food with!

The peanut oil worked very well for cooking the sausage

Once coffee was made it was an ideal opportunity for me to try another traditional food…..coffee cheese

The cheese is made specifically from the first milk from the cow after it has given birth to a calf which is called colostrum.  The cheese is cut into cubes which are dropped into the coffee and once warm, are removed and eaten.  I have to say that I found it quite bland in taste.

We  relaxed in the forest and enjoyed the autumn sun

before returning to the cabin, closing it up for the winter and heading back to Gallivare.  Three days later I flew back to England.

Useful kit does not have to be expensive

In several of my posts I have referred to and you will have seen two pieces of material that I carry with me.  One piece is a 220 x 160cm  sheet of Pertex and the other a piece of rip-stop nylon sewn into a tube which is open at both ends and 230cm long.  They are both treated with Nikwax, pack down very small and only weigh 400 grams.

and together with a small bag of cord, meet many of my needs.

The tube I can use as a “mattress” for a pole bed, by sliding two long poles into it (I can stuff the tube with grass for insulation)

I can tie one end and fill it with leaves or grass as a mattress on the ground or put my equipment in it and tie it around me as a pack

I can attach cords at each end to make a simple hammock

or fold it, tie a knot each end and add long pieces of cord to tie to a tree branch and make a seat.

I can also get into it and pull it up to my shoulders for warmth and protection from the rain (I wrap the Pertex sheet around my head and shoulders for protection)

I used them both for this purpose on several occasions during my last Lapland trip.

The Pertex sheet I tend to use mainly as a tarp for shelter

I have no lashing points but instead use a stone or similar with a piece of cord

I place the stone under a corner of the material, wrap the material around it and then secure the cord around the stone

You can see how I use them here

If anyone knows where I can buy this type of material in larger sizes than 230 x 160cm please let me know.

Lapland Spring 2009 -2nd June Part 1

Now for me this is what it’s all about.  Using the items you have available, together with natural materials around you to achieve your goal (thinking outside the box is always a useful skill).  So often I hear asked “what’s the most important item in bushcraft”…….a knife, an axe, a cooking pot? Well for me it’s my brain.  It allows me to adapt what I have available  to create what I need or must do and I always enjoy the challenge.

Yesterday while out in my boat I noticed this Birch hung-up in a Pine tree, which will provide a decent amount of wood for my stove

I decided to take an axe, a bow saw and some rope in the boat with me and I cut a lever pole.

My first task was to use my axe to severe the trunk from the stump.  Initially my idea was to cut a piece of rope and tie into a loop, thread one end of the through the other, place the lever pole through this loop and then as I pushed the lever down the rope tightens, gripping around the tree, allowing me to roll the trunk out of the Pine tree.

Unfortunately the Birch trunk was wedged between two branches in the Pine and I could not lever it out.  I experimented with “flip-flop” and “Finnish” winches to pull the trunk to get it out of the Pine but the trunk would not move.

I cut a longer leaver pole to enable me to apply more leverage

I placed the thick end of the pole under the trunk as shown below, pushing the end of the pole in the ground.  The with a lifting and forward motion of the lever I began to gradually move the trunk away.

After moving the trunk about three feet I used the longer pole to roll the trunk and this time the top rolled out of the Pine and fell to the ground!  Now it all sounds quite simple when you write about it but it took far longer and was a lot more work than you might think.

Using the axe I removed all the branches from the trunk

I cut the trunk into sections with the intention of floating them across the lake behind my boat.

When the trunk pinched the bow saw blade I used a lever to stand on to open up the cut

It started to rain so I set up a piece of water proof material I carry, as a shelter

made fire and cooked some food

and made a brew