TableofContents

TitlePageDedicationForewordIntroduction

Chapter1-PrimitiveFireandCordageBowDrillandHandDrillHandDrillCordageACouplaFireMakingTips

Chapter2-PrimitiveTools—MakingandUsingThemBasicFlintknappingSandstoneHeavyBluntInstrumentsBoneandAntlerDiggingStickWoodenAwlCeltHaftingAdzeViseWorkingwiththeToolsFinisWoodenBowlManoandMetateMortarandPestle

Chapter3-Primitive,SemipermanentSheltersWhataShelterKeepsOut(andIn)ShelterBasicsHouseMaterialsTheWickiupTheLean-To

ThatchedWickiupGenericShelterWrap-Up

Chapter4-Makin’Meat-1ThePrimitiveBowandArrowAnatomyofaBowStringArrow

Chapter5-Makin’Meat-2ObtainingSustenanceinNatureTheTrapLineGatheringAtlatlInsectsMeatPreservation

Chapter6-DeerfromFieldtoFreezerFieldDressingSkinningRemovingHeadCuttingOffLegsSinewRemovalRemovingLoinandTenderloinMeatCutting

Chapter7-PrimitiveWildernessCookingMethodsIntheCoalsBroilingBakingBoiling

Chapter8-PrimitiveWildernessContainersBasketsCoiledBasketBarkContainerCordageStoneContainer

AnimalPartsUsedasContainersWoodContainer

Chapter9-PrimitivePotteryQuickRun-ThroughClayTemperConstructionFiringLastWords

Chapter10-Brain-TanBuckskinBrief,All-ImportantSummaryMaterialsSkinsFramingandFleshingSurfacePreparationBrainingSewingofHolesFinishingSmokingSewingwithSinew

IndexResourcesAbouttheAuthorsCopyrightPage

AlsobyJohnandGeriMcPherson

Primitive Wilderness Skills, Applied & Advanced “How-to” Build This LogCabinfor$3,000

Dedicated to thosewho give of their time and all too often their health andlives to ensure thatwe, and those likeus, are able to pursue our dreams infreedom—the men and women of the U.S. Military. More specifically wesingle out themen that I, John, servedwith in the 173rdAirborneBrigade(Sep) in the Republic of South Vietnam (A Company, 1/503rd AirborneInfantry)andthemenoftheSpecialOperationsCommunitywhoaccomplishsomuchforsolittle.

Foreword

It was 1989 and I was a punk kid attending a major primitive living skillsconference.Totingasmellydeerhide,Iwalkeduptohimandaskedhisopinionabout softening the skin based upon advice I’d just been given by anotherinstructor. Itwasmyfirstbrain-tanneddeerhideandIwanted it tobeperfect.After listening tomerambleon,he lookedatmequizzically,cockedhishead,andsaid,“Son,wedon’treallycarehowit‘looks’—wewantittowork.”

This was my first encounter with John McPherson, and his words ofsimplicityandpracticalityhaverungthroughmyheadeversince.

Years later, theworld’s interest in relearning indigenous living and survivalskillshasgrownbyleapsandbounds.Whetherit’sanewmagazinearticle,book,orTVshow,moreandmorepeopleareexploringtheartofprimitivelivingskillsand self-reliance. Yet, as in any other “craze,” many who have dubiouscredibilityinwhattheypreachareeagertofeeduponthebodyofthisgrowinginterest. Legions ofmedia producers and editorswho have zero experience insurvivalskillsgivetheirtwocents’worthaboutwhatitmeansto“surviveinthebush.”Manyoftheseproductionsnotonlyareridiculousintheirformat,butarefilledwitherrors that, if taken literallybyastarry-eyedandnaïvepublic,mayverywellcausetheirdemise.

Littleby little, the simple, commonsense survival skills thatkept every racealiveupontheplanetwerebeingsensationalizedinordertosellonemorebookor gainonemoreviewer.Commonsense reality had turned180degrees into ashameless bureaucracy of company-sponsored deception that honored how asurvivalskill“looked”ratherthanwhetherit“worked.”

In similar fashion, on the educational front line,well-intentioned professorslectured students about how indigenous peoples lived, even though the vastmajorityoftheseprofessorshadneverevencampedinthewilderness—letalone

created firewith sticks, a canteen fromagourd, or a sleepingmatmade fromcattail.

Overtime,therepetitionofsurvivalassumptions,half-truths,oroutrightliesbecameanall-too-trustingpublic’s“truth”aboutoutdoorsurvivalandprimitivelivingskills.Themajorityofthepublicdidn’tcare(andstilldon’t).Aplethoraofsurvival books, as well, have been written by authors who are not survivalinstructors; and, judging by their works, they haven’t bothered to try out thesupposed lifesaving skills they regurgitateupon thepage.Evenmore commonare survival skills practitioners who, while proficient inmany physical skills,don’t psychologically live what they teach. This “walk-thetalk” concept goesmuchdeeperthansimplydoingahanddrilleveryothermorningwhilelivinginthe city. It is an all-encompassing life attitude that affects every decision onemakesintheirquesttodomorewithless.Allindigenouslivingskillsrevolvedaroundpeoplebecomingmore self-reliantwithin their environment.Thequestfor the all-important calorie ruled the day, and there was no time orconsciousness for complicated, flashy skills that didn’t putmeat in thepot. Inessence, truly livinga self-reliant life (whether the lifestyle incorporates literal“stone-age”skillsornot)demandsalifestylecommitmentonalllevelsthatfewcanstomach.

I can count on one hand the number of survival instructors I know whosepassionforsurvivalskillsincludeslivingaself-reliantlifestyle.OnthishandareJohnandGeriMcPherson.Theypracticewhattheypreach—psychologicallyandphysically—and have done so for a very long time. The Ultimate Guide toWildernessLiving is apioneer in the fieldofno-bullshitprimitive living skillsand is loaded with practical, time-tested tips, tricks, and photos that manifestonly frommanyyearsof “doing it.”True to John’sadvicegiven tomenearlytwodecadesago,thisbookiswritteninastyleandspiritthatembodiesprimitivelivingskillsthatreallywork.

CodyLundin

CodyLundinisfounderanddirectoroftheAboriginalLivingSkillsSchoolandauthor of the best-selling books 98.6 Degrees: The Art of Keeping Your AssAlive!andWhenAllHellBreaksLoose:StuffYouNeedtoSurviveWhenDisasterStrikes.

Introduction

This isnotwrittenasa survivalbook—it’s a compilationofmostof thebasicskills thatoriginalpeoplesaround theworldused in theirdailypursuitof life,knownas“primitive livingskills.”Knowledgeofsuchskillswillallowyou tolive in thewildernesswith nothing except forwhatever nature at hand has tooffer. In essence, the skills presented here are the ultimate in self-sufficiency.Being capable of heading into the wilderness with absolutely nothing andmaking a life there, not simply surviving, is the very definition of survivalknowledge.So,Iguessthisisinsomemannerasurvivalbook.

Today, everything around us—all goods manufactured by humans, whetherit’stheconcretewedriveon,thevehicleswe’redriving,manyfoodsthatwe’reeatingandtheutensilsthatweeatthemwith,thecomputerI’mwritingthison,eventhepaperthatyou’rereadingitonandtheinkit’sprintedwith—everythingcomes from the Earth! In our case we (“we” being mankind today) havemodifiedpartsoftheEarthtocreateotherthings,manmadethings.Preciousfewofthecomponentsofeveryday“things”aroundus(Fordpickups,spaceshuttles,breadwrappers, clothing, and so on) contain elements from theEarth that areunmodified.Everythingthatwe’refamiliarwithhascomefromtheEarthbuthasbeenmodifiedandtinkeredwithbysomanyhandsthatit’simpossibleforustosee any semblancewith the Earth itself.Askmost anyone to gathermaterialsfrom the Earth andmake the simplest of necessities, then watch ’em squirm.Primitive man, by contrast, took everything that he used in his daily livingdirectlyfromthematerialsthatnatureprovided.

Notonlywill thisbookshowyouhowprimitivepeoplesaccomplished this,but here you’ll learn, step by step, how you too can accomplish that. Thepurpose of this book is not to entertain; there’s more than enoughmedia outtheretodothat.Rather,itwaswrittentoteachyou,thereader,howtoactuallydotheskillsaddressed.

Severalthingssetthisbookapartfromotherin-depthonesonthemarket:

We,Geri and I, have done the skillswewrite about.We’ve donethem a lot. Sowewrite onlywhatwe’ve personally experienced.And itdoeswork!Ifyouwanttoknowhowtodoit,readaboutithere—andyouwillknow.

Eachchapterwasfirstwrittenasacompletebookofitsown.Itwaswritten on one or two particular subjects or skills for the purpose ofteachinganotherperson—you—howtodoit.Oftenapublisherwilldictatea list of subjects for an author to write on (whether or not the author isfamiliarwithit),andyouthereaderendupwithalotoftheoriesandwildideasinsteadoffacts.Herewedecidedwhatyouneedtoknow.

Theseskillsdon’tfollowanyonecultureorpeoples.Theideaisforyou tobe able tounderstandwhatmakes a skillwork,whichwill enableyoutotravelanyplaceontheplanetwhereresourcesareavailableandforyoutousethatskilleffectively.Therulesthatwedevelopedforourselvesaretobeabletotakefromnatureonly,usingnothingmodifiedbymankind.

Thisbookcoversprimitivewildernesslivingskillsonly.You’llfindnothing that is superfluous. Information on edible and medicinal plants,camouflage,tracking,spirituality,andartmustbefoundelsewhere.

There’snobigsecrettomasteringanyofthis.It’salljustbasicphysics.Onceit’slearned,you’llsay,“Well,hellyes—whydidn’tIthinkofthat!”Someofit(no,muchofit)istime-consuming,especiallyinthisdayofinstanteverything.ButI’mfindingthatmany,manypeopleareprettysickandtiredofallthehustle.Thisconsumer-orientedindustrializedsocietythatwebelongtohasmademostof its inhabitants dependent on others for even the simplest of needs. Theseskills,oncelearned,becauseoftheirsimplicity,willbewithyoufromnowontillforever—and that’s a mighty long time, folks. They need not be applied orpracticedeverydaytostayfreshinyourmind.Andthecomfortthatcomesfromjust knowing them will give you the freedom to know that you’ll be self-sufficienttotheextreme.

Yougottawalkbeforeyourun,though.Understandwhereyou’reheaded,andbeawarethatthatpathcan—andlikelywill—changeasyouproceed.Pickoneor twoof the skills in thisbook that interestyou themost, then try togainanunderstanding of how andwhy theywork. The learning and practice ofmostprimitiveskillscanbedoneinyourbackyard,garage,basement,orevenlivingroom(dependingonthetoleranceofyourwifeorhusbandorpartner).Youcan

becomeproficientinthemwithouteverventuringbeyondthesebounds.Andifyoushouldfindyourselfinaprimitivesituation,eitherbychoiceorbychance,thoughyou’ll find that theapplication isn’taseasyaswhendone inyourownbackyard,you’ll also find that through repeatedpracticeyou’vedeveloped theunderstandingand“feel”of thebasicfunctions, themusclememoryaswellastheconfidencethatyou“know”howtoapplythevariousmethods.You’llownthatspecialfeelingoffreedomthatcomesfromknowingthatyouneeddependonnootherman,woman,orbeast.

Learnthewildernessundercontrolledconditions.Useatent,modernsleepinggear,backpacks,andfiremaking.Hikeandcampinfamiliarsurroundingswheregetting lost or in trouble isn’t a part of the equation. Get out there in all theelements—notjustwhenthesunshines.Learnwhatit’sliketoprotectyourselfintherainandsnow,especiallywhenyou’rewetandcold.Addprimitivethingsabitatatime.Remember,though,thatitwouldberaretoimpossibleforyoutobeplacedin theoutdoorswithabsolutelynothing,unlessyoudoitvoluntarily.Certain of the skills we detail in this book are necessary for survival: fire,cordage,traps,tools,shelter,andcontainers.Thesesixskillsarethebasisforanylivingorsurvivalsituation.Everythingelsewillgrowfromthese.

We’veread,withinthepastcouplayears,ofagroupthatspentsometimeinthewilds of northwestMontana. They had “primitive” down to a T.All theirclothing, bedclothes, and gearwere primitive,whether brain tan or otherwise.Primitive bows. Primitive pots. Plenty of primitive containers. Primitivefiremaking sets. They had primitive under control. But, when they placedthemselves“out there”in thewilderness, itappears tomethat theyfoundtheylackedmuchof agraspof thewildernesspart.Although theycommented thatmiceorother rodentswere aroundand in their campsite, theyneverdid catchanyforfood.In18days,theonlyfoodharvestedbythegroupwasreportedtobeone fingerling fish. When it rained they moved from their shelter to theprotectionofboughsoftreesintheirattempttostaydryandcomfortable.Oops?Maybe,buttheexperiencewillhaveenlightenedthemtothisfact—apartofthelearningcurve.I’dbetthat,nexttime,theyencounterfewerproblems.

Asyoureadthisbook,you’llnoticesomereferencesintheformofathank-

youscatteredhereand there,butno listof references.This isbecause, for themostpart,wehavelearnedtheskillswepresentthroughalotoffieldworkandtrialanderror.We,meaningallofushumanbeings,aretheresultofeverythingthat we’ve encountered before. For sure, Geri and I have read or heardsomewhere that tomake fire by frictionwe need, for example, two pieces ofwoodtorubtogether.Yetitwasthroughourownpersonaleffortsandlaborthatwe’ve learned the little steps involved tomake that effort result in a fire on asomewhatregularbasis.Noonetocredithereexceptus.

Welearnedearlyonthat,inourday(the1950sthroughthe1970s),therewasno easyway for us tomaster skills like this.Most books on the subject onlyglossed over the information that we were looking for—there was absolutelynothingavailable thatwecould find to teachus“HowTo.”True, therewereacouplabooksthattriedtocovermanyoftheskillsdescribedhere,butwesoondiscoveredthattheirauthorshadalotoftalkbutlittlewalkbehindthem.Somedependedontheknowledgeofothers(theperpetuationofmyths)andsincethey,theauthorsandeditors,knewnothingaboutthis,theyhadnoideathatwhattheywere passing along was for the most part garbage. It might make for goodreading but failed miserably as field manuals. The reason that I early ondependedontheuseofagreatmanyphotographstoillustratetechniqueswastoreinforcetoyou,myreaders,thatwe’veactuallydonetheseskills,inthemannerthat we’re presenting them to you. They do work! (Other authors can drawanything.)

Theprimitive lifestyle isn’t for everyone—in fact, it’s forvery few.But theknowledgeoftheskillsneededtolivethislifestyleiswithinreachofanyone.

Enjoyyourexperience,whereveryourpathmaylead.

JohnandGeriMcPherson

Randolph,Kansas

January2008

Chapter1

PrimitiveFireandCordage

Thelearningofthenecessary“skills”tolivedirectlywithnature,eliminatingtheneedofintermediaries,isn’treallyallthatdifficult.Youlearnalittleaboutthisaspect…abitaboutthatone…andthenanother.Prettysoonyoufindthatmostofthemoverlapandthefurtheryougetalonginyournaturaleducation,theeasieritistolearn.

Many years agowhen I first got serious about putting all this together (myfirst stepwas toget ridof theTV,and thenelectricity), I felt that if Iwere tolearna fewof thebasicprimitive“survival”skills, I’d reallybecomequite thewoodsman. I soon found that themore that I learned, the more I still had tolearn. I read (and Iurgeanyone interested in learning toalso read)everythingthat I could laymy hands on that dealswith livingwith nature. There’s a lotwrittenonallaspectsofit—somepoor,somesuperb,butmostlyingsomewhereinthemiddle.

Beforeyoucandecidewhat’sworkable,you’llhavetogetoutandworkwithit.Readingonlygoessofar.Whenyouactuallybegintoputintopracticewhatyou’re reading, then it becomes obvious just who knows what he or she iswritingabout.

Nospecialtalentisneededhere—onlytheabilitytofollowabunchofnaturalrules (physics).Anyof theprimitive skills, today aswell as yesterday, canbecarried to the extreme and become an art. I’m far from being expert inwoodsmanship.Ihave,though,taughtmyselfwhatIneedtoknowtogo“nakedinto the wilderness” and not only survive but before long be living fairlycomfortably(unless,ofcourse,Ifrozetodeathfirst).Irefertomyteachingsasprimitive “living” skills, not “survival” skills, though they can be used in that

concept.Ihavetaughtmyselftobeproficientintheseskills—nottobeanartist.

Since1987I’vemadethousandsoffireswiththebowanddrillandwiththehand-drillmethods.So I’mproficient enough in this to teach it to others.Thesameholdstruewiththemakingofcordage.Themoreyoulearn,themoreyourealizewhatthereistolearn—buttheeasieritbecomestolearnit.

BowDrillandHandDrill

Thebasicprincipleofmakingfirewitheitheraboworahanddrillisreallyverysimple. The amount of practice needed to develop that special touch whichenablesyoutoregularlysucceedinthisisanotherthingentirely.

Tosay“makefire”withtheboworhanddrillisreallyamisnomer.Actually,what’saccomplishedisthatthewoodendrillspinningonanotherpieceofwoodcreatesfriction,whichcreatesdust,andeventuallythingsgethotenoughthatasparkiscreated.Thecompressedpileofdustthathasbeenformedbecomeslikethe hot tip of a cigarette that’s placed into a pile of tinder and coaxed into aflame.

Simple? Yeh, really it is. I’ve had students “make fire” within minutes ofbeingexposedtothisprocedure,andunderstandjustwhattheyweredoing.

I’ll first show you how tomake fire (bow drill first, and hand drill a littlelater). I’ll quickly describe the necessary components and the steps to follow.Thenwe’llgetdowntobrasstacksandgothroughitagain,dwellingabitmoreonhowtoassemblethepartsandtoputitalltogether.Whenyoufinishwiththis,you’llbeabletomakefire.

Wehavefivecomponents:(1)thebow,alimberstickabout30”long;(2)thedrill and (3) the fireboard, both of which are softwoods; (4) a cup, called a“bearing block,” inwhich the upper end of the drill is placed to keep it fromdrillingthroughthepalmofyourhand;andfinally(5)thebowstring,whichwillbecoveredingreaterdetaillaterinthisbook.

SimplifiedDirectionsforMakingaBowDrill

Wetakeaknifeandcutanotchandaslightdepressionintothefireboard,twistthedrillintothestringofthebow,placeoneendofthedrillintothedepressionofthefireboard,placethebearingblockontopofthedrill,andspinthedrillbypushingthebowbackandforthtillasparkisformed.Wefinishbydroppingthespark into a prepared “bird’s nest” of tinder and gently blowing it into flame.Easy?…sure.Andyoumightbeabletomakeitworkwithnomoreinformationthanthis.Some13yearsago,threeofusspentthebetterpartofadaywearingourselves out with no more information than what you’ve just read—andeventuallymadefire.

Thedaymostofthesephotoswereshot,theFahrenheittemperaturewasinthe40sanditwasmisting.Ithrewupthecrudeshelterusingonlywhatonewouldnormally have: two light jackets and a shirt, using also rocks and grass. Thepurposeof theshelterwas just toblock thewindandrainfrompreventingmymakingoffire.

PartsofaBowDrill

NowI’llgointomoredetailaboutalltheparts—thewhatsandthewhys,howtogathertheparts,andhowtofashionthemunderprimitiveconditions.Thespecialtouch you’ll have to develop yourself through practice (it does come prettyeasily).

BOW—This is theeasiestpart toobtain.Areasonably limberstick(limborpieceofbrush),1/2”to3/4”thick,approximately30”long.Itneedstobelimberenough tocreate just therightamountof tensionon thestringwhen thedrill’sinserted.Toolimberandyou’llhavetroublewiththestringslippingonthedrill.Toostiffandtoomuchstresswillbeplacedonthestringandthedrill,resultinginthedrill’scontinuallyflyingoutonyou,andmostoftenthestring’sbreaking.(Believeme,thestresscreatedonthestringandthedrillisnothingcomparedtothestressthat’llbebuildinginyouatthispoint!)Thelengthofabout30”isalsoimportant,thoughabowofonlyafewinches,orevenoneofseveralfeet,wouldwork, just not aswell.At that length the bow isn’t too cumbersome andwillallowforagood,fullsweepoftheentirelength.Thisiscriticallyimportant,asevery time thebow stops to changedirections, everything cools off a tinybit,thusimpedingyourefforts.

Rawsquirrelskincord“madefire”thefirst time.Thehairrubbedoffwhileinuse; sparkwas foundbeneathpileofhair.Note thinnesswhere skin’sabout tobreak.Fortunately,Igotthesparkfirst(notecoal)andalsohadplentyofextralengthtoreusetheskinafterdrying.

DRILL—Wenowneedtobeabitmoreparticular.Asoftwood isnecessary.Also,deadanddry (I’llmentiondampwood later).Literallydozensofwoodswillworkforadrill.Cottonwood,aspen,andyuccaaremyfavorites,notonlybecause theyworkwell but also because they’re abundant in the parts of thecountrywhere I live and travel.Willow is a favorite amongmany firemakers.I’veheardthatsageworkswelltoo,asdoboxelderandhackberry.Thesmallerlimbs and sapwood of cedar, locust, and ash would be fine (though theheartwoodsofthesearetoohard).Thelistgoeson.I’vebeentoldandhavereadtoavoidresinouswoods,suchaspine.Cedarworks,atleastinsomepartsofthecountry.Experimentwithwhat’savailable toyou.Membersof thecottonwoodfamily (including birch, aspen, and poplar) can be found inmost parts of thecountry; all of themwork superbly. Search out dead limbs, preferably off theground (to eliminate absorption of groundmoisture) andwith barkweatheredaway.Checktheconditionofthewoodbypressingitwithyourthumbnail.Ifitmakes a slight indentation easily without crumbling, it should be about right.Also,ifitbreakseasilyandcleanlywithasnap,ithasnogreennessormoistureleftinit.Thedrillneedstobeaboutassmallaroundasyourlittlefingeruptoasbigasyourthumb.Norealexactnesshere,thoughIwouldn’tgomuchforlargerorsmaller (sinceasmallerdrillspinsmorewitheachpassof thebow, thereby

creating friction fasterbutalsodrilling through the fireboard faster, sometimesbeforethesparkhasformed).

OneendofthebowItiepermanently,usuallywithaslipknot.

TheotherendItiewithasingleslipthatcanbeuntiedeasilyandretightenedasthe string stretches.This is the end that I hold.Thisway, I canalsoholdanylong looseend toprevent it from flyingaroundandpossiblyknockingmydustpilealltohell.

Theideallengthofthedrillis6”to8”.Toolongandit’shardtomanage,tooshortandyourbowhandgetsinthewayofthedrillandyoucan’tseewhatishappening.And straight, since if there’s awarp in the drill, it’ll wobble as itspinsandcreateproblems.Mosttimesaslightlycurveddrillcanbestraightenedwithyourknife.

A fresh drill (here, yucca; my favorite combination is a yucca drill on a

cottonwoodfireboard).Therightsideismorepointedforthebearingblock.Theslighttitonthelefthelpsittostaywhereitbelongsinthefireboardtillthehole’senlarged.

FIREBOARD—Thefireboardcan,butneednot,bethesamematerialasthedrill. Usually, it will be. Again, it must be a softwood. Check its condition,which shouldbe the sameas for thedrill.The sizeof theboard isvariable. Itneedonlybelargerinwidththanthediameterofthedrill.Iliketomakeminefrom11/2”to2”wide(remember thatnothinghere isexact).Takethe limbofyourchoosingandsplit it inhalf,usingyourknife.Shavethesplitsidetill theboardwilllieflat,shavedowntheroundsidetilltheboardisabout1/2”thick,andthensquareupthesides.

BEARINGBLOCK—Thisisaverysimplepiece,andanimportantone,butonenotallthateasytocomeupwithinasurvivalsituation.Forat-homework,Isuggesta1oz.shotglass,whichfitsthehandcomfortably,hasaholeoftherightsize for thedrill, andhas a surface as smooth as you’ll find (with thegoal ofeliminatingfriction).Youcanalsofindasemisoftrockanddrilla1/2” to3/4”hole in it about 1/2” deep, then lubricate it upwithCrisco (“bear grease in acan”). You need to eliminate the friction at this end. (I have in the past usedvariousknotsofhardwoods.Someofthem,though,hadsoftspotsinthemandIwascomingupwithsmokefrommypalmbeforethefireboard!)Icarrywithanduseathome,indemonstrations,andinbasecampsarockabout3”x21/2”x11/2”thickwithadandyholeinit,thoughit’sprettyheftytocarryaroundinthetimber.Fornow,thisisallyouneedtoknow.We’llgointoobtainingthisunderprimitiveconditionsabitlater.

Sincethere’sadefinitesatisfactionintakingyourfirstever-sparkcreatedwiththe bow drill and blowing it into flame, let’s have you gather up and preparesometinderatthistime.Let’smakeupabatch.Ireallylikethedryinnerbarkofcedar(cottonwoodisgood,also),plussomedry,finegrasses.Rollthesearoundinyourhandstillit’sfineasacottonball.Youwon’tneedmuch;asmallhandfulwillbeplenty.Formaholeinitlikeabird’snest.Placethisonapieceofbarkorcardboard(sothatwhenitburstsintoflameyouwon’tbarbecueyourhand).

UsingYourBowDrill

Withtheinformationcontainedthusfar,you’rereadyto“makefire.”We’llrunyouthroughitoncenow.Theinformationpresentedbelowiscertainlyuseful(orIwouldn’thavegonetothetroubletowriteit),butitdealsmostlywithgatheringthematerialsunderprimitiveconditions.

BOW—Archers, string your bow! Almost any cordage will work, but itshouldbestrongandnot too thin,as itwill tend tobreakeasilywith the first-timer.Also, theheaviercordage (not rope) seems togetmoreofagripon thedrill.HereI’dsuggestusinga“rawhide”(notgenuinerawhide)bootlace,whichisaboutideal.Itwistminetight,whichseemstograbthedrillthatmuchbetter.In short order, you’ll begin to feel precisely the right amount of tension. Thestringwillstretchconsiderablywithuse,especiallyatfirst,andadjustmentswillhavetobemadeasyougoalong.Thebowisnotstrungtight;considerableslackisleft.Whenthedrillisplacedinthebow,theslackistakenup(notetopphotoonpage9).Remember,thetensionmustbejustso;tootightisworsethanonlyalittleslack,butthereisn’tmuchroomforvariableshere.

DRILL—Now let’s take our selected piece for the drill. I like to point theupperendabit (theend thatgoes into thebearingblock).Whenbreaking inanewholeinthefireboard(asinthiscase),IfinditeasiertooperateifIcarvetheworkingend into a slight “tit” (studyphotosonpage9).Doing thisgives it atendency to take a bit longer tomate the drill to the hole, but also assists inkeepingthedrillfromkickingoutofthefireboardwhilethedepressionenlargestofitthedrill.Bythetimethetwomate,theholeandthedrillfitbetter.

Splittingthefireboard.

Flatteningandsquaringtheedges.

Cedarbarkstrippedfromdeadtree.

Shredded between fingers (or rolled between palms) to loosen and separatefibers.

Bird’snestofcedar.

Sameofgrasses.

Bow(inthiscaseapieceofdogwood)strungwithdeerrawhide.Ialwaysstringthe drill the sameway, resulting in the top of the drill being up and the drillendingupontheoutsideofthestring,therebystayingoutofthewayofthebowhand.

Stickselectedfordrill.Ichosethestraightmiddleportion.

Scoringaroundthestickfirstmakesiteasiertobreakwhereyouwantitto.

“Straightening”thedrillbyshavingit.

FIREBOARD—Nowtakeholdofthepiecepreparedforthis.Therearetwoapproaches to takehere. I’ll talkyou throughoneandmention theother.Bothwork.

Withyourknife,cuta“V”notchapproximately1/4”to5/16”wideextendinginto the board almost half the diameter of the drill (see photo below).At thepointofthe“V”ofthisnotch,digoutaslightdepressionfortheendofthedrilltofit into.(Theothermethodis todigyourdepressionfirstandthen,after the

holehasbeenstartedwiththedrill,tocutthenotch.)Thedepressionmustbeinfarenoughsothatwhentheholeisstarted,thenotchretainsenoughmaterialatthe wide part of the “V” (at the edge of the board) to prevent the drill fromkickingout.Ifthedrilldoeskickout,breakingoffthisretainer(whichhelpstohold the drill), you may as well begin a new hole, as if you don’t you’llencounteronlyfrustration.

Cuttingthenotch.

Cuttingthedepressionforthedrill.

Notchesalmosthalfwaytocenterofdrillhole.

Holeontheleftistooclosetotheedge,sothedrillwillonlyflyout.Whenthishappens,it’sbesttostartanother.Theholeontherightisgreat.“V”couldevenbeabitdeeper,butthisworkedwell.

Now, let’s get serious. Place a piece of bark (you nonprimitives can usecardboard)underthenotchcutinthefireboard.Thisservestwopurposes:(1)tocatchthedustandspark,enablingyoutodropitintothetinder,and(2)toactasinsulationbetween the fireboardor dust and theground,whichmaybedamp,cool,orboth,slowingdownorpreventingsparkcreation.

Thefollowinginstructionsareforaright-hander;yousouthpaws,justreversetheprocedure.Getdownonyourrightknee(seephotonextpage).Placetheballof your left foot on the fireboard, making certain that it’s secure and doesn’trock.Anunsteadyboardcanresultintheknockingofyourdustpilealltohell.Ilikethenotchtobeabout21/2”to3”outfromtheinsideofmyfoot,whichiswheremyhandautomatically falls intoplacedirectlyover thenotchwhenmywrist is locked against my left calf.Wrap the drill in the string (as noted inphoto) andplace theproper end into thedepressionof the fireboard.Take thebearingblock inyour left hand,place it on topof thedrill, and lockyour leftwrist securely against your left calf (this is important, as you want the handholdingthebearingblocktobecompletelysteady; if itswaystoandfrowhiledrilling,you’llbe inviting trouble).All that’snecessarynow is to run thebowback and forth.At this point you’ll start developing the “feel” ofwhat you’redoing.

The amount of downward pressure applied to the drill, combined with thespeed of the bow, iswhat determines howmuch friction is created, thus howquickly a spark is formed. When you first begin, don’t even think “fire”—instead, concentrate only on becoming comfortable with the operation (kindalikechewingtobaccoandwalkingatthesametime).Makesmooth,fullstrokeswith the bow, running it the entire length of the string. Remember that everytimeyou changedirections, that split-second stop cools thingsoff just a little.Keepthedrillperpendicular.

The string has a tendency to wander either up or down the drill whilespinning.Controlthisbypointingtheendoftheboweitherslightlyupordown,whichever seems to work. The pressure that you’re able to apply with yourthumbandfingersofthebowhandonthestringwillalsohelp.

Before you begin to “make fire,” have all ingredients at hand. From left:fireboard, drill, bearing block, strung bow, tinder, four piles of kindling invarious sizes, and, at far right, largerwood—all laid out onmy vest to keepthemfromabsorbinggroundmoisture(thegroundwaswet).

Drillstraightupanddown,withleftwristlockedsecurelyagainstleftcalf.

Varytheamountofpressureonthedrill.Beginwithonlyaslightamountandincreaseitasyoubecomemorecomfortable.Toomuchpressure,andthingswillwant to bind up and the string to begin slipping on the drill. Whenever this

happens,youmustletuponyourpressure,becausenomatterhowfastthebow’smoving, if thedrill isn’t spinning there’sno friction. Ifnot enoughpressure isapplied,nothingwillhappen.

Whenbeginning tomateanewdrill toanewhole(whatwe’redoinghere),there’ll be a certain amount of drillingwhere nothing seems to be happening.This can last from only several seconds to severalminutes, depending on thetype and the condition of thewood.At first the drillwill spin smoothly, as ifslidingonafreshlywaxedfloor.Thensuddenly,asthedrillandfireboardbeginto“mate,”itwillactasifyou’vegonefromthewaxedfloortosandpaper.Thisdifferenceyoufeel,andhear.

Now,controlandfeelbecomeall-important.Thedrill,whichtothispointwaseasytocontrol,suddenlybecomesmoredifficult.Youmayfindthatyouneedtoslightlytiltthewristholdingthebearingblockeversoslightlyonewayandthentheotherasyourunthebowbackandforth,soastokeepthedrillfromkickingoutofthehole.

Rightafterthetwomate,andthefirstsmokeanddustappear,IusuallytakeaquickbreakbeforeIgoafterthespark.Thisallowsmetocatchmybreathandrelax my muscles so that when I start up again I’m fresh. This often makesthingsabiteasier.

Atthispoint,bearinmindthattheholeisn’tyetdeepenoughtoholdthedrillonitsown.Itstillwilltakesomecareonyourparttokeepitfromkickingout.Now that the friction has begun, the drill is slightlymore difficult to control.You’ll feel this, in short order.Vary the amount of downward pressure on thedrilltocoincidewiththespeedofthebow.Youwilldevelopthefeel.

Here’sanotherveryimportanttip.Ihadmadefirethiswayfor11yearsbeforestumblingonto this technique, andnow I can’t imagine everhavingmade firesuccessfully, regularly, without having applied it. As mentioned before, thestringwillstretchwhileinuse.Agood,flexiblebowwillcompensateforalotof

this,buteventuallythestringwillbecomesoloosethatitslipsonthedrillwhenyou apply the proper amount of pressure. Once, just as the spark was aboutready, my string began slipping badly. Without thinking, I took the stringbetweenthefirsttwofingersandthethumbofthebowhandandtookupenoughslacksothatIwasabletosuccessfullyfinish.Now,anytimeItakeupthebow,thefingersandthumbjustnaturallywraponthestring(seephotobelow).

NotehowIusemythumbandfingerstocontrolstringtension.Usewhatever’smostcomfortableforyou.

If you concentrate on keeping the drill perpendicular—the leftwrist lockedtightlyagainst the left calf, thebow taking long, smooth strokes, the fireboardsteady and not wobbling—the spark will form of itself. First the smoke willbegin,thendustwillrise,thenheaviersmoke,andthedustwillgetblacker.Keepyourself relaxed and merely concentrate on the smoothness of the operation.Therewillbeaspark.

Oncethedrillandholemate,thesparkwillnormallybecreatedinlessthan30seconds. Once, timing myself, I had a spark in 10 seconds. If everything isworking,itdoesn’ttakelong.

Whenyouhaveyourspark(mostof the timeit’llbehidden—thedustpile’ssmokingisyoursign),carefullyliftawaythedrillandplaceitaside.There’snobig rush. I’ve left the smoldering dust for up to fourminuteswhile Iwent insearchoftinder,andstillhadafinecoal.Pickupthebarkorcardboardholdingthe spark, fan it somewithyourhand,blowgentlyon it, let any slightbreezehelp(notawindstrongenoughtoblowitaway,though).Whenitglows,dropitintoyourbird’snestoftinder.Foldthetinderoverthetopandbeginblowingthe

sparkmoreandmoreasitgetshotter.Suddenly…fire!

Noteblackdustandsmoke—asparkisthere.

Droppingitintothe“bird’snest”oftinder.

Blowingtindertoflame.

Addingthefirstofthefinestshavingsofkindling.

Adding larger kindling and adding larger pieces of wood. On wet days, theinsideofmostwoodswillbedry.Fromsparktogoodsolidfire(asinthisseriesofphotos) took less thanaminute,but toget thespark took longer thanusualbecauseofwetweatherandgustywinds.

WhenIfirstbeganmakingfirethisway,Ihadthetendencytowearmyselfoutbythetimethatthesparkwasformed.SomeoneelsehadtoblowitintoflamebecauseIwouldjustblowthewholedamnthingaway.Noneedforthis.Ifyouconcentrateonlyonthecontrolofthedrillandthesmoothoperationofthebow,takingextracaretoremindyourselftoremaincalmandrelaxed,thesparkwillformonitsownandyou’llbeleftfreshenoughtoeasilyblowthesparktoflame.Ifyou’regettingwinded,you’redoingsomethingwrong.

Manytimesitseemsthatnomatterwhatyoudo,asparksimplywon’tcomeintobeing.Thechancesofthishappeningseemtoriseproportionatelywiththesizeof thecrowd thatyou’redemonstrating this to.Butwhen—not if—you doget thatspark,whether it’s thefirstor thehundredth,cherishandglowwithit.It’s something that I never take for granted.Like calling coyotes, there are so

many things that can gowrong, yet each time it works I feel a real sense ofaccomplishment.

SomeObservationsonUsingtheBowDrill

Forthelastfewpassesofthebow,somefolksadvisethatyouapplyslightlylesspressureonthedrill, tokickoutthesparkthatmaybeunderit.Iusuallydon’tfindthisnecessary,butifunsureofthesparkIsometimesdoit.

IfIseemtohavedifficultygettingasurespark,Ioftenmakeseveralfuriouspasseswiththebowatthelast.Idon’tliketodothis,though,becauseithasthetendencytowindme.ThenI losecontrolof theoperationat thispointandthedrillkicksout,knockingawaythedustpile.

Usuallyyoucan tell that thesparkhasformed,becauseyou’llseeawispofsmokerisingfromthedust,separatefromthesmokecreatedbythedrill.

Onoccasion,theentirepileofdustwillsuddenlyglow—agoodsign!

Asingleholeinthefireboardiscapableofmanysparks.Beforeusingitagain,ithelpstoslightlyroughenthetipofthedrillandthehole.

Afterseveraluses,especiallywithtootightastring,thedrillwillbecometoo“round,”causingthestringtoslip.Thisisusuallyeasilycorrectedbycarefullyshavingittillit’sonceagainunround.

Earwax,oroilfromyourhairorthesideofyournose,willhelptoeliminatefrictioninthebearingblock.Alwaysrememberthatyou’reeliminatingfrictionatthebearingblock,andcreatingitatthefireboard.

Avoidplacingthewrongendofthedrillintothefireboard,asthatlittlebitofoilcanreallyfoulthingsup.

Underdampconditions,findandusethedriestwoodsavailable,andgetintothe driest location that you can towork. If thewood’s only damp, it can stillwork,butitwill takealotlonger.Thespinningdrilleventuallywilldrythingsenoughtowork,thoughyou’llhavealotofstrikesagainstyou.

Under primitive conditions, the hardest components to gather will be thestring(coveredlater)andthebearingblock.Sometimesyou’llfindaready-madeblock inastonewithprecisely therightdepression,butdon’tcounton it.Youmightfindapieceofbonethatwillwork(say,fromtheskullsofsmallcritters).Alsolookforapieceofhardwood,possiblycontainingaknotwithaslightholethatyoucaneasilyenlarge.Ifyoufindsomethingthatmightwork,youcanformorenlargetheholebyusingthebowordrill.Useahardpieceofwoodforthedrill(ormaybeyou’llbeluckyenoughtocomeupwitha“natural”rockdrill),definitely something harder than the block material. Ingenuity and commonsensehelpalot.

HandDrill

Notehowcordagehas“rounded”thedrill.

Thedrillhasbeenshaved“unround”andatipformedforstartinganewhole.

Tonowexplaintoyouhowtomakefirewiththehanddrillwillbesimple—atleastintheory.Inpractice,though,you’llbefacedwithamuchgreaterchallengethan the bow or drill. The basic principle remains the same: to create frictionwithawoodendrillonafireboard.Thespinningof thedrill, thefireboard, thenotch,thedust,andthespark—allseemsomewhatthesame.But…

PartsofaHandDrill

DRILL—Thematerial foruseherediffers little fromwhatwecovered for thebowdrill,exceptthatbecauseoftheextradifficultyincreatingfrictionhereyouneedtobemorechoosy.Theideallengthofahanddrill,formylengtharms,isabout 18” to 24”. I usually begin with a few inches longer, as this shortensquickly.Toolongadrillandthetophasatendencytowhiparound,causingyoutolosecontrol(somuchmoreimportanthere).Tooshort,andyoudon’tgetthefullbenefitofalongdownwardrunofthehandsbeforehavingtoreturntothetoponceagain.Ipreferadiameterofabout1/4”,togainmorerevolutionsofthedrillforeachsweepofthehands(adrillthat’stoothinandlimberwillbendfromthehands’downwardpressure).

FIREBOARD—Again,thebasictypeisthesameasforthebowordrill.I’dbeen having trouble catching a spark, when someone suggested a fireboardthinnerthantheoneI’dbeenusing.WhenIcutdownthecottonwoodboardthatIhadbeenusingtoabout1/4”to3/8”,thingsimproved.Withthesofteryucca,Istillkeeptheboardabout1/2”thick.Withthehanddrill,IbeginthedepressionandholebeforeIcutthenotch.Ialsocutthenotchslightlydifferentthanforthebowdrill. I keep it closed at the top, flaring it open toward thebottomof thefireboard (notephotosonpage20). I find that thedrillhascut theholebelowthis point before things get hot enough tomatter, and that the closed top thenforcesmoreofthehotdustintothenotch,ratherthanlettingitspilloverthetop.

Notethatthelast11/2”ofthiscattailhanddrillwasslightlyshaved,toremovesomebutnotalloftheoutershell.

UsingYourHandDrill

Toputthisinaction,getintoacomfortableposition.Myleftfootagainholdsthefireboard,butyourpositionmaynotbethesame.Forme,it’sslightlydifferent.Ineed to place the foot out a bit further and drop my knee out of the waysomewhat,sothatIcangetagoodfullrunofmyhandsdownthelengthofthedrill.Iusethesideofmyheeltoholdtheboard.Yourhandsmustcomedownstraight. Youmust keep the drill perpendicular. By placingmy foot and kneeslightlydifferentthanforthebowdrill,I’mabletostartmyhands“rubbing”atthe highest comfortable point (inmy case, 24”) and to keep them going to apointabout6”abovethefireboard.Onceyoureachthelowestpoint,raiseyourhandsagain to the toponeata time, so thatyoucankeepconstant downwardpressure on the drill. If any air is allowed to reach under the drill, it coolseverything off. Once both hands are up, repeat the procedure. Eventually thesmoke,dust,andsparkwillappear—thoughnotallthateasily.

This procedure will wear you out, I assure you. A completely new set ofmusclesisatworkhere.Afteryou’vedonethisfor45secondsorso,you’llfeelasifyou’veruntheBostonMarathon,yetusingyourarmsinsteadofyourlegs.It’sstrenuousandittakesalotofpracticetogetthisoperationdownsmoothly,whichitmustbetobesuccessful.Isuggestthatyoudoalotofpracticingbeforeyou even think “fire.” This is a bit more complicated than chewing tobaccowhilewalking.Hereyoumustalsojuggle.Itdoestakepractice,notonlytogeteverything running smoothly, but also to get yourself into some semblance ofphysicalwell-being.Thisdoessapyourenergies.(Anyhow,itdoesmine.)Italsocreatesblistersonthepalmofyourhands,whicheventuallywillturntocallusesifworked at long enough. It tookmewell over amonth of dailyworkouts todevelopagoodsetofcalluses,whichafour-weekvacationof“cityliving”tookaway.

SomeObservationsonUsingtheHandDrill

Whenyoufirstattemptmakingfirewithahanddrill,Isuggestgoingslow.Getthe movements down to where everything runs smoothly and automatically.Your hands clasp the drill at the top, you rub the drill between your palms(keepingconstant downward pressure), you keep the drill perpendicular at alltimes,whenyourhandsreachthebottomyougraspthedrillwiththelefthand’sthumbandforefinger,youraisetherighthandtothetopandholdthedrillfirmlywhile the left hand comes back up (thanks, Bob!), then repeat…repeat…andrepeat. Over and over, slowly at first, and then speed up as it becomesmorenaturaltoyou.Speedanddownwardpressureareall-important.

Freshcattailhanddrilltipanddepressioninfireboard.

Thehole isbegun.Notecarefullyhownotch iscut.Acattaildrillandayuccafireboardareeasyforthehanddrill.

Spittingonyour hands helps retain a little extra “grip” on the drill (thanks,Bryan!),allowingafewmorespinsbeforeyourhandsreachbottom.Alwaysputthethickestendofthedrilldown,asthiskindaslowsthehands’tripdownwardalso.

Mymostcommonlyuseddrillsarestemsofcattailormullein(thanks,Dick!).Mostofthesestalksarejustslightlybent,though.Theymustbestraight,sobeselective.Iknowofonewoodsmanwhousesonlywillow.Sinceanidealdrillissometimesdifficulttofind,agoodideaistomakeyourdrillbeforehandoutofwhateverwoodyoulike(IpreferthedogwoodthatIuseforarrowshafts),thenspliceatipofyourchoicefortheworkingend(seephotosopposite).

Ifindthattheoutershellatthebaseofthecattailisjustenoughtougherthantheinnerportionthatittendstowearfasterattheouteredges,leavingaholethatlookslikeananthill.Itwon’tworkthisway.Tocompensateforthis,mosttimesI’llfinditnecessarytoslightlyshavetheoutside.Thistakespracticetoremovepreciselytherightamount.Furtherupthestem,Idon’tfindthisproblem.

Hand drill spliced to receive a softer tip (here yucca). Splice wrapped withsinew,showinghow tohide looseends.Justpull theright-handstringand thenoosewillpulltight.

Splicedtipreadyforservice.

Thisisdifficultformetoexplain,andprobablymoredifficultformanyofyoutounderstand,butbeforemy first sparks arrivedwith thehanddrill (they stilldon’tcomewithregularity)mymindandbodybecame“one”withthedrillandfireboard!Youmayormaynotexperiencethesame,butthishashappenedinallcaseswhenI’vesuccessfullygottenasparkwiththehanddrill.

Byusingalongerdrillandsuperbteamwork,twopeoplecanmakethiseasierbykeepingthedrillspinningconstantly.Ittakestwoworkinginharmony—onesetofhandspickingupthedrillingatthetoppreciselywhentheothersetleavesoffatthebottom.

Another two-person variation that I’ve come upwith (I haven’t heard or seenthisanywhereelse),thisisbyfartheeasiestofthehanddrillmethodsthatI’veworked.Useabearingblockandhaveonepersonapplythedownwardpressure.Theotherspinsthedrillvigorously,instructingthe“bearer”howmuchpressureto apply. The spinner, not having to apply the downward pressure, isn’texhaustedsoeasily,enablingthesparktobequicklymade.

Cordage

To me, any description of the use of the bow/drill that doesn’t include themakingofcordageisincomplete.Suchacommonthingasapieceofstringjustisn’t always inyourpocketswhenyoumaybe inneedof fire, especially in asurvivalsituation.Andwhenyoumostneedthisfire(inwintercoldanddamp),youdon’treallywanttotearyourclothinguptomakeastring.Evenifyoudid,youmay not know enough about how to prepare it to keep it from breakingunderthestressyou’dplaceonitwhenusingthebowanddrill.

Hemp cordage still attached to the unprepared strip. Stinging nettle cordage.Thispiece“madefire”withthebowanddrill.

Thissectionwillteachyouhowtomakeusablecordageofthekindthat’sable

towithstandtheuseofthebowanddrill.I’vepersonallyusedthecordagetypesthatIstatearesuitableforthis.I’llalsomentionbynameothersthatI’veheardorreadaboutbutnottestedmyself.Somereadersofthisbookarelikelytohavewiththemcertainvaluableitems(handkerchief,dogfur,humanhair)inthemostprimitive situation, and may find others commonly afield. For additionalsources, once you’ve soaked up the information contained herein, you canexperiment,lettingyourimaginationbeyourlimit.

Black and white strands hanging from fingers. Twisting the blacks tightclockwiseforabout1/2”andthentwistingthatcounterclockwiseoverthewhitesandtwistingthewhitesclockwise.Bycontinuingthissimpleprocessyouendupwithcordage.

MakingCordage

I’ll attempt to describe this simple craft by words—something not so simplydone.I’llalsousephotosofmyown,sinceI’mmoreadeptattakingthemthanatarrangingwords.

Let’sbegin.Takeseveralstrandsofthread;anykindorsizewillwork.Let’sjustmakethem3’longforthisdemonstration.Laythemoutonaflatsurfaceanduseamagicmarker(oranythingsimilar)anddyethestrandsblackordarkforonethirdoftheirlength(that’s1’,folks).Youdon’thavetodyethem;thecolorisaddedsimplytomaketheprocessmoreunderstandableonthistrialrun.Pickthis bunch of strands up at the point where the dye begins. Now, you havehangingfromyourfingerstwolengthsofstrands,onebeing2’longandwhite,theother1’ longandblack.Correct?Youright-handersholdthembetweenthethumbandforefingerofyour lefthand.Let’ssaythat theshorterblackstrandsare now the ones uppermost in your grip. Begin with these (my reference totheseindividualstrandswillnowbereferencestoeithertheblackorthewhite—stillwithme?).Now, take theseblack strandsand twist them tightly clockwise(that’s to your right) for 1/2” or so. Twist the now-twisted black strandscounterclockwise,overtheyet-untwistedwhites;holdthemsecurely.Now,twistthewhitesclockwiseandtwistthatovertheblackscounterclockwise.You’llfindyourselfalwaysworkingthetopbundleastheyswitchplaces.

That’sit—theentiresecret.Justkeepdoingthistillyou’rewithinafewinchesof theendofa strand,andsplice inmore, tocontinue foras longasyou like.(See photos on page 27.) Keep the splices at different intervals on the twosections,tokeepthewholestronger.Constantsplicingoffewfibersmakesforastronger whole. The twisting clockwise of the individual strands and twistingthemcounterclockwiseintoonestrandisthewaytodoit.Thecontrarytwistingholdsthewholedamnthingtogether.It’saverysimpleconcept—tillonetriestoputitintowords.

With this knowledge, your life in thewilds takes on a newdimension.Youdon’thavetothinkforverylongbeforethepossibleapplicationsstartforminginyourmind.Fromthreadstoropes,thelistofusesforcordageisendless.

Cordagematerialsneedtobestrongenoughforthetaskathand,butalsomustbepliable.Althoughdrygrasswouldcertainlybestrongenoughforthebowordrill(aswellasnumerousotheruses),itsbrittlenessmakesitunusable.Itwouldbreakimmediatelyjusttyingaknot.

We’ll begin with what you’re likely to have with you when thrown into asurvival situation: a neckerchief or scarf, or something similar. Tear this intostripsapproximately1”wide(anormalneckerchiefisabout18”square).Pickupthe first strip as with the fibers (in thirds) and begin the twisting action asdescribedabove.Whenreachingtheendofonestrip,Itearthelast2”intothirds(alsowith thenew spliced-in strand) to help interlock the splice, andon I go.WhenIreached31/2’withthekerchiefIwasworking,Iquitwith5stripsleftover. (See bottom photo opposite.) The advantage to being able to use thistechnique is that in a survival situation youmight have access to aT-shirt, orsomebandagesfromafirstaidkit.Thelistofpossibilitiesgoeson.

If you’re lucky enough to get lostwith a furry critter, somuch the better. IworkedwiththeunderfurofadogandfoundthatIhadanunlimitedsupplyonhand.Itwasn’tallthatdifficulttogetthehangofworkingwithit,either,thoughdifferentthanthelongerfibersI’mmoreaccustomedto.

In a fewhours, I endedupwith agood solid ropeabout31/2’ long.Whenmakingfirewiththefur,though,Ifoundthatitstretchedeasilyandslippedbadlyonthedrill, tillIwettedit—thenitworkedlikeacharm.Youmightalsocomeacross the carcass of a furbearer (coon, coyote, and the like) where enoughleftoverfurmightbelyingaround.(Seephotosonpage28.)

Somethingthatmostpeoplewillhavewiththemisasupplyofhair.Ifthingsgot tight, you could cut your own. This works well. I ended up with a good

strong rope in little time (notmyown—donatedbyMargie’sCountry Image).ThehairthatIworkedwithwasabout6”to8”long,thoughabitshorterwouldalsowork.Again,it’seasiertoworkwithifwettedfirst.

PlantsforCordage

Thelistoffibrousplantsthatcanbeusedforcordageislong.Iwon’tcoverthemall,asIdon’tknowthemall.I’veneverworkedwithdogbane(alsocalledIndianhemp),whichI’veheardisaboutthebestplantaround.

Stinging nettle, velvetleaf, and hemp (marijuana) are three similar, widelydistributed, and common plants (weeds?). All make a good, strong cordageeasilycapableofwithstandingthestressofthebowanddrill.Usingdriedplants,I takea rounded rockand lightlypound them tobreak the stalk,and then tearthisintostrips(roughlythirds).Ithenbeginatthetopoftheplant,“break”theinnermaterial,andthen“strip”theouterlayerloose.

Additionalfibersreadytosplicein.

Halfwayspliced.

Thefinishedsplice.

Cordagefromneckerchiefstrips.

I follow down the plant, breaking and stripping about every inch (this worksbetter than just stripping the outer fibers, whichwill tear easily). (See photosopposite.) I endwith a rough strip,maybe21/2’ to3’ long.This I gently rollbetweenmyfingersormypalmstoseparatethefibersandtoremovethechaff.WhatIendupwithissuitableforcording.

Dogfur.

Humanhair.

Theleafof theyuccagivesastrongfiber that’salsoeasytowork.Itcanbeused either greenor dried.With theyucca leaf, the fibers are inside.Take thedried leafandbeat itgently toseparate thefiberssome.Thishelps it tosoftenfasterwhilesoaking.Thensoakthepoundedleavestillsupple.Whenyouryuccaispartlyorfullygreen,takearoundedknifeblade(flintorotherwise)andscrapethe outer covering from both sides (the soaking makes this easier with driedleaves).Thenworkthefibersloosebyrubbingbackandforthwithyourfingers.Superbcordagematerial.

Gentlypoundingthestalk.

Pullingthestalkofdogbaneapart.

Breakingtheinnerstalkandstrippingitfromthefibers.

You can come up with additional usable fibers with only a littleexperimenting. When in the timber or fields, just grab different weeds andgrassesasyougoalong,breakthem,andtrytoseparatethefibers.Iftheyhang

together instrips, tryusing them.Grasswillworkandcanbe fashioned intoagreat rough cordage suitable for baskets, mats, or insulating liners to wintercamps.

Whileonthesubjectofplants, let’snotforgettreebarks.Theinnerbarksofmanyarefibrousandworksuperbly,aswiththefibrousplants.Cedarmakesafastthoughweakcord.Lookaroundabitinyourareatofindwhat’savailable.Notoftenthoughtof,theinnerorouternonfibrousbarksofmosttreeswillworkwellalso,especiallyfortheemergencybowordrill.WhatIusedinmytestwastheinnerbarkoftheOsageorange(Iwasdebarkingbowstaves).Firstremovingtheroughouterbark,Ithencarefullywithdrewthinstripsofthenextlayer.Theaverage length I endedupwithwas about 3’, a super-good length. I cut thesedown to about 1/4” widths and shaved them till about 1/16” thick. ThisindividualstripIthenusedasIwouldabunchofstrands,twistingaway.WhenIreachedtheendofastrip,Icutabout21/2”oftheendstospliceintomymanythin threads,andcontinuedon.Thismadeoneof thebest quickiebowordrillstrings that I’ve worked with (besidesmaybe rawhide). Once dried, it wasn’tworthadamn—toostiffandbrittle,plusyoucan’tcorditwhendry.Butwhenwet(green),superb!Caution:Whenusingthebarkfromanylivetree,though,dosoonlyinanemergency,asitdamagesthetree(andcouldevenkillit).Ifit’snecessary to use a live tree, take individual strips of bark from several. Thishelps to ensure the life of the tree. It alsowould be better for the tree if youstrippedthebarkfromthebranches.

Scrapingofftheoutercoveringoftheyuccaleaf.

Thespiny-tippedwildyuccaplant.

Solidpieceofbarkreadytosplice.

Splicehalfwayworked.

Finished.

AnimalMaterialforCordage

Now, let’s discuss some animalmaterial. Sinew (tendons) supply some of thestrongestcordageavailable.Ananimalisloadedwithsinewinvariouslengths.Thelongestandtheeasiesttoworkwitharethelongstripsrunningdowneitherside of the backbone (silver colored, lying on top of the meat, running fromundertheshouldertothehip).Sinewismosteasilyremovedwithadullknife,topreventaccidentallycutting it.Scrape itcleanand then lay itout flat todry. Itworks easiest if dried first, then broken and separated into threads of theappropriate size, and finallywetted again before cording.The resulting strongcordagewasthemostcommonoftheIndianbowstrings.Theshortertendonsofthe legs are also usable, only not as easily since they’re shorter and thicker,whichmakesthemhardertoseparateandworkwith.

Deerrawhidecut1/4”wide.

Aftersoaking,doubling,andtwisting,thenstretchedtodry.

RawhideforCordage

Rawhide is another good cordage material. It’s best used after it’s dried,primarilybecausedryingeliminatesstretching(notethatI’mstill talkingstringforthebowordrill!).Withrawhide,Idon’tactually“cord”it.Instead,Idoubleitandtwist itupfairlytight,stretchingitandtyingitoffatbothendstodry.Ifindthatthedoubling,twisting,andstretchingeliminatethestretchingwhileinuse(Iusethisforbowstrings);addstrength;andalsohelptherawhidetogripthedrill better. I cut the deer rawhide 1/4”wide, awidth that seems to be plentystrong enough. I’ve shot up to several dozen arrows through 55-to 60-poundbowsthatI’vemade,andhaveyettohaveonerawhidestringbreak.

Wildweeds:velvetleafandhemp.

I once took a squirrel skin and cut it in a circular strip about 1/2” wide,

leavingthehairon(asifunderaprimitivesituation).ThenItwistedittight,butnotdoublingit,andmadefirewithittheveryfirsttime.(Ihadtroublekeepingittied to the bow, becausewith the hair on and the skin green, the knots didn’twant to work all that well.) The string, as would any green or wet rawhide,stretchedbadlyandtookmuchfingercontroltokeeptakinguptheslack.Also,after thefirstfire,Iwasunabletousethesamedrill tillafter ithaddried.Themoisture fromtheskingot thedrill sowet that itdidnothingbutslip.Once itwasdriedagain,though,Ihadnotrouble.

Butenoughaboutcordage.You’venowgotsufficient information togoout,identifycertainusableplantsandothermaterials,workwiththem,andputthemto your use. You also have learned enough to be able to search out andexperiment,tocomeupwithmanymore.Thisisnotanexactscience.Justbearinmindtheimportantrulesoflengthandpliabilityofthematerialused.

ACouplaFireMakingTips

KennieSherronofPoncaCity,Oklahoma,sentmethefollowingtwofiremakingideas.Theywilladdgreatlytothemethodsexplainedinthischapter.

Afiredrill,asKenniedescribesit,fortheIndianwhohasitall.Madefromdeerleg bone, it’s squarish and will never “round.” The bone being hollow, it’sreinforcedatbothendstopreventsplitting(herewithrawhide).Thepieceshownispermanent,tofitintothebearingblock.Thelowerpiece,pulledouthere,isareplaceablesofttip.WhenIfirstgotthisinthemail,Ijustkindaputitaside,butcarrieditalongforshow-and-tell.Well,atonesetofdemosweactuallyranoutofusabledrillsneartheendofthesecondday,aftermorethanahundred-plusfires.Butwedidhavesomeshortpiecesofyucca,andsogavethisatry.Iknewthat it wouldwork but was unprepared for how well it worked. The squarishbonespinslikeachampinthebow,andtheextraweightoftheoveralldrillgavememuchbettercontrol.And,mostimportantly,wenowhadenoughfiredrilltipsforseveralhundredmorefires.Ilikeit!

Another,probablymoreimportant,tipforafiremakerlackingahelper:thisoneforthehanddrill,whoseuse,evenunderthebestcircumstances,isnevereasy.It’sapieceofcordage(or,asillustratedhere,astripofbrain-tannedbuckskin)withslitscutforthethumbs,tiedtotheupperendofthedrill(andalsotiedoverit, in most cases). The thumbs placed in the slits provide constant downwardpressure,lettingyouconstantlyspinthedrill.Makesstartingafirealmosteasy,

andgreatlyincreasedmysuccesses.

Chapter2

PrimitiveTools—MakingandUsingThem

Forthemostpart,inthisbookwewillbeusingmoderntoolstoshowyouhowtomaintainlifeinasurvivalorwildernesssituation.But,youmightask,“What’sthepurposeoflearningacompleteseriesofprimitivewildernesslivingskillsifIhavetoresorttomoderntechnologytoaccomplishthem?”

Greatquestion.Wefeelthatthebestwayistolearntheskillsthemselves,thenlearn how to do them the hard way, this time using primitive tools andimplements.

Hardway?Asyou’llseeinthischapter,“hard”isthewrongterm.“Different”isabetterword.Differentandmoretime-consuming.Butinadaptingprimitiveto our modern lifestyles, aren’t we trying to get away a little from the time-consuming, overly complicated, highly mechanized, and artificially poweredtasksofordinarylife?

Ofcourse,youcanreaduponanyofthesesubjectsinavarietyofreferencebooks,andwatchallkindsofdemonstrationsthatyoumayfindontheInternet.But if you don’t just jump right in there and apply yourself, nothing’s gonnahappen.

Learningtomakeanduseprimitivetoolsinaday-to-daysituationreallyisn’thard.Still,wefeel that ifyou’retryingtolearntomastertoolmakingwhileatthe same timechangingyour accepted approach tousing such tools, you’ll bespending a lot of extra time and encounteringmuch frustration.Therefore,weteachtheskillsfirst,andthenweteachhowtoaccomplishthemwithprimitivetools.Asyou’llsee,eventuallyitallnaturallytiestogether.

Butwhatdowemeanby“tools”?Ourhandsaretools,aren’tthey?Isupposethat,forourdefinition,herewe’llbemakingtoolsforourhandstousetodotheprojectsthatwe’llbecovering.Thatwillprettymuchencompassanyprojectthatyou’relikelytohappenuponinaprimitivesituation.Therearethreeimportantpointsabouttools:

Toolsneed tobemadefrommaterials thatcanbe found innature:stone,shell,bone,antler,horn,wood,andsoforth.

Just what do we need these tools to do? Gouge or poke, chop,pound, bash, split, and (most important) cut. Put yourself in a primitivesituationwithoutacuttingimplementofsomesort,andyouwon’tdoverywell.

Methodsofmanufactureincludeflintknap,peck,grind,andburn.

NowI’lltrytobreakthisdownintosomesemblanceoforder.

First and most importantly, you need some type of cutting tool—a pocketknife,sotospeak.Thinkaboutalltheprojectsthatyoudo,orwouldliketodo,ormighthavetodo,inyourdailyregimeinthewilds,andwhattoolwillbethemostimportant?Acuttingtool.Let’sbeginwiththat.

BasicFlintknapping

Now,don’tlookatsomeofthephotosinthischapteroffinebladesandputthebookdown,thinking“Icanneverdothis.”Youmayberight,maybeyoucan’t.Butthetoolthatyou’regoingtoneedtocutandchopyourwayintooroutofthewoodsisindeedwithinyourgrasp.Readon.

A lothasbeen taught, and some littlewritten, about flintknapping,which isthe art of systematically turning stone, particularly flint, into functional tools.(“Knap”simplymeanstobreakwithaquickblow.)Someofwhatwe’veseeninprint is good, a little ofwhatwe’ve read is very good, butmost is just trash.Almostnothinggenerallyavailableto thestudentofprimitivewildernessskillsattends to the very basics, themost important aspect of knapping: that is, theobtainingofthespallorflakeeithertobeusedasisforthetoolortobeturnedintoa tool.This firstbasic functionofspalling,calledmaking theflake, is themost importantpartofknapping.Without ityoucan travelno further.With it,there’snothingmoreyouneedtoknow.

Most certainly we’ve had help from others in learning what knapping weknow,butwe’vefoundthateventhemostwillingofteachersweren’tansweringthequestionsthatwedidn’tevenknowweneededtoask.Allwhoknapcertainlypossesssomegraspofwhattheprinciplesarebutthey(1)weren’tconsciousofwhat theyweredoing(it justcamenaturally,anditworked),or(2) theydidn’tknowhowtopresentwhattheyweredoing,or(3)theyhadadvancedsofarthattheyhadforgottentheimportanceofthebasics.

Agoodmanymodernflintknappershavelearnedtheirskillsbackward,doingthelaststepfirst.IknowthatIdid.Herewestartatthebeginning,

Wear eye protection when working stone. It doesn’t take but onemisdirectedsharpedgetoeliminatesight.

Don’tbreathethedust.Everytimethatyouremoveaflakefromthe

stone,you’llcreatedust.Once in the lungs, it cutsandcreates scar tissuethatwillbethereforever.Itdoesn’tgoaway,likewhenyouquitsmoking.Those tiny razor blades do some serious cutting. And the resulting scartissuewilleventuallykillyouifyoubreatheenoughofthedustoveralongenoughtime(think“silicosis”).Beawarethatthedustnotonlyisintheair,butalsogetsintoyourclothingandwhatever.Bestnottodoyourflakinginthehousebut insteaddo it outside, letting thewind clear the air for you.Mostdustmaskswon’twork;somewillhelpabit(somethingisbetterthannothing).

You’regoingtocutyourself,sokeepasupplyofbandageshandy.Ifyou wish, wear gloves or use a piece of leather while holding the stoneyou’reworkingwith.Wedon’tdo this anymore,butweoccasionally stillcut ourselves.Also, be cautious ofwhere the falling flakewill land. I’vemore than once driven a flake intomy leg.Be cautious andyou’ll be allright.

Don’t flintknap (especially theadvancedblades) in thecompanyofthosewithsensitiveears.Theaccompanyinglanguageissimilartothatofautomechanics.

Fancy blades, yes. But in our actual primitive workings they account forprobablylessthan5percentoftheactualworkload.Theseeasilymadeflakesdothemajority.

Thefunctional,simple,easy-to-learn,easy-to-make,one-blowtool.

Safety

Pleasetakecaretofollowthesesafetyprecautionswhendoinganysortofflintknapping.Youhaveonlytwoeyes,andonepairoflungs,andthenormalsetoflimbs—andyou’llwanttoprotectallofthem.

Flint

Justwhatisflint?Well,accordingtothedictionary,flintisaformofquartzite.Thedescriptionofquartziteisabitmorecomplicated,soI’llsimplify.I’lllumpallthestonethatwe’llwork“flintlike”intoonecategoryandcallitflint.Asfaras I know, there are only two sources of true flint in the United States:Georgetown flint, fromTexas; andWhiteRiver flint, fromSouthDakota.Therestarecherts,jaspers,chalcedonies,agates,andplainoldquartz.Tomywayofthinking (here goes my theorizing again!), most all of these are just variousstagesofdevelopmentorqualityofquartzite(ascoalistodiamonds).Quartzitecobblesareprettycommon,nearlyascloseasyourlocalstreambedorroadcut.Generally,thebetter-qualityflintsaresmoothandhaveasheen.Thepooreronesare more grainy (as in sandy). Most have an outer coating, sort of like alimestone covering, called the cortex (“cortex” is the commonly used term,though“corticose”isthemoreproper).Cortexesvaryinworkability.Somecanbeleftonandusedwiththetool,butothersaretoocrumblyandwon’tdothejobat hand. The cortex can hide the flint underneath, so you’ll need to do someexperimentingtofindoutjustwhat’swhat(applyingtherulesthatfollow).

First, cobble of Dover chert from Tennessee; light brown inside, dark browncortex.Next,cobbleofchert fromflinthillsofKansas;white limestonecortex,

darkbluebandedringofhigh-qualitychertwithlightercoloredinterioroflesserquality.Third,lensofkniferiverflint(chalcedony)fromNorthDakota,rootbeercoloredandtranslucent;white,hard,smoothcortex.

Many of you are familiar with obsidian that’s used in the making of“arrowheads” and other tools.Obsidian is alsoworkable under the same rulesthat follow. It’s simply natural glassmade by volcanic action.Obsidian is theeasiest of these materials to work, it gives the sharpest edge known to ushumans, and it’s great for beginners and advanced knappers alike. Itsdrawbacks? It’s quite brittle and extremely dangerous (thousands of tiny dustrazor blades to be breathed into your lungs or stuck into your various bodyparts).Manyflintknapperswhohaven’tworkedobsidiankindaknockthosewhodoworkwithitbecauseofitseaseofworkability,butmostofthoseknockingitwouldn’t be able to turn out a fine, thin, long blade from obsidian withoutbreaking it first. In this book we’ll call it all “flint” and ignore the obsidian,thoughtheprinciplesarethesame.

Onequality that all these rockspossess is that they’rehomogeneous (of thesamecomposition throughout).Simplyput, they’re all one, there’s nograin tothem(unlikethegraininwood),andenergywilltravelequallyinanydirectionthatit’sdirected.

TechniquesofWorkingFlint

You can predictably remove flakes from a stone in three generally acceptedways.Allthreehavesimilar,butdifferent,rules:

Direct percussion, where you hit the parent rock directly withanotherrock,anantler,orawoodbillet(ashort,stoutpieceofwood).

Indirectpercussion,whereyouplaceabluntpointedtool(suchasanantlertine)atthepointofremovalofflakefromtheparentrock,thenstrikethiswithabillet.

Pressure flaking,whenyouplace theantler (orwood tool) againsttheparentpieceandremoveaflakebyapplyingpressure.

Here we’ll work primarily with the basic direct percussion method, justtouchingonpressure flaking as ameans of resharpening.Pressure flaking canalsocomeinhandyinplatformpreparation.

With direct percussion what we’re doing is striking one rock with another(wood, antler, and bone are some other tools that can be used).Now, for ourpurposes,almostanyrockwillsufficeasahammerstone,eventhesameasthecore,butthisisn’trecommended.Thebettercaseistouseasand-typestone,butnotsomecrumblyoldpiece.Itshouldgriptheplatform(definedbelow)forjustamicrosecond to allow the energy to be released smoothly and yet be strongenoughtotaketheabuse.Thehammerstonedeformsasthecorebitesintoit.Thehardertheflint,thehardershouldbethehammerstone.

Toremovelargeflakesfromalargenodule,you’llneedalargehammerstone.Iprefertoworkwithafist-sizedandsmallerhammerstoneformygeneralwork,as this fits comfortably inmy hand and seems easier forme. The smaller thehammerstone, themore force necessary for flake removal; and themore forceexerted,thelesstheaccuracy.Andaccuracyisimportant.You’lldiscoverthatiftherockisproperlystruck,theflakewillseparateeasily.

Rules

Tomakefinelyflaked,long,thinblades,youfirstmustlearnmany,manyrulesandhave(usually)yearsofexperience.Inorderforyoutomakethestonetoolnecessarytoperformthefunctionsoutlinedearlier,youneedtoknowonlytworules.Withthem,youcanbeturningouttools(flakes)almostimmediately.Thishasbeenarguedbyoneof thecountry’s foremostknappers,but Ihaveprovedhimwrongmanytimes.Infact,afteronesessionIconductedof45minutesorso,3ofthe15studentspresentweredoingjustthat—andtheywereonaverage11yearsold!Therestdidn’tseemtocare.

Tworules.Payattention,now.Yourpracticewillbeyourfinished tool.Tworules(Irepeatmyselfpurposely),onemoreimportantthantheother:(1)thecone(angle),and(2)theplatform.Theconeisthemoreimportant.

The cone determines how rock will break when struck. Flint breaksconchoidally.Theinstantthataforcestrikesthesurfaceoftheflint,theenergyistransmitted into a cone radiating at about 120°. The break in the stone prettymuchfollowsthiscone.Thesignificanceoftheconeisthatitdeterminesatwhatangleandwhereyoumuststrikeablowinordertoremoveaparticularchunkofstone.

The platform is the surface that the blow is delivered to. It must have aparticularshape,ortheblowwillbeineffective.Theplatformcan’tbecrumblyor fragile. If it is, the stone will crumble when struck, rather than fracturecleanly.Theplatformistheedgeofthestoneforminganangleoflessthan90°.Theimportanceoftheplatformisthatitdetermineswhetherornotablowwillproduceaflakeatall.Youcanbeatalldayonanobtuseangle(morethan90°)andnotproduceapredictableflake,oryoucanstrikeaweakplatformandruinit.Notevariousplatformsinthefollowingtextandphotos.

You can know only the concept of the cone and produce tools, or you canknowonlytheplatformandnotproduceany.Knowandbeproficientwithboth,andyou’llbeabeginningflintknapper.You’llbeable toremoveflakesfromastone inapredictablemanner.Conversely,you’llbeable topredictwhat’s leftbehindafteryourworkisdone.You’llbeincontrol.

Each time you remove a flake, you need to prepare a newplatform for theremoval of another flake from the same area.At each stage, before a blow isstruck,youneedtostudytherockandaskyourselfwhatmustbetheangleoftheblowtothecoretoremoveatargetedflake,andthenyoumustensureyourselfofagood,solidstrikingsurface(platform).

The cone—the all-important cone. All knappers are well aware that it’s aphysicallawthatyoucan’tflintknapwithoutsomeknowledgeofthecone.Thereare literallyhundredsof rules thatmustbefollowed in thecourseofadvancedflintknapping (not covered in this book), but you’ll find that a good share ofthemaredictatedbecauseofthecone.

Remember,thelineofforceisn’tastraightcleavage,likesplittingablockofwoodwithanax;rather,it’sacircularcone(notephotos).Thislineofforce,asitwere,Ican’tstresstoyouenough.OnceyoubecomeawareofwhatitisthatI’msaying,alittlelightinyourheadwillflasha“Bingo!”signandyou’llfindyourselfwithadamngoodcomprehensionofwhat’shappening.Likemostotherprimitive skills, there’s nomagical formula—just regular lawsof physics that,onceunderstood(alongwithlotsofpractice),willenableyoutobeincharge.

Whenstrikingablade fromacore, thenatural tendency is towant tostrike inline with the intended blade to be removed. Due to the conchoidal fractureprinciple,theenergywillthengotoodeeplyintothestone;youwantittomoreorless“skimthesurface.”

Notethatwhentheanglereachesorbecomesgreaterthan90°,theenergyrunstoodeeplyintothestoneforflakeremoval.

Notetheanglethatthecoreisheldinrelationtotheblow.(Mostbeginnerstendto not compensate enough.) The correct angle is pretty severe. Note how theflaketendstonaturallycurveoutwardfromtheconeandintothecore.Notethesurface(theplatform)that’sstruckbythehammerstone;it’ssolid,withnoweakoverhangs.

Thatworkedsowell, let’sdo itagain!Really, this isall-important.Notice thatwe’reremovingflakesfromroundedareasorcorners(there’sareasonforthis,

whichI’llexplainshortly).Noteonceagainthestrikingsurface(theplatform).

This set of photos illustrates the removal of thin and thick blades—thin forsurgical slicing, thick for scraping or chopping. Note that the angle andplacement of blow are the determining factors. The angle here shows clearly.Blowplacementshouldbeclosertotheedgeforthin,furtherinforthicker.

Oops!Toosevereanangle.

Tryagainontheothercorner,andgetbetterresults.

A wide, long, thin blade is removed by striking nearer the edge but further“around the corner” into the straight plane and holding the core at a moreextremeangle.Theresult:asharpblade(right)butonethatwilldulleasily.

Theedgeisresharpenedbypressureflaking,hereusingaroundedpieceofhard,deaddogwood.Pressure flaking is the finalphaseof flintknapping.Pressure isappliedtothepiecetillaflakepopsoffintheoppositeside.Herewoodisused.Antlerorbonemakeforbettertools.Toprotectthehand,aleatherpadisused.Theresultingsharpenededge.

A natural lens of chert. The cortex in this instance is crumbly, so its edge isneithersharpnordurable.Weremoveaseriesofflakestogiveusabetteredge.Notethatthistoolisusedmuchthroughoutthischapteronvariousprojects.

The two photos above accentuate well the cone-shaped flake. This isaccomplished by striking a bit farther back on the platform and allowing theenergytoflowdeeperintothestonebynotanglingitquitesomuch.Thisgivesamoresolid-edgedtoolforscrapingandchopping.

Goodexamplesofaverage,workingflaketools.“Inside”oftheflakes,withthesidesremovedfromnexttothecore.Theloweristheendthatwasstruck.Sideviewsof thesame flakes, the left sidebeing theside“struck” (platform).Notethatnolinesarestraight.Thelineofforce,asittravels,tendstobendoutward,awayfromthelineofinitialforce(cone)andintotheparentrock(core).

Firstthreephotosillustratewellwhyacornerorroundedfaceisnecessaryforpredictableflakeremoval.Themassofthecoresimplyholdsontotheflake.Thesides won’t release it, though you sometimes can call a usable blade from astraightedge.

Platforms

Unpreparedplatformfromtopandsideview.Thin,weakoverhangwillcollapsebefore dissipating energy properly. To clean up thisweak overhang, pull yourhammerstone as shown. (Big-time knappers use an abrasive grinding wheel,foundatthelocalhardwarestore,forthis.Usewhatyouhaveavailable,whichoftenwillbeonlyyourhammerstone,rememberingthattheconchoidalprincipleisstillatworkhere.)

Resultingpreparedplatform.

Anotherviewofplatformpreparation.Unprepared.Readytogo.

Weakplatform.

Resultsthatyoushouldexpect.

Support

We’ve established that when you strike a rock, the energy is transmittedconchoidally—intoacone.Still,therearesomevariances.Ifyouweretostrikeablade fromanendof a long, slenderpiece, shockwaves from theblow travelthrough the rock haphazardly. If the rock weren’t supported properly, thesehaphazardshockwavesmaysnapthepieceintwoattheunsupportedend.Sobeawareofthisforsomeofyourbasicwork.(Notephotos.)

Three common ways to support a piece. First, here the hand’s doing thesupporting,thoughthisparticularpieceisalmosttoolongforfreehandsupport.Thefarendisheldagainstthepalmwhilethefingersholdtheworkedend.

Second,laythepieceonyourthigh(inthiscasewithoutapad,aswouldbethecase in the field). Most knappers use a thick leather pad. In this photo theworked end alone is resting on the thigh while the other end is simply“supported”by theknapper’sotherhand.Theentirepiececouldberestingonthethigh.

Third, in this case, theworked end is freewhile the other end’s supported bybeingpushedtightlyintothethigh.

Discoidal

When working with oval, flattish quartzite cobbles, you’ll sometimes find iteasiestto“getinto”therockortosimplyremoveabladeusingamethodtaughtbyBoulderOutdoorSurvivalSchoolandgiventhecoinage“discoidal.”Inthisoperation,acobble(ideallyabout6”long,4”wide,and2”deep)isswungontoan anvil stone (something substantially larger and harder) and strikes near theend of the cobble. Thiswill remove a roundish sharp flake. This is the sameconceptthatI’vealreadydiscussed,onlyinreverse,withallanglesthesame.Byusingthespaceleftfromtheflakeremovedasaplatform,youcanthenremoveanotherflakefromthereversesidebyconventionalpercussion,andthenanother,givingyouausefulhandax—oneofhumankind’soldeststonetools.

With the discoidal technique, the flake is removed by the same rules, only thehammerstone here is the anvil. Two tools: the flake and the core. Using theplatform formedwith the flake removal,ahandax is readily createdby simplyremovingmoreflakes(knives).

Aflakeknifetoolandahandax.

Bipolar

The term “bipolar” here doesn’t mean what you think it does.When smallercobblessimilartothosedescribedabovearetheonlystoneavailable,you’restillnotwithoutaknife.Bytakingtheflattestoftheseandplacingitupendedonananvilrock,youcansplittheseneatlyintwobystrikingablowonthetop.Whatthisdoesisdrivetheenergydirectlythroughthestonetotheanvilandthenbackup. Some stones are definitely harder than others, so several blows may beindicated.

Watchthosefingers—it’seasytosmashthem.Andwearprotectiveeyegear(orcloseyoureyesjustbeforeyoustrike).

Withnormalpercussionflakeremoval,anangleoflessthan90°isnecessary(asnotedearlier).What, then, todoifallyouhaveareegg-shapedrocks?Oneansweristosimplythrowoneagainstanotherandhopeforthebest.Buttodoitlike the“bigboys,”andretainsomecontrol,wecan turn tobipolarhere,also.My limited experience with this, using larger pieces (mostly obsidian), hasshownthat,despitedrawingsshowingthecontrary,anegg-shapedrockthat’shitinabipolarfashiononananvilrockdoesn’talwaysneatlysplitintwo.Sodirectyourblowcarefully,andbecertaintocloseyoureyesjustbeforecontact(evenwitheyeprotection).Piecesofsharpstonecan,andwill,beflyingallover theplace.Youwillendupwithbasicallytwohalves,givingyouthebeginningofacoreforflakeremoval.

Splitting a small cobble in twowith bipolar can be tough on fingers butdoeswork.

Splittinglargepiecesintwoworksbetteronpaperthaninpractice, thoughonoccasionitdoessucceed.

SomeNotes

It’sdifficult toremovelongflakesfromaflatsurface(because theenergyisconeshapedandtendsalsotocurveoutwardandintothestone).

Flakeswill tendtofollowridge lines(certainly,as there’snomassoneithersidetoprohibittheconefromreleasing).

It’sdifficult,maybeimpossible,toshootflakesthroughavalley.Theenergy will stop at the far side of the first ridge and probably “hinge”(createanabruptlineofstoppage).It’salmostashardtorunaflakethrougha“hill”(over90°).

Agoodpracticeistodrawtheprojectedflaketoberemovedonthestonewith chalk, and then carefully study the results.Thiswill eliminatehaphazardbanging(tipfromScottSilsby).

Theidealflakecanberemovedfromasurfacethat’soffaplatformof less than90° (at andabove90°, the energy is shot toodeeply into the“mass” of the stone). The outer surface runs smoothly, with no abrupt“hills”or“valleys”toimpedetheenergyflow,andthesurfaceissomewhatrounded(aswithaball).

Recommended

Onceyouhave theunderstandingof theconceptsplacedforthhere,youmightwanttoadvanceevenfurther.TheonlycompletebookthatI’mawareofthat’sworth itssalt isTheArtofFlintknappingbyD.C.Waldorf. Itsonlydrawback(thatIknowof) is that itdoesn’tbeginwiththebasics—agoodreasonformyownbook!ThefirsttimeortwothatIwentthroughit,Iwasreadytotrashit.Isimplywasn’tabletocomprehendwhatitwasthattheauthorwassaying.Itwastooadvanced.But,onceIgotsomebasicunderstandingundermybelt,Itookinmoreandmoreofitsprinciples.Istillreaditoccasionallyandeachtimepickupmore.Getit.

Another primer on this subject isFlintknapping—The Art of Making StoneTools,byPaulHellweg.Onlinesourcescanhelpyoufindusedcopiesofmanyusefulbooksonthetopic.

Whew!

I’m sure glad that’s over with! Not that the subject of flintknapping is sodifficult,asyou’venodoubtseen.What’sdifficultisfindingtherightwordsandputtingthemwiththerightphotostomakeitallgel.

Let’sproceednowtodiscussothermaterialswecanusefortoolswhencaughtinasurvivalorwildernesssituation.

Trying to figure some sequence for what follows has been about as time-consumingasdoingit.You’llfindthatmuchofwhatI’mlayingoutfromhereon to theendof thischapter tiesback to thebasicprinciplesofstoneworking(knapping). You’ll also discover that working with one resource requires, onoccasion,workingwithanother.It’sthatoldcircleofprimitivetechnologythatkept somany of our ancient ancestors alive and kicking (thanks,Great-great-great…grandpa!).

WhatI’vedonenowiskindalaidoutthephotosthatGeriandIhavecreatedfor thischapter. I’llwritearound them, since theyspeakmuchbetter thananywords or drawings of mine could. Since we’ve been concentrating on sharpedges,let’scontinuealongthoselines.

Shell

Whether thick ones or thin ones, shells can be used in many ways as tools.Heavier ones can actually take quite a bit of abuse as choppers or scrapers,thoughprobablythemostcommonusewouldbeasacutterofsomesort.

Heaviershellisherepercussedwithahammerstoneintoasharp,serratededge.

Shell here is thinner, being pressure flaked to a serrated edge. Raw shell andotherhalfthathassimplybeengroundtoanedgeonsandstone.

Sandstone

Various grits and harnesses of sandstone are very important tools in theproductionoftools.

HeavyBluntInstruments

Simple tools such as heavy blunt instruments have lots of uses, from drivingstakestomashingnuts.Ofcourse,theeasiestwaytouseatoolistosimplygrabthenearestrockorpieceofwoodandbashaway.Onthefollowingpageswe’llrefinethisquiteabit.

Wood

Choppingwithhandaxoftoughquartzite,thishardpieceofOsageorangetookless than 10 minutes to score deep enough to break where we wanted it to.Finished club has had the hand grip chopped to a sizemore suitable for ourhands.

Stone

Rockscan,ofcourse,beusedasis.Youcanalsoshapethemtoaboutanyshapeyouwish, bypecking (continual hittingwith a harder rock).Not difficult, justtime-consuming.Thisillustratesthepeckingofagrooveintoaveryhardpieceofrock,usinganevenharderpieceofjasper.Holdingthepieceinyourhandoronyourlegisrecommended,asthepeckedrockmaybreakintwoifplacedontoahardsurface.(Haftingwillbeillustratedfurtheralong.)

BoneandAntler

Antler and especiallybone are common findsof anygatherer.All animalsdieand, unlike humans, their remains are allowed to renourish the Earth fromwhence theycame. Ifyoucancomeupon thembefore theydisintegrate, thesecanbedandyadditionstoanytoolkit.

Knives,projectilepoints,wedges, scrapers,needles, fishhooks,andawlsarejustafewofthemanyusesoftheseitems.

Themostcommonandeasiestwaytodownsizeboneandantlerintoworkablesizesformosttoolsissimplytobashthemwithabluntinstrument,thoughthiscertainly isn’t the most reliable method. If time and patience permit, scoring(cutting a line into the bone along which you desire the break to occur)beforehandcanbendtheoddsinyourfavorastowhichdirectionthebreakmayhappen.Thedeeperthescore,thebetter.Somerealfine,longawlsandneedleshavecomefromlegbonesthathadbeenproperlyscoredlengthwise.Moistheatwill temporarily soften them, making scoring and cutting much easier. Withantler,however,overboilingwillweakenitconsiderably.Scrapingwithastonebladeandrubbingonsandstonewilladdthefinishingtouches.Infact,apieceofsandstoneisoftentheonlytoolnecessarytofinishoutapiece.

Bone

Usingarockasourbasher,wereducedthisdeerlegbonetomoremanageablepieces.Somegrindingonsandstonegaveusaniceawl,projectilepointorknife,and a fishhook. Simple bashing and grinding produced these tools in mereminutes.

Antler

Similar to bone, in characteristics andworkability, is antler.Through our ownpersonalexperiences,we’vefoundthatantlerismoreflexiblethanboneandsowilltakeabitmoreabuse.Also,itseemsthatthemolecularstructureofantleristighter than that of bone, allowing us to get sharper cutting edges. Horn, noexamplesofwhichareshownhere,seemstobeevenmoreflexibleandtighterinmolecularstructure.(Wedefineantlerastheouterprojectiongrowingfromtheheadsofcertainanimalssuchaselkanddeer,andhornastheoutersheathingofantler on such animals as cow, buffalo, and sheep.) Shown here are severalexamplesofthingstomakefromantler.

Wrongway tobreakdeerantler; tipwillbreakoff,weknownotwhere.Betterway.Notewheregapunderantleris,whereitdoesbreak.

Antlerfromskullcaptowherewejustbrokeit.Samepieceafterbashingoffskullcapandgrindingonsandstonetomakebilletforpercussionflakingflint.

Twosmallwedgesorchisels.

Howitallplacestogether.

Elkantler.Abouttostrikewithrockatscoremark.Whereitbroke,preciselyatthescore.Theundersideoftheantlerbrokeoutofthescore(thiscould’vebeencorrectedbyscoringdeeper).

Whata fewminutesofgrindingonsandstoneaccomplished to turn this intoafinewedge.

DiggingStick

Oneofhumankind’soldesttoolsisthediggingstick—simplyapointedstickthatisusedfordiggingorprying.It,ofcourse,requirestheuseoftoolsinmaking.

Whichendtouse…?

…andthenchopping(firealsocouldbeusedasatooltoburnittolength)…

…fire hardens the end by driving out moisture and also makes it easier topoint…

Result:Averyfunctional,durable,hard-pointeddiggingstick.

WoodenAwl

While we’re still working with wood, let’s do another quickie project, againusingtoolstomakeanothertool.

Usingourtrustyquartzitehandaxandwoodenmaul,wesplittheleftoverendofourdiggingstick.

Thenwechopittoshapewithaflintax,shaveitfurtherwiththesharpflint,andfinallygrinditonsandstonetoendwithafinishedawlorpossibleneedleusingthenaturalknothole.

Celt

In previous pages you’ve seen themaking and using of choppers made fromquartziteandflint.HereI’llshowanothercommonapproachtothemakingofanax—the celt (pronounced selt, and related to prehistoric stone or metalimplementsshapedlikeanaxhead).Madefromwhatmostrefertoasgreenstone(greenisitsmorecommoncolorincertainareas),thestoneisactuallyamixtureofminerals(basalt,jade,andhematitearesomecommonceltmaterials,thougheach locale has its own). It can be found almost anywhere, located often ascobbles,butalsomaybefoundinveins.

The property that we’re looking for is a certain degree of hardness andsmoothnesssothatthepiecewillgrinddowntoasharpedgebutwillalsotakeabuse.We want a hard, dense, tough rock. Several types break conchoidally,whichinmanycases(suchashere)helpsinreduction.Onetestistoremoveaflake,grindandpolishit,andthenattempttobreakitwithyourhands.Someofthesestoneswon’tflake,inwhichcasepeckingwithanother,harderrockmaybeinorder.

The celt illustrated on the next page took fully eight hours tomake.We’vefound that knapped flint axes takeminutes tomake (versus hours for groundaxes),andsharpenthemselvesastheedgechips(asopposedtoweakeninganddullingfor theground), therebyleavingustomaintainthat theflakeflintaxiseconomicallybetter.

Breakingintwoalargelensof“greenstone”bylayingitattheedgeofarockand placing a well-struck (and lucky!) blow using a hammerstone. Thenreducingitbypercussiontoamoremanageablesize.

When presented with certain high areas, pecking can be the solution tomorequicklyremovingmaterial.Mosttimewillbespentingrindingandpolishingonvarioussurfacesofsandstone.

Finishedcelthasflattishtoptohelppreventsplittingofhandle,taperingtowardtherearsoastofitintoholeinhandle,andaproperangleatthecuttingedge.Toothinananglewillbreaktooeasily,tooabruptananglewon’tcutaswell.

Hafting

Theplacingofanax,celt,orothertoolontoahandlecanreallymakeyourworkeasier.It’snotallthatdifficulttodo,onceyou’vebecomefamiliarwithworkingwiththevariousnaturalmaterials.Sincewejustmadeacelt,let’snowhaftit.

Theroughed-outhandleafterbeingreducedbyfireandchopping;beginningtoburnholebyplacingacoalandblowingthroughtube;directingtheburningbyblowingontofirebrand.Burningtheholecanbetricky.Oncetheareaischarred,it will ignite and burn readily. To prevent burning where you don’t want it,removethechar.Thehardwoodwon’tigniteaseasily.Youcanalsoplacewateroraslurryofclayinareasyoudon’twanttoburn.Whentheholebecomesdeepenough, the fire starves for oxygen and you need to blow constantly. You canburnfromtheoppositedirectionafterreachinghalfway.

Sizingofthecelttotheholeiscritical.Contactsatthetopandbottommustbespread evenly the entire thickness, with the surfaces laid flat to help preventsplittingoutofthehandle.Iliketoincludea“Y”atthetopofthehandle,asIfind this stronger; leave about 2” at the top. Some woods split easier thanothers, so it’swise to check this out before youget 4 to 6 hours invested intomakingthehandle(thishandletook4-plushourstomake).Elm,yes—cedar,no.Theweightofthewoodisratherimportant,also,asheavierwoodmakesforlessworkwhenchopping.Theholeistapered,asisthecelt,sothatfrictionfromuseseatsittight.Agapofatleast1/16”needstobeleftatthesides,otherwisetheceltwillspreadthehandleoutandsplit it. (Special thankshere toScottSilsbyforhiseffortsinhelpingmetrytoexplainthequalitiesof“greenstone,”anot-so-easytask.)

Onsmallergroovedhammersoraxes,we’vewrapped thehandle itselfaroundthestone,twiceontheleftoneandonceontherightone.Mostgreensaplingsorlimbsarevery flexibleandaremadeevenmoresobyboilingorheating forashortperiod.They’vethenbeenheldinplacewithnaturalfibercordage,theoneontherightpermanentlytobeusedasisandtheoneonthelefttobereinforcedwithalightrawhidewrappingsewnonwithsinew

Tomountabladeonastick.youcansawintotheendwithaflake:themosttime-consuming.Or simply split the piece in two, carve out a channel for theblade,andthenbinditalltogether,gluingitifyouhavesomething.Theeasiestthat we know of is this trick discovered by Larry Dean Olsen. Pay specialattentiontothisgroupofphotos.

(1)Bladeislaidalongsideshaftandnotchesarecut(A)leavingbehindthesizeyouwantthegroovetobe.Athinlineiscut(B)wheresplitistostop(depthofgroove). (2) The notch is carefully split on both sides to line (B). (3) Shaft isturnedandthegrooveis“popped”outbybendinginbothdirectionsfromline(B). Pay special attention to where the fingers and thumbs are placed forpressurepoints. Ifyou’renotcareful, theshaftwillsimplybreakat itsweakestpoint,thenotches.(4)Theresults.

Once groove is made, it’s best to custom fit the piece, especially stone.Remember,fewstraightlineswithstoneflakes.Theinitialfit;bytrimmingwithasharpblade,thepieceismadetofitbetter.Theresultingknifeorscraper,lashedintoplacewithnaturalfibercordage,maynotbethestrongestbutwillstilldoanumberof chores.Lashingwith sinewandsetting thepiecewithpitchorhidegluewouldmakeitextremelydurable.

Adze

Theadze isaspecialized toolusedfor trimmingandshapingwood.Thebladeitselfcanbemadefrom“greenstone”andgroundor flakedfromflint,asdonehere.It’smountedoppositefromanax,atrightanglestothehandle.Unliketheax, the bladewill be flatter on one side than the other, allowingmore carefulremovalofwood.

The blade sits on a solid platform of the handle, and it can break off. I’mrepairingjustthatbyhavinggluedtheseparatedplatformbackonandlashingitinplace, thendrillingaholewithahanddrillmountedwithastonepointandpluggingtheholewithacarvedpieceofhardwoodgluedinplace.

Anothermethodofattachingthebladeistowrapitinrawhideorbuckskinforcushionandtyingthattoaflat-endedhandle.Thisworkswellbyabsorbingalotoftheshock.

Drilledhole.

Thefinishedrepairjob,andithasdonealotofworksince.

Twodrillswithstone tipshaftedasshownonpage65, the longerahanddrillandtheshorterforusewiththebowdrill.

Vise

We’re kinda stepping up in the world now, talking about a vise, of all fancythings!Primitivepeoplessurelyhadthem,inoneformoranother.Thistrickwasshown to us by a flintknapper and old-time trapper from Colorado, GeorgeStewart. The one illustrated here is on a small scale and is shown holding anarrowshaft-sizedstick,thoughthiscouldallbeupscaledandusedforbowsandthelike.

Driveastakeintotheground……splititdownabout6”…

…tiesecurelyatbottomofsplittokeepitfromopeningtoowide.

Makea loopof strongcordagenear the top, insertastickand twist it tight toholdwhatever.Tieorotherwisesecurethebottomoftheleveragestick.

WorkingwiththeTools

To this point in the chapter, we’ve dwelt primarily with themaking of tools,thoughmanyalsoused somepreviouslymadeones.Nowwe’regoing todoacouplaprojectsthatareaimedonlyatusingyourtoolsinawildernessorsurvivalsituation.

Oneprojectthatcoversmostprimitivetoolusagesisthebow(detailedinfullinChapter4),sowe’llheadtothetimberinabitandshowyouhowtodothiswithtoolswe’vemadeuptillnow.

When working with students we stress the importance of being capable ofheading into thewilds andmaking a fire (Chapter 1)with nothing butwhat’savailable.ThisiswhatI’llcoverfirst.

PreparingaFireBoardandHandDrill

Beginwithsplittingthehearth…

…thengougingadepressiontostartthehole.

Useathickerbladetocarvemostofthenotch(top)andathinneroneforgettingintothetightarea.

Scoringdrillshelpstopreventtheirsplitting,astheypopeasilyatthemark.

Onceyou’vegotthetools,youthencutthetreedown,chopittolength,andsplit

it.

Cutandsplit...

...scrapebarkoff,usingflakeifnecessary…

…cuttolength…

…choptoshape,usingeitherhandax…

…orAdze…

…splitoffanyexcess…

…thenlinethebowout,hereusingcharcoal.

Up till now we’ve worked with green wood. To cure it out, we now tie it inwhatever position we desire the final bow to take. (This “quickie” bowprocedurewelearnedfromourgoodfriendJimRiggsofOregon.)Letitdryfromseveraldaystomorethanaweek,dependingonthewood(thedenserthewood,the longer). In this case, we let this piece of eastern red cedar (actually, ajuniper) dry for oneweek in our hot basement. At this point, the roughed-outbowisjustthat:rough.Butwithsomelittlescraping,somecarefulcutting(hereofthegrip),andsandingwithstone,weendupwithaprettymuchfinished-outpiece,surroundedbysomeoftheflaketoolsused.

Thereareanynumberofpositionsforyoutoexperimentworkingin.HereGeriburiesoneendof thebow intoherbellyand theother intoasecurearea inarockanddraws the flake towardher toremovewoodshavings inahurry.Shethenusesadzetomakefinalcuttolengthandshapesupendwithasharpflakebeforecuttingnotches.

The finished bow. (Formore detailed instructions on themaking of bows, seeChapter4.)

Finis

Sothereyouhaveit.You’llnotethat,inthesectiononflintknapping,therewaslittle to no mention of arrowheads or other projectile points. Well, there’s areason for this,which Ihopeyou’vepickeduponbynow.They simplyaren’tthatimportantinprimitiveliving.Asharpenedstickwillkilljustascertainlyasany“arrowhead,”ifproperlyplaced.Inanycase,themakingofprojectilepointsis a schooling of its own, usually requiring years. The tools thatwe stress asimportantrequirenomoretimethanittookyoutoreadthisbookandtohavealittlesit-downtoapply.

Withtheexceptionofonlyafewitemsinterspersed,everythingshowninthischapterwasmadefortheproductionofthisbook.Theceltandhandlerequiredover 12 hours total. The bow took one afternoon to cut and prepare to tyingdown,andanadditionalbetterpartofadaytofinishout.Themajorityoftherestweremadeinoneafternoon.Thisain’ttobrag,justtoreinforcetoyouthatthisreallyisn’tallthatdifficult.Ifwecandoit,anyonecan.

I’llfinishoutthischapterbyshowingyouafewotherobjectsthatwe’vemadeusingthetechniquesshowninthisbook.

Some things often forgotten, when speaking of tools, are food preparationitems.Boththemano-and-metateandthemortar-and-pestlearemorethanalittleusefulwhenlivingprimitively, in termsofgrindingstaple itemssuchasseeds,acorns,andcorn.

WoodenBowl

Thisbowlwasmadefromapieceofaspen,followingguidelinessetforthinthisbookandusing stone toolsand friction-made fires. (SeeChapter8 for furtherdetailsonmakingwoodencontainers.)

ManoandMetate

Geriand Imade this smallmetateand theaccompanyingmanoofpumice (orperhapsbasalt?)foruseinoursmallcampsanddemonstrations.Thetwoitemsareusedasapairforgrindingcorn,grindingacornsintoflour,andsoon.Thedepressionwascreatedsimplybygrindingwiththemano.

MortarandPestle

Thismortarwasmade in just a few hours by peckingwith the same piece ofjaspershownonpage56.

Chapter3

Primitive,SemipermanentShelters

Someofmyfondestmemoriesareofsittinginasheltertuckedunderpinetreesor ina forestofoaksandotherhardwoods,with thewindhowling, a freezingrainorsnowoutside,andinsideablazingfireandawarmdrink.

We’ve seen and heard much on shelters from other experts with outdoorbackgrounds.Whenpeoplelearnedthatwewereworkingonabookonshelters,almost to a person they urged us to include the basic shelter: thedebris type.Thisis littlemorethanaglorifiedpileofleaves,grass,andsticksthatyoucancrawlinto,muchlikeasleepingbag,togetoutofthecoldandwet.Itinsulatesyou fromwhatever youwant to be insulated from. It does itwell.But in thischapterwe’lldolittlemorethantouchonit.

WhenGeriandIwerekids,itwasonlynaturaltobuildashelterofthistype,asitdidn’ttakemuchimaginationorskill.YetIcanthinkofthreeinstancesofwherethissheltercomesinhandy:atruesurvivalsituationwhenyouwon’thavetime tocompleteabetter shelter, includingmakinga fire; ina situationwheretheinstructordoesn’twanttotakethetimeandefforttoshowthestudentbetterhousing;andfinally,wheretheinstructordoesn’tknowanythingmore.

Adebrisshelterhaslotsofproblems.Ifweatherisbad(reasonfortheshelter),you’relockedintoyourbedtillitchanges.Ifyouventureout,you’llendupwet—somethingyoudon’twantwhenyou’retryingtostaywarm.

Soinatruesurvivalsituation,you’reprettywellstucklookingatleavesandgrasses at nose length and lying around waiting to get found (you’re alsoinsulatedfromsoundandwell-camouflaged).If,likethevastmajorityofmodern

woodspeople,you’veplacedyourselfintothiswoodssituation,whenyoufinallygetbored,yougetupandgohome.

I’vebeenaccused,mostofmylife,ofbeingsomewhatcrazyforspendingsomuchtimeoutdoorsinrainandsnow.ButwhenIventureintotheelements,Itrytobecomfortable.I’vespentthevastmajorityofmylife“campingout”duringthewintermonths,bothasIwasgrowingupinthemountainoussoutherntierofNewYorkStateandalsoforthelast40-plusyearsinKansas.Wintersgetcold.SomeofmyfriendsmayhavethoughtthatwhenIventuredoutIkindacurledupinaconvenientsnowbankandhadbeaversoffermetheirwaterproofcoats.Well,I lovewinters and coldweather, but I hate being cold andmiserable.A goodsheltermakesforgoodcomfortablelivingoutofdoors.

Ifyoufindyourselfwithoutbedding, thedebrisshelter isyourbedding.Butdon’tmake ityourhouse, too.Buildsomething to live inwhileyou’reupandaboutandcantendafire.Usethelitterforasleepingbag.

Onceyouunderstandfairlywellthebasicsofashelter—whatit’ssupposedtodo,whatitslimitationsare—thenit’llbeprettysimpletoadapttheresourcesyouhaveathandandmakeacomfortablecamp.

AspecialthankstoourfriendBillLansdownofAlva,Oklahoma,whospentninedayswithuswhileweconstructed theshelters illustratedhere.Hisstrongbackandreadywitwereatremendoushelp.

WhataShelterKeepsOut(andIn)

Ashelterissimplyabarrierbetweenyouandwhateverisoutthere.Wind,sun,heat,cold,rain,snow,bears…bears?Nobearshere.Let’ssticktotheweather—theelements.

Fromtheabovelist,whatwe’llconcernourselveswithhereisprotectionfromcoldandwet.Ifyoucangetthoseundercontrol,makingbarriersfromtheotherelements(exceptingmaybehighwinds)willbeapieceofcake.

Weneedtokeepthewaterout,andwealsowanttobeabletohaveafirein,orconvenient to, the house—preferably inside. We’ll be using strictly naturalmaterials.

Althoughthese“ideal”shelterswillbeconstructedwiththefunctionofbeingabletohaveaninsidefire,youmustateverymomentbeawareoftherealdangerofuncontrolledfire.Rememberalways(andI’llremindyou)thatwe’reactuallyconstructinganidealtindernestthatcangoupinflamesinonlyseconds.Realcaremustbeconstantlytakenwithfireinshelters.

ShelterBasics

Sixbasicelementswillprettywellcoveranyofourshelters: site, floor,walls,roof,smokehole,andentrance.Let’sdiscussthemoneatatime.

Site

Thelocationofourhouseshouldbethefirst thingtothinkabout.Whatdowewantitnearto?Andwhatdowewantitawayfrom?

Near to trees, bushes, rocks,whatever, to help add additional shelter to ourshelter.Neartoworksites.Neartowater(butnotinanareathatmightbepronetofloodingifthewaterlevelrises).Neartobuildingmaterials.

Awayfromtalltreesorotherhighlandmarksthatmaydrawlightning.Awayfromunwantedsounds(likewaterfalls)andsights.Awayfromanyobjectsthatmayfallonus(suchasdeadtreelimbs,orrocksfromcliffs).

Onceyou’vefoundthegenerallocation,lookforspecificssuchashighspots.You’llwant yourwilderness house to sit higher than the surrounding land, inorder to shed water. Finding the general location is usually much easier thandeciding on the specific spot to build. Geri and I have spent as much timeselectingsitesaswehaveinactualbuilding.Ideally,wewantasmallhillockjustthesizeofourprojectedhouse.Thiswillsendwhateverrainthatfallsawayfromus.Thismayseemasimplething,butonmanyoccasionswe’vewitnessedsmallriversrunningthroughsomeone’stipiatsomeoftherendezvouswe’veattended.Thewaterhastogosomewhere—anditalwaysgoesdownhill.Diggingatrenchorbuildingaretaineron theuphillsidewillsometimesdivertwaterfromyourbed.

Floor

Forallourshelters,theexistinggroundwillbethefloor.Itmaybepaddedwithleaves,grass,dirt (ifonrock),orsomeothermaterial toyour liking.Wedon’tlookuponthefloor,asinmodernstructures,assomethingtokeeplitterfree.Dirtcomprisesmostallourhousefloors.Softermaterialsunderbeddingdoesmakefor better sleeping for your aching body, though. Primitives both today andyesterday often poured blood on the floor that then hardened and becamerubbery,likelinoleum.Ifrequired,ordesirous,tobuildinawetareasuchasaswamp,youcanlayanetworkofpolesoveraframeworktoraiseyouup.

Walls

For protection from the sun alone, wallsmight not be needed. For protectionfrom just about anything else, walls are a necessity. Aswe’ll see shortly, thewallsareoftenintegratedintotheroofwiththeframe.Sometimes,however,thewalls will be separate. In many cases, the walls will also support the roof.Sometimesasingle-thicknesswallwilldothetrick,butmoreoftenthannot,forthe purposes intended here for protection from water and cold, a double-thicknesswalliswhatwewant.Windandsunaren’tallthathardtokeepatbay.Theinteriortemperaturecanberaisedconsiderablywithminimalprotection.Butwaterhasawayofgettingthroughalmostanythingeventually.So,ifwecangetourhousewaterproof,we’vegotitmade.

We’ll illustrate here how to incorporate and use rocks in one circumstance.Whatwe find almost as simple to construct and highly effective, when usingmostmaterials, is a double rowof sticks placed in the ground and filledwithlitter.Thismakesforacompletelyairtight,waterproofwall.

Roof

Tous,theroofisoneofthemostcriticalsegmentsinashelter.Itwillusuallybetheonemost responsible forkeepingout thewater,sohere’swherewe’llgivewhatseemstobethemostattention.Aroofiswhatmakesashelter.

For our criteria, the roof needs to repelwater.Not a really simple task, butalsonotthatdifficultifyou’reawareofsomebasicrules.

Rule#1:Waterrunsdown.Seemsobvious,yes,butit’ssurprisinghowmanyforget thiswhen building a shelter.Most rains are accompanied bywind thatpushesthewaterinfromtheside.Oncewaterhitstheroof,thewaterwillceaseitssidewaysmotionandbegintofalldownward.Whatweneedtodoisslowthisfalltillitgetsbeyondtheinsideofourhouse.

Withaflatroof,oncethewaterhits,ithasnowheretogobutintothehouse.Flat roofs don’t work primitively unlesswe have a large rock outcropping orsomethingsimilar.Mostly,forgetaboutflat.

Now,thesteeperthepitchoftheroof,thefasterthatwaterwillrundownit,givingitlesstimetosoakthroughthematerialsandcomeinside.

Thethickertheroofcovering,themoretimeittakesthewatertopenetrateit.Thefiner thematerialused in thecovering, the longer it takes for thewater togetthrough.Thus,coarsermaterialscallforthickercoverings.

Longgrassesmakeforgoodcoverings.Waterhasanaturaltendencytofollow

thestemsandleavesofthegrasses.Everytimethewaterhitsanobstruction,itwill divert from its sideways following of the grass, and will fall to the onebelowit.Soweneedthematerialtobethickenoughthat,bythetimeitworksitsway around all the grasses and falls out the other side, it will be beyond ourlivingspace.

Place thegrassupsidedownon the shelter.Aswater follows the stems andleaves,itwillthennaturallyfollowdownward.Ifthegrassisplacedonthewaythatitgrows,wheneverwaterreachesthejunctionofleafandstem,itwilldrip.

SmokeHole

Sinceonemajorrequirementhereistheabilitytousefirewith(andwithin)ourhouse,we’llneedsomemethodtoallowthesmoketoleave.

Smokewill naturally seepout of the roof of all theseprimitive shelters.Wejust can’t get them completely airtight with the materials we have at hand,thoughleavingsomeotheropening(ifkeptsmall)doesn’thurt.You’llseefourmethodsinthepagestofollow.

Keeptheroofspacehigh.

Rule#2:Smokerises.Iftheinteriorceilingishigh,ondayswhenthesmokeseemstolinger,itwillbeaboveyourheads.Inthesheltershereillustratedusinginterior fires, in all cases when we’ve had fires, we’ve been able to standcomfortably, as the smoke was sufficiently ventilated. Smokier fires requiremoreventilation,soburnsmall-diameter,drywood.

Entrance

Weofcourseneedsomewayinandout.Itwouldalsobepropertohavesomemeansofclosingthisoff,suchasadoor.

Animalskinshavebeenusedasdoorsforever,whetherrawortanned.Largepiecesofbarkworktoo,asdograssesrolledintoaball,orevenapieceoflog.

Rule#3:Ifthelowerwallsaresealedtight,includingtheentranceway,you’llhavelesstroublewithmovingair,andwithairmovingsmokearoundtheplace.

HouseMaterials

An unbelievably large amount of material is needed in constructing a goodshelter.Thematerialshownheremadeonesimplewickiup.

Onethingnot todois tolimityourconstructiontospecificmaterials.Learntousetothebestadvantageanymaterials.Integrate.Mixandmatch.

Whenconstructingashelter torepelwater,you’llwant toworkmostlywithsmall, grass-sizedmaterial,whichwill compress better. Thicker stock such assunflowerstalks,willow,ordogwoodshootslookgoodbutrequiremuchthickerwallstorepelwater,asthere’ssomuchairspaceforthewatertoworkitswaythrough.

Tryanyofthesematerials:SodDirtWoodBarkStoneGrassLeavesandlitterLashingmaterial

It is unbelievable, the amount of materials necessary to construct a goodweatherproofshelter.Thelargerthesize,themorematerialthat’sneeded.

If the house is for long-term use, make it large enough for however manypeopleandtheirsupplies.Thefoursheltersillustratedherearedesignedforthreetofourpeople.Smallersheltersareeasiertoheat.Forinteriorfires,roofsmuststillbehigh.

Availabilityofmaterialsshouldberealhighonthesite-selectionlist.Itcanbetediousandtime-consumingtohaulmaterialsfromanydistanceatall.

Isthereasequenceinbuilding?Well,probablymosttimes.Isupposeitmighthelptogathermaterialsbeforeyoubeginanyconstruction,butthenagainmanytimeswe’lljustbeginwiththeactualbuildingandusewhateverwecomeacrossbywayofmaterials.

Veryseldomdoweapproachbuildingwithanyactualplaninmind.Wejustwanttoendwiththebestshelterpossibleunderthecircumstances.Somemightthink that foranovernight shelteranyold thingwilldo,butwhat ifyougetagoose-drownerrain?

Theimportanceoftheroofisstressedthroughoutthischapter.Thefoundationortheframework,orboth,needasmuchattention,asthey’llholditalltogether.

Do the best you canwithwhat you’ve got toworkwith. There’s notmuchsenseinspendingafewhoursinputtinguparoofifitdoesn’trepelanything.

TheWickiup

Warmandcomfortable,thewickiupisprobablyoneofthequickestandeasiestshelterstoconstruct.Usinganynumberofmaterials,itcanbeputupinaslittleasanhourorsoifmaterialsareathand.Itcanbebuilttorepelmostwater,andacontrolledfireispossibleinside.

Asolid tripodisamust,since it’s the foundationforall that follows.A“Y”inone or more of the logs or branches is important to help lock the “Y,” if nolashingisavailable.

The fresh-cut cattails had a tendency to slide down, so we used bark (lashedloosely)tohelp.

Weusedthreetypesofmaterialsforcoveringthisparticularwickiup:weedsandcornstalks for one third the total, grasses and leaves (litter) for a third, andcattailsforathird.Thesewereapplied6”to8”thickforthemostpart.Thickerisbetter.

Thefinishedproduct.Itstands7’insidewithadiameterof9’(noteGeri’sheadatthedoor)andwillaccommodatethreecomfortably,moreinapinch.Thissheltercanbemadeanysize.Afiremakesitcozyinahurry,thoughremembertokeepit

smallandattended.

TheLean-To

Thesecondshelterthatweillustratehereisalsosomethingofaquickie.ThisistheshelterthatIprettymuchgrewupwithintheAppalachiansofsouthernNewYorkStatesome30to40yearsback.

Now, inmy estimation, the basic lean-to thatmost people are familiarwithfallsfarshortofqualifyingasareal“house”-typeshelter.Byitsnature,lean-to’sareexposedinoneormoredirections to themercyof thewindandanywind-drivenelements.

Butwhenyou’reonthetrailandusingitasaone-nighter,thisdrawbackisn’tquiteasnoticeableas itwill thenbe(orshouldbe)whenbuiltwithitsbacktothewind,or,iffittedwithsides,possiblyquarteringthewindsomewhat.

Thewindisaficklething.Generallyitdoesn’tblowexactlystraightfromanyonedirectionbutconstantlyshiftsdirectionsabit.Thisfactalonemakessidesonyourlean-toamust(rememberthatwallsneedn’tshedwatersomuchaswind).Ifyouexpecttocallthisshelterhomeforanyperiodoftime,acouplavariationswillhelpconsiderablytoaddtoyourcomfort.

You’ll note in the accompanying illustrations and photos thatwe’ve indeedadded substantial walls or sides to the lean-to. Also, we’ve extended these toswingtothefrontrightandleft,tohelpblockthewind.Inadditiontothisyou’llbequicktonotethatwehaveconstructedawallofsortstothefrontofallthisbyseveralfeetsothatthewindistherebyblockedfromalldirections.Thisleavesus with approximately a 2’ corridor left and right to enter by, and the fire isplacedrightinthemiddleofwhatlittleremainsoftheopenareadirectlyinfrontoftheshelter.Inactuality,whatwe’vedoneisconstructachimneyforourfire.

InKansas,wegenerallybuildourshelterswiththebacktotheWest,asthat’sthe direction the prevailing wind comes from. In summer, though, we faceslightlynorthofWest,andinwinterwetrytofacesomewhatsouthofWestastheseasonalwindsshiftaccordingly.Thedaywebuiltthislean-to,thewindwasfrom the Northeast (preceding a storm). The benefit of the eastern wall wasvisiblewiththefirstfire,asthesmokewasblownnotintotheshelterbutupandoverit.

Thebasicframeworkoflean-to’svariesslightly.Hereweconstructed,thoughamongtrees,anentirelyfreestandinglean-to.Thereareamultitudeofwaysofputtingittogether.

Wefirstneedfrontsupports.Thesewillbesupportingtheentirestructure,sousestoutmaterials.We used a simple branched stick.We used two straight sticks(lashed)toprovidethe“Y”weneeded.Ineithercase,morestrengthisobtainedby driving the poles into the ground if possible, or supporting with rocks ifnecessary.

Intothe“Y”ofbothweplacedpolesrunningtotheground(or,asyouwillnoteinthephotostofollow,ontoalogtoslightlyraisetheback).

Across theseweplaced threestraightpoles.Fromnowonwecanusecrookedpolesintheroof,andtheceilingwillstillremainflat.

Herewe’veplacedseveralnot-so-straightpolestotightentheroofalittle.

Aviewof the finishedshelter from theside (South), illustratingrelationshipof

actuallean-tosizefromfronttorear(logatrearandtopofrooflineatfront).

Bird’s-eyecutawayview.Thecirclesoneithersideofwallsarestickspushedintotheground,filledinbetweenwithsticks,grasses,leaves,weeds,andotherlittertoprovidecompleteairtightness(theysupportnoweight).

Well,nowthatwe’vesketcheditalloutforyou,let’sgotothephotostoseeifthisactuallydoeswork.

Initially,sometimeisspentfindingtherightsite.Mostimportantforushereisgooddrainage.NotethatthesitethatGeriandBillarelookingoverisslightlyrounded.

Framingfortheroofiscomplete.

Frameworkforlean-toandwallsisinplace.Eastwallishalfdone.

Close-up of wall under construction. Litter is compressed inward and downbetweensticksstuckinthegroundtohelpformanairtightwindbreak.

Grassesandleavesbeingpiledhighontoroof.Wallsaredone.

ThatchedWickiup

Withthefirstwickiupandthelean-to,we’vemadetwoofthequickest,easiestshelters to construct that go one or two steps beyond what most think of as“survival”shelters.Inmanytrue“survival”situations,naturally,you’dbejustaswelloff(orbetteroff)withoneoftheillustrated“houses”shownhere.

But now let’s take another step up the ladder in shelter construction. Theframeworkforthewickiuptofollowcanbeputtogetheralmostasquicklyasthetripodshownearlier.Themannerinwhichwe’llapplythecoveringovermostoftheframeiswherewe’lladvance.

More—actually, much more—time and effort will be spent in the initialgatheringandpreparationofmaterials.Herewe’llbe thatching,meaning tyingbundles of grasses into place. This will require the use ofmore grass, as thebundles are compressed when they are tied in place. So, though this requiresmore time and energy to gather sufficient quantities, the resulting house willrequirelessupkeepovertime.Thebundleswillbeasthickasyouwant(hereagood2”)withthreelayerscoveringthewholeasthey’retiedoverlappingfromthebottomup,asinshingling.

Some type of lashingmaterial also needs to be considered. In the exampleshownonthefollowingpages,weusedbasswoodbark,whichissimpleandeasytobothfindandstrip.(Manyothermaterialsareavailable.Seepages26-33.)

This style of house, in some form or fashion, has been used inmost areasaroundtheworldwherethenecessarymaterialsexist(justnot,asfarasIknow,intheArctic).Infactit’sacommon-stylehouseinusestilltodayinsomeoftheremainingprimitivecultures.

While thismay seem tobe adifficultproject at first, as inmany“difficult”projectsthereal“difficulty”liesingettingoutanddoingit.Inactuality,oncethematerialswereall inoneplace,theputtingtogether tookonlyaboutsixhours’time,withthreeofusworking.

So,let’sdoit.

Althoughwe have good photos of the building process,maybe you’ll get abetterunderstandingof theall-importantframeworkifwelinedrawsomeof italso.

Step#1:Gathersomegreenpoles,somewhatlongerthantheintendedshelter’sheight(hereweusedcedar).Stickthethickerendintotheground(severalinchesatleast)insomesemblanceofacircleorovalorrectangle(norealruleshere—yourchoice).Bend themoverandwhere theopposing topsofpairsmeet, lashthemsecurely(theyoverlapbyseveralfeet).

Step #2: At whatever spacing you desire (we used approximately 18”), lashhorizontal poles into place. These not only add stability to the frame but are

whatwe’llbelashingourthatchingto.Thebentdoorframewejustkindastuckin(itneednotbe).Wefindthatthislimitsthesizeoftheopening,therebycuttingdowndrafts.

Step#3:Covertheentireframecompletelywiththatch.Agoodwaytosaveonalot of long thatching grass (and also create a completely airtight lower wallsection) is to set shorter poles all around the framework about 6” out, alsoplacingpolesinbetweentheexistinguprights.(Theycanbespacedascloseasyou like. In fact, the closer together they are, the easier building you’ll have,being able to use shorter and shortermaterials.) The in-between areawill befilledwithlitter.Youcanbuildtheentireshelterinthismanner,thoughtheroofwouldn’t shedwater aswell as the longer grasses do. Note the “pointy” top.Thisisn’tnecessary,butwefindthatitshedswaterbetter.It’snothingmorethanthreecedar limbs lashed together to twocedar“hoops.”Thisuses thenaturalbendofthelimb,andthisallislashedtotheexistingframe.

Buildingtheframework.

Let’snowtakeaphoto journeywhileputting together thiswickiup, toshowmore clearly someof the steps.The construction of the bottomportion of thewall can be accomplished in severalways, usingmany approaches—we showonlyonehere.Theentirestructurecouldpossiblybebuiltevenbetterifitallwasdone in thismanner. Thiswould alsomake it easier to findmaterials, as youwouldn’tbe limitedstrictly to longgrasses (though theroofwouldrepelwaterbetterifithadafinishinglayerofthatching).

Finishingoffthelowerwalls.

Theactualjobofthatchingisnotsuchaprojectasyoumightthink.Gatheringismuchmore time-consuming. You do need to consider just what lashing you’lluse.Herewe’veusedbasswoodbark.Youmightfinditmoreconvenienttosplicethelashingasyougo,sothatyouendwithonecontinuouscordratherthantying

offat theendofeach length.Makeonewraparoundbothhorizontalpoleandthe bunch of grass. The bark and grass will shrink somewhat (the grassespecially, if not dried), so retyingmay be necessary. The tighter together thebunchesaretied,thetighterthefinishedjob.Staggerthethatchingsothattwothirdsareoverlappingbythenextlayer;thisway,theentirehousewillendwiththreecoats.Thatchingbeginsat thebottom(aswithshingles)so thatmoisturerunsofftheupperlayersonto,notinto,thelowerlayer.

Thepiecewebuilttopointthetop(insideandoutsideviews).

Note small size of entranceway in photo above (making it easier to close, butyou’ll have to crawl in here). The opening can bemade towhatever size youdesire.

GenericShelter

We’ve now covered three different basic shelters—two of them quickie, or“survival,” types. In theconstructionof themwe’veseen threevarying framesandrooftypes,plusasimplewaytobuildwallsorsides.

Whenwebuildshelters,weusuallyhaveonlyaverybasicconceptinmind,certainlynoblueprints.Terrainandmaterialsarethetwomainguidelines.

Withthisnexthousewe’llapproachthejobathandwithasingleconceptinmind:tousetherockfaceofoneofourravinestoformatleastonesideofourhouse(orbetteryet,twosides).

One benefit of this approach is the fact that, obviously, part of yourconstruction is already done, so you’ll spend less time gathering buildingmaterials.Anotheristhefactthatthey’realsoplacedbelowgroundlevelsothatyou’re additionally sheltered.Also, by placing your fire against the rock face,you’llstoreupheatbydaytohelpwarmyouthroughthenightwhenyoudon’twantafireburning(just likesomehouses thesedaysusepassivesolarheatingprinciplestowarmtilesandwalls).

Onethingtorememberwiththistrick,however,isthatmanyravinesaretheresult of water runoff, and all of them are places where waterwill run. Youcertainlywon’twanttobuildinthemiddleofapossibleriverthatthenextrainwill create.The secrethere is towalk theedgesofpossible sites and look forplaceswherewaterwon’tflow.Iftheravinesweremadeduetowaterrunning,they’restillnotexcluded.Waterwon’trunoverallsidesateveryspot.Infact,itwillusuallybeaproblemonlyatafewkeypoints.Youusuallywon’thavemuchtrouble locating thedrystreambeds toavoid.Flattenedgrass isonesign,worndown to the bedrock is another.You don’twant to take shelter in your house

duringarain,onlytohaveitwashyouaway.

Solet’stakeawalkthroughwhatwedidhere.

Site selection was the first consideration. Here Geri and Bill study theprospectivesite.Thepluses:Rocksformtwosides,foragoodheightof21/2”orso,andrunoffwillbeeasytodivert.Oneminus:Thelong,opensidefacesnorth—nothingwecan’tovercome.

Bill cleans up the future floor by removing rocks and leveling the earth. Hetemporarilyplacestherocksinpositionclosetowherethefinalwallswillend.Thebird’s-eyediagramshowswhatthesitewastobeginwith.Diagramsonthefollowingpagesclearlyshowtheprogress,especiallywhenintermixedwiththephotos.

Rockswerelaidtoformawallonthelowsides(northandeast)about20”high.Grasswasusedasabeddingfortherockssoastocreateanairtightseal.

Ontheledgesidemostexposed(south),abermofdirtandrockswasplacedtohelpdivertanyrunoffwater(notsomuchfromthesurroundingterrainasfromthesouthsideoftheroofitself,left).

A gap between thewest and southwalls serves as a natural ventilator, sowedecidetobuildthefireareahere,coveringthetopwithflatrocksandmortaringtheminplace(usingwetclayasmortar).

Note changes in bird’s-eye drawing from that on page 94. Rock wall laid onnorthandeast sides.Main support rafter is inplace, running the length,with

uprightsupportsateachendandinthemiddle.Endsarebracedfromthesides.

Geriplacesaflatrockonchimneyasraincap.

Forthewestwall(orgable),wechoosetousesod,sinceitscloseproximityto

thechimneywillhelptopreventpossiblefire.

Lashingtogethertheframework.

Sodwallinplaceonwest,bracepoleinplaceonnorthandeasttoholdrafters.Chimneyisinplace,asiswater-diversionbermonsouth.

Sodisplacedontothebottomofthesouthrafterstoaddtothewater-diversionberm.

Longgrassesareplacedon the roof,overlapping the sidesandseveral inchesthick.Somepiecesofbarkareplacedon theverypeak tohelp thisvulnerableareatoshedwater.

Additionofallraftersandhorizontalcrossties.Sodplacedonbottomsofsouthraftersforwater-diversionberm.Roofisnowreadyforcovering.

Largelimbsareplacedoverthewholetosecureitinwinds.

Timetosettlein.

Wrap-Up

So there you’ve got it—four different types of primitive, semipermanentshelters,usingseveralmethodsofconstruction.Certainlynotonesetofrulesorblueprintstofollow.

Whatwehopetohaveaccomplishedhereistoshowyouhowtothinkabitforyourselfandusesomefieldexpediencewhenitcomestoshelteringyourselfinawildernessorsurvivalsituation.

Aswithmostprimitiveskills,there’snoonewayofdoingit.Weteachsothatthestudentiscapableofaccomplishingthetaskathand—successfully.Weshowcharacteristics, generically, so that you can use these skills in your ownbackyard,whereverthatmaybe.

Usewhatyouhave,anddoityourway.

Chapter4

Makin’Meat-1

I have found that many people who know of and talk, write, or teach somesurvival and wilderness skills will take their students through to a finishedprimitive product or skill from today backward, using today’s technology to aprimitiveend.Iwasguiltyofthatmyselfinthefirstofmybooks—usingnyloncords,steelblades,andsoon.I’vefoundthatthereasonthatIamsoroundedinmyoutdooreducation (likeothersofmy ilk) is thatwe taughtourselves theseskillsfromnothingforward—howtogo“nakedintothewilderness”andmanagetolive.

ThePrimitiveBowandArrow

Oneexample: theprimitivearrow.Togofromnothing,forward,youfirstneedsome insightas to the typeofwood touse—aknowledge,however simple,ofworkingwithstonetoolstopeelandsmooththeshaft;ofmakingfiresothattheshaftcanbeheatedandstraightened;ofworkingwithcordagesoastoapplythefletching and point.A step up from themost primitive of arrows requires theskillstoworkflintorbonetomakeamoreserviceablepoint,thentoapplythemwell. It also requires the knowledge of boiling downhide scrapings and otheranimalpartstomakegluewithouttheadvantageofapot.That’salotofdifferentskillsneededforasinglepuny(butmagnificent)arrow.

In this chapter I don’t delve into sinew (it’s covered in Chapter 10). Thecurrent chapter was, in its original concept, going to be just one chapter thatcovers someof thevariousmethodsof subsisting in thewilderness,beginningwith the bow and arrow, but,well, I plain ran outta room.By the time I hadfinishedtheinstructionsontheprimitivebowandarrow,

I found that Ihad filled theallocatedpages foronechapter.Therefore Iwroteanotherone,Chapter5,whichgoesintotheuseofsnares,deadfalls,marinelife,insects,andthelike,sothatonecansubsistinthewilds.

I don’t pretend tohave enoughknowledgeof edibleplants to evenmentionthem. It’s a skill that in itself requires years, if not a lifetime, of learning.Certainly, I have learned a little along these lines in the acquiring of otherknowledge,butIcanspendsixweeksorlesswithanindividualandteachhimorher how to live well in the out-of-doors, including how to obtain sufficientsustenance to live. In thatperiodof time Iwouldn’t evenhavemy foot in thedoorwhen it comes to edible plants.Tome, this knowledgewould be nice toknow—someday.

Now, themethods that I describehere aremine.Theywork forme.What Idescribeascardinalrules,nottobeventuredfrom,arebrokenallthetimebyabowmakerfriendofmine,whosebowsworkgreat.SowhatIdescribeisn’ttheonlyway—but theydowork forme!Andwhat Idescribeashappening to thewoodatvariousstagesmaynotbetherealityforyou.But ifyouapproachtheproject thinking the way that I describe it, your finished product will beworkable,andthat’swhatcounts.

We’llbeusinghandtoolshere—nottheprimitivetoolsthatwillberequiredinastrictlyprimitivesituation,butmodern“whitemantools.”TheuseofstoneandbonefortoolsiscoveredinChapter2.

I’llalsobethrowingin ideasandtips thatI’vepickedfromvarioussources.What Iput forthdoeswork—though,as I stress, it’snot theonlyway. In fact,throughout theentirebook, I’llbe showingyouhow toaccomplish the taskathand,butwillalsokeep thedooropenso thatyoumayuseyourown ideas tocomeupwithother,andquitepossiblybetter,waystoaccomplishthesameend.

AnatomyofaBow

Simplyput, a bow is a stickwith a string tied at each end thatwill propel anarrow.Tounderstandhowtosuccessfullymakethisstickbend,timeandagain,to itsfullpotential,weneedaquicklessoninphysics.So,paycloseattention;thisisimportant.

•Anypieceofwoodofequaldimensionsfromendtoendwillbendatthemiddlewhenforceisapplied.Withabow,themidsectionmovesinonedirection, the two tips in the opposite direction. To counteract this, weremovewoodfromthelimbsofourbow—morefromnearer thetips thanfromclosertothegrip.

• When removing wood while shaping and tillering a bow, oneequationisofimportance.Ifhalfthewoodisremovedinthewidthof thebow, the strength is halved. If one eighth of thewood is removed in thethicknessof thebow, thestrength isdecreasedbyclose toonehalf!Whatthisshowsisthatthebowwillbemoreeffectiveifit’snarrowerandthicker,especiallyatthetips.(Thisisexplainedshortly.)

•Theoutsideofthebend(backofthebow)willbetryingtotearapart(tension).Theinside(belly)willbecompressing.

•Mostwoodsarestrongerundertensionthanundercompression.Thefibers of most woods will fail first under compression. This is followedalmost immediatelyby the tearingapartof theback, leavingyouwith thefalseimpressionthatthebackfailedfirst.

•Tillering,meaningequalbendingofthelimbs,iscritical.Ifaportionofthelimbisn’tbending,somewhereelseisbendingtoomuch—andfailurecanresult.

•Somewheretowardthecenter(betweenbackandbelly)ofthispieceofwood is aneutralplanewhereno forcesare ineffect (at least, thatweneedbeawareofhere).Fromthisneutralplaneoutwardineachdirection,all, or 100 percent, of the forces of tension and compression are beingexerted. Simple, yes.But…the closer to the neutral plane, the less forceexerted.So,howthisaffectsus is that thenearer theoutside(eitherside),the furthest from the neutral plane, is where most of the percentage of

tension and compression is occurring. So, a higher percentage of tensionandcompressionistakingplaceinasmallerpercentageofthewood.Fiftypercentoftheseforcesarehappeningintheouter10percentofthewood.What that tells us is that a flat outer surface will make a stronger bowbecausethishigherpercentageofforcesisspreadoverawidersurface.Thebacksofbows,wedon’thavethatmuchcontrolover;weneedonlyfollowthe growth ring of the tree.The smaller the tree or limb, the rounder theoutersurface,andthemoretensionexertedinasmallerarea.Butthebellywedohavecontrolover.That,wecanmakeflat.Andsincethemajorityofwoodsfailfirstundercompression,thisworkstoouradvantage.

•Massofthewood—theactualbowitself—slowsdowntheworkingactionorresponseandsodirectlyaffectstheperformanceofthearrow.Thisis most noticeable toward the tips of the bow. So, the less mass (wood/weight)foraparticularweightbow,thebettertheperformance.

•Eachpieceofwoodhasitsidealwidth-to-thicknessratio.Generallyspeaking,theharderthewood,thenarrowerthisis.Thenarrowerthatyoucanmakeyourbow,themoreeffectiveitwillbebecauseitwillcontainitsleastmass.Lessmassmeansfasterperformance.But…

•Whatwe’reafter inourchosenpieceofwood is the ratiowherebythebowcanbebenttoitsfullestextent(atapointsomewherearoundhalfits length), and to have this wood not fail under either tension orcompression(allwoodswillfailifpulledtoofar).Let’sassumeourwoodisstrongerunder tensionand thatwehaveanunviolatedback.Allweneedconcern ourselves with now is compression. All woods will fail undercompression, to some extent. Our ideal bow will fail only slightlynoticeably. Assuming that we’re workingwith a straight bow, this is thestagewewant our bow tobe in at this point in time.Eachwoodwill bedifferent,justaseachroundfromthesametreewillalsodiffersomewhat.There’snosetformula.Ahardwood,suchasOsageorange,willreachthisstage,beingthickerandnarrowerthanacomparablepieceof,say,hickory(anotherhardwood).

•Ifastraightbowismadetothisperfection,withthesamelengthandweight(let’ssay48”and55lb,andwiththespecificgravity,(weight)beingaboutequal,thenarrower,thickerbowwillshootfartherandfasterbecauseitwillcontainlessmass(2:1comparedto8:1).

Thisknowledgehasn’tjustappearedtomeindreamsbuthascomefrommanysources, some even the aforementioned books. But the largest contributors tomakingmymind think“bows”havebeenJeffSchmidt, a professor of physics

whoseworkingswith theAsian compositebowhave enlightenedmeas to thephysicsinvolved,andTimBaker,whohasdonethemostextensiveresearchandtesting of the primitive bow of anyone I know. To both these fine folks, mythanksfortheircompletelyunselfishsharingofinformation.

AflyerborrowedfromSteveWattsofGastonia,NorthCarolina,onconstructionofold-timeSoutheasternIndiancanearrows

ThePrimitiveBow

Here I’mgoing to cover thewooden “self” (all onepiece) bow, and the samebowbackedwithsinew.We’llendupwithashort,sinew-backedbowcommontothePlainsIndiansofNorthAmerica.SinceIgotoallthetroubleofmakingthem, not only do I make them usable but also make them to be hung in amuseumorthehomeofthediscriminatingcollector.Mostofmybowsareinthe55to60lb.rangewitha20”to22”arrow,andthat’swhatwe’llmakehere.Youcanmakeyoursheavierorlighter.

Tools

Once the stavesareprepared, forwhich I’ll use a saw, a sledge, some typeofheavyknife,andwedges,theonlytoolsthatI’llworkwithintheactualmakingof the bow will be a drawknife, a wood rasp/bastard file, and a pocketknife.Can’tgetmuchsimplerthanthat.Aviseishandybutnotnecessary.

Material

Almostanywoodwillmakeabow,buttherecertainlyarepreferences.

I have read of willow, cottonwood, and sycamore being used by some earlyIndians—not out of preference, but because of availability. I’ve made a fewmyself from cottonwood andwillow thatworkwell for rabbits in particular. IknowfromexperiencethatOsageorangemakesoneofthebestbows,withyewaclosecompetitor.Whiteoakmakesarealfinebow,andit’sabiteasiertoworkthanOsage.Thebowthatwe’llmakeherewillbehickory—notoneofthebetterwoods(ithasn’tasmuchsnapastheothers)butonethatIhighlyrecommendforthebeginningbowmaker. It’s a truly forgivingwoodand almost impossible tobreak.You’llfeelalotoffrustrationwhenabowbreaks,soyoumightwanttoworkwithmoreofasurethingonyourfirsttry.Thestepsillustratedhereapplytoallwoods.

The list of preferredwoods really isn’t long.Ash,black locust, lemonwood,andmulberryaresomeoftheothers.Butwhatwasavailableiswhatwasusedindaysgoneby.

Generally the softer,more brittlewoods (yew,cedar)weremade intowide,flatbowsandtheharderanddenserwoods(Osage,whiteoak)madeintonarrow,thickbows.

FindingtheStave

Theperfectstavewouldbestraight,knotfree,andresilient;wouldspringbacktoitsoriginalshapewhenunstrung,notstayingbent(followingthestring);andwouldbesnappy,kindalikespringsteel.Alottoaskforinonepieceofwood.

I cutmost allmy staves green, in the dead ofwinterwhen the sap’s down(excessmoisturetakeslongertocureandleadstomorecheckingandcracking).OccasionallyIfindadeadlimbortreethat’sreadytoworkinoneofthehardordensewoods,thoughnotoften.

I want the stave as straight as possible, though they can be heated andstraightenedtoagreatextentlateron.

Iwatchforknots.Bestiftherearenone,butI’vemadeseveralgoodbowsbyworkingaroundthem,whichwillbeexplainedlater.

I take limbs or trunks of any size 2 1/2” or thicker.You could get bywithsmaller,butIliketheextrafreedomofmaterialtoworkwith.Withthesmallersize,Ionlytrytogetonegoodstavefromtheround,asit’snotallthateasytosplitthesmallerstavesexactlyinhalf.BycarefullysplittingthelargerpiecesIcangetseveralstavesfromthem.

Curing

I’vereadandheardofasmanywaystocureoutastaveasI’veheardofmakingbows. Some folks bury them in their gardens, from six months to six years.Somecovertheends,ortheentirelog,withwax,allowingthelogtocureslowlyandminimizewarpage and cracking…and on and on. I’ve also heard that it’sbestnottousekiln-driedwood.

Now,here’ssomeofmyownthinking.Greenwoodwon’twork,asitsgreen,wet cells are especially weak under compression and fail immediately whenbent,andalsoit’stooslowinresponsetocastanarrow.Thedrierthewood,thefaster(snappier).Toodrymakesthewoodtoobrittle,leadingtobreakage.Soweneedsomethinginbetween.

Theheavierdensewoodsneedlongertocurethanthelooser-grainedwoods.The densest and heaviest include Osage and white oak. The other extremeincludes yew and cedar, with most somewhere in between—like our model,hickory.

Itakeallmystavesanddebarkthem,thenrightawayIsplitthemintothesizeof stave thatworksout best.Whendebarking, takegreat care so as tonotcutthroughtheoutergrowthring.Infact,it’swisetoleavetheslightestbitofinnerbarkonthestavetoensurethis.I thensplit toseparatetheheart(inside)woodfromthesap(outside)wood.Theheartisdenserandthereforedriesatadifferentratethanthesap,whichisamajorcauseofwarpageandcracking.SometimesIcan save for usable stavesboth theheart and the sapwoods, butmoreoften Imustchoose.

WithhickoryIfindthatthesapwoodisthickerthantheheart,soIusuallysave

thesap.WithwhiteoakIsavetheheart,andthesamewithOsage.(Iknowofonebowmakerwho leaves the sapofOsageon theheart,which isonlyabout1/4”thickorless,asitactsasasortoflamination,allowingformoreflexibility.)

Whensplittingoutthestaves,withthebarkoffIcanmoreeasilyseetheknotsandhowthegrainofthewoodflows.Thisdictatespreciselywheretosplit.Knotfree if possible, though knots in the center of the wood are not much of aproblem, unlike knots in the grip portion. Knots close to the edge should beavoided if possible (more on that later). Let the piece of wood that you’reworkingwithdictatetheworkingofthebow.

Ifthere’sanaveragetothesizeofmystaves,theywouldbeabout11/2”thickbyabout21/2”widebyhoweverlong.Alleitherwoodoftheheartorthesap.TheseI’llhanginacoveredareaoutofdoorsforaboutsixtoeightweeks;thenI’lltaketheminbythefireforaboutanothertwotofourweeks.Finally,Imakebowsfromthem.

IhavesuccessfullymadebowsfromOsage,whiteoak,andhickoryinasshortatimefromcuttingasthis.

MakingtheBow

Nowlet’stakeholdofourcuredstave.Plantospendsometimewithit.Feelit.Lookitoververycarefully.Studyit.

Therulestoremembernowareto(1)workwiththegrain,followingitfromoneendofthestavetotheother,and(2)nevercutthroughtheoutside(back,orthe sideaway from the shooter)growth ring.This I stress as amust, though Iknowofatleastonebowmakerwhoalwaysbreaksthisrule.Iftheringhappensto be cut through, remove the entire ring down to the next.Otherwise, this iswhere thebow ismost liable tobreak. (3)Keep theknots to the insideof thebow.Whenaknotcan’tbeavoidedattheedge,donotcut throughthenaturalflowof the fibers around it. Leave a bit of a bump there,whichwill just addcharactertothefinishedproduct.Cuttingthroughthefiberswillonlyweakenthelimb at this point (a good friendofmine, another bowmaker, says exactly theopposite).

When studied long enough, the bowwill “appear” to youwithin the stave.Followthelineof longitudegrainandbeginplacingknotswherethey’lldonoharm,eliminatingallthatyoucan.Isanarrow,thickbowcalledfor,oronethat’swideandflat?Everypieceofwoodspeakstoyoudifferently,andnotwobowswillbeexactlyalike.Takeapencilanddrawanoutlineofyourbow,makingthecentergripabit longer thanyourhandiswide.Whenyou’vesearchedout thebest possible section for abow, looked it over fromall sides, anddrawnyouroutline,thenyou’rereadytopickupthedrawknife.

It’seasiesttoworkwiththeaidofavise,thoughIhavefreehandedsomeandhavealsocomeupwithseveralcontraptionstoworkinthewild.

InormallyfirstworkthesidesofthestavetotheoutlinethatI’vedrawn,thougheachpiecewillbedifferent.Itrytodothisfirst,becausewhenIbeginworkingonthethicknessofthelimbsIcanmoreaccuratelyjudgetheweightofthebowand feel thebendof the limbs if it’s almost to its properwidth.At this point,keep the entire bow slightly oversized so that when it’s heated to bend, ifinadvertently scorched, there’ll be room to remove some. Once the width iswithin 1/8” or so, begin working on the belly. Remember, no more is to beremovedfromtheback!

I’llbeginshapingwiththegrip.Justdowhateverfeelsgoodtoyou.It’sbesttokeepitthickerheretheninthelimbssothere’llbenobend,whichwillcauseitto kick. But careful study of old bows shows that, for themost part, Indiansdidn’tworrymuchaboutthis.Thelimbsshouldtapergraduallyfromthegriptothetips.Workitslowly.Remember,onceit’sremoved,itcan’tbeputback.OnceIgettowithinabout1/4”thefinalsize,I’llputasidethedrawknifeandtakeupawoodrasp,asoccasionallytheknifewilltakeabitlargerbitethanIwant.Asthelimbgetswithinbendingrange,slowdownandfeelyourwaycarefully.Trytoremove from the entire limb at the same time. When it begins to showbendability,backawayfromthegripandworkonlytherestofthelimb,andsoon till you get to the tip. At this stage, the limb should bend pretty evenlybetweenthenockandthegrip,butwillstillbemuchtoostrongtoevenconsiderstringing.Whenonelimbisaboutwhereyouwantit,repeatwiththeother.Thesecondlimbwillbemoredifficult,asyou’llbetryingtomatchthefirst.Simply

work slowly, a little at a time. Keep a constant check on your progress bybendingthebowoveryourknee.Youdon’tneedtobeexact—eyeballit,asthisisn’tthefinishedsizeyet.

Now, before you get too confused as to some of the terminology that I’musinghere,I’llincludeashortglossaryoftermsthatIuse.

Notedeepcutcausedbycarelessuseofthedrawknife.It’sbesttogoslowandeasy,leavingalotforthewoodrasptodo.

Thebackofthebowisthesidethat’sawayfromyouwhenthebowisstrung,andthebelly is thesidefacingyou.Thegrip is thecenterof thebowthatyougripwhenshooting.Thelimbisthesectiononeithersideofthegriprunningtothetip.Theears,ifabowhasthem,arethe4”to6”ateachtipthatarebentbackaway from thebelly, ineffect shortening thebow.Notchesare thedepressionscutnearthetipstoholdthestring.

Studycarefully the seriesofphotographsbelowandon thenext twopages,whichwilltakeyoufromtherawstavethroughtothebowpreparedforthefirstheatingsession.

HeatingandBending

Onceyou’vegotthelimbsbendingprettyuniformly,it’stimetodoanybendingof the bow that youmay need orwant to achieve. Seldom do I beginwith aperfectlystraightstave,asIusuallysavemybesttosell,makingmyownbowsfromtheharder-to-workpieces.

Manybows that I’veworkedhave required straightening,whichwill be thefirststep.OnceIgetastraightbow,thenIcandecidehowIwanttobendittoshape.Sometimes,I leaveitstraight.MostoftenI’ll reflexthebow(bendit inthe opposite direction), because all woods will initially follow the stringsomewhat, especially hickory. I often will bend the ears back also, but thepurposeofthisistoshortenthebowandmakeitfaster,andherewe’realreadyworkingwithashortbow.

I once put ears on a beautiful Osage bow that I made, a nice, 42” bow.Afterward,Ihadtothintheearstoallowthemtobend,becauseallthebendwasforcedintoonesmallareaof the limbs.Ihadalreadysinewedthebackandsowasunabletoheatandstraightenit.

Theactualheatingof thewood isdoneslowly. Itcanbedoneoveranopenfire,hotcoals,theflameofagasrange,orevenanelectricrange.Theideaistoheatthefibersofthewoodcompletelythrough.Iapplygrease(polyunsaturatedbear grease,meaningCrisco) liberally on the spot that I’m heating. I’ve eventriedsteamingit,whichtakesmuchtoolong.I’veheardofotherswhousewaterinlieuofgrease.Someevenboilit.Tomywayofthinking,thegreaseorwaterserves two purposes: (1) to help protect thewood from scorching,whichwillmakethewoodbrittleandworthless,and(2) toallowmoisture(intheformofsteam?)topenetratethefibersofthewood.Whetherthat’ssoornot,that’sthewayIlookatit.Whatever,itdoeswork.

Whenthefibersareheatedcompletelythrough,thewoodwillbendaseasilyasitdoeswhengreen.But, ifkeptinitsnewpositiontill itcools,itwillprettymuchstaythere.Youmustbecarefulandnotoverdoit.It’seasyenoughtotakeit toofarand tearorbreak thefibers.You’llhave to feel thisasyougo.Heat,bendalittle,reheat,bendsomemore—whenitbreaks,you’vegonetoofar!I’veneverhadapiecebreakwhiledoingthis.

Some bowmakers make a jig and place the bow into it till it’s completelycooled.Ijustholditinpositionforabout30to45seconds,anditseemstostayprettyclosetowhereIwantit.Keepthepiecemovingconstantlyover thefire,neverlettingitstayexposedtotheheatatanyonespotfortoolong,whichwilllead to scorching. (The purpose of leaving the bow oversized till nowwas togive something extra to remove in the event that it got a bit scorched.) If I’mwanting tobendonlyasmallarea, I’llheatanareaabout3” to4” long. If thebendortwist(yes,twistscanbeeliminatedifthey’renottoobad)isspreadovera longer area, heat it all. In about 3 to 5minutes, a small area should be hotenoughtobend,dependingonthethickness.Ican’toverstresstheimportanceofnotscorching.Goslow.

Notescorch,thereasonforleavingoversized(brittleportionwillberemoved).

Now,anotherimportantpoint:Heatandbendanareaononelimb.Ifthere’saspotthatyoucanalsoworkontheotherlimbthatwon’tinterferewiththespotthat you’ve just bent (straightened), do it also. Then lay it aside till it has achancetocompletelycool.Ifyoutrytodotoomuchatonetime,areasthathavealready been worked, but are still warm within, can easily get accidentallyrebent.Bendingisn’tsomethingtobedoneatonesitting.SomeofmybowstakeseveraldaystogettowhereI’msatisfiedwiththem,sodon’tgetoveranxious.

I take the bow to straight first (unless a natural bend can be usedadvantageously in the finished shape of the bow), and then I do whatevershaping Ideemnecessary. I have read, andheard fromseveral sources, that ifonepartofabowisheated,youshoulddothesamespotontheotherlimb—butIdon’tbotheraboutthat.

Bowtakentostraight.

FinalWorking

Whenalltheheating,straightening,andbendingisdone,now’sthetimetogetdowntothenitty-grittyoffinishingyourproject.

With rasp in hand, approach the bow cautiously. You’re going to carefullyremovewoodtothefinalsize—veryslowly,soasnottooverdoit.Remember,itcan’tbeputback.

Usually,butnotalways,thegripwillneednofurtherwork.If,however,itwasleftoversized,forthepurposeofstraighteningorwhatever,start there.Workitdown till you have what you want. Don’t just jump in and start filing away,though, but look it over from all sides and remove wood so that things stayuniform.

Finalshapingandbending(tillering)shouldbedonecautiously,slowly,bitbybit.Iworkonelimbatatime,raspingorscrapinggentlywithasteelbladeheldat an angleof 90° (plusorminus) to thebellyof the limb. I sweep the entirelength,fromgriptotip.Thethicknessofthelimbshouldbegettingthinner,thefartherouttowardthetipyougo.Thisisamust!

Also,I’vefoundthatsomestudentsreadorhearmesaythatthebellyneedstobeflattheentirelengthofthelimb—andrightlyso.Butdon’tmisinterpretthistomeanthatyoucanignoretheshapeofthebow’sback.Ifthebackswayssouth,sogoesthebelly.Thefinallimbmayappearlikearoughroad,butitmustmatchthebackinthickness.

Bend the bow to test it, by placing the tip on the ground and applying

backwardpressureatthegrip.Watchthebending.Youdon’twanttoseeanyoneareabending.Ifyoudo,itmeansthatexcessstressisbeingplacedthere,soyoumust removematerial from areas above, below, or both to even out the bend.Mosteverytimeit’llbevisuallyapparentthatareasarethickerorthinner,simplybylookingfromtheside.Runningyourhanddownthelimb,thumbonthebellyandfingersontheback,willoftenfeelthickerorthinnerareas.Takeyourtime.

Allmaterialistoberemovedfromthebelly.Leavetheback(onegrowthring)alone!Dotheotherlimbtillitlooksandfeelsthesame.Manytimes,that’sallIneedtodotonowstringthebow.

The last fewparagraphswon’t take but aminute to read, but, in the doing,expecttospendthebetterpartofadaytodothingsright.

Remember that,when finishing,you’regoing to removeany scorchedareas(except from the back; if you have scorched here, it’d be best to remove oneentire growth ring and start over). Scorched areas are brittle and will breakeasily.We’regoingtobetilleringthelimbs,butwe’renotgonnatouchthebackofthebow!

Carefullyremovingjustalittleatatime.

Whenwe’re satisfied, now’s the time to cut our nocks for the string and tostringthebow.Here,anystrongcordwillsuffice.(Stringswillbecoveredsoon.)Thecutsfornotchescanbedoneaboutanywaythatyoulike.Theyneedonlybenearthetipofthelimbs,suitabletoholdthestring.Manyoldbowshadnonockatall,justabuildupofsinewtopreventthestringfromslidingdowntheshaft.Thephotos show theway that Idomine.Oldbowsweredone inmanyways.Themost commonmethod of the Plains Indianswas to put two nocks on thelowerendofthebowandoneontheupper(maybetoallowthemtomovethe

stringlineofsighttoonesideofthegriportheother).ThisiswhatInormallydo.

Thebow,beforefinalheatingandfinishing,draws50lb.at151/4”.

Seriesshowingstepsinbending.Inallphotos,bellyisup.

#1—Bothlimbsreflexedatgrip

#2—Towardthetipscurvedbackin

#3—Bownowstrung,tested45lbs.at22”draw

#4—Showinghowbowsomewhatfollowedstringfromjustonetimestringing

If we’vewatchedwhat we’re doing up till now, the limbs should be fairlyclose.NowI’llmakeuseofatilleringboard.Thiscanbeassimpleasaheavynailorspikedrivenintoanuprightpostorboard,toholdthecenter(grip)ofthebow,withnailsplacedat about2” intervalsbelow it.With this,youcanput aloosestringonthebowandstressthelimbsverylittlebypullingthestringdownanailatatimeandpayingattentiontohoweachlimbbends,bothindividuallyandasamatchingpair.Atthepointthelimbsarebent,ifyouseeaproblemareayou can immediately stop and touch up that spot. Once the bow’s bent farenough that the string at the grip area is at the proper height (test by runninganotherstringorstraightstickfromtiptotip),youcanthenstopandstringthebow to the proper height. Formost longer bows, that height is about 6”—theheight of a fistwith a thumb sticking up. Formy own bows of 44” or less, Imakeitjustfist-high(about4”).Thisiscalledthebraceheight.

I’ll continuepulling the stringonenail at a time till I feel I’mstressing toomuch,andthenwillremovewoodfrombothlimbs.Idothisbyfeel,andmanytimesmybowwillbreak,asI’mtryingtomakeittooheavyadrawweightforthewoodit’smadeof.Mosttimes,I’llquitlongbeforeIreachthe2:1ratio(halfthelengthofthebow),thenI’llshootitalottokindabreakitin,hopingtogainaninchortwo.Mostgoodbowyers“overbuild”theirbows—meaningthattheycreateoneat themagic2:1 ratiowithoutcomingcloseenough to thebreakingpointtoworryaboutit.(I’mnotthatsmart.)

ThefirstthingIdoafterstringingforthefirsttimeistopulleasilyto“feel”how it pulls.With the short bows that I make, I use an arrow about half thebow’s length, usually 20” to 22”. I’ll use a premeasured stick or an arrow tocheckthis.Theshortbows“stackup”quitefast(bystackingup,Imeanthattheysuddenlyget harder andharder to pull). Pull gently at first.Now’s a good (orbad) time tobreak it.Feel itout. If thewoodsuddenlyfeels like itwon’tgiveanymore,listentoit.Removesomemorewoodfromthebellytolimberit.

Checkingbendabilityofbowconstantlyaswego.

Withmostofmybows,I liketoendat thisstagewithabouta45lb.pullatwhatI’vedecidedthearrowlengthtobe.ThisImeasurebypullingfromascale.WhateverthescalereadsatthefulldrawlengthiswhatIcallthebowweight.Idon’t know how the “big boys” do it. Bows can bemade to pull atwhateverweightyoudesire,butsinceIbackallofminewithsinewIkeepitatabout45lbs.here.ThetwolayersofsinewthatI’llapplywillbringthebow,afterfinaltillering,to55to60lbs.

At this pointwehave a finished, shootable, self bowof about 45 lbs. drawweightwitha22”arrow.

Ifweweretokeepithereandnotgoontosinewit,itwouldcallforsomesortofsealing toprotect it fromtheelements. In theolddays,greasewas liberally

applied,andreapplied,andevensomemore,forthepurposeofkeepingthebowlimber.Mosttimes,thebowwouldbeheatedsomewhatandthenthegrease(andmaybebrains)applied.

My thinking,again: Ifkept in themoisture,unprotected, for long, thewoodwould soak up moisture and become weaker and subject to rot. If keptunprotected in a low-humidity area, it would dry to the point that it wouldbecometoobrittleandthereforesubjecttobreakage.

Whatever,youcanstophereifyouwant.Ineverdo.Nextformeisto…

BacktheBowwithSinew

Remember what I said earlier about the ideal bowstave having the quality ofspringing back to its original shape when unstrung?Well, manywoods don’tpossess thatquality. Infact, thehickorybowthathas justbeenmadeisoneoftheworstfor“followingthestring.”Itwouldn’tbelongbeforethebowwouldbebentalmosttothepointthatitwouldrequirenoadditionalbendingtostringit.Thisproblemformearisesbymymakingthebownarrow,tryingtoreplicateaPlains Indian piece. It would be tempered or eliminated if I made the limbswiderandthereforespreadthestressovermorearea.

Applying sinew to the back of the bow will help greatly in reducing thistendency.Itwillalsoaddstrength,power,and“snap.”Beyondthat, itwilladdgreatly to the bow’s elasticity. On some bows where I haven’t reached thedesireddrawlengthbuthaven’twantedtoshaveawayanymorewood,I’vegoneaheadandsinewedandthenhavebeenabletoincreasethedraw.Theapplicationofsinewreallydoesalotforthetensionofwood.

Threestripsofdeersinew,twopartiallyseparated.

Read through this section thoroughly, and understand it completely beforeproceeding. This step is kinda complicated to describe, evenwith the help ofphotos,yettheactualprocessofsinewingisreallymucheasierthandescribingit.Whenyouunderstandpreciselywhatyou’redoing,whyyou’redoingit,withwhatyou’redoingit,andhowtodoit,theactual“doing”willbeapieceofcake.Remember, also, thatherewe’reworking in thekitchen. It’s reallynotall thatmuchmoredifficulttodointhewilds,justmuchmoretime-consuming.

Sinewistendon.It’savailablefromallanimals,includingus.Itcanbetakenfromthe legsor,preferably, fromeithersideof thebackbone.Thesinewfromthe legsworks, but is shorter by far than the loin sinew, and for this reason Idon’tuseit,thoughIdokeepsomeonhand.Themuchlongerstrips,onelyingon either side of the backbone, are a lotmore pleasant to workwith and areeasilyenoughremovedfromthecarcassofanylargeanimal.(Seethe“SewingwithSinew”sectioninChapter10.)

Legsinewmustbepoundedthoroughlyandthenseparatedintothreads.Theloin sinew, if cleaned properly, has only to be roughened between the fingers

first (we’re talking about 2 or 3minutes’ work here) and then separated intothreads.Itrytokeepthethreadsallaboutagood1/8”thick.I’vefoundthatthreeaverageloinstripsofdeersinewwillallowmetoapplytwocoatstothebowandhave enough left over for the bowstring. The entire process of preparing thethreadstakeslittlemorethananhour.

Topreparethebow,itmustbewashedthoroughly.Allgreaseandoilsmustberemovedfortheglueandsinewtoadhere,andthatincludestheoilsfromyourhands.Somewashtheirbowswithlye.Ididontwobows,thoughIdidn’tlikeworkingwiththecausticstuffandwentbacktomymethodofagoodscrubbing.A toothbrushworkswell,with Ivorydish soap and lots ofhot,hot,hot water,then rinsed very thoroughly. Also wash the belly of the bow for a couple ofinchesdownfromboth tips.Thebowcanbesinewedeitherdampordry; I’vefoundnodifference.Now,don’ttouchthebackofthebowwithyourhandsagaintillyou’reapplyingtheglue.

Also,thenapofthewoodonthebackofthebowmustberaisedsothatthegluehassomethingtoadhereto.Thiscanbeaccomplishedwitheitherafileorahacksawblade,workinggentlysoas tobarelyraise thenap.Don’tgosodeepthatyoucutthroughthegrowthring.Thiscanbedoneeitherbeforeorafterthewashing.

Glue

Here I’mgoing to breakoneofmy rules andmake a statement that I haven’tpersonally tested to see whether it’s true, though it’s the consensus of allbowmakers I’ve spoken to. “Sinew is protein. The only glue that cansuccessfullybeusedwithit isanotherpureprotein—meaninggluefromhide.”Thismakessensetome,andhideglue isall I’veeverusedwithsinew.Anditdoeswork. I haven’t tried anyof theother commercial glues available.Sinewisn’tallthateasytocomeby,andIdon’twanttotakethechanceofruiningany.I’vealwayshadaccesstogluefromhides,orhavetakenthetimetomakeit.

Asthenameimplies,hidegluecanbemadefromhide.Simplyboilahideinwaterlongenough,andgluewillbeextractedfromitintothewater.Ifthehideisin small pieces or scrapings (or both), itwill happen faster, since it hasmoresurfacearea.Bringapotofwatertoaboilandaddthemakin’s(hidescrapings,sinew scrapings, cartilage, and so on). This is often referred to as hoof glue,thoughinfact thehornypartsofhoovescan’tbeboiled intoglue—they’re thewrong stuff.When hooves are thrown into the pot, any glue producedwouldhave come fromcartilage.Anyhow,boil away.After some time (maybehoursforlargerpieces),thegluestuffwillbeextractedintothewater.Thegluecanbemade thickernowbyfurtherboiling.We’ve found thatmaking itonhot rocks(depressions) or in ceramic pots in fieldwork is convenient for not-so-refinedglue.Whenmakingitathomeorundermorecontrolledconditions,itwouldbebetter to keep the liquid thinner. Strain this through a filter of sorts (such aslayersofcheesecloth)andthenpouroutinthinlayers(oncookiesheetscoveredwithtinfoil:primitivehere).Thewaterwillevaporateandleavethinsheetsofgluebehind.Keepthislayerthinsothatthewaterisallowedtoevaporatemorequickly(nothingsmellsquiteasbadasrottingprotein!),whichisthereasonfortheflatsheetinlieuofabowl.Leaveitinsheets,orpulverizeitforstorageandwhenreadytouseitaddwaterandheat.

Hide glue can also be bought. Making it can be a real pain, and time-consuming(beinghypocriticalnow,ain’tI?),soItendtobuymostofwhatIuse.It’s available either granulated, as I just described, or in liquid form. I madeseveralbowsyearsagousingthisliquidstuff.Itworked,buttookforevertocureoutandalwaysseemedtacky.IreadinD.C.Waldorf’sbookTheArtofMakingPrimitiveBowsandArrowsthatthiswasduetoanadditiveandthatitcouldbecounteracted by adding vinegar. I tried that once but still didn’t like workingwithit.It’snoteasytofindthegranulatedglueattimes,though.Youmighttryartsupplystoresandespeciallyplacesthatworkwithstainedglass.Apoundofglue will make three, four, or even more bows, with plenty of leftovers forarrowsandothercraftythings.

Now thatwe’ve got all the components together—sinew threads, hide glue,andthepreparedbow—let’sgetgoing.I’llexplainmysetupandyoucandevisewhateverwillworkbestforyou.

Iworkwithtwodishpans.Onepanholdsthebowforeasyworkability,backsideup. In it Iputabout11/2” to2”ofcoldwater to soak thesinew threads.Beginbysoakingaboutonethird(oneloinstrip)ofyourthreads(assumingthatyou’veusedthreedeerloinsinews),orwhatever.Iliketosoakthemforseveralminutes. They become elastic when soaked and shrink as they dry, therebyadding their strength to the bow.Hot water will cook them,warm water willcausethemtocurl.

Whilethesesoak,addseveralcupsofboilingwatertoahandfulorsoofthehide glue crystals in the second, smaller pan. This is variable, and you don’twant it toowatery but also not too thick, just like a thin syrup.After a lot ofstirring,thegluewilleventuallydissolveintheboiling-hotwater.Youcanspeedthisbyfirstsoakingincoolwater.

Theworking temperatureof theglue shouldbe about115° to120°F,barelywarmtothetouch.Thegluewillsetupfastatroughly85°to90°F.

Ifindworkingataroomtemperatureofroughly85°Faboutright.Ipreferittosetupkindaquick.Thehotter the room, the slower the setup time.Therefore,you might find it easier working during the cold of winter when the roomtemperatureiseasiertocontrolthanona75°to80°Fday.

Place thepanholding thenow-liquidglue intoa third, somewhat largerpancontaining hot water, such as a double boiler, to keep it at a good workingtemperature. Although the hands, bow, and glue would stand hottertemperatures,thesinewwon’t,sokeepitjustwarmenough.

Putnewspapersunderitall,asthingsareabouttogetrealsticky.

Endofbowcoatedwithglueandonethread“ridging”theoutside.Iinkedinaridgethreadtomakeitshow.

First, apply one or two coats of glue to the back of the bow, and allow tobecometacky.Thepurposenowistocovertheentirebackofthebowwithaneven layer of sinew threads, one thread deep.Try to avoid having bunches ofthreadsmeeting at the same “joint” (butt to butt), as in laying brick or stone;instead, overlap the threads. One by one, take each thread from the water,squeezetheexcessmoistureoutof itbetweenthumbandforefinger,dipit intotheglue,squeezeouttheexcessbetweenthumbandforefinger,andfinallydipitintotheglueoncemoreandagainsqueezeouttheexcess(ifthethreadislefttosoakintheglue,it’llbegintocookorcurl).Nowlaythethreadontothebackofthebow.Ibeginbyplacingthefirstthreadsalongtheveryedgeofthebow,fromoneend to theother,going throughwhatevernock theremaybeandon to theotherside.Ifthereisnonock,asinmyone-nockend,thengooverthetipand

downtheothersideforafewinches.

Whenapplyingthisfirstlayerofsinew,Iprefertomakethis“ridge”oneithersideofthebow,asitservesasaguideline,makingiteasierformetoevenlyfillthespace inbetween. Iknowofotherswhocounteach thread tomakecertainthat an equal number is placed on each limb. For this first layer, it’s notnecessary.Theentirebackneedstobecovered,forthebestresult.Ifthebowistilleredprettyclose, the limbsshouldbeaboutequalwidthsanyhow.Theonlywaythatyoumightrunintotroubleisbyplacingthreadsofvaryingsizesontheoppositelimbs.Ifthethreadsarefairlyclose,you’llhavenotrouble.

You’llnotethatIsaidtorunthethreadsoverthetipsanddowntheothersidea coupla inches. If there’s to be more than one coating, this wouldn’t benecessaryat thistime(thoughIdoallminethisway).Butwiththefinallayer,the threads are carried over and then held in place bywrappingwith a sinewthread,tokeeptheendsfrompullingloose.

Iinvariablyapplytwocoatsofsinewtomybows.Afterthefirstisinplace,Itakea15-to20-minutebreak toallow the first to setup somewhat.Also,nowshouldbeaboutthetimetobeginsoakingmorethreads,ifyouhaven’thadtodosobynow.Forthesecondlayer,Iusuallydon’tusequiteasmuchsinewasIdidinthefirst,unlessI’mtryingtoaddpowertoaparticularbow.

For this layer, I count the threads: 12 on one limb, 12 on the other. Thesethreadsareallplaceddownthecenterofthebow,notasanevenlayerlikewiththe first. The threads will spread out as you apply them, and the finishedappearancewill be slightly rounded. From one to three dozen threads to eachlimbshoulddothetrickhere.Remembernottobutttheends,buttooverlap,andalsotocarrythethreadsoverthetipsanddowntheothersideabit.

You’llfindthatyou’llhavetoreplacethehotwaterinyourtrayonceortwice,tokeeptheglueatitspropertemperature.You’llalsofindglobsofgluebuildingonthebow,causedbytheglue’scooling.Justwetyourfingersinhotwaterandrunthemovertheglobstosmoothandremovethem.

Iusethepanofcoolwater(holdingthebowandsoakingthethreads)torinsemyfingersasIgoalong,whichisoften.Andit’sasmartideatokeepoldragsorpapertowelshandytowipewith,notMa’sgoodtowels.

WhenI’msatisfiedwiththejob,Ithensmooththeentiresurfacewithfingersdippedinhotwater.Atthetipsandatall“low”spots,wherethethreadsmighthavethetendencytopullloosewhiledrying,takeasinewthreadandtieitdown.

Thethreadscanbeoverlappedatthegripsalltheymay.Itwon’thurtathing,asthere’snobendthere.

Takethesinewedbowandhangitfrompegsornailsandleaveitbe.HereinnortheastKansaswithitshighhumidity,I leaveitfortwoweekstocure.OnacouplabowsthatImadeinthedesertsnearLasVegas,Iwassatisfiedwiththecureinoneweek.Thecolorofthesinewwilllightennoticeablyasitdries.

Don’tevenbe tempted to try topull thebowandseehowit’sdoing,beforeyou’re sure that it’s cured. You’ll only succeed in breaking the all-importantbondbetweenglueandwood.

Thefreshlysinewedbow.

When it’s cured, you’ll find that the drying, shrinking sinew has pulled thebow back—and that’s good.With Osage or white oak, that’s where it wouldremain.Withourhickory,itwillstill“followthestring”slightly,butnotnearasmuchasifwehadn’tsinewedit.

Whenfirstpullingthebow,andprobablyforsometimeafterwardonthefirstfewpulls,thegluewillaudiblycrack.Thiswillneverceasetoworryyou!

When cured, the bow might need some final tillering. If everything hadworked perfectly and the tillering was right on, you’d be in good shape. Butmostprobablyyou’llhave to loosenone limbor theother.String thebowandpullitafewtimes,thenlayitdownandeyeballormeasureit.Ifonelimbbendsmore than the other, cut any sinew ties thatmay be in theway and carefullyscrapeorsandsomewoodfromthebellyofthestifferofthelimbs.Dothiswiththe bowunstrung.Removeonly a little and then string it, pull the bow a fewtimes,andfinallycheckitagain.Whenbothlimbsareequal(orclose),thebow’sallbutdone.

Some folks take the tillering to a more critical point. Using a board withnotchescut into itabout2”apart, theyplace thisboardonthegripof thebowandmove the string up a notch at a time, tillering at each step, till the drawlengthisreached.I’vefoundthatifthebowseemscloselytilleredasI’vestated,itwilllookgoodallthewayout.AtleastI’vehadnoproblems.

OnonehickorybowthatImadeseveralyearsago,Igottotilleringandreallyoverdid it.Whatbeganasa55 lb.bow,becauseofovertillering firstone limbandthentheother,endedupasa35pounder.Insteadof takinganaxtoitasIwas sorely tempted to do, I let it sit for severalweekswhile I calmed down.Then I simply resinewed it—a lot—and ended upwith a fine-shooting 55 lb.bow.Somuchforthepowerofsinew!

OK.Thebowhasbeensinewed,cured,andtillered.Nowtakeaknifeorsomesandpaperandgooverallunsinewedpartsofthebellyandsidestoremoveanyremnantofglue(justtomakeitpretty).Also,replaceanytiesthatyouremovedwhiletillering.

Butnowsomethinghastobedonetoprotectthebow.Notonlythewood(ofwhichIspokeearlier),butalsothesinewandthehideglue.Remember,thisisallwatersoluble.Ifwewereto laythebowina tubofwater,beforetoolongthegluewoulddissolveandthethreadswouldallfalloff.Nogood,that!

It’s best to figure that, on rainy days, the bowwill stay at home.When itrained,theIndianswenthome.Andthat’sjustaboutthetruth.Thebowwasnogood inwetweather. Even if itwasn’t sinew backed, the strings,whichweremademostlyofsineworrawhide,wouldbeworthless.

Themostcommonmethodofprotectingthesinewedbowindaysofoldwasto coat it liberally with grease, with some brains maybe thrown in for goodmeasure.Thesmell?Well,Idon’tdominethatway.

Ihavecoatedsomewithasparvarnish,whichdidn’tseemtohurtthesinewatall,butIjustdidn’tlikethebrand-newshinylookofafactory-madebowonmycompletelyhand-madeprimitivepiece.Inowcoatallmybowsliberallywithapaste wax. This coats both the wood and the sinew, and lets me control thefinish.

I’ve read in one source of intestines being used to cover the bow for

protection. In two sources I’ve seen discussions of skins of serpents (notablyrattlesnakes)beingusedforthesamething.

Ihavelookedhardatoldbowsallmylife,wheneverI’vecomeclosetothem.They fascinate me. Since I began making them, I’ve looked even morediligently, often taking notes and photographs. In the last coupla years I’veexaminedwellover100originalbows.ThisincludesthebowsondisplayattheSmithsonianInstitutioninWashington,D.C.;theMuseumofthePlainsIndiansinCody,Wyoming;andmuseumsandNationalHistoricSites toonumerous tomention. Of all the bows I’ve seen, probably about half of them were sinewbacked,andnotoneofthemhadeitherintestineorsnakeskincovering.AndthatfiguredoesnotincludetheSmithsonianreportof1893byOtisMasononbows,arrows,andquivers;ofthe43bowsillustrated,mostweresinewbacked,butnotonewascovered.

Thesecoveringsdowork.They’rejustnotmuseumquality.Ipersonallyliketheneat linesof thesinewbacking,andIdon’t like tocoverwhat is, tome,apartofthebeautyandlaborofmyhand-madebow.

String

It’sabouttimenow,Iguess,tomakeastringforthebow.

Thebestnaturalmaterialtousehere,whichiswhattheIndiansthoughtalso,is sinew or rawhide.Most vegetable fibers aren’t strong enough for this task,thoughsomewillworkforlighter-weightbows.

Iwasonceinformedbytwodifferentpeoplethatoneofthebetterbowstringscouldbemadefromtheneckskinofalargeturtle.Iwastoldthat,unlikesineworrawhide,thiswon’tstretchwhenwet.Findaturtle,“caseskin”(likepullingasock inside out) its neck, and cut the cord spirally (like a barber pole), thenstretchitandallowittodry.ThisnowisallthatIcantellyouaboutit,asI’veneverseenonenortrieditmyself—yet.

Deer rawhidemakes for a good, strong, long-lasting string.Cut it in a stripabout1/4”wide fromacircleofgoodsolid rawhide.Begincuttingaround theoutsideofthiscircleandcontinuetillyougettothecenter.Asurprisinglysmallpiecewillgivea lotof lace.Thensoak thecut lacing till it’spliable,double itandtwistittightly,andstretchitouttoletitdry.ForheavierbowsI’llpreparethelacethesame,butthenIwill“cord”it,makingforanevenstrongerstring.Again,dothiswhileit’swetandstretchittodry.Remember,thefinishedstringwill only be as strong as the weakest spot therein, so avoid thin spots and“scores.”

Sinewwasprobablythefavoritebowstringofold.Notonlywasitstrong,butalso,becauseofitsslightlyelasticcharacteristic,sinewgaveanadditionalsnapto the arrowas itwas released.Souse the leftover threads frombackingyourbow,orprepare themspecificallyfor this. It’s important tokeep the threadsasclosetothesamesizeaspossible.Oneendofthethreadwillbethickerthanthe

other, so alternate as you splice in, to keep the finished product even. I begincordingwithtwothreads,staggeredsothattheendsdon’tmeet.Youdon’twantthe splices to adjoin, as this will weaken the whole. Threads should also besoakedtomakethecordingprocesseasier.

Doublethis“two-ply”andbegincording.Kinkthethread,notevenlyinhalf,betweenthethumbandforefingerofthelefthand(forright-handers), twist theindividualtwo-plystrandstightlyinonedirection,andthentwistthisintheotherdirectionovertheotherindividualtwo-plystrand.(Thissoundsconfusingasallhell,butreaditslowlyandcarefully,andyoushouldbeabletofollowit.)Thusyour two-plywill become a four-ply cord. (Cording is covered extensively inChapter 1.) Splice in threads as you proceed.Many small splicesmake for astrongerstring.

Arrow

Uptothispoint,youmighthavedoneeverythingperfectly,but,ifthearrowisn’tmadeproperly,itwon’tflytrue.Thenyoumightaswellsharpentheendofthebowanduseitasaspear.Yes,everythingsaidsofarisimportant,butifanythingis to be considered all-important here, it would be the arrow. If it won’t flyconsistentlytowhereyouwantit,it’sworthless.Therefore,muchcareshouldbespentinthemanufacturethereof.

HereagainI’llstressthatthisisthewaythatImakemyarrows.Notonlydotheywork,butthey’remuseum-quality,PlainsIndiansarrows.Itakeafewextrastepsherethataren’tnecessaryforyoutoendupwithgood-qualityshooters,andI’ll tell you which ones you can skip over and still end up with a suitableproduct.I’llalsostickin,whereversuitable,othermethodsofendingupwiththesame.Ispendfrom10to12hoursmakingeacharrow.

Thematerialsthatcanbeusedfortheshaftaremany.Themainrequirementsarethatitbestrongenoughtosustaintheforceofthebowshootingit,andthatitbe straight. Any 3/8” to 5/8” limb, bush, or shoot is a possible candidate.Somethingasflimsyascattailstemscanevenbeused.Inthesouthernpartsofthis country, reeds have been used extensively.Aswith any other project, theIndiansofoldusedwhatwasavailabletothem.AlthoughIhavequiteavarietyofmaterialstochoosefromhereinKansas(willow,chokecherry,ashcedar,andmore, someofwhich I couldcut into lengthsand then split arrowshafts fromthem),Ifavorworkingwithdogwood.It’sabundantandmakesupintorealnicearrows.TheseIalsocutinthedeadofwinterwhilethesap’sdown.

Whencutting them, I look for shafts that areas straight andasknot freeaspossible.Extratimespentnowintheselectingwillmorethanpayforitselflateron.Formyshafts,Ilikethemtobeapproximately3/8”thickwhenIcutthem.Ifinishmineoutat1/4”and,bythetimeIremovethebarkfromthem,they’rejust

aboutright.Ifthey’retoothick,thenIhavetospendextratimeremovingwooddowntosize.

Ibundleandtietheshaftsingroupsof15orsoandhangtheminthehousetodry.Tyingkeepsthemfromwarpingtooseverely.Intwotofourweeks,they’rereadytowork.

Bundleofshaftsandchosenshaftlyingnexttoafinishedarrow.

Arrowmaking tools: sanding block, knife, bone sizer/wrench, and jawbone forstraighteningwrenchoncearrowisfinished.

Onceyou’vegotthecuredshafts,thebasicstepstoafinishedarroware:1.Scrapingandsizing2.Preliminarystraightening3.Sanding4.Cuttingofnotches5.Morestraightening6.*Cuttingoflightninggrooves7.Attachingofpoint8.Straighteningagain9.*Cresting(paintinganowner’smark)10.Fletching(putfeatherson)11.Sealing

*Youcanskipthesesteps.

Asyoucansee,there’slotsofstraighteningtobedone.Withprimitivearrows,straighteningissomethingthatyou’llbedoingoverandover,forthelifeofthearrow.

Thefirstthingtodoistostudytheshaft,determinethelengthofthefinishedarrow,andplacethiswithintheshaft.Allmyshaftshaveknots.Whereveraleafhasgrownthere’llbeaknot,asitethatwillalwaystendtowarp.Ifpossible,Itrytoplacethearrowwherenoknotwillbeintheareasthatwillhavefeathersofsinewties(thoughthisisn’talwayspossible).Knotsarepronetofuturewarping,andyouwon’tbeabletoheattheareatorestraightenitifit’sbeencovered.Soithelpstowatchtheplacementthereof.Oncethisisdetermined,Icuttheshafttolength.Idon’tworryaboutwhichendispointornock,sinceI’llworktheentirelengthtothesamesizeanyhow.

Using theedgeofa sharpknifeorapieceof flint,beginscraping theshaft,startingatthepointend.Workanareaabout4”to6”long,constantlyturningtheshaftasyouwork.WhenI’mabletorunthebonesizeruptheshaft,I’llworkupanothercouplainchesorsotillIfinallyreachthenockend.Ilikethesizertofitlooselyovertheshaft,becausewhentheshaftisheatedtostraightenitwillswellslightly.Iusethesametoolforstraightening.

Scrapingshaft,sizingshaft,carefullyshavinganyhighknots.

AsIapproachthenockendofthearrow,Icutaroundtheshaftandleavethelast1/4”orsooftheshafttheoriginalsize,sometimesleavingthebarkon.This,done inavarietyofways,wascommontomanyof thearrowsofold.For themostpart,theAmericanIndiandidn’tusetheMediterranean(whiteman’s)styleof release, but actually pinched the nock of the arrow between thumb andforefingerandsoneededsomethingtogrip.Thisstyleofreleasealsostrengthensthearrowatthispointagainsttheforceofthestring.

Tolookdowntheshaftnow,you’llseethatitain’tasstraightasitmightbe;ithaslotsofbumps,bends,andcricks.Really,it’snottoopretty,butit’llgetbetter—andsoon.

Wenowwillheatandstraightentheshaft,usingthesamebonetoolthatwasusedinsizing.Theidenticalprocessforheatingthebowapplieshere:slowlyandcarefully.Theslightestscorchherewilltell,andwhenthearrowhitssomethingsoliditwillbreak.InormallyworkthreeormorearrowsatatimesothatwhenIheat and straighten one, it cools while I work on the others, and it’s cooledenoughby the timeIgetback to it that Idon’thave toworryaboutrebendingareas that I’ve already worked. (Got that?) Take your time. Get the arrow asstraightasyoucan.Withsomeof thepoorershafts, thismaytakesomedoing,butstickwithit.Thebumpsofknotswilllooklikehellrightnow,butjustkindalook “through” themandget themainpart of the shaft straight.Remember tokeep lotsofgreaseon the shaft toguardagainst scorching. Itwillonly takeaminuteorsotogettheshafthotenoughtobend.

Onceyou’vegotthearrowstraight,orasstraightasyoucangetit,youcan(ornot,asyouwish),washthegreaseoffwithhotwateranddetergent.Thisisonlyto prevent it from building up in the sandstone or paper in the next step.NormallyIdon’twashitoff.

Before,sandingwithblock,andafter.

This next step, sanding,will dowonders for your cricked shaft. Using twopiecesofsandstoneabout5”to6”longwithagroovecutfortheshaft—orwitha2”x2”blockofwood the same length,cut inhalf lengthwise,andwith thegrooves cut for the shaft,andusing sandpaper—place the shaft in the grooveandrunitseveraltimesthroughthis.Almostmagically,the“cricked”stickwilltakeontheappearanceofalathe-turneddowel.Thelengthoftheshaft-smoothercuts the high spots of knots and other bad spots, leaving the lower partsuntouched.After you repeat this several times, brushing the stone or paper inbetween to keep it clean, you’ll find that the shaft has been wonderfullytransformed.

Nowreturntothefireandgreaseorheat,andstraightenagain.Youshouldendupwithafine-lookingshaft.

Manyofthe“old”arrowshadgroovescutfromthebaseofthefeatherstothepoint, sometimes two but more commonly three. These were just slight cutsmadelengthwisealongtheshaftwithknife,stone,orbone.Sometimestheywerestraight, sometimeswavy, sometimeswithzigzagsoranycombination thereof.The true purpose of these cuts has been lost. Some refer to them as bloodgrooves,othersaslightninggrooves.Whatever,ifyouwantthem,now’sthetimetoputthemin.

Cuttingthegroovetofitthearrowheadcanrequireanumberofapproaches.Insomesituations,youmayjustwanttosharpenandfirehardenthetip.(Ialwaysthink of fire hardening as removing only whatever moisture remains in thewood.)Oryoumaywanttospliceinablunttip,whichiseasilyenoughdone,tomake an arrow that’sdeadlyon small game.But for largegame,we’llwant amore appropriate “cutting” point.Bone or stonemay be used (the preparationthereof is covered inChapter2), inwhichcase, especially for the stonepoint,somecustomsawingorfittingwillbeinorder.Iuseeitherahacksawor,justasoften, a serrated piece of flint, to saw into the tip of the shaft. This, inconjunctionwithasharpknife,cansnuganawkwardpieceinlittletime.

Mostcommonly,though,becauseofmoderngamelaws,metalpointswillbeused. About any sheet metal will make a serviceable point—including scrap

metal,partofanoldfender,or,asIcommonlyuse,abarrelhoop.

Ahacksawandafilewillgiveyouapointofyourchoosing.

Theresultingmetalpointscanusuallybemountedsnuglywithinasawcut.

Themore common approach in a primitive situation would be to carefullysplittheshaftfor1”orsoupthemiddle,andthentocutthesidestofitthepoint.Securingthepointwithglueandsinewwillreinforcethesplit.

Whateverthetypeofpointormethodofcutting,Ialwaysseatthepointwithhideglue,whichdriesharderthanwoodandreallyreinforces.Ifinishitalloffwithagoodwrappingofsinew.Pinepitchcanbeusedforglue,ornoneatall.Andinsteadofsinew,natureoffersvegetablefibersgalorethatwouldsuffice.

Now also cut the nock for the string.You’ll see from the photos how I domine.Nospecialadviceneededhere,justfitthestring.

IhavereadintwoaccountsthattheIndianscutthenotchforthestringparallelto the arrowhead for hunting purposes and at 90 degrees from it for warpurposes. This was supposedly to allow the arrowhead to slide more readilybetweentheribsofwhatevergametheywereafter.Ipersonallythinkthatthisisalotofbunk,sincethearrow,assoonasitleavesthestring,isspinning,ifeversoslightly.ButIdomakeminetoconformto“hunting”style.

Now’sagoodtimetowashthearrowtoremoveanyoilsorgrease,especiallywherethefeatherswillbeapplied.

Ifsodesired,now’salsothetimetopaint,orcrest,thearrow.Indaysgoneby,thiswasdonetoshowwhobelongedtothemeat—orscalp.Sortoftheowner’ssignature.

Fletchingmeansapplyingfeatherstostabilizethearrowinflight.Thiscanbearealpain,butisprettymuchanecessity.Asimplemethod,showntomebyan

arrowmakerandflintknapper,wastosimplytietwofeathers,oneoneithersideof the shaft, at thepoint end, allowing thebackend to lie alongside the shaft.AlthoughIhaven’tdonethismyself,I’veseenitwork,verywell.Inaprimitivesituation,thiswouldbejusttheticket.

Idothingsabitmorecomplicated.Igenerallyworkwithwildturkeyfeathers,using the tail feathers if I have them, wing feathers otherwise. Choose threefeathers all having the samebend (samewingor same sideof the tail).Threefeatherswillmaketwoarrows.

Sawingofnotchinnockwithserratedobsidian.

To prepare, gently pound the quill portion down the entire length of thefeather,whichwillallowittosplitmorereadily.Thenusingaknife,oraboneorstone tool,split itevenly theentire length.Allonesideof thefeathersforonearrow, the other side for another.We’re trying to keep everything as equal aspossible.

Twosmallergoosefeathers,securedonlyatbottom.

Nowcutthefeathersofonearrowtothesamelength.Minearemadebetween5”and6”incheslong,thoughthislengthisn’treallynecessary.Makewhateverlengthyou like.Trim thevaneup at both ends for about 1/2” for tying to theshaft,andalsotrimtheentirefeathervanetoabout3/8”—actually,thelongerthefeather,thenarrowerthevane.Useasharpknifetotrimthebottomofthequill(theparttofittotheshaft)sothatthefeatherwilllieflat.Ifithasanytendencyto curl in one direction, cut through the quill only on the inside of the curlwherevernecessary.Justgetittolieflat,withthevanespointedup.Finishoffbysanding the bottom of the quill smooth. Some people remove the pith of thequill;Idon’t.Finally,taperandsmashthelowerportionofthequillsothatwhenitleavesthebowitwillrunsmoothlyoveryourhandandthebow.

Carefullysplittingfeather.

Nowcomesthe“funnest”part:attachingthedamnthingstotheshaftinsomesemblanceoforder.Itcantrythepatienceofmost,especiallyme.

Onevanewillbeappliedata90°angletothenotchofthenock,theothertwovanesplacedatequaldistancesfromthat.Thisallowsthetwo“bottom”featherstorunsmoothlyoverthebow.Mostfolkscolortheuppervanedifferentlysoastobeable toplace it in the stringmorequickly.Themajorityof “old”arrowsweren’t colored that way, so I don’t do it. Begin by running a sinew thread,wetted, around the shaft about 1/2”below thenock, tyingdown the first “up”feather. Then,with additional revolutions around the shaft, tie down the othertwo.Pull andpush the featherswith your fingernails so that they’re in properposition,thenwrapthemtight.Finishbysealingthethreadwithadroportwoofhidegluetoholditallinplace.

When this has been accomplished, begin againwith the “up” feather at theother end.Pull that smooth against the shaft andbeginwrappingwith anothersinewthread.Here,unliketheuppertie,don’tletthesinewthreadrununderany

ofthefeathers.Rememberthatthisistheendthatwillhavetorun“into”yourhandandthebowasit’sreleased.Thesmootherthatthisiskept,thebetter.Sotieall threeofthefeathersat thesametime,wrapafewtimeswiththethread,butbeforeyougetittootight,useyourfingernailstorotatethefeatherssothattheyliestraightwiththeshaft.Takeacouplamoretighterwraps,andthen“bite”theedgeofyourknifeintotheendofthequillandpulloniteversogentlysoastopullthevanetight.It’llthenlieprettymuchflatontheshaft.Ifyoupulltoohard,it’spossibletopulltheupperendoutfromitstie.

Fletchingtiedattop;tiedtopandbottom.

The arrow should now look like an arrow—soooooopretty! If done as I’vedescribed,it’llbemuseumquality.It’snowreadytouse,buthere’sahistoricalnote:Ibelievethatabouthalfthearrowsofoldhadthefeathersbeingleftasis,and half had feathers glued down.Myself, I prefer to glue them down. So ifthat’swhatyouwant,meltdownasmallbatchofhideglueinhotwater(justabitofwaterhere).It’sbestifthegluesetsupfast,thethickerthebetter.Withapointedstick,applyabeadofgluetoeachsideofthefeathers.Iftheybowawayfromtheshaftabit,theycanbeheldingentlywiththefingerstillthegluesets.

Gluingdownoffletching.

Topviewoffletching.

Whenalltheglueshavesetupwell,injustacouplahours,it’swisetogoovertheentireshaftwithapastewax.I’dusewaxinlieuofavarnish,becauseyou’llmorethanlikelyhavetoreheatandstraightentheshaftinthefuture.

Whathasjustbeendescribedmakesforadamnfinearrow.Youcanmakeanequally serviceable one by not adding all the little touches that make this amuseum-qualitypiece.Inatrulyprimitivesituation,Icertainlywouldn’tworrymyself with lightning grooves, cresting, fancily applied feathers, or perfectlysizedshafts.Iwouldconcentrateona“true”shaft,sothatitwouldflystraight;haveapointofsorts,nothingfancy(youonlyneedtopenetratethechestcavityofanycritterandit’llbedead,andevenasharpenedstickwoulddothat);andhavesomesortof fletching.Anyfeatherwouldwork,evenastripofcarefullycraftedbark.

Ourfinishedarrowwithtwoothers.

Thefinishedsinew-backedhickorybow,45”long,topsmy50lb.scaleat17”—leavingmewithprobablyaboutan80lb.bowwithmy22”arrow.

Layout of pieces of a “typical hunting” bow case and quiver of the PlainsIndians.Thelowerportionofthequiverisrawhidesewninwithsinew.

Alltogether.

Chapter5

Makin’Meat-2

TheearlymountainmenoftheAmericanWestproudlyusedthephrase“makin’meat” to note that they had obtained sustenance,mostly by having shot somegameanimal.“Thischildshorehadstarvin’timesfornighontendaysaforehemademeat,”written in a journal, could be interpreted tomean that the diaristhad spent 10 dayswith no nourishment and then had shot something, trappedsomething,knockedabirdsillywitharock,orevenfoundahalf-eatenorrottedcarcassleftbysomewolves.

ObtainingSustenanceinNature

Deadfalls,Snare,FishTrap,Atlatl,andMore

Thischapterdelvesintovariousmethodsofsubsistinginthewilderness.Chapter4 covers how tomake a bow and arrow from nature. (Actually, the bow andarrowisquiteawaysuptheladderwhenitcomestoprimitivegathering.)

Afterawarning.I’llbeginthischapterwithatrapline, thefirst thingthatanexperienced woodsperson would pursue if or when placed in a primitivesituation.Onourlineyou’llnotethatmostofthesetswillbeforsmallcritterssuch as mice, rats, rabbits, and birds. This is because it’s an initial primitivesituation;thatis,whatyou’dbedependingonforlife, ifyoufoundyourselfinthewildswithnolunch.Smallthingswillkeepyougoing.Largecritterswillbeabonus.We’llalsosetacouplafish-typetraps.

HANTAVIRUS

PulmonarySyndrome

Whenitcomestoanystudyofprimitivelivingskills,trappingisanecessarysubject.Wefirmlybelievethattrappingwas,andis,responsibleforthemajorityofsustenanceinanysortofsurvivalorprimitivelivingeffort.

Plantscanbegatheredineverydaymovementswithminimaleffort,inmanycases,butalsowithaminimalreturnofessentialnutrientsandcalories(asnotedinseveralotherplacesinthisbook).Timespenthunting,inouropinion,istimebetterspentonotherlivingprojects,usingthehuntingtoolsforopportunisticmoments.

Trapswillcatchandholdjustaboutanyformofanimallife,fromfishtoinsectstodeer-sizedgame,butbyfarthemajorsourceofsustenancewillcomefromsmall,rodent-sizedanimals.Consumingallormostpartsofthesequarrywillsupplymostorallofthenutrientsandcaloriesnecessaryforthehumanbodynotonlytosurvivebuttothrive.

Since1993,however,therehavebeen465confirmedinstancesintheUnitedStatesofaviraldisease,hantaviruspulmonarysyndrome(HPS),whichhasaveryhighmortalityrate.Thehostforthisvirus?Rodents.

ThefirstreportscamefromtheFourCornersareaoftheSouthwest.SeveralpersonsontheNavajoIndianReservationdiedsuddenly.Itseemsthatmanyoftheinfectedpeoplehadbeencollectingpiñonnuts(seeds),whichhadbeenconvenientlystoredforthemincachesbyrodents,mostnotablydeermice.Therehadbeenaheartycropofthepiñonnut,whichledtoaheavierthannormalpopulationofdeermice,caused,sometheorize,byunseasonablyheavyrains.Whatever,thedeermousewaspinpointedasthesource.

Sincethen,therehavebeencasesofHPSreportedin30states:alloftheWest,partsoftheSoutheastintoFlorida,upintotheNortheastintoNewYorkandRhodeIsland,andevenintoCanada.Threefourthsofthecaseshavebeenfromruralareas.

Heyfolks,that’slikesayingthattheentirecountryhasit.

Varioushantavirusesareknownthroughouttheworld(thenamecomesfromariverinKorea),andthereareseveraldistinctviruses(orspecies).Those(un)luckyenoughtocontractitinEuropehaveonlya1percentchanceofdying,whileinAsiathisisuppedto15percent.ThestrainsintheAmericasaremuchmorelethal.Whenfirstreported,themortalitywasawhopping70percent,buthassincedroppedtoabout35percent,probably

becauseofbettercommunicationandawarenessamongmedicalpersonnel.ThehigherfatalityratecomesfromthefactthatintheAmericanstrain(HPS),thelungsrapidlyfillwithfluid.

Therangeoftheprimarycarrier,thedeermouse,coversmostalloftheU.S.Andtestsonthemhaveshownthevirustoexistthroughoutmostofitsrange.Othercarriersarethecottonrat(Florida),ricerat(Southeast),white-footedmouse(Northeast),theso-calledpiñonmouse,andthewesternchipmunk.Acarrierofthenot-so-dangerousSeoulvirus(distributedworldwide)istheNorwayrat.Theinfectedrodentsexhibitnovisiblesymptoms.Thelist,bothofvirusesandofcarriers,hasexpandedsince1993.HumancasesofHPShavebeenpositivelyidentifiedintheU.S.asearlyas1978andinferredbackto1959.

Inallcasestodate,victimswereinfectedbycomingintocontactwiththefeces,urine,orsalivaofinfectedrodents.Sincethevirusisinthebodyfluids,itcanbeassumedthatitisthroughoutthebody.Mostcasesreportedlywerearesultofbreathingthedustofdisturbedfeces,saliva,orurineofinfectedrodents.

Ifyourhandscomeincontactwithanythingthat’scontaminatedandthenreachyourmouthornose,there’sachanceofinfection.

Thesurvivaltimeintheenvironmentisunknown.Periodsofuptotwodaysonadriedsurfacearesuggested.Youcanalsogetthevirusbybeingbittenbyaninfectedrodent.Sofarthere’snoevidencethatitcanbetransmittedfrompersontopersonorfrominsects(suchasfleas).

Thevirusiseasilykilledwithmostgeneral-purposehouseholddisinfectants(bleach,alcohol).Inotherwords,ifyougotalotofnestsorfecesinyourwoodpile,shed,orouthouse,itwouldbebesttosprayitdownwithadisinfectantpriortocleaningitup.A1percent(1:100)dilutionof

householdbleachissuggestedforwipingdownpotentiallycontaminatedsurfaces.Amoreconcentrateddilutionof10percentissuggestedforheavilycontaminatedareassuchasnestsites.Afreshsolutionshouldbemixeddaily.

Justhowconcernedshouldyoube?Well,ofdeermicetestedinthreecountiesofwesternKansasin1993,9percentwereinfected.WeliveinnorthcentralKansas,sothat’sgettingprettyclosetohome.

Youdon’thavetostickyourheadinabucketofmousescatandtakeadeepbreathtobecomeinfected.Onesniffisallittakes.

Somethingasmundaneasmovingthewoodpile,withtheaccompanyingmiceandpackratnests,becomeshazardous.Alittlemathematics:Using9percentasthebaseline,ifthere’sonemousenestinthepile,there’sa9percentchancethatit’sinfected.Twonests,18percent.Ifamongallthewoodwemovearoundherethereareninenests,there’sa100percentchancethatwe’llcomeintocontactwithHPS.Ifinfected,there’sa50percentchanceofdyingfromit.Thatdoesn’tsoundlikegoododdstome.

Forclean-upofrodentcontaminatedareas,theCentersforDiseaseControlandPrevention(CDC)recommendsthecompletewettingdownoftheareawithadisinfectant,wearingofanapprovedrespirator(inenclosedspaceswithheavy,activerodentinfestations),wearingofrubbergloves,washingoftherubbergloveswithadisinfectantwhenfinished,followedbythewashingofyourhandsandburyingorburningofanysuspectedmaterials.Whew!

Symptomsareflu-like:fever;muscleaches;abdominal,joint,andlowerbackpain;headaches;cough;nausea;vomiting;anddiarrhea.Ifanyofthesesymptomsareexhibited,inaperioduptosixweeksafterpossibleexposure,seekhelpimmediately!

Sincethere’snoknowncurativedrug,promptmedicalattentionisaMUSTtoincreasethechancesofsurvival.

Howdoesthisaffectusprimitives?LetmetellyouthatGeriandIdon’tmesswithmiceandpackratsverymuchanymore.Recommendedprecautionsforcampersandhikers,besidestheobviousstepsofavoidingcontactwithnestsorburrows,includenotsleepingdirectlyontheground—though,forus,that’sasnaturalasmakingcordage.Micepeeeverywheretheygo,leavingascenttrail,sosleepingonthegroundincreasestherisksofyourbreathingthis.

Thisisseriousbusiness.Onetouchorsniffandyou’reintrouble.

Andyet…trapping,likefrictionfiremaking,ranksrightupthereatthetopoftheprimitive’sprioritylist.Canwediscontinuethispractice?Shouldwe?

Westillteachandwriteabouttheimportanceoftraps,andalsohow,inarealsurvivalorprimitivesituation,wemayhavetodependonsomerodents.Wehaveto.Primitivelivingandsurvivaldemandthisknowledge.Inasurvivalsituation,therisksmustbeweighed.True,thehumanbodycangoseveralweekswithoutanyfoodatall.Butwestressstayingawayfromthemiceandotherlistedcarriersif,andwhen,possible.Eachindividualhastomakehisorherowndecisions.

Knowledge,awareness,caution,andweighingofthefactsofthepersonalrisksbyeachindividualareinorder.

Thelistofconcernsgrowsconstantly.Whatwasconsideredsafeyesterdayjustmightnotbetoday,ortomorrow.

Suspectallrodents.Putofflimitsthosethatare,forsure,hostsofthisdeadlyvirus.Packrats,andwoodrats,arenotonthelist—yet.Sowhatdoyoudoifyoucatchone?Orasquirrel?Amuskrat?Weighthefactsandthesituation.

Heatkills.HPSisafragilevirus.Ifallportionsoftherodentaresubjectedtoahigh-enoughtemperature,thediseaseiskilled.Thesafestwaythatwe’vecomeupwithtohandlethiswouldbeto,first,nothandlewiththehands.Shoveastickinitsmouthorbutt,andbecarefulofanybloodorotherfluids.Singethehairoff,scrapewithanotherstick(burnthesticks,tryingnottoinhalethesmoke),andplacethecritterdirectlyinthecoals.Orboilit.Orroastinamakeshiftoven.Fryitonaflathotrock.Whateveryoudo,don’thandletheanimaluntilit’sbeenwellcooked,meaninguntilthemeatisn’tpinkandeventhen-some.Itshouldreach140°F(betteryet,160°)foratleast20minutes.(ThismessagecomestousdirectfromtheCDC.)

Carryingthesuspectanimalinabasketwillrequiretheburningofthebasket.Thedangerliesnotsomuchinthecookingandeatingasintheearlierhandling.Arockorlogfallingonananimalisenoughtoliterallysqueezethepeeouttahim,andbreathingthefumescaninfectyou.Usecaution!

Theabovewaswrittenbymein1996andupdatedforthisbook.IwishtoacknowledgeMichaelH.BradshawandLizBoyle,ExtensionSpecialistsatKansasStateUniversity,andLoriMillerandKristiBusico,oftheCentersforDiseaseControlinAtlanta,fortheirhelpinobtaininginformationcontainedinthischapter.WhenIfirstcontactedthem,theywerekindaatalossforanswerspertainingtoHPSandtheeatingofmice.Itjustwasn’toneoftheareasthattheystudy.Theinformationpresentedherewasgatheredwiththeirhelp.

Afactsheet(MF-1117)canbeobtainedfromtheCooperativeExtensionService,KansasStateUniversity,Manhattan,KS66531.InformationcanalsobeobtainedbycallingtheCDCinAtlantaat800-532-9929orwriting

theDepartmentofHealthandHumanServices,PublicHealthService,CDC,Atlanta,GA30333.

Some or all of the trap types that I will show are illegal in many states(possibly most). Check your local regulations. Also, one of the triggermechanismsI’lldiscusscaneasilybesettohurt,maim,orevenkilllargegame,includingthehumanspecies.

What I’ll show is how you can subsist in a truly primitive or survivalsituation.I’llexplainhowandwheretoplacesomeofthesetssoastopossiblycatchsomeofthelargerspeciesofgame,fromwhich(besidesjustnourishment)you could derive furs, skins, sinew, and bones (dealt with in other chapters).Someofthetraps,ifleftsetaroundyourhomeorgrounds,couldbedetrimentaltothewell-beingofyourneighbors’cats,dogs,orchildren.Usecaution!

One big thing here is to think small. Mice, packrats, minnows, crawdads,insects—allwill sustain life. If youwere to approach your primitive situationthinkingonlyoflargergame,youmightstarve.

Somethingelsetothinkabout:Youcouldeatonlythemeatofwildgameforweeksonend,andstarveanyway!Wildgameisn’tmarbledwithfat,unlikeourusual diet of domesticatedmeat.Creatures in thewild are running around fortheirverylives,anddon’tbuilduplargestoresoffat.

You may have to break prejudices of eating habits that you have. In aprimitivesituation,especiallyifit’sacaseofsurvival,youmayhavenochoicewhatgoesthroughyourmouth.Basically,thehairandskinandintestineswillgoout,therestwillgoin,exceptlargerbones(you’llroastorboilthelargerbonesandremovethesucculentmarrow).CookingmethodsaregiveninChapter7.

AstorythatIreadsomewhere:DuringthelastcenturyashipwasicelockedintheArcticandthecrewtakeninbythenatives.Comespring,allbutone(or

two)weredeadandtheauthoritiesatfirstthoughtthattheInuitshadmurderedthem,tillitcametolightthatthewhitemanateonlytheredmeat,whereasthenatives ate almost the entire animal. Stomach contents and themarrow of thebonedidn’tappeal to thewhites,so theyfastidiouslystarvedtodeathwithfullstomachs. Something else for you to be thinking about before taking to thewilds.

Variousplantscanmakeupmuchof thediet,but Ican’tgo into thatasmyknowledgeonthisisextremelylimited.Therearemanyguidesonthemarkettofillyourappetiteforedibleplants.

Oncethere’senoughmeatonhandinyourcamp,I’llshowyoutheold,naturalwayofpreservingit.Doremember,though,thatifyougetbadmeat,badtallow,orbadberries,Iassumenoresponsibilityfor…badbellies.

TheTrapLine

Onethingthatjustaboutalloutdoorsmen,woodsmen,andsurvivalistswillagreeonisthefactthatthetraplineisthemostexpedientmethodofkeepingasupplyofmeatonhandwithaminimumofeffort.

If,forsomereason,you’reonthemove,acouple(orseveral)trapsmightbesetouteachnight.Butifyou’reinagoodareathatsuppliesallyourneeds(foodsource,water,andshelter)anddecidetospendsometimeinonelocation,thenthereyou’dsetoutoneormore“lines.”Byline,Imeanacertainnumberoftrapssetinanygivenlocation—upacertaincreek,oralongacertainridge,orsouthofcampornorthofcamp,andsoon.

I’llonlymentionafewtips thatapply to trapping. It’saprofession in itself,andtherearenumerousbooksonthemarkettoteachyoutheartoftrappinganyparticulartypeofcritterthatyoudecidetospecializein.Thesamewithhuntingtechniques.Ican’tbegintoimparttoyoualltheknowledgenecessarytobecomeone with nature—that’s up to you. Instead, I’ll give you the tools andinformationnecessarytobegin.It’suptoyoutoapplythem,butyou’llhavetobeawarethatyoucan’tcatchitifitain’tthere—solookforfreshsignsandthentraporhuntaccordingly.

Also, here, with the deadfall and snare, I’ll show you one trigger system(actually,nowthreeofthem).Thereareseveralthatareshown,andshown,andshown in survival-type and outdoors books. I’ve tried a few of them. NoneworkstothesatisfactionthatIdesire,andmostare,Ibelieve,onlyperpetuatedmyths. They look good on paper and sometimes seem to work—and so areincludedinanyorallbooksdealingwiththissubject.

I thought for a long timeabouthow Icouldget a80 to100 lb. rock to fall

whereIwantedittoandwhenitwassupposedto,nearly100percentofthetime.Andyethave itbe simpleenough to set that theentire time, frommaking thetriggertothefinishedset,tookonlyafewminutes.IspentoneyearshowingthetriggersystemthatIcameupwithtoanyandalloutdoorsmenthatIcameacross.Noonehasyetbeenabletosaythattheyknewofit,andallagreedthatitdoeswork.

Sopayattention to theaccompanyingphotosandwhat I say, thengoout toyour backyard and make it work. My first set, from the initial inspiration tocompletedworkingdeadfallwitha123lb.rock,tookrightat20minutes.Yourfirstshouldtakenomoretimethanthis.

Tomakethiswork,you’llneedabout12”to15”ofcordage(seeChapter1fordetails).

You’llseefromthephotosthatthetriggerneedstobeshaveddownsomewhatatoneend,toholditintheknotofcordageontheotherpieceofthetrigger.

Well,hell, I’mnotevengonna try todescribe thissysteminwords. Instead,I’lljustinsertphotosandwritecaptionsforthem.Actually,somephotoswon’tevenneedwords.

My trigger system—so simple, so easy to construct in a primitive wildernesssituation,andsoeffective.

Themostefficientpartofthistriggeristhatit’ssetbeforeyoupositionyour100lb.-plusrock—inthiscase,123lb.

Thebaited,settrigger.Ascrapofmeatisheldtoitbycordage.Thetriggerfitsintothecordagetiedaroundthestickdrivenintotheground.Roundonround.Theslightest“busying”ofthebaitwillreleaseitall.

Notethataseparatepieceofcordageistiedtotheweight-holdingstick,topullitwhenthespringreleases.InitiallyIusedthespringsticktopushtheuprightout,butherethespringislesslikelytopushawayyoursupperalongwiththestick.Alwaysremembertousedeadordrysticksforthespringsticks.Greenoneswillconformtothebendandlosetheirspring.

Deadfallsetnearpackrathouse.

Threemorningslater,thetrippedtrap.

Bingo—meat!

Deadfall set for packrat. The baited trigger is placed on the left side of theundersideoftherock,andtheleftsideisblockedbyanotheruprightrocksothatwhenthetrapistriggered,theanimalmusttravelfarthertoescape.

Threemorningslater…meat!And,yes,thispackratweate.

The same trigger systemsetasa snare.Bait ison the trigger,noose ison theground.Many,manyapplicationsforthis.

Woodlandtrailsetsnare—canyouspotit?

Trailsetsnare;notetrigger.

Trail kinda blocked, to help guide the critter through the noose. Of the threemorningsthatIhadthisset,itwastrippedonce,withthenoosedrawnupbutnoevidenceofanycritter.Theothertwomornings,thenoosehadbeendisturbedbypassing animals. The noose needs to be just the right size—too large, andanimalswillrunthroughit;toosmall,they’llonlypushitaside.

Stoutsnaresetatpond.Snares(threeofthem)weresetoutonthegroundfrombaitedtrigger.Hereit’sbettertousetriggersofabout1”diameterratherthantheillustrated1/4”.

Gerihaulingindrownedpossum.

Inmymorning’smailsomeyearsbackwasanenvelopefromSteveWatts,aprimitive-skills instructor for the Schiele Museum of Natural History inGastonia,NorthCarolina.Quotinghisnote:“John:Hopealliswellwithyou.Ijustranacrossthisdeadfalltrigger(anewonetome).It’slikegreasedlightning.Got it fromHenryRhyne (a local old-time trapper).Henry says that he got itfroma trapper inAlaska in the1940s.Says itwasmostlyused forbirds.Youmightalreadyknowit,butasIsay,itwasanewoneonme.Takecare—Keepitup.Steve.”

Well,Steve,andfolks,it’salsoanewoneforme,anditdoeswork.Ofallmyinquiringaboutdeadfalltriggers,andofallthefolksthatIranintowhenIwaspreparing this chapter, this is one that works. Steve’s initial response to myinquirywas that he knew only the old standbys (which I don’tmention here,because of the percentageof failures). Sonowyouhave anothergood, usabletrigger.Wherethiswouldcomeinthehandiestisonhardsurfaceswheredrivingthe second trigger piece into the ground would be out of the question. Thedrawbackwouldbethecarefulcarvingnecessaryonhardwood.

ThefourviewsofthetriggersentmebySteveWattsshouldbeself-explanatory.Bait is placed under a rock or a “live box” (meant to capture a critter alive,ratherthankillingit).Theslightestdownwardpressuretothestickreleasesitall—asStevesays,“likegreasedlightning.”Baitcanbeplacedonendofstickorground,asbirdswillperchonittoeat.

Geri and I went once to a weeklong “Cave Man’s Convention” in centralOregon,hostedbyJimRiggsandBrianJames.Whatagreatsharingofprimitiveskillsthatmostly,butfarfromall,dealtwithflintknapping.Oneoftheothertipsgleaned was Jim’s old standby, the Paiute deadfall trigger system. This doeswork, butwithmuch difficultywhen setting heavy falls for large game. (The

same applies to the second trigger sent bySteve.)Butwhen setting outmanytraps inyour line,youcan’tknowtoomanytriggers.Whereonemightbe justthe checker for a particular set, another might not be at all usable. Pick andchoosewhatworksbestforyoursituationasitarises.

Looky—anothergoodiefromJimRiggs,aPaiutedeadfalltrigger.Jimcheckingoutmywork.Frontview.Studythetwophotoscarefully,astheyshowallthat’sneededtoconstructyourown.Theuprightandhorizontaltriggerpiecesandthe

cordage are all the same length. The short piece tied (or through a loop) tocordageneedstobestiff.Thelowerthinpiecegoingfromthattothebottomoftherockcouldbeastoutstemofgrass,aslittleforcewillbeappliedtoit.Baitisplaced where the thin stick (or stem of grass) touches the rock. Jim’s onlycomment aboutmy setting of thiswas that the upright shouldn’tbe under therock, just in case the horizontal fails to kick it free. When touched at bait,though,therockfellasitwasdesignedto.Also,notvisiblebutveryimportantistheslightgroovecutintothetopoftheuprighttoholdthehorizontal.

I’vealwaysbelievedinthepowerofphotographs,butwiththesetrapswe’vehadsomequestionsposedastotheirconstruction,sowe’renowincludinglinedrawingsofthreeofthemtohelpclarify.

The only change you’ll note iswith the construction of thePaiute deadfall.ThistriggerI’vealwaystoutedastheeasiestandfastesttomake,butthehardestandmosttime-consumingtoset,soweseldom,ifever,usedit.Butexasperationfinally gotme to experimenting. Two changes, and our trappingworld turnedover!Nowthistrapiswhatweuseforourbreadandbutter.It’sfastandeasynotonlytoconstructbutnowalsotoset.Withbasicinstructions,we’vehad10-and12-year-oldssettingtheminmereminutes.Andithasbeenproveninthefield.

ThemodifiedPaiute deadfall trigger. two major changes, both in the uprightstick.1)Useofanatural“Y”tosupportthehorizontalpieceand2)pushingtheuprightintothegroundtostabilizeit...thisbeingthemostcriticalchange.Justinsurethattheuprightisfarenoughouttopreventtheweightfromfallingontoitorevenbrushingagainst itwhichwillslowitdown.Formostefficiency,keepthetwowoodpiecesatapprox.90°angle-whichwillkeepthestringatapprox.45°.

Thistrapisslickbutmuchtimeisrequiredinmakingit-ahardwoodismoreeffectivebecause the four contactpointswill roundeasily ifmade fromsofterwoods...andoncerounded,itbecomesarealtricktoset.

The following trapwas shown tousbyGordonNagorski ofOntario,Canada.Thebasicsetupasshownfromthefrontquarterandfromtheside.Thisisagoodset,sothefrontwillbetheentrance.

Aclose-upofthetrigger.

Theotherendofthetrigger.

Thesetup(beforemaking“step”onbottomstickortrigger).Studycloselyhowthisisputtogether,referringbacktotheclose-upoftheupperpartofthetrigger.Asinglepieceofcordageisloopedaroundthedeadfalllogandover,veryneartheroundedtip,ofthetrigger.Thebottomofthetriggerisheldbyastickgoing

crosswisebetweentheslantedpiecesstuckintotheground(andtiedatthetop).

Acordisrunfromthecrosssticktothestepstick(bottomtrigger),tyingitabovethegroundsothatsteppingonitpullsthetopcrossout,thusreleasingtheuppertriggerandkillinglog.

Sticksplacedonbottomtriggertoformstep.

Barkplacedoverthatforreinforcementandfirmness.

Thesetmadeintoacubby.Bait isplacedbeyondthe“step.”Twosmallerlogscanbeplacedatthefrontsothatthedeadfalllogwillfallbetween,thereby(youhope)breaking thebackof the trappedcritter.Distance fromwhere the“deadfalls”(ha,gotchathere!)tothestepiscritical.Rememberthattheanimal’sfrontlegswillbeonthe“step,”andplaceitaccordinglysothatitsmidbackisunderthefallinglog.

Geri pushes on the step and it all comes tumbling down—fast! Note triggerflyingoff.

OK, now you’ve got a working knowledge of three good, working triggersystemsthatarereallysimpletoputtogetherinaprimitivesituation.Nowlet’ssetupaline.Remember,thinksmall.Ifbychance(inmostpartsofthecountry,a good chance) you have a packrat’s house in the area, thatwould be a great

placetosetasmanyassix,orevenmore,sets.Hereafamilyunitmightrunasmany as six to eight critters.Packrats are a reasonablygood-sized animal andworthy of your attention. Just look for signs that the house is occupied (freshtracks,scat)andsetwhereverisconvenient.Ratsareinquisitiveandwon’tneedanythingfancytoattractthemtoyourset.Anyscrapsfromapreviouskillwillworkasbait,orperhapssomegrassseedchewedupwell(byyou)andmadeintoa paste. That’ll get you started. We’ve even had deadfalls tripped by ratschewing through the cordage—maybe lured by the grease residue left by ourfingers?

Mostofthecrittersthatwe’renowlookingforwillleavedefinitetrailsintheirwake.Rabbits,mice, and that scale of critterwill use the same runs time andagain.Theirtrailswillbevisibletothenakedeyeinthegrassandleaves.Thesewillmakegoodplacestosetsnares,orjustoffthetrailsforbaiteddeadfallsandsnares.

Ifthe“right”poolofwaterisavailable,youcanputoutastoutsnare.Mostallcrittersthatyou’retrappingwilleatyoursnarematerial(ifyou’reusingnaturalfiber cordage), and actually do include it in their daily diet. You need to killthem, or in this case preoccupy them with staying afloat, so that they won’tconsiderturningaroundandbitingyourcordageintwo.Justgivethemachancetodrown.

Thisisonegoodreasontousedeadfallsinlieuofsnareswheneverpossible.Evenifyouweretocatcharabbitbythehindfootanditwasn’tabletoreachthecordage(whichisunlikely),theruckusthatitwouldmakewouldattractacoyoteorfox,andyourdinnerwouldbegonecomemorning.So,agoodlessonhere:deadfallwheneverpossible.

Here’sanideaforcatchingbigmeatwithasnare(ofcourse,youcanseejusthow you could easily construct a deadfall of almost any size, using the firsttrigger system illustrated). If you’ve ever spent time around a campfire in thewoods,you’vesurelyheardnoises justoutsideof thecircleof light,ormaybeeven seen eyes reflected in the light, or spotted fresh tracks around (andsometimesinside) theperimeter thenextmorning—signsofcoyotes, raccoons,

deer,orlargecats.Asnareonthegroundwithatripcordhookedtothetriggerorabaitedsnaresetjustmightgetyoualargercrittertieduplongenoughforyouto grab your club or spear and apply a fatalwound.Butuse caution! Have atorchready,orsomeotherlightsource.I’dhatetorunblindlyintothedarkandtrytoknockamountainlionorbear,whetheragrizzlyorablack,ontheheadwith a stick.And also know the legalities involved.Youmight get awaywiththesetricksinasurvivalsituation,butonaweekendcampoutIdoubtthatyourlocalfishandgamecommissionwouldturntheirheadswhileyoupracticeyoursurvivalskills.Doyourpracticingonratsandrabbits(iflegalinyourstate).

Setyourselfupseverallines.Eachlinemighthaveasmanyas50sets,orasfewas8or10.Eachsituationandlocalewillbedifferent.Oncethelinesareinplace,it’lltakeonlyaglancetocheckeachset,andonlyaminuteortwomoretoresetifnecessary.

Allthetimethatyou’reintheprimitivesituation,rememberthatyou’llalsobegatheringmaterialsforcordage,firemaking,bowstaves,arrowshafts,workablestone,bones—anythingtomakelifealittleeasierinthewilderness.

Now, let’snot forget aboutour feathered friends. I don’t knowof anybirdsthatyoucan’teat(thoughyou’dbetternottakemywordforthat,andmaybedosomeresearchon this),but therearesomethat Iwouldprefernot toeatundernormalcircumstances.Ioncetriedcoot!

Like birds, rodents are food, protein, something to keep you going. Thedeadfall trigger sent by SteveWatts, as hementions, is superb, and probablydesignedprimarilyforbirds.Ourheavier-dutydeadfalltriggershownwilleasilyget your crows or raptors (Caution: Raptors are protected federally), becausemeatcanbeusedasabait,thoughinmostofoursetsthebaitishiddenfromtheviewofbirds.

Anetisanidealwaytogetalltypesofbirds.Theoneshownonthefollowingpageisveryloosely“woven,”not“netted,”butwillcatchandholdallbirds,asthey’llnaturallyspreadtheirwingswhentrappedandbecomefurtherentangled.

Thenetshownisapproximately31/2’squareandcanbetriggeredbythebird(asshown),orthewatchingtrappercanjustletgoofthecordanddropitonthebirdswheneverhehasafull-enoughhouse.Ifyoustandbytomanuallyreleasethe net on a given animal, the net is assured relief from a lot of damage ifcatchingalargebird,coon,possum,orcoyote.Althoughthenetmightholdanyof the above (especially a turkey or duck), it wouldn’t for very long. Any ofthesecritterswouldmakeshortworkofyournet,whichwillhaverequiredmanylonghoursonyourparttoassemble.Ifyouweretodropitonabirdorbirds,orasmallcritter,aquickrunoverandathumpontheheadwithaclub(orwringingoftheirnecks)willkeepthemfromdamagingthenet.

Triggerforthebirdnet.Notchedandwillbesecurelylashed.

Twoviews showinga set trigger.Notehowcordage runs from trigger throughcrossedstakes,andfromthereupovertripodandbacktonet.

Thesetbirdnet.Studycloselyandfollowcordagefromtrigger,throughcrossedsticks,overtripod(couldbetreelimb),andbacktotopofnet.

The net itself serves as a “spring stick.” With just the slightest touch to thetrigger,itallcametumblingdown,quickandeasy.

Alsoasregardingthetrapline,let’snotforgetaboutfish.Ifyoufindyourselfclose to awater source that supports fish, the use of the impoundment shownwilloftencorralyouplentyofnourishment.Youcanalsomakea“minnowtype”trapoutofanystraightshootsorlimbs.

Withsomepractice,youcanteachyourselftobefastenoughtocatchholdofcrawdads as you turn over rocks in river or stream.Their tails are a delicacy.Frogsarenottobeforgotten,either.

Alsouseful, thoughnotreallya trap, is thebank line. I’veseendrawingsofseveraltypesofprimitivefishhooks,butfrompersonalexperienceIknowjusthowmucha fishwill fight, and Iknow thatmostof thesemakeshifthooksofboneorwood,orboth,justwon’tholduptothestrain.Onethatdoesworkisastraightpieceoflimberorhard(notbrittle)woodorbone,kindalikearoundedtoothpick is shaped,with a line tied around the center. This is inserted into aminnow,smallfrog,insect,ortoadandhungfromalimberstickstuckintothebank.Thebaitorhookneedstobealittlebelowwaterlevel,justslackenoughto

allowthefishtoswallowthebaitorhook.Evenintestines,scrapmeats,orfatscanbewrappedaroundthestickorhook.Fishwillswallowthisbait,and,onceinside theirbody, the line (since it’s tied to thecenterof thehook)prevents itfrom being removed or regurgitated. If the cordage is strong enough that thefish’s teeth don’t wear it through, you’ve got meat. If you’re camped near awater source that will adapt to this, you should put dead leaves and similarmaterialsonthepoletoalertyoutothefactthatthere’safishon,soyoucangettoitimmediatelybeforeitsteethcutthroughyourcordage.

Apairof“gorge”fishhooks,madeofgreencedarforlargecatfish(usesmallerhooksforsmallerfish).

Baitedwithscrapmeatandtiedtocordage.

Bankline set (actually, you can barely see a second), with limber poles stucksecurelyintothebank.Geriismakingafishtrapinbackground.

Thesamenetshownforbirdswillalsocatchfish,exceptheremakesurethatallweavingsofthecordagearetied.(Otherwise,learnto“net”—thoughthatwill

requiremorecordage.)Theresultisagillnet,anditreallydoeswork.Fishswimintoitandbecomeyoursupper.

Andwhileyou’remessingaround thewater,keepaneyeout for freshwaterclams.Maybethey’renotastastyastheirsaltwatercousins,buttheydidsustainthe early Indians. The muddy taste they have can be somewhat relieved bylettingthemsitinclean,freshwaterforseveraldays.Myexperiencewiththemhasleftabittobedesired,butintheprimitivestateI’mcertainthattheywouldimproveinflavorconsiderably.

Well,thatbasicallyiswhatIhavetoofferontraps.Butdorememberthatthebest-made trap setwill catch you nothing if it isn’t setwhere the critters are.Learntolookforsigns,andsetaccordingly.

Afairlysimple,yethighlyeffective,fishtrap,placedintheneckofapond.Anyshallow pool in a creek, river, or lake would work, or one set in the rifflesbetweenpoolsofacreek.

Close-upofhowentrancetotrapworks.Verylimbertwigsandsoonallowfishtoenterbutpreventtheirleaving.Thissetwasmadewithoutusinganycordage,onlybyinterlacingtheshoots.Scrapsoffats,guts,andsoforthareplacedwithintheenclosure,as youhope todraw fish.Check local regulationspertaining tofishtraps—thisoneisillegalinKansas!

Gathering

Nowwe’llgointosometechniquesforgathering—somethingthattheprimitivepersonwill be doing from themoment that he or she becomes primitive.Youwillnevereverstop“gathering.”Youronlytoolsneededherewillbetherabbitstick(alsocalledathrowingordiggingstick),asackorbasket,andknowledgeofwhattogather.

The“rabbit”stickisonlyalimborotherpieceofhardwood,from18”to30”long (mine is27”),heavyenough togo throughgrasswhen thrownat rabbits,birds,orwhatever,yetlightenoughtobethrowneasilywithforce.Pointingitatoneendwillenableyoutouseitalsofordiggingvariousrootsandtubers.Thistoolisamazinglyeffective.

Onceyou’vebecomeaccustomedtothrowingitaccurately,you’llhaveafairchanceofhittingacritteratupto100feet.Youmayspotarabbit(lookforitseye) before it dashes. It oftenwill run only a fewyards and then stop.Often,once you’ve put a rabbit to flight, a sudden yell or whistle will stop it longenough for you to get a shot. And how often have you almost stepped on apheasantoracoveyofquailbefore they tooktoflight?Pheasants inparticularseemtohanginmidairforseveralseconds,allowingyouagoodchanceforahitat10to15yards.Ifyoumiss,though,watchwhereyoursticklands,notthebird,oryou’ll loseboth. If nothing else, a “rabbit rock”willwork if you’redecentwithabaseball.(Ithasworkedforme,andI’materriblethrower.)

Mypersonalthrowingstick.Tomakethisarabbitstick,Ineedonlytothrowitatarabbit.Itmakesquiteawhooshingsoundasit travels.Thinningitsomewhatwouldhelpthat.Fromthistheboomerangdeveloped.Althougharockwouldgowhere thiswouldn’t, through brush, on open ground, or in the air, this cuts aswathof27”,soIneedn’tbequitesoaccurate.

Turnover logsandrocks,and ifyou’requickenoughyou’llbeable toclubsurprisedmice,rats,orlizards.Becautiousofsnakeswhiledoingthis,butdon’tbeafraidtocluborstoneoneshoulditbefound.Iknowofnosnakethat’snotedible (be sure to check this out if unsure). Of course, with rattlesnakes,copperheads, andwatermoccasins, leave the head alone—as that’s where thepoisonsacsare.Theonlyotherpoisonoussnake inNorthAmerica is thecoralsnake,foundprimarilyintheSoutheast.IwouldnoteatthissnaketillIlearnedmoreaboutit,asit’sahighlyvenomoussnakewhosevenomaffectsthenervoussystem.Fortunately,younormallydon’thavetoworryaboutbeingbittenbyonebecauseofitssmallsizeandmouth.

Making sacks and baskets is covered inChapter 8, though it really doesn’ttakemuchknow-how toput together somecontainer inawell-stockedwoods,especiallywithaknowledgeofcording(seeChapter1).Arealsimpleweavingwillmake a tight-enough sack from almost any cordagematerial.And limbershoots of willow, dogwood, and similar plants will make a simple basket,requiringnospecialskillsorknowledge.

Seedsandnutswillbesomeofyourmostvaluableadditionstoyourdiet.Youmay bewise to checkwhich few aren’t edible (such as poison ivy, sumac, oroak), butmost areOK. In fact, they’remuch better thanOK. The nutritionalvalue of seeds and nuts is amazing. (Here I’m stepping somewhat out of therealmofmyknowledgeandintoedibleplants,sodouble-checkwhatIsayhere.)Any grass seed should be welcome. Fruit seeds abound in nature. If in thetimber, look for nuts. Acorns can have a bitter tannic removed by leachingseveral times in water. White oaks have the sweetest acorns (I read that inseveralplaces).Theseallcanbegroundintoaflour,oraddedtosoupsandstewsas is,andmanycanbeeaten raw.Thesewillbean importantaddition toyourdiet.

Ican’tstressenoughthatyou’llhavetodoyourownresearchonedibleplants—notwithinthescopeofthisbook.

Here’sa tipgiven tomebya friendwhohadread it somewhere(take it forwhatit’sworth):Tearapartapackrat’shouse(onlyinanemergency,asitishishouse), maybe after having trapped it as well. The packrat will have storedvariousseedsandtuberswithin.Also,itsdownybedswillmakegreattinderformakingyourfire,andwillcomeoutdryunderthewettestconditions.Ifyoutearapartthepackrathousewhilestilloccupied,keepyourrabbitstickhandy.Whenthepackratsfirstcomeout,theywillbereallyconfusedandslowtofindshelterorcover.Makemeat!

Atlatl

Theatlatl, or spear-thrower:What a beautiful and efficient tool and weapon,used for thousands of years before the discovery of the bow and arrow. Andwhenyouwatchsomeoneproficientwiththistool,suchastwoworldchampionsIknow,youbegintounderstandjustwhythebowwassoslowincomingofage.

Distance throws of 70-plus yards are simple with an atlatl. Pie-plate sizeaccuracyat20to30yardsisn’tuncommonwithpractice,plusit’sdonewithallthe force necessary to kill large game, such as bison and evenmastodon (it’ssaid)indaysgoneby.

The atlatl (or thrower) itself isn’t difficult to construct. (ThisAztecword ispronounced roughlyought-lot-uhl.)As you can see in the photos, it’s nothingmorethanacheater,anextensionofyourarm.Mostatlatlsaverage15”to20”long.Notonlydoes it extendyour arm to createmore force, it also takes thatforceandconcentratesitattheendofthespearordart,notinthemiddle(asinthecaseofahand-thrownone).Thespearactuallybendsfromtheforceoftheatlatl, thereby creating an additional force as the dart snaps away. And if theatlatlisfine-tunedtotheweightofthedartorspearthatit’sthrowing,itwillalsohavealightpliabilitytoitthatwill“snap”intunewiththedartorspear,inturnproducingevenmorespeedandforce.

Aswiththearrow,you’llspendmoretimemakingaspearordart(I’llrefertoitasthedartfromhereonout).Thedartsrunfrom4’to7’inlength,with5’to6’beingthemorecommonlength.Muchtimewillbespentinstraighteningit,aswiththearrow(refertoChapter4).

Geripreparingtodropamastodonwithanatlatl.

Thefullerfletchingsloweddartsconsiderably,andtrimminghelpedalot.

Close-upshowingindentsfornubtofitinto.

Showinghowatlatlmateswithdart.Thiscouldbedonejusttheopposite,witha

roundtiponthedartandadepressionontheatlatlforittofitinto.

Front and side viewsofmyatlatl. Theweight is to counterbalance theweightandlengthofmydarts,butIgotabitcarriedawayandit’ssomewhatsluggish.Still, I have the advantage of a built-in war club if I run out of darts. (Mostoriginalmodelshadnocounterweight.)

HowIcut foreshafts to fit thedart.Thisway isn’tauthenticandrequiresmorecareinfitting,butithelpsmoreinpreventingsplittingofthedartwhenyoujustmightmissyourtargetandhitsomethingmoresolid.Iuseantlertipsforgeneralshooting.Stonetipswouldhavebeenusedforhunting.

Atlatlsanddartsdonetheoldway.Nocounterbalanceontheatlatls;foreshaftsdone the way that they were. These were made by my friend Jim Riggs ofOregon,whoalsotookthephotos.

Insects

Withinsects,moresothanwiththeothercrittersmentioneduptothispoint,youmayhavetoreallyovercomeprejudices.Togointoanydetailastotheedibilityofvarious insectswouldrequireabookof itsown.(ButterfliesinMyStomachandEntertainingwithInsects byRonaldL.Taylor are twogood sources;bothareoutofprintbutcanbefoundinmanylibraries.)Iincludeheremuchusefulinformation on the eating of many common insects. For more details andinformationonnutritionalvaluesIrecommendtheabovebooks.

Grasshoppers, crickets, and termites, oh my!—all are edible. Earthworms,yeah! Maggots, too. Most grubs. Just about any water insects. Caterpillars,generally(butavoidthehairyones,oranybrightlycoloredones,orthosewithadisagreeable odor). In fact, the above rules of brightly colored and strong,disagreeable odors should be pretty much followed anywhere in nature. It’snature’swayofwarningoffpredators—includingus!

Wingsandlegsshouldberemovedfrommost,suchasthegrasshoppersandcrickets,sincethey’rehardtodigest.IwouldcookanyinsectthatIhadmyeyeon eating. I’ve heard from some that this is unnecessary, but I still have thatslightfearofparasites.Dryingandgrindingthemintoapasteorflourandeatingthem,oraddingthemtosoupsorstews,areotherwaystoincludethisnutritionto your diet. (See Chapter 7 for various methods of cooking in a primitivesituation.)Ifyou’reworriedabouteatingthecontentsofthesecritters’intestines,justimpoundthemsomewhereforafewhoursandthey’llemptythemselvesout.Afavoriteofmanystudents,especiallykids,isgrasshoppers,thelegspulledoff,cookedonahotrock,withatexturesimilartoshrimp.

Tohelpovercomeyourprejudiceofeatinginsects,justrememberthattheyeatleavesandgrasses—anddoyouknowwhatchickensandhogseat?

MeatPreservation

Onceyou’vestockeduponprovisions,you’llalsoneedtoknowhowtopreservesome of your excess for the days that you have nothing—either for the long,late-winternightsorforajourney.Thesimplestandeasiestprimitivemethodissimply to air dry it. Just about anything can be preserved by drying, evenwatermelon(thoughyoumightnothavemuchleftwhendone).

In this chapter, we’re thinking mostly about meats. In other words, jerky.What theaboriginalandearly settlersused for trail foodsandemergency foodstoreswasknownasjerkedmeat.Thiswassimplymeat,cutintothinstrips(I’vereadthat1/4”orlessthicknesswillkeepthefliesfromblowing,layingeggs,onit;experiencehasprovedthisout),laidoverracksandsundried.

Iftheweatherwaswet,meatwasdriedslowlyinthesmokeofthefire(which,bytheway,wastheonlytimethattheearlyfolksflavoredtheirjerky—fromthesmoke—andthatwasn’t intentional).Afteradayortwoorthree, themeathadbeendried(jerked)andwasreadyforstorage,usually inrawhidecontainers toprotectitfrommoisture.Ifkeptdry,itwouldliterallylastforever.Allthemeatloses through this drying process is moisture. All nutrition remains, butremember,ithasnofats.

Thejerkycanbechewedasis(andchewed,andchewed,andchewed),oritcanbe,andmostoftenwas,poundedandboiledandaddedtoastew,intowhichyouthrewvariousroots,seeds,bugs,orwhatever.

Inamorestablesituation,otherthanovernightstopsduringajourney,theonestepfurther,andamethodofpreservationathousandtimesmorevaluable,wastomakethejerkedmeatintopemmican.Thisisdoneverysimplybypoundingthedriedmeat,shreddingitapart,andmixingitwithfats.Thisistheultimatein

trailfood.Onitalone,onecanlive.

Thesuetfatsofanimalsaresimmered.Thepurefatwillrisetothetop.Hereyouwant to use the hard fat from animals such as deer, buffalo, or beef.Theresulting product is tallow (using pork, raccoon, bear, and similar crittersproduces lard,which is too soft).Theprepared jerky ismixedwith the tallowand you have the complete meal. This can be, and was, kept in rawhidecontainers,withall edgessealedwith tallow(toensure thatmoisturewaskeptfromthemeat).Ittooisforeverpreserved.

Justbecautioustohavethetallow“nothot”whenmixingwithmeat.Ilikeitjust shyof settingup—stillpourable. If setup toomuch, itwillbedifficult tocompletely coveror coat all themeat.Theadditionofdriedberries and soonwilladdabetterflavortothegreasymeat,aswellascarbohydrates.

Ifyouusehottallow,itwillcookthemeat,whichcanleadtospoilageandPOSSIBLYDEATH!

Venisonstripsandpackratsdryinginthesun.

Beefsuetastakenfromthecritter,thendicedtorender.

Rendering. Themixture is cooked till completely dissolved, strained, and thentheremaining“junk”allowedtosettle.Theresultisclear(whitewhencooled)tallow.

Poundingdriedvenison(jerky).

Theresultingpowder.Itcouldbeaddedtostewsasis.

All the ingredients for“Wasna”—pemmican.Note the tallow, jerky,suet,andarawhideenvelopeinwhichtoputthefinishedproduct.

Pouring tallow into the pounded jerky. Be certain that the tallow has cooledbeforemixingwiththemeat,oryouwillcookit—androttedcookedmeatCANandWILLpoisonyou!

Finished mixing. I don’t get too carried away with tallow, just enough tothoroughlycoatthemeat.

Packingintorawhideenvelope.

Thefilledenvelope,packedwithnourishment.It’snothingbutdriedmeatmixedwithsometallow—allyouneedtostayalive.Theenvelopesides(whereit’sbeensewnwith sinew) have also been dipped into the tallow to further protect thecontents,andalayeroftallowhasbeenpouredoverthetopofthepemmican.

Chapter6

DeerfromFieldtoFreezer

Sayyou’veshotyourdeer,orkilleditwithabowandarroworbroughtitdownwithsomeothertool.Whatnext!?

Thequalityofwildgame(orevendomesticated)meatsbeginsrighthere.Thefirst thing that you have to do is to remove the insides. The longer that theseremaininthecarcass,themorechancethereisforspoilage.Onceacritterdies,itimmediatelybeginstospoil.Wehavetostopthisactionifwewantthemeattotasteanythinglikedecent.

Ifananimal’sproperlyshotinthefirstplace(inhead,neck,orchestcavity),the removal of the insides is a fairly clean job. With a gut-shot animal, theproceduresshownstillapplybutthejobwon’tbeverypleasant.

Removalofthegutsnotonlykeepsanyextra,adversetastesfromenteringthemeatbut,moreimportant, itbeginscoolingthecarcass,whichwillslowdownthedecayingprocess,thoughonlytemporarily.

Coolingthecarcassismyfirstaction.Idothisbyimmediatelyfield-dressingthegame.Then,especially if theweather iswarm,by removing the skin fromthe animal.With deer this is vitally important, as their hollow hair acts as aninsulationthatkeepsheatfromleavingthecarcass.VirtuallytheonlytimethatIrefrain from immediately removing the skin iswhen the temperaturedipswellbelowfreezingandIreallydon’twantthecarcasstofreeze.

Somepeople“hang”theiranimalforperiodsrangingfromafewdaysforup

to twoweeks.We do this, too, if theweather permits. I feel that hanging hasnothingtodowiththetasteofthemeat.Whathappens,

I think, is that themeat fibers are allowed to “relax,” somewhat actingas atenderizer,especiallygoodforbigoldbucks.But for this tobesuccessful, thetemperature needs to be approximately 38° to 40°F. If warmer, themeat willbegintorot,andiffrozenit’lldonogood.

Mostallpeopleintentionallyinthewildernesswillhavewiththemaknifeofsorts.Manypeoplehavewiththemtoomuchknife.Adeercanbefield-dressedorskinnedandcutupbyusingnothingmorethatafingernailfile.I’llillustrateheretheentireprocess,usingnotafingernailfilebutafewstonebladesthatweknocked from a piece of local chert. I do this to show that ifwe can do thecompleteprocessusingnothingbutapieceofstone,youcertainlycandoitusinganyorallthemoderntoolsavailabletoyou.

Thebasicprinciplesshownherecanalsoapplytojustaboutanyotheranimal,fromsquirreltobuffalo.

FieldDressing

Herewehaveanicedoe—shotnotmorethanafewminutesago,inthechest.

Ifpossible,Iliketoplacetheanimalonanincline,headdown,sothatgravitypushesthegutsoutofthewaywhileIwork.Notethatthehindlegshavealreadybeen partially skinned for attachment of the tag, from the fish and gamedepartment, through the hind tendons. Laid out are several stone blades. Theroundrocksareforresharpeningifnecessary.Theboneknivesweneverdiduse,buttheywouldalsohaveworked.

Ourpurposenowistoopentheanimalfromoneendtotheother,fromanustothroat,andremoveallthatliesinbetween.You’llsoonseethatit’sallattachedand that“pulling thecord” fromeitherendwill remove itall.Here,we’llpullfromthethroatback,thoughjustthereversewilldoaswell.

Placerocksorsticksoneithersideoftheanimaltokeepitlyinguprightonitsback.

Making the first incision, then carefully pulling the skin out so as not to cutthroughthestomachlining.

Afterhavingcutthroughtheskinforabout6”to8”upfromtheanus,wehave

cut here through the meat down to the pelvic bone. You can readily feel thepointedridgeofthepelvis,whichwe’llsplittofreethebowel.Heresomepeopletakealong-bladed“sharp”knifeandreachthroughtheanalopeningandmakeacircularcuttofreethis.I’vealwaysfoundsplittingthebonemucheasier.Wehere illustrate using a sharp-edged rock to do the splitting (a regular huntingknifewillmakethismucheasier).Whensplittingthebone,forcethelegsapartandwithjustaslighttapofsomesortofhammer,onmostdeer,itwillseemtofallapart.Youhavetocutinexactlytherightspot,ontopoftheridgewhereyoucanfeelwheretheboneis“welded”together,otherwiseyou’llbe“cutting”andnot “splitting.” You’ll also need to cut just slightly through the stomachmembrane right above the pelvis to relieve the tension preventing you fromforcingitapart,takingcarenottocutthroughtheinnards.

Manyaccountshaveyoutyingoff theendof thebowel.Wejustdon’tmesswiththis.Ifyou’recareful,nothingwillspillout,andifitdoesit’snothingbutfirmpelletsthatwon’thaveatendencytocontaminate.Youdoasyouwish.

Once thisdelicate taskhasbeen takencareof,cutcarefullyall theway to thethroat. If the animalwasplacedonan inclineas noted earlier, thegutswon’ttendtospilloutandtherebygetinyourway.Ifaninclinejustisn’tthere,placewood,rocks,orwhateverunderthehindend.Youdowant tobecarefulnot tocut into the innards. Normally I’ll first split the skin, then open the stomachcavity.

Youwon’tbeabletoopenthesternum(breastbone)merelybyslicing.

Withasteelknifeyouneedtostandovertheanimal,facingitshead,andthrustupward. All except the biggest and oldest of animals will split this way.Illustratedhere,wesplitwithasharp-edgedstone,thenhammerwithawoodenclub. Then we cut the animal’s throat to free the windpipe. (I don’t bleedmygame.Onceadeerisdead,itsheartstopsbeatingandthebloodstopsflowing,unlikeapig,whichwillspurtbloodformanyminutes.)

Now, before we begin to take it apart, we need to cut out the diaphragm,whichseparatesthechestandstomachcavities.Justcutitfreefromthewalls—nobigdeal.

Nowwe’rereadytopulloutalltheinnards.Asmentionedbefore,youcanpullfrom either end. Here we show pulling with the windpipe, using the knife formostof theway to free it fromalong thebackbone.At this stage it’s easier toturntheanimalsidewaysontheincline.Withlittleeffortthegutswillfallout.

If there’s snowon theground, I’llnow turn theanimaloverand let itdrainand also cool. Unless the animal has been shot in the guts, the inside of thecarcasswill be as cleanas it shouldbe. If snow isn’t available, I’ll rinsewithcoldwater,firstchanceIget,tohelpcoolitifthetemperatureisup.

Theanimalisnowfield-dressed.

Skinning

Thenextchoreistoskintheanimal.Iwasfirsttaughttoskinadeerwhileitlayontheground,atechniquethatworkswell.Themainproblemwiththisisthatitrequires constant bending, which is tough on my bad back (maybe on yourstoo?).Instead,firstsplitthelegstothecenterlineandthenpush,pull,fist,orcuttheskinoff.Firstdoonesidetothebackbone,andthenrolltheanimaloverontotheskinalreadyloosenedandrepeatontheotherside.

IhangmostallthedeerthatIskinfromthehindlegs,keptspreadapartwithastick,after I’ve first split theskinof the legsup thecenter to thealreadysplitbelly.

After these initial opening cuts, the knife can be put aside. By pulling andfisting (pulling the skin with one hand while pushing the fist of the otherbetween skin and carcass), the skin will separate readily from the carcass,especiallyifthecritter’sstillwarm.

Pullingskinfromhams.

Pullingovertail.

Cuttingskinfromtail(Ialmostneverleavethetailontheskinfortanning).

Cuttingthetailloosefromthebody.

Bothphotosshowingfistingtheskinoff.Abitofextracareistakenaroundthefrontshoulder,asherethelayersofmeatandmembranetendtooverlap.

Pullingskinfromfrontlegs,

Deerpartedfromitscoat,

RemovingHead

Nosaw isneeded inanyof this.Removing thehead is simple:Findwhere theheadswivels,where theneckandheadmeet; thencut through themeat to thebone.

Twistandsnap.

Cutlooseanyremainingmembraneandtendons.

CuttingOffLegs

HereI’llshowyouasimplemethodofremovingthelegs,taughttomebyanoldbutcher friend ofmine, Argel Pultz of Riley, Kansas. You need actually onlyfollowtheseriesofphotos,asthey’reprettyself-explanatory.

SinewRemoval

Ifyou’re followingorpracticingprimitiveskillsatall,you’llwant to save thedeer’ssinew.Ithasagreatmanyuses,asexplainedelsewhereinthisbook.

Cuttingthroughouterlayeroffatnexttobackbone,onbothsides.

Pulling away layer of fat exposing sinew as shiny silver membrane (tendon)coveringloins.

Puttingstick(wegenerallyuseadullknife)betweensinewandloinmeat.

Pulling downwith a smoothmotionwhile jiggling the stick to separate sinew

cleanlyfromtheloin.

Usingsticktocleanstripasmuchaspossiblebeforeremoval.

Pushing fingersdown following sinewstrip to separate it frommeats,onbothsides.

Aslighttugwillpullfreethestripattheshoulder(cuttingithereloses2”to3”).

Cuttingfreeatthehipwherethesinewdrawsintoacord.

RemovingLoinandTenderloin

Thebestestofthebest.Loinsortenderloins,orboth,cutintobutterflysteaks.

Afterremovingthesinew,theloinsarewhatlieunderneath.Removingissimple.A knife’s hardly needed. The loins can simply be pulled loose (though a knifemakesaneaterjobofit).Thetenderloinisthesmallerstripofmeatlyingagainstthebackboneontheinside;thisalsocanbepulledloose,thoughagainaknifemakesitneater.

Oneeachofthestrips,showingrelativesize.

Cuttingintothicksteaks.

Cuttingtheseagaintomakethem“butterflies.”

Butterfliescutfromoneeachloinandtenderloin.

CuttingUpofCarcassYou’llnextwanttocutupthedeercarcass.

Removingashoulder.

Theknifewillfinditsownway.

Separatingsidemeatfromhindquarters.

Cuttingawayhindquarter.Again,thebladewillfinditsownway.Buthereyou’llhaveasockettocutoutandseparate.

Pieces—andcutter—alllaidout.

MeatCutting

Weboneallourmeat,andthat’swhatwe’llshowonthesepages.

Geriwithhindquarter.

Hindquarterlaidout,withthefirsttwocutsmade.

Allmeatseparatedfrombones.

Hindquarter:bone,steaks,androasts.

Geriwithfrontshoulder.

Boned.

Frontshoulder:bone,roasts,andstewmeat.

Geriwithmainbody.

Excessmeatsremoved,forham(deer)burger,or(forus)stew.

Cuttingmeat from ribs.We prepare boneless ribs and enjoy them thoroughly.Meatfromherecouldalsobeusedasstewordeerburger.

Thecleancarcass,withapileofribmeatandmeatforsteworburger.

Andthat,folks,isallthereistoit.It’sreallyverysimple.Wedon’tbegintopretendthatwe’rebutchers—farfromit.But,asGerisays,allthatreallymattersistogetthemeatsmallenoughtofitintothefryingpan.

Gotoit!

Chapter7

PrimitiveWildernessCookingMethods

What’sbehind the resurgenceof interest inprimitive living?ForGeriandme,it’safreedomgainedfromrelianceonothers—freedomfromdependency.Everyperson living in this world, or even out of it (in the space shuttle even nowcirclingtheglobeandlookingdownonourpresentsomewhat-direcondition),isdependentontheEarthforhisorherexistence.Itdon’tmatterwhoorwhereyouare, theEarth supplies yourwants and needs (or doesn’t, if you’re among theunfortunatemany).

Geri’s thought—thateveryoneshouldbecompelled tovisitaslaughterhouseatleastonceduringtheirgrowingyears—isagoodone.It’smind-bogglinghowmanypeoplethinkthateverythingjustautomaticallycomesprepackaged.

Likeitornot,weareapartoftheEarth,notsomethingseparatefromit.Faceit:Weareanimals.Theonlythingthatdifferentiatesusfromotheranimalsisourabilitytoreason,forweare(supposedly)intelligent.Ifallmanmadethingsquitatonetime,theEarthwouldn’tbebotheredwiththeoverpopulationofhumansanymore.Itseemsthatmanyaresearching,realizingthesadsituationthatwe’vegottenourselves intoand trying todoat leasta littlebitabout it.Justknowingtheeverydayskillsexplainedinthisbookcanfreeyoufromyourdependency.

Thischapterexploresvariousmethodsofcookingupsomeofthethingsthatyou’vebeenshownhowtocatch,withnomodern-daypotsandpans.We’llhitseveral different methods of cooking something up, but remember: These areonlysomeofthemethodsthatwillwork.Therearecertainlymanythatyoucancomeupwithyourself,witha littleexperienceanda lotof imaginationplusawilltolive.

COOK:“topreparefoodforeatingbyheating.”

Simple—yeah,really!

Formost people today, you take away their pots, pans, electric skillets, andmicrowaves, and there would be a problem. But, as with any of the otherprimitivelivingskills,onceyouthinkaboutit(orhaveitshowntoyou),cookingreallyiseasy,evenoutinthewilds.

IntheCoals

Mostboysoftheoutdoors,atleastinmyday,didn’tconcernthemselveswithalotofextra“junk”tocarryaround.Travelinglightwasthething.Allweneededwaswieners,potatoes,andcornonthecobthrowndirectly into thecoals,plussome sticks tomove them around and get them out when ready (and also toscrapeoffsomeoftheexcessashes).Wealsosometimescarriedacanofbeansorstew,andalmostalwaysasmallpantoheatwater,ortomeltsnow,forcoffeeorhotchocolate(remember,Dave?)

So.Tothrowyourmealdirectly into thecoals is theeasiestway tocookupsomething.Alittlebitofasheswon’thurtabody,butrememberthatashesmakelye,andlyewilleatyou.So,forsafetysake,alittleashesshouldgoalongway.

JimRiggsofOregon,withhisstudents,simplysingesthehairoffdeermiceoverflamesandthrowsthemdirectlyintothecoalstilldone“justright”—theycomeoutcrispy,nottoomushyontheinside.Nothingwastedhere.Theyeatthewholething:agoodwaytopickupextravitamins.Wemostlyjustskin,removethe stomach and intestines, then cook and eat what’s left. But beware ofhantavirus!

Pleaseseethecautionsonhantaviruspulmonarysyndromebeginningonpage146.

Thedailyspecial—atleast,thatday’s:afieldmouse.

Aftersingeinghairoffandroastingincoals.

Geri’sfirstbite.

“CanIswallownow?”—it’sreallyawfullydry(overdone?).

Ifitdidn’tkillher(andJimandMarieandwhomever),Iguessitwon’tkillme.Remember,thisisallmouse—noguttingorskinning.

Packingsmallgameandbirdsinamudorclaypackworkswell,also.Notanyold“mud”willwork—itneedstobesomewhatstickysothatitdoesn’tcrumbleapartonyou.Getthepackasairtightaspossiblesoastokeepallthejuicesin.Thismethodhasacouplaadvantages.Youdon’tneedtoskin,singe,orpluckthegame—itallwillsticktothemudandfallawayfromthemeatwhendone.Youcan also pack tubers and veggies all in the same package. Gutting it is yourchoice.Inatrueprimitiveorsurvivalsituation,youmayelecttoeatitalltogetthemaximumnourishmentthat’savailable(notknowingwhereyournextmeal’scomingfrom).

Haveyou ever cooked cornon the cobdirectly on the coals at a barbecue?Justdiptheearinwateranditwillsteamasitcooks.Thesamecanbedonewithother edibles, thoughbe abit choosywhenyoupick thegreenery towrap the

foodin,asflavorswillbeaddedtothefood.Certainleaves(oakandwalnut)canimpartabittertaste.Certainlyavoidpoisonivy,oak,sumac,andtheirilk.Andalittlesagegoesalongway.Sometimesgrassesplaitedtogether,orcattailleaves,eithergreenorwetted,willhelpprotecttheoutsidefromburningandalsokindasteamthemeal.

Ifyouhaveanytypeofflour,makeadoughbymixingitwithwater.Patthedoughthickerifyouwantitdoughy,thinnerforcrispy.Throwintotheashesand,presto:Youhave“ashcakes.”

Troutbeingwrappedinclayormud.

Sealedmuddedtrout.

Laidoncoals.Morerakedontothis.(Noteovenatfarright.)

Finished.Themudorclaypullsawaytheskin(feathersandskinsofbirds)andyou’re left with tasty trout…done just right. You’ll hafta guess the time,dependingonthecoals.Thiswasabout20minutes.

Broiling

Imaginethisromanticscene:adeer,rabbit,orbirdskeweredontoastickthat’splacedontotwoforkedsticksandsupportedoverthefire.

But,whenyouturnthestick,thecritterstaysinthesameposition,notturningwiththestick.

HowoftenI’veseenthat.It’sagreatwaytocook,yettoooftenI’vemetfolkswhodon’tknowhowtokeepthemeatturningonthestick.

Onesimpleway:Pokeahole(ortwo)throughthegreenstickthatskewerstheanimal. Then run another stick through the animal, the stick, and back outthroughtheanimalagain.Ifyoudon’thaveaknife,asharppointedrockordeadsharppieceofwood(preferablyhardwood)shouldsplitthegreenskewereasilyenough.Withthismethodyoucancookanythingfromamousetoabuffalo.

Cornishhenandtroutlaidouttobespitted.Noteholesinskewersandalignedpins.

Henandtroutcooking.Sincefirewasbuiltonsolidrock,wecouldn’tusesticksasuprightstoholdskewers,soweusedrocks.Wealsoplacedrocksonskewers

tokeepthemealsfromrotatingandfallingtolowestbalance.

Overallviewof“working”fire.

Gettingkindacrowded.

Ash cake in coals, dough on stick, venison steak on sticks , and potatoes andgrasshoppersfryingonflatrocktopofoven.

Alotoffoodfromonefire.Younormallywouldn’tuseallmethodsatonce,butforphotos?At top isbaked(mud)fish.Rightof that isbroiledsteak.Center ishen and trout, rotisseried.Left of that are trout and potato baked in oven. Atlower left are ash cake and bread baked on a stick. To right of that are friedpotatoesandgrasshoppers.Totheextremeright,thegourmets’delight—roastedmouse.

Again,ifflourisavailable,wrapyourdoughdirectlyontoastickandpropitoverthecoals.

Asteak,roast,fish,orbirdcanalsobestuckontoagreenstickandpinnedasabove.Oryoucanusetwosticksatanglesandpropyourdinneroverthefireorcoals.Turnasnecessary.

Anothertrick(fromHarryinTroy,Montana):Foldtwothin,pliablesaplingsbackonthemselvesandplaceyourfish,orwhatever,inside;thenholdorpropitoverthefireorcoals.

The cooking methods that we’ve covered up till now are those that you’dfigureoutprettyquickifthenecessityarose.Some,notall,ofwhatwehitnowwillbethingsthataren’tsooftenoreasilyfiguredoutbymany.

Baking

Here we’re talking not about cakes and pies, but just the same old stuff thatwe’vebeencookingup tillnow.Bymakinganoven (of sorts),we’re freedofwatchingquitesocarefullywhat’sgoingon,soasnottoburnsupper.

Aboutanytimethatwebuildacookingfire,atoneendwebuildasmallovenofrocks,asflataswecangetthem.Onthoseoccasionswhenflatrocksaren’tavailable,acarefulchoosing,banging,andplacingof roundrockswillmakeaserviceableoven.

Thefireisbuilt.Asitburnsdown,coalsarerakedintoandaroundandovertheoven.Heat therocksslowlyso thatanywater thatmaybe inside thestonehasachancetoleave…slowly.Heattoofastandthesteammayleavetoofast,asinbang!

Weusuallybuilda longishfire(call itapit fire),withactiveburningatoneend,coalsinthemiddle,andovenattheotherend.Ourovensarenormallyonly3”to4”highanddeepbyabout6”wide,largeronlyifnecessary.Smallerovensare more efficient for small things, such as pieces of meat, potatoes, tubers,veggies,birds,anddoughforwhatamountstobread.Wekeepcoalsinfrontandon top (and sides too, if itworksout, though that’snotnecessary). In suchanovenfoodsaredoneasquickasintheovenathome.

Anothereasyoven isadirt-bank type.Dig into thebaseofadirtbank. If ithappenstobeclay,fine.Ifnot,linewithflatrocks.Buildyourfireinsideandletheat. When it’s ready, just scrape out and keep coals or fire at or near theentrance.

Now, in conjunctionwith the first of these ovens, you have right at hand afryingpan:yourhot,flatrockthatmakesthetopoftheoven.Youcanfryaboutanythingherethatyoucanathome(thoughmaybenotover-easyeggs,withoutlotsofpracticeandluck!).

Oneother“oven type”way tocook isalsoahole in theground.Digaholeplenty largeenoughforwhatyou intend toplace in it.You’llwantsomeextraspace (note the following photos). There are a lot of variations to this “pit”cooking.Youjustpickandchoosewhatworksforyou.

Ifthesoilisclaylike,fireitbybuildingahotfirewithin.Ifthesoilissandyorcrumbly,lineitwithflatstones.

Buildafireinthepreparedhole.Iprefertoleavethecoalsinthehole.Iputahandfulofgreensticksor twigsdirectlyonto thecoals, followedbya layerofgreenorwettedgrass,maybeaddingsomecattailleaves(green)ifavailable,andthenthemeal.Thegreensticksor twigswilladdagreatsmokeflavoring.Thewetorgreengrasses andcattail leaves addmoisture andalsoprotect themealfrom direct contact with the coals. Do remember, though, that the particulartastesoftheleavesandgrasseswillstaywiththemeal.

Theningoesthemeal:meat,roots,nuts,whatever.Covertheholewithaflatrock that’s been preheated and seal. Place coals on the rock.Now the food isheated fromaboveand below,withmoreof a steamheat.Trial and errorwilldictate the time.Because of themoist heat, you really can’t overcook. Figurethreetofivehoursformostaverage-sizedmeals.

Thefactthatoxygencan’tfuelthefirewillkeepthethingfromburstingintoflames—hence,theimportanceofcoveringcoalsandsealingtheholeasfastaspossible.

Ifaflatrockisn’tavailable,buildasupportinglayerofsticksatthetopofthepitandcoveritwithajacket,shirt,blanket,orgrasses(grassesaren’tthebest,as

they’ll leaksomedirt).Thenproceed to seal thiswithplentyofdirt.Thiswillalsoworkbetterifthedirthasbeenpreheatedbybuildingafireoverit.Becausethepit is sealedairtight, and by taking particular care to cover the coalswithmoistgreenery,noflamesshouldappear(thoughtheymight).

Nowyouhaveseveralhourstoforageortraporbuildwithouthavingtotendyourmeal.

Rocklidbeingheated.Alllaidout:chickenandpotatoes,greensticks,andwetgrassesandgreenwettedcattailleaves.

Green sticksplaceddirectlyontocoals (to keepgrasses fromcoming indirectcontact).Alsonoterocksliningthehole,helpingtoretainheat.Placinggrassesandcattailleavesinhole.

Nowingoesthemealandlayingtherocklidandsealingallopeningsfirstwithgrassesandthenwithdirt.Youwantitsealedtillnosmokeisseenescaping.Ifairenters,themealcanbeburned.Wealsopiledabout6”ofdirtontoptohelpkeepintheheat.Sincetherockwasalreadyhotclearthrough,wedidn’tbuildafireontop,thoughitcanbedone.

The finishedmeal.Herewe let it cook foronly21/2hoursbecauseof failingdaylight.Chickenwasperfect,justbeginningtofallfromthebones.Thepotatoesweredone,butfirm.

Boiling

One of the best reasons there is for knowing how to boil something in aprimitivesituation(andthereareseveralsuchreasons)istomakealittlebitgoalongway.One smallishpieceofmeat—say, a rat, a squirrel, a couplamice, abird, even fish—whenboiledor roastedwill help to fill yourbelly faster thaneating the critter raw. And to the broth can be added any number of othernutritiousthingsthatyou’vegatheredduringtheday,suchasseeds,nuts,insects,or edible plants.And though it’s not the thing that you’d normally be able toaccomplish on your first night in a primitive situation, unless you’re awfullyluckytofindjusttheright“pot,”italsoisn’tdifficulttocomeacrossthingsthatcanfunctionasapot.

Whatwe’ll do in this situation is toheat thewaterusinghot rocks—called,appropriately,hotrockcooking.

Althoughmostrockswilldothejob,youdoneedtobesomewhatselective.Somewilljustcrumble(sandstones),butotherscananddoexplodewhenheated(flints, cherts,obsidian).Youwill need todo the checking if youcan’t tell thedifference.Anddobeawareofthedangerofexplodingrocks.Butjustabitofknowledgeandcommonsensewillpreventanymishaps,oratleastmost.

Weassumenoresponsibilityforanyinjuryresultingfromexplodingrocks.

Wegenerallyprefer“creekrocks,”butthosenotactuallyfoundincreeks.Thehard, roundishgranite-typestonesseemtous toworkabout thebest.Justpickthem from higher ground. Those that have been soaked in water might have

gottenmoisture inside through tiny cracks;when the rock is heated, thewatercan’tgetoutslowlyenoughforthecracktoaccommodate—andso,bang.

We’veusedsoftlimestone.Itheatswellbuteventuallybreaksapart(asdoallrocks thatI’veused).Softerrocksalsohavethe tendencyto leaveagrit in thesouporstew,thoughthatmayhelptokeepyourinsidesreamedout.Pumiceorlavarockisagoodchoice.

Heattherocks.It’sbesttobuildagood,solidfoundationofwoodonwhichtobuildyourfire.Reason:Allrockseventuallyfallintothedeepestpartofthefire,whichmaynotbe thehottest if ithappens tobeonly theground.Layerwoodandrocks.Wegenerallyuseaboutadozenrockstoheatagallonofwater(moreor less), as the temperature of the water from a mountain stream is usuallyawfully cold. As the first rocks are taken from under the water as they cool,placetheminasectionof“new”fire.Whenyourunoutofrocksthefirsttimethroughandyou’renotdonecooking,thefirstonesusedwillhaveheatedagainandbe ready togo.The second sectionof fire alsohelps todistinguishwhichrocksarewhich.

Thepot:We’veoftenusedafreshdeerskinforourpot.Eithersetitintoaholein the ground and stake it around, or tie it into a tripod of sticks.Usually thehair’s left on.We generally cook thiswaywhen demonstrating brain tanning,andwe use the freshly fleshed (say that 10 times fast!) skin, hair side out ofcourse.You don’t need to flesh the skin, as the flesh and fatswill add to themeal.Theskinwillshrinkconsiderablyasitalsocooks,sotakethisintoaccountoryou’ll havebroth all over theplace.Wenormally leave lotsof slack in theskinwhencookinginahole.Tiedtoatripod,it’lljustshrink,sodon’tfillitasfull.You’llhaftafeelthisout.

Alargeranimal’sstomachcanbe,andhasbeen,usedalso.Hereyouhavetheaddedadvantageofbeingabletoeatthepot.

Adepressionlargeenoughinarockwouldbegreat,aslongasit’sconvenient

forandtocamp.

Asolidpieceofwoodwillworkfine,thoughitwilltakesometimetohollowitout (it’seasiestdonewith fire). Ina semipermanentcamp, thiswouldbenoproblem.

Aclaypotisthecat’smeow.Thiscouldalsobejustplacedintothefire.(SeeChapter9formoredetailsonprimitivepottery.)

A tightly coiled basket will work as a pot. I’ve always thought that suchbasketsneededtobelinedwithpitch,buthavebeenshownotherwisebythosewhoknow.

Aholedugintheground(groundthatwouldn’tleak)wouldsurelywork.Somuchthebetterifthegroundhappenedtobeclayish.Buildafireinitfirst,andyou’vegotanonmovablepot.

Now,let’sgetcooking.

Whenwefirststartedhotrockcooking,wejustusedforkedsticksandplacedthehotrocksdirectlyintotheskinpot.Bycarefullyremovingtherocksfromthepot,wewereabletogettwoorthreemealsoutofoneskin.Finally,aholewouldappearintheweakenedskin,andoursupper(thebroth,anyhow)literallywentdownthedrain.

Wenowmakea smallbasketorcarrier toput the rocks intoand thenplacethatinthepot.Thisismucheasieronthepot.Youcansometimesplacethreeorfourrocksintothecarrier.It’sbesttohavethecarrierinthesoupbeforeputtingthehotrocksin,astheyhaveatendencytoburnthroughthecordageholdingittogether,sincetherocksareredhot,orneartoit.

Thefollowingphotosshowthetoolswenormallyuse,butremember,forkedsticksalonewilldo.

Toolshandyforhotrockcooking.Twotypesof“tongs”andabaskettoholdtherockswhile immersing into the skin pot. This saveswear and tear on the potwhentakingrocksout.Simpleforkedstickscanbeusedinlieuoftongs.

Everything is gathered and ready for boiling. Hole dug; deerskin and stakes;rocksandwood;androcksandwoodlayeredreadytobefired.

Iknowthatcookedmeatcanpoisonyouifitspoils,andtherawhidepotdoescook.Idon’tknowhowtojudgethis,butcommonsenseshoulddictatehere,sodon’tletthe“cooked”potgettooold.

Itnormallytakesfrom5to10fist-sizedrocks,redhot,tobringthewatertoaboil. Remember, this is usually mountain creek water, which is mighty cold!Figureabout10minutesorless.Onceboiling,itonlytakesoneortworocksinthebasketatatimetokeepthebrewsimmeringfor3to5minutes.Whenthesearefirstplacedinthebrewit’llboillikeahotsprings,andthensettledowntoasimmer.Youcanheartherockscookingandsizzling.Whenitslowsdown,taketherocksoutandreplacewithnewones.You’llbecookingasfastasyouwouldon a stove. In fact, thewaterwill boil hotter at higher elevations and so cookfaster.Iknowofonefellowwhodoesallhiscampboilingwithhotrocks(inaDutchoven)whileinthemountainsjustbecauseitdoescookfaster.Andifyousawthesizeofthisguy,you’dknowwhyhewantedorneededhisfoodfaster!

Skinstakedoutandfilledwithwater.Skinwillshrinkconsiderablywhileboiling,soextraslackisleftinhole.Rocksheatinginbackground.

When rocks have heated, the fire is stretched out so thatwhen cool rocks areremovedfromthevattheycanbereheated,whilealsokeepingthetwobatchesofrocksseparate.

Using“tongs”toplacehotrocksintobasket,inthewatertohelpkeepburningthroughthebasket.

Rocksinbasketinbroth.

After several rocks (in this case, about 10) are placed in the water, it comesquicklytoarollingboilandwillsimmerfor3to5minutes.

I’ll touch on one othermethod to (kinda) boil things. For quite some timewe’veuseddehaireddeerrawhideforwaterbuckets.I’veseenwaterboiledinapapercupthat’splaceddirectlyintoafire.Takenotethatpaperanddeerrawhidearen’tthesame.

Thepotorbucketatfirstwillleakreadily.Aftersomesoaking(fromafewtoseveralhours),itsomehowsealsitself.Onebucketthatwe’vecarriedforoverayear andalways fillwithwater atworkshops anddemosdoesn’t “leak” at all,though water does filter through and evaporate (thereby keeping the contentscool).

Well,onesummerwecarriedaroundapotofdeerrawhide—aniceskin,too

—withtheintentionofcookinginit.Wedid.Firstwegotlotsofcoalsbutlittleflame.Ourpotisheldtogetherbynaturalfibercordage,andseveraltimesflameswerelickingclose.Itwasahassle.Andtheskinkeptspringingleaks(dripping):no rhymeor reason, justwhenandwherever they felt like it.And then they’dquit.Notenoughtoput thefireout(justdrips),butarealpain.Itkept thefirecool.Weworkedforabouttwohoursandneverdidgetthedamnthingtoboil.Itdidsimmer,andwouldhavecookedafter thefirst15or20minutesorso.Butboil—no.Italsoshranktoalmosthalfitsoriginalsize.Wehadtoconstantlydipwaterout.Hotrocksworkmuchbetter.

Rawhide bucket directly over the coals. It works… but. If no rocks wereavailable,thiswouldbeagoodsecondchoice,thoughruiningagoodskin.

Waterdrippingfromrawhidepot.

Chapter8

PrimitiveWildernessContainers

No hunters or gatherers are worth their salt without something to put theirgatherings in. As with most other aspects of primitive living, assembling asuitablecontainer isactuallymucheasier thanyoumightat first suspect,whatwith all the cumulative knowledge that you’ve gained in reading about otheraspectsofprimitivelivingintheotherchapters.Theimportanceofsomesuitablecontainercan’tbestressedenough—itreallydoesmake lifeeasier.Remember,you’regoing“nakedintothewilderness,”andyou’vegotnopockets.

Idesignedthischaptertoshowyoualotofphotoswithsomedescriptiveandexplanatorywords.Ifigurethatthephotosprettywellspeakforthemselves.Thismaterial,however,isfarfromthefinalwordoncontainers.Instead,whatyou’llencounterhereareseveraltypesthathaveworkedforGeriandmeandthatareprimarilyfunctional,withlittleornoartwork.Therearemany,manyideasthatwillworkaswellbutthatwehaven’tcovered,duenotonlytolackofspacebutalsotoourownlackofknowledge.Wedoshowworkableproducts,and—mostimportantly—weexplainthecharacteristicsthatyouneedtolookfortogetthejobdoneinyourownregionofthecountry.

Baskets

The first container that comes tomind tomost folkswould be a basket.Herewe’ll show you three methods to obtain some sort of basket. While theinstructions in this chapter will be far from definitive answers to your everyquestion on basketry, they do offer three ways that work well to give you afinishedproduct.Youdon’tneed to stick toanyoneof thesemethodsbut canmixandmatch,asyouwillandasthecircumstancesdictate.Toallyouartistsinbasketryoutthere,pleasebearwithusandrememberthatthesearefunctional.

Materials

Aswillbeshown,manythingsinnatureworkwellinbasketry.Youonlyneedtosearchoutparticularcharacteristics—mainlythatamaterialispliable,orcanbemade to be. It helps if it’ll remain a bit pliable after the project has beencompletedsothatitwon’tfallapartinuse.Thepurposeofthebasketwillhelptodictatethis.Ifit’stobeusedonlyforgatheringnuts(theonesgrowingontrees,notthoselivinginthem)orherbs,alighter-dutybasketwillsuffice.Ifyourgoalistogatherheavy-dutyrocksorwhatever(andremember,wecavemendoneedourrocks!), thenabrittlebasketwillbewasted.Thelongerthematerial is, thelesssplicingwillbenecessarytocreateabasket.

Stick baskets—as I refer to thosemade of,well, sticks—can and should bemade more pliable by soaking for several hours or days, depending on thematerial. We mostly use dogwood and willow for these. You can use theinformationinthischapterasaguide,butdosearchoutyourareatofindwhatithastooffer,andthenmaybeexperimentortemporize.Asyou’llsee,manyothermaterials can be and are used—cattails; any cordage; some vines, barks, andgrasses. Aswe approach these variousmaterials herein, we’ll explain how topreparethem.

Warps,Wefts,andWoofs

These are what your baskets are composed of. Warps are the longitudinalthreads,sticks,orcordsintowhichthewefts(alsoknownaswoofs)arethreaded.Thisisasimpledefinition,andinpracticetheactualbasketissometimesnotsosimplyaccomplished.

Note that an additional warp has been added (lower center, arrow). As weproceed,you’llfindthatwarpswillbeaddedasnecessaryforstrength.

Notethesplicinginofanewweft(theupperarrowshowsthelastoftheold;thelowerarrowpointstothenew).

Note,onthefarside,howthewarpshavebeenthreadeddownintotheweftstofinish.Anothercordhasbeenwrappedaroundtheperimeterforaddedstrength

Thefinishedproduct.

Twining

In twining, you’re working with two wefts. Normally you twist these once,betweenwarps.

With thisbasket (actually,hereabag),shownin theprocessofbeingmade,we’reusingcattailsexclusivelyas thematerial.Thesewerecutdeadinwinter,andallowedtodry(cattailsgrowwhereit’swet),andresoaked,thencordedforthewarps.Thecordingallowsforastrongerbasketorbag.(CordingistaughtindetailinChapter1.)Thenasinglepieceofcattail,wet,wastwinedin.

Thisbag,alsotwined,hasbeenmadefromavarietyofmaterials.Elmbarkwascorded for the warps, while the bottom coupla inches was single-strand elmbark, followed by a few inches ofwestern dogbane, followed by severalmoreinchesofeasterndogbane(notcorded;thefibersonlycleanedandthentwinedin).Thewholewasfinishedatthetopwithseveralinchesofgrass—whatwecallslough grass, since it grows in wet areas, and what others call reed canarygrass.Thestrapisbrain-tanneddeerskin(finishedaccordingtomethodsgiven

inChapter10).

Thisburdenbasket,appropriatelynamed,ismademostlyfromdogwood,withabit of willow tossed in. Deer rawhide supports the basket, to which is tied atumpline (pack strap) of brain-tanned deerskin. The tumpline goes around theshouldersortheheadwhencarrying,leavingthehandsfree.

BasketWeave

Tobasketweavemeans,ofcourse,toweaveabasket.

There are many ways in which you can begin your warps (your up anddowners).Thisstepisalmostalwaysthemostdifficult.You’llneverhavenearlyenoughhandsforthisoperation.Sticksarealwayswantingtofallaparthere.Justpersevereandit’llwork.

Now,whenbasketweaving,youneedtohaveanoddnumberofwarps,fortheweavingtoworkout.Withtwiningitmakesnodifference.

Notetheadditionofa13thwarpintheupperleft.

Gerididmostall thebasketworkillustratedonthesepages.Shesimply laid3shoots (of willow) on 3 others (making for 12warps). She thenmade severalwrapsusingthebasketweave,whichissimplyoneoverandthenextunderthewarp. Then she stuck another shoot in, in order tomake an odd number, andfromhereonout thebasketweaveachieves itspurpose,alternatingoneaboveandonebelowoneachfullturn.Afteronlyafewwrapsshedecidedtobendtheshootsupward,tomakeforamorecylindricalbasket.

Howwarpsareaddedinaswego.

Showinghowtobendtheendsoftheshootsoverandshovethemintothespaceprovidednexttothenextwarp—gotthat?Naturally,cuttheshootsjustacouplaincheslongforthis.

Thefinishedbasket,withtheadditionofacordagestrap.

Herewehavequiteacombination.Usingwillow,webeginwiththeone-strandbasketweave,changingtoatwo-strandtwining.

Thesame,seenfromtheside.

Thecompletedbasket,usingsloughgrass,wetted,inabasketweavetherestoftheway.Result:asurprisingusefulbasket,muchstrongerthanyou’dexpect.

Avariationoftwiningthat’sveryusefulinbasketsthatcanusespacing,suchasfishtraps.(Thiswasmadeforandsenttousbyamasterbasket-makerfriendofoursinCaliforniawhowishestoremainanonymous.)

CoiledBasket

You’llhavetocloselystudyallthefollowingphotos,rememberingthatstartingisthehardestpartofall.Herewe’reusingonlysloughgrassandtyingittogetherwithyuccafibers,thoughalmostanycordage-typematerialwouldsuffice.

ThemiddlephotoontherightshowsGeriopeningapassagewayfortheyucca,usingaboneawl.

Endingoffapieceofyuccaandbringingitundertheprecedingtwoloops.

Fromtheinsideofbasketatsametie-off,beginningwithanewstrand.

Showing,fromtheoutside,beginninganewaftertheinitialtie-in.

Howtotieoff,orfinish,thebasket.

Flintbladetobeusedincuttingofflooseends.

Thefinishedbasket.

BarkContainer

In the field, you can use bark in a surprising number of ways. The one thatinterestsushere is themakingofcontainers.Usingbarkisoneof thequickestmeans of making a finished container. What we illustrate in the photos isworking with eastern red cedar. The first priority in selecting bark is that iteasilyseparatesfromthetree.Thesecondisthatitisn’tsofragileandbrittlethatit’ll self-destruct. Most of us know that birch bark works for any number ofcontainers, including the famouscanoeofpoemsand stories.The first “other”barkcontainer thatIwaspresentedwithwasmadeof juniper (oneofwhich isillustratedlater).Anotherusefulbarkisthatofthetulippoplar.Manyspeciesofelmworkwell.Experiment.

Sincethephotosareself-explanatory,I’lllistherethemoreimportantaspectstobeawareof.You’llnotethatanyholesaredrilledintothebark,notcut.Thebarkreallywantstosplit,socaremustbetaken.Whenthecontainer’sfinished,placeitoveranobjectthatwillforceittokeepitsshapeasitdries.Hereweusedalog.

AlsonotethatinthetwophotoswhereGeritiesthecontainertogether,eachisdonedifferently.Oneusesaseriesofholeswithcordagerunthroughinsuchawaythatthere’saholeforthecordtorunthrough,andalsothecordrunsaroundthecontainer.Intheotherphoto,there’sonlyasingletieatthetopandtherestisheldtogetherwithcord.Thepointedsidesofthebottomsmakeiteasytotiethecordageoffthere,addingmorestrength.

TwobarkcontainersmadebyandgiventousbyourfriendsKenandLynnBerryofAlabama,using tulippoplar.Note thewoodenhandleon theoneon the leftandalsohowthey’retied.

Containermadefromjuniper,tiedwithbraintan,tomakeafinequiver(madebyourfriendBrianJamesofWashingtonState).

Cordage

Wecovered cordage indepth inChapter1, sowewon’t go into it againhere,excepttonotethat,thoughnotnecessarilya“container,”cordagecansurehaulalot of stuff on a gathering expedition. In many circumstances, it can also bemadeonthespot.

Note a variety of cordage made from natural materials and also the generalcarryallusingit.

StoneContainer

Some stones are soft enough to work with. The accompanying photos showsoapstonebeingusedtocreatecontainers.Thismaterialworkssupereasilyandwasusedextensivelyindaysofold,whereitwasavailable.

Beware:Soapstonesometimescontainsasbestos,whichcanbeharmfultoyourhealth.

Soapstonebeginningtobeworked.

Workingmaterialsofbone,antler,sharpcuttingstones,andahammerstone.

Gerihardatit.

Thefinishedcontainer.

We’vealsousedlimestoneforcontainers(ourKentuckylimestone,notwhat’sfound in theSoutheast).Though it can be used for hot rock cooking, itwon’twithstandthehighertemperatureofbeingplaceddirectlyintothefire.

Abeautifulsoapstonebowlontheleft,agiftfromSteveWattsofGastonia,NorthCarolina(oursisontheright).

Our finishedproduct,anoil lamp, filledwithdeer tallow (cookedwithpricklypearcactustokeepitfirmer)andusingasagebarkwick.

Whatcanhappenifyou’renotcareful.

AnimalPartsUsedasContainers

The animal kingdom sure does provide us with an abundance of spare parts,manyofwhichwecanuseascontainers.Ourancestorsdidit,andsocanyou.Herewe’lldelveintoseveralofthem,beginningwiththeoutside.

Rawhide—Suchavarietyofcontainerscanbemadefromtherawhideoftheanimalthatitstaggerstheimagination.

Buffalorawhidelaidoutwithapairofparfletche,traditionallytwotoahide.

Acontainermadefromtherawskinofadeer, leavingthehairon, forholdingourfiremakingkit.

Parfletche-ThiswasthePlainsIndians’suitcase.Alltypesofcontainerscanbemadefromaheavyhide:round,square,rectangular,what-have-you.Theycanbeheldtogetherinanynumberofaways,suchasbysewing,tying,orgluing,orincombination.Butrawhidebecomesanoozingmasswhenwetted,soyoumusttake care to waterproof anything made from it, or otherwise protect it frommoisture. We size (varnish) our products with the juice of the pricklypear.Several other waterproofing options are available that wewon’t cover inthisbook.

Acontainerthatcanbeusedforseveralpurposes.It’ssimplyrawhideofadeer,laced to awooden frame.Most obviously, this couldbeused forwater or hotrockcooking(seeChapter7).

Anunborncalfrawhidewithgussetsofrawhidedeer,lacedtogetherwithbraintan.

Deerrawhidewithgussetsandlacingofbraintan.

Deerrawhidecontainer thatweuse tocarrymany things, fromarrowheads togranola,sewnwithsinew(Chapter10)andtiedwithbraintan.

Knifesheathmadefrombuffalorawhide,lacedwithbraintan.

Acow’sbladder,aftercleaningthe“p”outofit,makesadandycanteen;carriermade of brain tan. The water bucket next to it we’ve used for several years,madeofadeerskinthatwemakecertaintodryeverynightsoitdoesn’tbegintorot.Theevaporationofthewaterthroughtheskinkeepsitsurprisinglycool.

Two heart sacs from cows. To prepare, same as with bladders, let them dry,moistening and manipulating them carefully as they dry. They make good,waterproofcontainers.Sacatlefthasbraintansewnontop.

Raw squirrel skin, made somewhat flexible by rubbing while it dried—withwoodencork.

Skininverted,corkinsertedinneck,cordagetotiethebottomtogether,andwehaveadandysmallbagfortraptriggersandotheruses.

Amuchlargerbagcanbemadefromthiscoyoteoralmostanyotherbiganimal.

Two turtle shells, which have many uses: as dishes, water carriers, dippers,cups,or(inthecaseofthesmaller,deeperone)afineoillamp.

The leg bone of a bear, filled with a tallow-soaked wick and tallow, makes agreattorch.

Finished-outbuckskinmakes formanyswellcontainers. Illustrated isa typicalNorthernPlainsbowcaseandquiver.

WoodContainer

Most containers made of wood are associated with bowls for eating, or asdippersorbuckets.Inmostcases,acontainerofonepieceofwoodistooheavyor isprone tobreak,orboth.Canoes, consistingofdug-out logs,wouldbeanexception.

A solid, dry piece of a softwood can be chipped, carved, or burned out tomakemostoftheaboveitems.Onecaution,though,whenburning:Ifmoistureremains in the wood, the high temperature of the burning coal can cause theexpandingsteamtocrackthewood.

Drinkingbowlmadebyburning,chipping,andscraping.

Now, here’s something a bit different. Many woods, especially soft

cottonwoodlogs,whenleftouttoweather,rotfromtheinsideout.

I discovered this fact while gathering punky wood for smoking skins. Theinsides were well rotted while the outside (having been sunbaked) was stillreasonablyhard.

Findthe“justright”pieceofwoodandyoucancarefullybreakawayanareathatyoucanuse—acontainerreadytobemade.

Aboutthesametoolsusedinworkingthestone(precedingsection).

Gerihardatit.Actually,therottedwoodseparateseasily.

Shesmoothesoutherwork.

Amajorcrackshowsinthewood(therewerealsoseveralsmallerbugholes).

Finecordage-typematerialandasmallhunkofclay.

Theseitemsmixedtogether.

Geripatchesthecrackasifcaulkingalogcabin,sealingthesmallerroundbugholes as well (though some holes were sealed by jamming in sticks of theappropriatesize).

Thefinishedcontainer,holding11/2to2quartsofwater.Thesealshelduprealwellforseveralhoursandeventhroughahotrockcookingsession.

Nowyou’veseenmanyandvariedmeanstoobtainormakecontainersinthewilds.Moreimportant,youpossesstheknowledgeofjustwhattolookforwhenyou want to go a-gatherin’. Knowing and understanding the principles andcharacteristics ofwhat you’re doing and looking for is vastlymore important

thanknowingonlyhowoneortwomethodsormaterialswork—andmuchbetterthanhavinganykit.

Chapter9

PrimitivePottery

Thischaptercertainlyisnotadefinitiveworkonprimitivepottery.Whatitwilldo is giveyou some ideas and techniques forgoingout, diggingup somedirt(clay),andturningit intoausablecontainerorvessel tomakeyourwildernesslivingorsurvivalmorebearable.

Asalwayswhentryingnewthings,expectsomefailures.(Alongourjourneys,wehadagreatmany,but lived to tellabout it!)Thismaterialcontainsa lotofvariables, thoughifyouunderstandtheprinciplesandfollowtherules,successwillfollow—formanypeople,thiswillhappenontheveryfirsttry.

QuickRun-Through

Simply,youneedto:Findasourceofclay.Digitup.Wetit,ifdry.Cleanit.Formitintoashape(abowl,inourexamplehere).Letitdry.

Atthisstage,itcanbeusedunderlimitedandcontrolledcircumstances.Itwillbe very brittle and will dissolve if wetted. Clay, whenmixed with straw andbaked in the sun, can be and has been used over millennia to make bricks(adobe).Bowlscanbeusedfordrystorage.Butformostpracticalapplicationstheitemmustnowbefired.Onlyfirewilltransformthewatersolubleclayintoamaterialthatwillenableyoutousethebowl,notonlytostorewaterbutalsotoboilit.

It really isabout thatsimple.Let’scover theabovesteps,maybeamplifyingandaddingoneortwoothersaswego.

Clay

Without getting technical, clay is a type of soil that (1) whenmoist becomesplastic(thatis,moldable);(2)drieshard,retainingitsmoldedshape;and(3)willchange characteristics when fired, so that it won’t dissolve once again whenwetted. Firing allows a clay bowl, for example, to be used as a cooking andstoragevessel,andletsyoucreatelotsofotherutilitarianaswellasfunthings,bothcheaplyandquickly.

Mosteveryoneknowswhatclayis.Youjusthavetofindsome.Itreallyisarather abundant earthmaterial.You’llmost often and easily find clay depositsalongstreambanks,nexttoponds,andinroadcuts.

Clay, like Geri in this photo, can sometimes be elusive—but it’s really quiteabundant.

Beforewettingdryclay,it’sbesttofirstpoundorgrinditintosmallerpieces.

Leftoverrubble.

Themoreapprovedmethodofcleaning:making intoaslurry, thenpouringoffthethinnerclay,leavinganystonestosinktothebottom.

Ifyourclayiswetwhenfound,you’vesavedastepandsometime.Justdigbackintotheveinabittogetawayfromsurfacedebris(thiswillonlyhavetoberemoved),thendiguptheclayandputitintoavesselofsomesortforcarrying.

Iftheclayyou’vefoundisdry,itneedstoberewetted.Therearelotsofwaystodothis.

Whatmost“good”pottersdoistopoundorgrinduptheclaybeforeaddingwater(toallowforbetterabsorption).Theythenaddenoughwatertocompletelydissolvetheparticlesandtomakea“slurry”solution.Youwantitkinda thin—thepurposebeing toallowyou tostir thesolutionwell.Let it set for20 to30seconds(allowingtheheavierstonesandsoontosettle),andthencarefullypouroffthethinner,siltyclaysolutionintoanothercontainer.Thiscanberepeatedifnecessary.Oncealmostalltheimpuritiesseemtoberemoved,setthecontaineraside,allowingtheheavierclaytosettleandoccasionallypouringoffthelighterwater.Thiscantakeseveraldays.Astheclaybeginstothicken,youcanspreadit out on a smooth surface to speed the drying. When it reaches the rightconsistency,it’sreadytouse.

Asthemixtureisallowedtoset,theclaysettlesandthewatercanbepouredoff.Using a rawhide container speeded this process, asmoisture could evaporatethroughtheskin.

Furtherdryingisexpeditedby“pancaking”theclay.

Often when we’re in a hurry to make a bowl (I’m always in a hurry, itseems!),we justmixwater and clay, kneading andworking it till it’s “right,”feeling the larger impurities and removing themwith our fingers. This workswellespeciallywithsmaller,quickiebowlswhenyou’rerushed.Butit’sbelievedthatthelongertheclaysitswet,thebetteritwillbetoworkwith.

Forworking,themoisturecontentmustbejustright.Toowet,andit’llbetoostickyandwill slump,notholding its shape.Toodry, and itwill crackasyouworkit.Ifalittletoowet,itcaneitherbespreadouttodrysomeorjustworkedinyourhands,allowingthesunandbreezetodryit.Thisadditionalworkingisgoodfortheclay,mostnotablyforremovingpocketsofair.Iftheclayisonlyabitdry,whatworkswellistodipyourhandsinwater,shakeofftheexcess,andthenworktheclay.

Not all clays will work in making containers, owing to their chemicalcompounds.

Agood,simpletestistorollahandfulofclaypencil-thinandtieitintoaknot.Ifitdoesn’tbreakorcrack,it’sagoodcandidate.Plasticityisthekeyhere.

Theamountofshrinkageduringdryingisalsoanimportantfactor.Toomuchcanhurt.Theadditionoftemper(seethatsectionbelow)cansometimeshelp.

One clay thatwe’veworkedwith a lotwas touted by allwho touched andworkedwith it as having a “great feel.”Well, we’ve never yet gotten a goodfiringoutofit.Thiswasaclaythathadalltheoutwardcharacteristicsofagood,usableclay—pliability,shrinkage,feel—butitjustwouldn’tholduptofiring.Itblewapart.

So,ifyoufollowallinstructionsandstillhavefiringproblems,changeclays.

Claywith just enoughmoisture towet.Let set fora short timeand thenworkwellwithyourhands,pickingandcleaning.

Aneasytesttocheckforpliability.

Temper

Topotters,tempermeanstomix(clay)withwateroramodifier(suchasgrog).Grog is a collective term for refractory (resistant to heat) materials, such ascrushedpottery and firebricks, used tomake refractoryproducts (as crucibles)thatreduceshrinkageindryingandfiring.

Firstwecleantheclayofrubble.Thendoweaddmorerubbletotheclay?

Wehad a lot of questioning todoon this one, and foundno single answer.Mostconsultantswespokewithagreedonseveralpoints,thoughnonegaveusafirm definition. Many admitted that they had no idea exactly what washappeninghere.Severalhadtheories.

I’lllistherewhatwe’venotedfromothers,andwhatwe’vealsocomeupwithourselves:

Thetemper(grog)isastable.Theclayisnot.A lotof rubble (stones and so forth) in the fresh-dugclay isnot a

stable,soitneedstoberemoved.Duringdrying,andespeciallyduringfiring,theclaywillshrinkand

expandtoacertaindegree.Here,alittlegoesalongway—toomuchactionand the pot cracks or breaks. The temper helps to keep the vessel (clay)morestableduringtheseperiods.

Some clays don’t require temper.Othersmight need up to a one-thirdaddition.Asnotedearlier,eachclayhasitsownspecialproperties.

Smallpotsrequirelesstemperthanlargerones,orsometimesnone.

Large pots tend to slumpwhen building, but the addition of temperhelpstocounteractthis.

The intended use of the finished product has some bearing. Vesselsthatwill be in and out of the fire (each time experiencing expansion and

contraction)willrequiremoretemperthanthoseusedprimarilyforstorage.Theadditionoftemperactuallyweakensthepot.Moreandcoarser

tempershouldbeaddedtocookingvessels,asittakestheheatshockbetter.

Gerithinksoftemperasbeingthemainingredientandofclayasjustholdingit together—kinda like working cement. Steve Watts opines that, on amicroscopic level,potterybegins tobreakdownas soonasyoustart touse it.Minuscule cracks develop every time that the pot is heated or cooled. Hestrongly feels that the temper acts as a stopping point for these cracks, likedrillingaholeinawindshieldattheendofacracktostopitsprogress.

Nowthatwe’vegotsomeideaofjustwhattemperisandthepurposethereof,whatdoweuseastemper?

Sandandgritareusuallyreadilyavailablefortemperpurposes.Butbewareofwhat makes up the sand in your area. Where we live there must be somelimestoneinit,andourlimestoneisn’tstable.Everytimethatwe’veusedit,thepots have blown in firing. By contrast, limestone in the southeastern UnitedStatesisdifferent,andworks.

Grass,driedcowdung,andotherorganicmaterialscanbeused.

Broken,firedpottery(shards),whencrushedfine,canbereused.

Shellisoftengood.Most(perhapsall)shellwillwork.We’veusedfreshwatermussel successfully.One caution, though: Fire or burn the shell first.Unfiredshellisn’tstable.Theinitialexpansionwhenbeingfiredismorethaninclay,andfiring stabilizes it.We’ve had some shellmaterial, after “cooking” and firing,absorbmoistureandswellinthepot,therebybreaking.

Thislistshouldcovermostcircumstances,sonowlet’sputitalltogetherandmakesomethingwecanuseinawildernesssituation.

Sand.

Potshardstobeusedastemper.

Musselshellsbeingfired.

Thefiredshellcrumblesandisnowstable.

Construction

Mixthetemperandclaytothedesiredproportions,thendon’tstop:Keeponworkingit.Itcan’tbeworkedtoomuch.Slamit.Beatit.Workitinyourhandsor on a hard surface. Compress everything well, and remove any and all airpockets.Ifabitwet,workittillitdriesjustright.Ifdry,wetitbydippingyourfingersinwater.Oncethe“right”wetnessisachieved,Ifindmyselfconstantlyrewettingbydippingfingerstokeepitjustright.

Atsomepoint,takeabaseball-sizedhunkofthemixtureandworkwiththat.Workit…workit…workit.

After several minutes, take the ball of clay and begin forcing your fist orfingers into it todevelop ahollow—this is thebeginningof thepot.Keep theforming pot moving in a circular fashion on the fist, meanwhile constantlybeating,tapping,compressingthewalls.Workoutanycracks.Justkeepworkingit—you’llbeginto“feel”theclay.

Start “pulling” clay from the bottom up toward the top. Put your fingersagainst the inside walls of the pot and pat the outside opposite to furthercompress. (Here some folks use a smooth stone on the inside and a wooden“paddle” on the outside. The paddle’s usually wrapped with cordage to helpprevent sticking. The technique is called, appropriately, “paddling.”) All airpocketsneedtobeworkedout,astheycanexplodeinfiring.

Innottoomanyminutesyou’llfindyourselfwithasmallishbowlliterallyonyourhands.

AtthispointI’llrunmyslightlydampenedfingersoverthewholepot,inside

andout,smoothingandcompressing,allthewhilebeingcarefulnottogetittoowet.

Now,ifyouhavethepotthesizethatyouwantit(cereal-bowlsize?),setitonapieceofbarkorwhatever’shandy(makingiteasiertomovearound)andsetitin the shade to dry slowly. Fast drying will have the tendency to crack theproduct. Itwillnowtake fromacoupladays toacouplaweeks,dependingonconditions, of slowdrying.Keep it protected.Allmoisture needs to escape. Itmustbebonedry.

Torepeatmycaution:Anymoistureleftintheclaywillexplodeinfiring.

Temperaddedtoclay.

Mixwell…beat…

Chop…slap…

Pound…fist.

Beginningtoform.

Pattocompressandthenpulltheclayup.

Ifyouhavetoomuchclay,pinchalittleoffandcontinuetoform.

Pinching,patting…

Rubbing,smoothing…

Beforeyouknowit,youhaveabowl!

Setitasideinshadetoslowlydry.

Now, if youwant to create a larger pot, form it thisway as big as you canbeforeslumpingoccurs.Whenyoureachacertainheight, thepotwillbegintosagorslumpbecauseofitsownweight.Younowhavetoletthemainbodyof

thepotdrysomewhatbeforeaddingmoreweight,butyoualsoneedtokeeptherimwetsothatmoreclaycanbe“welded”toit.

Setthepotintheshade.Wettherimwithdampfingers,andcoverwithgreenleavesorsomethingsimilar tokeeptherim fromdrying toomuchas thebodydries.Thismaytakeonlyanhourorso,ormaybeovernight.

Whenthepot’sreadyfortheadditionofmoreclay,rolloutacoilofpreparedclay(called“coiling”),thesamethicknessasthepotwalls(lessthan1/4”andupto1/2”).

Thisnowcanbeaddedtothepot.Becarefulnottoaddtoomuchweightatonce.Youmaybeabletoapplymorethanonecoilatatime.

Just don’t get too rushed.Useyour fingernail or a tool of boneorwoodorsomethingelse, to“draw” thecoils together,both insideandout.Squeezeandcompressitall togethertoweldintoone.Inthismanner,youcanbuildthepotaboutaslargeasyoudesire.

Ifyouwishitlarger,rolloutacoilandadditon.

Pinch,compress,andpullittogether.

Cover the freshaddedclaywithwet leaves tokeep therim fromdryingas therestofthepotdoes.

Whenyou’re satisfied, set the pot aside, as youdidwith the smaller pot. It

needs to bebonedry—but itmust dry slowly.Asmentioned earlier, thismaytakeuptotwoweeks.

Well,notallrulesaresetinclay,sotospeak.Maria-LouiseSidoroffmadealargevesselonetime,beginningwithfreshclayinthemorningandfiringitthatevening. She speeded up the drying process by rotating it around a fire. Itworked!Onseveraloccasionswhile in the fieldwe’vedugclayandbuiltpotsoneday,driedthem(controlled)bythefirethenextday,andfiredthemonthesecondorthirdday.

After a day or so, under most circumstances, the pots can be handled.Weusually turn the pots upside down at some stage in the drying to allow thebottomtodrywell.

Ifyou’dliketodecoratethepot(perhapsusingcordagemarksfromapaddle,orrollingacorncoboverit),thisshouldbedonebeforedrying.Whenthepot’sstillfresh,oraftertheinitialdryingofadayorsocalled“leatherdry”,linescanbe etched into it.Thiscan be donewhen dry but seems towork better at theleather-drystage.

Leatherdry isalso thestage to thin thepot, ifyouwish,bygentlyscrapingawaythickerareas,usingapieceofbone,stone,orshell.

Averysmoothpebbleorapieceofbonecanbeusedtosmoothandburnishthepot.Thisisagoodideafortheinsideofapotdesignedforcookingoreating.Thiscanbedoneattheleather-dryordrystage.

Sowhatdowehaveuptillnow?We’vefoundasourceofclay,dugit,cleanedit,dirtiedit(addedtemper),carefullymadeapot,designedit,andslowlydriedit.

Stillonemoremajorsteptogo,andthat’snext.

Ifyouwanttouseabowlforfoodordrink,sanitizeitbyburnishingtheinsidewithasmoothstone.

Burnishtheoutside,ifdesired,fordecoration.

Firing

The last step in your potmaking is the firing.What you’ve read in earliersectionsconcentratedall your effortsonbuildinganddrying.Youwere left toassumethatifthepotmadeitthroughthesestages,youhaditmade—wrong!

Byjustslappingsomeclayaround,youcanhavesuccessuptothisstage,butyou’lllosemanypotsthroughcarelessfiring.Caremustbetaken!

Inprimitive firing (meaning without sophisticated equipment and gas-firedkilns),lotscangowrong,andthepotsarehighlysusceptibletobreakageatthisstage.Someold-timeprimitivepottersspeakofafailurerateofupto50percent.

Actually, we should refer to the firing in two stages, the prefiring and thefiring.

As the pot heats, it will expand, and any remainingmoisture (not all of itleaves in the previous drying) has to be driven out, slowly. So we want toproceedslowly.Gradualheatingthroughout.Sowepreheat.

Thenthepotmustbetransferredfromindirectheattodirectheat.

Welosealotofthemhere.

Two other critical stages are, first, when the pot reaches a temperature ofaroundtheboilingpoint(212°F)andtheremainingunnaturalwaterleavesand,second,when the pot reaches a temperature of 800° to 900°F and thenatural

chemicalwateroftheclayisburnedout.Afterthissecondstage,theclaycan’tbereturnedtoitsoriginalconditionandbereworked.

Whenfiringyourpots,avoidwindyorrain-threateningdays.Acooldraftorevenadropofraincanruinyourefforts.

Let’slistsomefiringtechniquesandtips.

FiringMethod#1

Asimplemethodforfiringanindividualpot,whichproducesvaryingresults,weoncesawdonebyEvardGibbyofIdaho.

Hesimplyscrapesawidedepressioninthegroundaninchorsodeepandacouplafeetindiameter.Inthereheputssomesmallrocks,onwhichtoplacetheoverturnedpot.Thenhesetsa lengthofcordwoodabout thesamediameterasthepot ishighoneithersideof it, leavingasmall spacebetween logandpot.Then he places twomore pieces of same-sizedwood between the ends of thefirsttwo,uptoandalmosttouchingthepot.Nexthecrumblescowchips(driedmanure) to cover the pot and then covers it all with smaller pieces of wood.Finally,hebuildsalargerpileofwood(tipishaped)overthis,andletsthewholethingburn.Hetakescaretoletthepotcoolslowly.

We’vedonesomefirings like this in thepast,andhavehadvaryingsuccesswithourownclay.

Surroundingwithlogsandcoveringwithdriedcowmanure.

Coveringwithmoresticksandbuildingintoatipifire.

Touchitoff.

Theendresult.

That’s it. One step (no preheating). We can vouch for the fact that it’ssuccessful,forsmallpotsatleast.

Inotherfiringmethods,thepotmustfirstbepreheated.

FiringMethod#2

Somepeoplebuildacircularfirearoundpotsandgraduallymovethefireintillfinallythepotsareactuallyrestinginthefireitself.Theyeventuallybuildthefireupwithlargerpiecesofwoodandletitburnforacouplahours.Or,insteadof using large pieces ofwood, they constantly replenish itwith smaller twigsspacedaround,between,andabovethepots.

Preheat.

Setoncoalsabitandthengraduallymovethefirein.

Getitcloser,higher,andhotter—finally,builditover.

FiringMethod#3

Anothermethodistobuildafireandtomovethepot(orpots)closer,turningandrotatingthemtillwellpreheated,thenscrapingthefireawayandlayingthepots in the coals or ashes or on an insulated layer of preheated rocks or oldpotteryshards.Let thepotssitashort time toallowgradualheatingupbeforeaddingmorefire.

FiringMethod#4

FromSteveWattscomesatechniquefor“firingtheCatawbaway,”ashecallsit.Preheat.Setoncoalsforabit,thenaddpineneedles,andsoforth,tomakeforaslowheating.Thenbeginaddingsmallwoods,andthenfinallylargerwoods.Whenburned tocoals, rebuild.Do twiceforsmallpots.Three timesfor largerones.

FiringMethod#5

Over the years we’ve settled on one method that gives us 100 percentsuccess…most times.Wecametothis throughtrialanderror,becausetheclaythatwe’vehadthemostsuccesswithhereistouchyandfailswhenwefireusingothermethods. It’sprettymuch thesameasamethoddescribedearlier,withafewchanges.Tomakea fire ina ring, theeasiestwaywe’ve found isby firstbuildinga fire topreheat thegroundand then,when itburnsdown, raking thecoalsandsmallembersoutintothesizecircleneeded.

Building a circle fire is next to impossible. But making a circle fire asdescribed is easy!Once circled, place small, stable (unblowupable:myword)stones or pieces of brick to put the pots on, place the pots on the stones (wealmost always place them top down to keep hot coals from failing inside andadding too much heat too soon), and build up the ring of fire. Keep enoughdistance from fire to nearest pots so that you don’t heat too fast, with moredistanceontheupwindside.Keepthefirealiveandmoveitslowlytowardthepots, ensuring that the heating is gradual. More and bigger fire. Closer andcloser.

When a few inches from the fire’s actually touching the pots (remember,upwindwillbealongerdistance),buildthefirehighenoughsothatlongstickscan be placed on top of the fire tomake a roof a few inches above the pots.Thingsgofastatthispoint.Whatyou’redoingisalmostmakingakilnwiththefire.Thecoolerairfromoutsidetheringwillsweeptheflamesandheatintothecenterandup.Youmustkeeptheactualflamesfrommostdirectcontactwiththepots(fornow),butmuchheatisapplied.

Finally, you’re putting a roof over it all, whichwill createmore heat fromabove.We’vefoundthatthismethodmakesforamore-evenheatingofthepots

at a critical stage, allowing them to get a lot hotter before having the flamestotallyconsumethem.Ittakesabout11/2to2hours,onaperfectdaywithnoexcess winds, and a whole lot of wood, resulting in a close to 100 percentsuccessrate.

One disadvantage in placing the pots upside down is that, if there’s anymoistureintheground,thesteamcreatedwillriseintothepotswithnowheretogo.Thiscancausecracksandpossiblybreakage.

FiringMethod#6

One more firing method, which we haven’t found in common use in theStates, is the use of a primitive kiln (hardening oven). This gives you morecontrolinheatinggradually.Simply,thekilnisdugintoahillside,withafiringchamberbelowit.Theheatandsmokefromthefireistunneledthroughthekiln.TheancientChineseusedthisextensively,oftenstair-steppingkilnsupahillside,heatingfromasinglefirechamber.Youmustensurethatthefiringchamberisofsufficientsizetoheatthekilntotherequiredtemperature(1200°to1600°F;thecolorwillbefromdarkredatthelowertemperaturethroughcherryred,brightcherry red, and orange at the higher temperature).This temperature should bemaintainedfortwotofourhours.Thechimneyescapeshouldideallybethroughthe bottom of the kiln (so as to retain as much heat as possible—heat rises,remember?)and thenup (seedrawingonnextpage).Theopeningneeds tobelargeenoughtoallowsufficientdrawforthefiretoreachthehightemperaturesrequired.

Ithinkthatthisshowsyouthatfiringpotteryjustain’tthrowingpotsintothefire—thoughit’snotallthatdifficult,either.

LastWords

Pots are made to use, so use ’em. The final test is to cook in them. Try toremembertheword“gradual.”Coldwaterinahotpotcanbedisastrous.Sameviceversa.Heatwithcoalsorsmallflames.

Whenhandlinghotpots,useleatherpotholdersorwooden“tongs.”Clothcanburstintoflames.

Avoidliftingapotbyitsrim,asyoujustmightbreakitoff.

Advice from Maria-Louise Sidoroff, whose expertise in making and usingprimitive pottery is known internationally: “Awell constructed and sound potwillgetbetterwithusage.Usingordinaryprecautions,thelifeexpectancywouldbemany,manyyears.”

Kilncanbelinedwithrocks.

Pots should be set on rock pillars. Have removable rock at lid for use aspeepholetocheckpots’color(temperature).

Thefinaltest—usingyourpot.

NotesonAboriginalPotterybySteveWatts(1989)

Tome,thepotterytripisdividedintothreeparts:

1/3ismakingit(Goodclay,wellprepared,propertemper,andgoodconstructiontechniques)

1/3isfiringit(Properprefiring,andathoroughhighfiringwithadequatecool-downtime)

1/3isusingit(Propercareanduseforstorage,cooking,andsoon)

Afterall,usingpotteryisthemainpurposeformakingit.Forapottobefunctional,itmustbewellmade.Inother,obviouswords—thebetterapotisconstructedandfired,thebetteritwilloperateasacookingvessel.

Onamicroscopiclevel,potterystartstobreakdownassoonasyoustarttouseit.Butawell-madepotwilllastthroughmanycookingsiftakencareofandtreatedproperly.

Potsshouldbestoredinasecurespot,properlysupported,andprotectedfromrunningchildren,dogs,andthelike.

Anunderfiredpot(inwholeorinpart)willfallapartwhenfirstused—literallydissolve.Manypotsonlymadefordisplayfallintothisunderfiredcategory.

Ofcourseshockmustbeavoided—puttingcoldwaterintoahotpotorviceversa.

Somefolkssuggestfillingthepotwithwaterpriortouseandlettingitstandinthepotlongenoughtothoroughlysaturatethewallsbeforeusing.Othershavesuggestedpreheatingandoilingthepottoseasonit,àlacastiron.

Bothoftheproceduresareprobablyuseful,butmyexperienceisthatwithawell-madepotonesimplyadds“roomtemperature”waterplusthefoodtobecookedtotheunheatedpotandsetsitonthefire.Stokeupthe

flamesandcookaway.

Chapter10

Brain-TanBuckskin

I first attempted brain tanning 1974. At that time I could locate few sourcespertainingtothissubject.WhatIdidcomeupwithleftalottobedesired.Myresultswereunsuccessful,butenoughsmallbitsoftheskindidworkouttogivemehopeandshowmewhatcouldbeaccomplishedifdoneproperly.(Ihadnoidea at that time what real buckskin was even like. I had read only vaguereferencestoIndian-tannedskins.)AllofwhatIcouldfindonthissubjectwaswrittenbysomeonewhohadnohands-onexperiencebutwaswritingwhathadbeenobservedorheard.Thatmaynotbeabadwaytodescribeaprocedure,butit’shardlythewaytowritea“how-to.”

Withmore andmore interest shown ingoingback tobasics since then, andespeciallytheblossominginterestinbuckskinning,morehasbeenwrittenaboutsome of the natural and primitive ways and skills. I sure haven’t had theopportunitytoreadallthathasbeenwrittenonbraintanning,andprobablydon’tknowtheexistenceofevenhalfofit.FromwhatI’veread,however,combinedwithmypersonalrecentexperiencesoftryingtolearnmoreaboutit,IfeelthatI’vedonealotbetterthantheothers.

Most of what I’ve read, if read by someone not at all familiar with theprocedure (and, tomywayof thinking,“how-to”booksandarticlesshouldbeaddressed to thosewhodon’t know“how to”), leaves the readerwith a lot ofquestionsunanswered.Ifreadwithnootherpurposethanthejoyofreadingortofurtherone’sknowledgesomewhat,fine.Butmostsuchtextsdon’tworkfortheindividualinterestedintakingarawdeerskinandturningitintoafinepieceofmaterial,especiallyifthatindividualhardlyknowswhatadeeris.

Thischapterwaswritten todeliberatelyoversimplify,becausebrain tanning

justisn’tasdifficultasmostaccountstendtomakeitappear.ButIdon’tbelittletheamountofeffortrequired,whenIdemonstratethataskincanbefinishedinaslittleasninehours—givenidealworkingconditions.Ofcourse,many,manyvariablescananddoaffectthequalityofthefinishedproduct.

It’sfrustratingandtime-consumingtohavetosearchoutnumeroussourcestolearnanewskill.I’vetriedtomakethischapterascompleteandeasytofollowaswhatIwantedandneededwhenIdidmyfirstskin.I’vehadmydraftsreadbyuninformed people, both male and female, and tried to incorporate theirsuggestionsforclarity. Iwant thischapter towork. Itwasdesignedso that theinterestedandmotivatedpersonwithnoforeknowledgeatallinskinscouldtakethis chapter, a raw deerskin, and very minimal materials and end up with afinishedbuckskin.I’msatisfiedthatitwilldothat.

Istronglysuggestthatyoureadthischaptercarefully.Studythephotographs,reread,learnwhat’shappeningtotheskinandwhy.Gooverthevariousstepstillyouknowwhateachisaccomplishing.Somepartsofthismayseemcomplicatedonthefirstreading,butifyoustudyitcloselyyou’llfindthatI’vemadethingseasierandfasterforyou,suchaslacingintotheframe.Youcanlaceitanydamnwaythatyouwant(andforoneskinmaybeyoushould).ButIfeelcertainthatwhenyoufindouthowsimplyandquicklyyoucanmakebuckskin,youwon’tstopatasingleskin.

I speak throughout of the average 10-square-foot deerskin,which is a largeskin.Actually,thedeerwehaveinnorthcentralKansasaveragelargerthanthat.Smallerskins,ofcourse,willrequirelesstimeandeffort.

Ihavepurposelynotgoneintothemakingofanythingbutbuckskin,soastokeepthingsassimpleaspossible.You’llfindnothinghereaboutworkinglargerhidesorfurs.Thebasicprinciplesarethesame,buttherearecertaindifferencesforeach.Aswithanythingworthwhile, itwill take someeffort andsweat,butnot nearly what most have been led to believe. There’s no secret here—onlysimplerules.

Brief,All-ImportantSummary

Payattention.WhatIdescribeheremaynotactuallybethescientificfactsthatsomearesearchingfor,butifyouunderstandwhat’sputforthhereyou’llknowwhat’shappeningtotheskin,andwhy.Thisknowledgenotonlywillhelpyoutobetterapproach the taskathand,butalsowillbe invaluable in troubleshootingandcorrectingmistakes.

Firstyoumustunderstandtheproductthatyou’reworkingwith—theskin.

The future leather (the dermis) actually consists ofmillions of tiny threads.Youmust visualize this. Think of it as highly compressed cotton.An inherentpropertyofthesethreadsisglue.Boilthemdownandyouhavehideglue.Oils,inourcase fromthebrainsof thedeer (10Wmotoroilmightwork,and Ivorysoapdoestoo,butnotaswellasbrains),arepenetratedcompletelythroughthedermistocoatallthesethreads.Inthemethodsillustratedhere,thebrains(oils)are mixed with water.Water is thinner than the oils and therefore penetrateseasier, drawing the oils with it. But the oils won’t penetrate through themembranes,sandwichingeithersideoftheskin.Waterwill.Oilswon’t.Thusthenecessityofremovingthesemembranes.Theinnermembrane,whichisasolidsheet,iseasilyremoved,mosttimesdonecompletelywhilefleshing.Sandpaperwill showwhere this has beenmissed.Theoutermembrane, the epidermis, isneitherhardernormoreor less important toremovethan the inner,but it’s thehardestforyoutolearntoremove.Theepidermisisnotasolidsheet.Infact,itcomparestosandpaper,withmillionsoftinydotsmakingupthegrainofleather.

Theepidermisisremoved,inourmethod,bydryscraping,orremovingthehairandtheepidermisatthesametime.Yourscraperwillremovehairandepidermisfrom an area about 1/4” at a lick.Work an area about 1”wide, overlap yourstrokes,letyoureyespenetrateintotheskin—you’lleventuallyseewhatyou’reremoving. It does not look the same all over the skin. It may take 10 to 12strokes before you’ve successfully removed the epidermis from your 1” inchwidestrip.Payattention.

Oncethesurfacesareprepared,theoilswillbeabletopenetrate.Weneedtocoat every fiber with these oils, hence the repeated applications. You can’toverbrain.But,onceoiled, if leftunattended, theskinwillshrinkanddryhard(thegluetakingeffect).Ifyoumovetheselubricatedfibersonthemselveswhilethe skindries, theoilswill allow the fibers to stay separatedand they’ll swellsomewhat.Theresult:unbelievablysoft,flannel-likeleather.

Butifthiswastobewetted,thefiberswouldagainshrinkanddryhard(theglue)unlessworked.Ifinsteadwepenetratetheentire,looselywovenskinwithsmoke,thepitchfromthesmokewillwaterproofthefibers.Theskinitselfisn’twaterproofed.Waterwillrunthroughit.Butthefiberswillbewaterproofed,andthewettedskinswillagaindrysoftsincethewaterhasn’tbeenallowedtogettotheindividualfiberandallowthegluetotakeeffect.

Onceyouunderstandthis,you’reincontrol.

(IbecameawareoftheglueactionmentionedabovethroughJimRigg’sbookBlueMountainBuckskin—theimportanceofalwayslearning.)

Now,anotepertainingtofinishingtheskinout.Idescribehereinfinishingitoutbypullingoverarope,oralsobyhand.Many,manyothersaccomplishthesamebyamethoddescribedas“staking.”Thismeans,afterbraining,lacingtheskin back onto the frame and working the fibers by applying force with aroundedstick.

Ithinkoftheskin,stretchedontheframeafterfleshing,asbeingstretched100percent.Whentheskinhasbeencutfromtheframeand,afterbraining,hasbeenworked by hand, it will shrink about 20 percent. When staked, the skin willstretchanother5to10percenttoitslimits.

Ontheonehand,youendupwithalargerskin.Ontheother,theskin,though25to30percentsmaller,isalsothatmuchthicker,andspongier,andstretchier.Tomeitisaliveyet.

Oneadvantagetoworkingtheskinbyhand:Atanytimeitcanberolledup,placed inaplasticbag,andfrozen tillsuch timeasyouwant togetback to it.Onceyoubeginstaking,though,you’llhavetostaketillyou’redone.

Theonlytoolnecessarytoendupwithbuckskin.

Top:Elkantlerhandlewithsteelblade.

Middle:WoodenOsageorangehandlewithflintblade.

Bottom:Steelhandle.

Frontviewoffileblade.Roundnesspreventstearingintoskin.

Side view; extreme angle is put on with grinder at approximately 20-25°—workingangleofapproximately45°isputonwithwhetstone(line).

ASimpleBreakdown

Day1

STEP HOURS

6:30-8a.m. Frameandflesh 11/212-12:30p.m. Preparefleshside 1/23-4:30p.m. Dehair 11/24:30-5p.m. Preparehairside 1/25-6:15p.m. Prepareandapplybrains 11/46:15-6:45p.m. Stretchskinopenandwrapintowels/refrigerate 1/2

Day2

8-11a.m. Finishstretching 3TOTALHOURS 83/4

During the afternoon of Day 2 the skin could be smoked. This simplifiedscheduleisfiguringidealweatherfordrying.

Materials

Abigadvantageoftanning(dressing)yourskinswithbrainsistheminimumofexpenditurerequiredformaterials.Mostmaterials,ifnotall,willbeonhandintheaveragehome.

Knife—Usefulformakinglacingholes.Apocketorparingknifeisallthat’snecessary.Theonlyrequirementsareathin,sharpbladeandagoodpoint.

Four 2x4s about 8’ long, and nails. Cedar or pine poles lashed or nailedsecurely,orboth,willworkfine.Itmustbeagood,solidframe.

125-150’of1/8”nyloncordin25-30’.lengths,orwhateverelseyoucomeupwith.Nyloniseasytoworkwith,andlong-lasting.

Sandpaper—#50coarsegritworkswellformediumandlargerskins.Useafinergritforsmaller,thinnerskins.

Brains—I’veheardtellofothersusingliver,pancreas,andotheroilyorgans.Ihaveneverusedanythingbutbrains.Thebrainfromthecritterwasused“backthen.”Mine comes packaged neatly in 1 lb. plastic containers from the localsupermarket.Getyourswhereyoucan.

Bucket—Somethinginthe2-to3-gallonsizeisconvenient.Materialdoesn’tmatter.

Awringerfromanoldwringerwasher.Certainlynotveryprimitiveornatural

butsuredoesworkwell.(Thestickisthenaturalway.)

About 15-20’ of good, tight, heavy rope. The best I’ve found is a lariat.Definitely something that won’t unravel as you rub the skin back and forthacrossit,andatleast1/2”indiameter.

Scraper—Towork their skins and hides, the Indians used a section of elkantlerwitheitheraflintor,inlatertimes,asteelbladeattached.Iusedanantleronceandfounditideal.WithnoaccesstoelkantlersinnortheastKansas,Iusethenextbest,Osageorange.Anyhardwoodwillsuffice,theheavierthebetter.

Scraper:HandlefromOsageorange,bladefromafile.

Iusedadeadpieceofwoodabout2” indiameterand18” longwitha limbprotruding at a 90° angle at one end. After debarking, scraping, and sandingsmooth,Isawedintotheknotata90°angle,creatingaplatformonwhichtotiethe blade. The bladewasmade from a section of old file (any hard steelwillwork; a file isusuallyhandy) about3” long, roundedononeendandwith anedgeappliedata45°angle.Itiedthefiletothehandleandwasreadytogo.

ThefirsttwoskinsIdidweredonewithawell-rounded,heavyskinningknife.Ifinishedseveralusingahogscraper,wellrounded.I’veevenusedanoldhand-heldflintscraperIfoundinacampsite.

Notall skinsneed tobeextra-largeNo.1.This small“Bambi”with largecutstillmadeanice,6sq.ft.skin.

Skins

Acquiring deerskins really isn’t that difficult. There are many sources fromwhichyoumayobtain them ifyou lookandaskaround.Duringdeer season Icanacquire15to20fromfriendsandacquaintanceswhohavenouseforthem.TherearealsoanumberoflockerplantsintheareathatwillsellmeasmanyasIwant at the going rate—sometimes as little as $2, but normally closer to $5.Contactwithlocallawandgameenforcementofficersalsoinformsmeofmanyroadkills.

Whereveryougetyourskins,somewordsofcaution.Mosthunterswhoskintheirown,andallbutcherswhomI’ve runacross, takegreatpride inhowfasttheycanremovetheskinfromthedeer.Thequickerandthecleanerthattheskinis removed does no favors for the tanner but only leaves numerous holes and“scores”(cutsintotheskinsnotdeepenoughtobeholes—yet).

WhenIskinadeerittakesmefrom15to30minutestodothejob,dependingonwhetherit’sdoneinthefieldorfromthefront-endloaderofatractor.Whentheskin is tobe tannedI’mnota fast skinner; Iamcareful.Theknife isusedsparingly,andI leaveallstubbornbitsofmeatandfatontheskin.Theycomeoffeasilyenoughlater,withnoappreciablelossofmeattothehunter.BybeingabitmorecarefulIdon’tendupwithaskinfullofholesor,worseyet,themany,many scores that can take a goodNo. 1 skin and turn it into a piece of crap.Light scores on the thicker part of the skin, such as the neck, are usuallyacceptable,butthenormalscoreontheaveragepartoftheskinwill,9timesoutof 10, tear out while you’re working the skin in the final stretching process.Bewareofscores!

Tocollect asmanygoodskinsaspossible, Imayoffer to skin themout forlocal hunters,who are usually pleased as punch to haveme do this for them,especiallywhenit’sascoldasitcangetaroundhereinDecember.Asanadded

bonusI’malmostalwaysallowedtoremovetheloinsinewstripsalso.

Asforgettingskinsfromthebutcher,well,youoftenhavetotakewhatyoucanget.JustbeforedeerseasonIalwaysgoaroundtotheprocessorswithwhomI’vemade arrangements and ask them to please use the knife sparingly. Thisusuallyhelps.

Therearethreecommonwaystokeeptheskinstillyou’rereadytotanthem.Theoldestway is to just leave themexposed to theair till they’redry.This isalso themost time-consuming later, as theymust be soaked in freshwater forwhatseemslikeforevertomakethemassoftandpliableaswhengreen.

Saltingtheskinforpreservationisthesecondmethod,andprobablythemostcommonly used. The flesh side is coated liberally with salt and the excessmoistureallowedtodrainoff.Itwillkeepthiswayforsixtoeightmonthsbeforeneedingtoberesalted.Althoughitmostassuredlyworks,Idon’tusethismethodmyself,as it requiresa lotof timeandwater towashout thesalt,allofwhichmust be removed. Salt draws moisture. Unsmoked brain tan dries stiff ifmoistened.

Byfartheeasiestwaytokeepthemisthethirdway:frozen.Ifreezeaskinassoonaftercollecting itas Ican,byrolling it (hairsideout); tying it ina tight,neatbundle;andplacingitinanairtightplasticbag.I’mnowtanningskinsthathavebeenfrozenthiswayforuptothreeyears.Ibelievethattheycouldbekeptforever thisway and still be as green and freshwhen thawed as the day theywereputup,thoughyouneedtokeepairawayfromthefleshside.Bykeepingthe skin frozen I eliminate any need towash or soak the skin before tanning,which saves considerable time, energy, andwater.Only the bloodiest of skinswillIevenwash.Theskinwilldryquiteabitfasterandbereadytoworksoonerifthehairisn’tmoistened.

FramingandFleshing

Nowlet’sdosomethingwiththatskin,whereveritcamefrom.

If it was dried, then you’d best find a source of running water, such as astream,andweighttheskinwithrocksandleaveitforacoupleofdaysorso.Itwilltakealongtimetogetitbacktothesamestateitwasinwhentakenfromthedeer.Youdoneedtocheckiteverysooftentoensurethatthefreshwaterisgettingtotheentireskin.Ifyoudon’thaveaccesstoacreekorastream,placeitintoalargecontainer,suchasa25-gallontrashcan,andsoak.Thewatermustbechangedregularly,afteronlyseveralhours the first few times,andprobablyatleastevery10 to12hours from thenon till it’sworkable.Onwarmerdaysbesure that thewaterdoesn’theat enough to rot the skin. Itneeds to soak till aspliableandfreshaswhenremovedfromthedeer.

A salted skin is more easily prepared. It needs only repeated washings toremoveallthesalt.

Frozenskinsneedonlytobethawed.

When ready, roll the skin out on a level surface and trim the perimeter toremove all rough edges, including the lower legs.The skin can, of course, betannedwiththelegsonbutitaddsagooddealofwork.Rightnowlet’sgetyouproficientatmakingbuckskin.Youcandoanyextraslater,afteryoumasterthebasics.

When the skin is trimmed, stretch it to its natural shape and lay the 2x4saroundit,nailingthemtogether,twonailspercorner.Wewanttobuildtheframeabout8” to10” largeronall sidesof theskin,as theskin stretchesquiteabit

whilebeingfleshed.Whilenailingtheframetogether,foldtheskinonitselftopreventitfromdrying.You’llprobablywanttoapplywatertothefleshsideatintervalstokeepitfreshtillyou’refinishedfleshing.

Nowtolacetheskintotheframe:Placeitonthegroundorworktable,fleshside up, and punch holes around the entire perimeter of the skinwith a thin-bladedknife.Theholesaretobe1/2”to1”fromtheedgeandapproximately11/2”to3”apart.Theeasiestwaytomaketheseholesistoplaceaboardunderthe skin, push the point of the knife against the skin into the boardwith onehand,andpulltheskinupwiththeother.Isaytouseathinblade,becauseyoudon’twanttheholestoolarge.

Framebuiltaroundskins.

Lacedonthreesides.

Completelylaced.

Tokeepthenaturalshapeoftheskinsquarewithintheframeasyoulace,I’vefounditconvenienttotieeachcorneroftheskintothecorrespondingcorneroftheframewitha12”to15”cord.Also,placetheskinjustalittleoffcentertothe

right(asyoufaceitfromthebottom).Afterhavingdoneafewskins,you’llfindnoneedtotiethecornersinordertosquareitwithintheframe,thoughdoingsosurehelpsthebeginner.

Picturetheframeinanuprightpositionwiththeneckatthetopandthefleshside facingyou.You’ll begin lacingat theneckat theupper left corner.Fromthatcorner,gothroughtheholeatthecorneroftheneck,outunderthe2x4,andinoveritagaintotheskin.Nowbegintotakethecordthroughthreeholesatatime as if youwere sewing—the cord, as it passes through the series of threeholes,runsinandoutinastraightline,notwrappedaroundtheedge.Thentakethecordoutunder theframeandinover it,andthendothreemoreholes.Thecord always comes from the skin out under the frame and back over it to theskin.Inormallygothroughthreeholesatalick,sometimestwoandveryseldomfour, but only as long as the holes are in a straight line. This is to save theinconvenienceofhaving toreplace ifoneof theholesripsout.As theedgeoftheskin turnsat legsandcorners,bringyourcordaround theframeandbeginyour series of holes again. At the neck where the skin’s the thickest, I’ll gothroughonlyoneholeifthat’sthewaythecountendsupatthecorner.

Don’tpullthecordtootightlybutjust“snugitup”fornow.Whenyoureachtheendofonelengthofcord,tieitoffandbeginwithanother.Inormallyleavetwoorthreeholes(oneseries)fortheropethatItiedofftogothroughasItakeup the slack.As you round the second corner and begin the bottom, you canbegin to take up some of the slack—but not too tight now or you’ll lose theshape.(Neverpulltootightlyonthebottom,asitwilleasilytear.)Afteryougoaroundthethirdcornerandintothehomestretch,youcanreallybegintotightenthingsup,evengoingbacktothebottomsectionandtakinguptheremainderoftheslackthere.Bythetimeyoureachtheneck,whenceyoubegan,theskinwillbefairlytautandclosetobeingcenteredontheframe.

If the skin seems to dry somewhile the lacing process is going on, simplysplash water on it to keep it wet. For now you want the skin kept fresh andpliable.

Nowstandtheframe,neckup,againstatreeorthesideofashed.It’sbestto

keep the skin in the shade at this stage to keep it fromdrying too fast as youflesh.It’salsoagoodideatoalwayskeeptheframetiedtoatreeorstructuresothata suddengustofwinddoesn’t send it flying.Now,beginningat theneck,tighten the ropes all around the skin till it’s as tight as a drum on the frame.You’llhavetoretightentheseasyouflesh,fortheskinwillstretchconsiderably.

Takingthescraper(Ilikeitverysharp,butyoumustbeextremelycarefulnottocut intotheskinitself),beginat theneckandremoveeverybitof themeat,fat,andmembranethatyoupossiblycan.Theknifewillcomeinhandyhereatcertainspots,suchasaroundthelegsandalongtheedges.Withsomeskins,thiswillbeaneasyjob.Withothers,suchas theold-timer trophybuck,yourworkwillbecutoutforyou.Youmaybetemptedonsomeoftheseheavierskinstoleavequiteabitontillthenextstep,butbelieveme,now’sthetimetoremoveit.It’sdamnnearimpossibletoremoveallthemembraneatthispoint,butgetwhatyoucan.Definitelygetallthemeatandfatoff.

Flesh,fats,andmembraneareeasilyremovedwithscraper.

Don’t attempt to clean all theway to the edge, or you’ll endup cutting thecords or ripping out the holes, or both. The perimeter is cut off later anddiscarded.

Keep the skin tightwithin the frame.Thisway it fleshesmuchmore easilythanaloose,sloppyone,plusyouhavealotlesschanceofaccidentallycuttingintoitwiththescraper.

Neckandrightsidefleshedclean.

Noteremaininglayeroffleshonleftside.Allmustberemoved.

Oncetheskinisascleanasyoucangetit,leaveitandgoontosomethingelse

forawhile.Youcandonothingfurtherwithittillit’scompletelydry.WiththehighhumidityhereinnortheastKansas,thatcantakefromsixtoeighthoursonagoodday.Drierclimateswill,ofcourse,makedryingalotfaster.

SurfacePreparation

Whenthestretchedskinhasdriedcompletely,bothsidesmustnowbepreparedsothatthebrainmatterwillbeallowedtopenetratecompletelyintothethickestareas.

I’ve readandheard that theskinshouldn’tbeallowed todry in thesun, forvarious reasons.Many times I’ve left my skins in full sun to help speed thedrying process and have found that it makes no difference whatsoever in theworkingof theproductor its finishedcondition. Itdoescausesomecurlingoftheskinbecauseofunevendrying,butthathasn’tyetinterferedinmyworkingofit.Thehairsidewillnaturallytakelongertodrycompletelytotherootsandepidermis, so if you’re eager to proceed youmight fluff the hair occasionallywithabrush.

Levelinghighspotofscorewithverysharpscraper.

Figuring that you’re anxiously awaiting the skin to dry enough so as tocontinue theoperation,beginwith the flesh sidewhen it’sgoodanddry.Thiswillbeaboutmidwaytowhenthehairsideisready.Startwiththesharpscraperandwork lightly around the neck area down to the shoulders and all thewayaroundtheperimeteroftheskin.Thesearetheareaswhereyoumostlikelyleftonsomeofthemembrane,whichmustbecompletelyremovedforthebraintopenetrateintotheskinitself.(Water,beingaliquid,willpenetratethis.Brainandits accompanying oils are thicker andwon’t penetrate through thismembrane,northroughtheepidermisontheotherside.)

Carefullyworkthescraperaroundtheroughhighareasofanyscores,inthedirection that they lie—never across them—to even these areas off. Also,carefullyworkthescraperaroundanyholes.

Membraneonfleshside.

Now take sandpaper and go over every inch of the surface to remove anysmallbitsofmembraneand to level thesurface.Thiswillalsohave theaddedbenefitof“bringingupthenap,”whichwillallowbetterabsorbencyofthebrain.Sandtheneckareafirstandthendoastriparoundtheentireperimeterseveralincheswide.Dividetheremainderintoquartersandsandthemoneatatimetillyou’repositive that every square inchhasbeencovered.Thismethodhelps toensurethateverylastbitiscleanandsmooth.Missingevenaslittleasonesmallareacanresultinarough,stiffspot.

Startthesandingwithlongstrokes,usingablock,andfinishoffbyusingthesandpaperinyourhandsothatisolated,deliberatefingerpressurecanbeappliedwherenecessary.Whenfinished,mostofthesurfacewillbesoftandfluffy.Thissideisnowreadyfortheapplicationofthebrain,but,ofcourse,you’llneedtoworktheothersidefirst.(Afurwouldnowbeready,buttherearesomedifferentrules to followwith fur, which we won’t delve into here. In this book we’restickingtothemakingofbuckskin.)TanningwithhaironiscoveredindepthinourbookPrimitiveWildernessSkills,AppliedandAdvanced.

Fleshside.Fleshedanddried.

Highareasscrapedandsanded,readyforbrain.

Topreparethehairside,taketheverysharpscraperandbeginatthenecktoscrapethehairoff.Withaheavy,sharpscraper,thisisn’tmuchofachore.First,clean a strip across the top of the skin (neck). Now with long, powerfuldownwardstrokesof thescraper, thehairwill readilycomeoff.You’llneedtosharpenthebladeseveraltimesduringthisprocess,asyouwantitreallysharp.Atthelegsandattheflanksthehairliesindifferentdirectionsandyou’llhavetoscrapeindifferentdirectionstogetittocomeoffeasily.Formostofthebodyofthe skin, what works best are good, powerful, downward strokes. Apply lesspressurearound the legsandat the flanks. It’swise to leave the flanks till lastandthenscrapethemwithafreshlysharpenedblade,applyingaslittlepressureasneeded.Shouldyouhappento“pop”ahole then, itwon’t interferewith thescrapingoftherestoftheskin.It’strickytoremovethehairfromaroundoneoftheseholesthatjustseemtopopup.

Firststripofhairscrapedacrosstop.Notehangingcordsmarkingholes.

Cutcausedbyuseoftoo-coarsesandpaper.

It’s wise to mark any existing holes already in the skin before you begin,becausethehairhidesthemcompletely.Dothisbyrunningapieceofropeorasmallstickthrougheach,whichcanbereadilyseenasyou’redehairing.It’seasy

toforgetthey’rethere,andwhileenergeticallyscrapingawayyoumayhitoneoftheseholesandriptheskin,sometimesdamnnearintwo.That’sasurewaytotakethethrilloutofworkingskins.Itcanruinyourwholeday,believeme.

Hairsidedehaired.

Sandedandready.

When Iget todehairing, Imoveat apretty fastpace,but Iwatcheachandeverystrokeofthescraper.Thehaircomesoffeasily.Theepidermis,whichmustalso be removed (to allow the brains to penetrate), isn’t always as easy toremove.Scrapeeveryinchoftheskintillyou’recertainthatalltheepidermisisoff(veryseldomisiteverentirelyremoved).Ifyoucloselystudytheskinasyougo,you’llbeabletoseetheepidermis.Itisn’tasolidsheetlikethemembraneonthefleshside,butmorelikeasandpapercoating.Althoughitcanbeseenonanypartof the skin, it’smost apparent at the flanksandother thinnerareas. If theepidermiscontainsanymoisture at all, itwill benearly impossible to remove.Theareaswhere thehair is the thickest (suchas theforwardpartof theflanksand the butt end)will be the last parts of the skin to dry completely. In theseareas I’vebeenknown to scrapevery lightlywithanextremely sharpblade toremove thehaironly,goingback later to remove theepidermiswitheither thescraperorsandpaper.Dampepidermisisrubbery.Itwon’t“work.”You’llonly

teartheskinifyoutry.

Threescoresseenfromhairside,readyforsanding.

When finished with the dehairing, I’ve been over every square inch of theskin. I know that the epidermis is removed and that any ridges created whilescrapinghavebeensmoothedwith thescraper.Nowgoover theentiresurfacewith sandpaper as done on the other side. Caution: It’s possible to sandcompletely through a skin, so go tenderly at thinner areas. Sometimes at theflanks,butespeciallyatthescores,itmaybebesttoleavesomeoftheepidermis,goingoveritlightlywithsandpaperonlytobreakitupenoughforthebrainstopenetrate.You’llhavetofeelalotofthisoutandjustdowhatseemsright.

Hairsideatflank.Noteremainingepidermis.

Skinissandedandreadyforbrain.

Braining

Whatneeds tobedonenow is toget theoilsof thebrain intoeveryporeandfiberoftheskin.Thisistheeasiestandfasteststepoftheoperation.

The primary sources of brain (if not from the critter we’ve taken the skinfrom) are slaughterhouses, butchers, or the local market. I find it mostconvenient to purchase brain by the pound, packed in your basic primitiveplasticcontainer,fromthelocalsupermarket.Theycostabitmorethanacouplabucksperpound,andonepoundisplentyenoughtodooneskin.Youshouldn’tuselessthanapound,asitneedstobemixedwithacertainvolumeofwater.

Takeyourpoundofbrainandbeatitthoroughlywithaneggbeaterorwhirlinablender.Addjusta littlewater,maybeacup,andbeataway.Youcangetbyjustsquishingitwithyourhands.Theobjectistoliquefythebrainasmuchaspossible.Nowaddthistoapproximately3/4to1gallonofwater,bringtoaboil,and simmer till grayish white, about 10 to 15 minutes. Let this cool till justcomfortablywarmtothetouch.

Witha largepaintbrushorcleansponge,apply thissolution tobothsidesoftheskin.Youdon’tneedtobetooliberalwiththebrainsolutionnow.Youjustneedtogettheskinpliableenoughtocutfromtheframeandfoldeasilyintothebucket.Foldthenow-pliableskininto thebucketofbrainsolutionandworkitwithyourhandsforseveralminutes.Withsomeofthesmallest, thinnestskins,that’sall that’snecessary.But I’veneveryet letanyskingetbywithonlyonesoaking in the brains. I’ve had too many skins not receive a deep enoughpenetrationofthebrain,whichwon’tbediscoveredtillI’vespentseveralhoursworking theskinandsuddenlywindupwithastiffproduct—andthenhave toreturntothisstage.That’salotofextraworkthatcanbeeasilypreventedwithvery little effort now.There’sno special time limit that the skinhas tobe leftsoaking in the brain. Once you’ve got complete penetration, you’re ready to

finishitout.Theshortesttimeforsmallskinswouldbeabout15to20minutes,withtwosoakings.

Withsomeofthethicker,largerskins,itworkswelltoapplyseveralcoatsofthe brain before cutting from the frame. Each coat should be allowed to dry,preferably in the sun, and then either scraped or sanded before you apply thenextcoat.

Between soakings the skinmust be wrung to remove as muchmoisture aspossible.Asmentionedbefore, theskinwillabsorbwater likeasponge.Brainbeing a solidmatter, and its oils being thicker thanwater, the liquefied brainwon’tbeabsorbedintotheskinasreadilyasplainwater.Withthethinnerareas,this is no problem, and one soaking is enough. The thicker area, though,willrequireadditionalsoakings.Youmustgetall thewateroutoftheskinthatyoupossiblycan,so thatwhenit’s reimmersed into thesolution thewaternotonlywillbringmorebrainwithitbutalsowilldraweverdeeperwhat’salreadythere.

Thewringerfromanoldwringerwasherworksjustfineforthis.Runtheskinthroughthisseveraltimes.

The traditionalwayofwringingoutexcesswater,and theway that IdidallmyskinstillIfoundthewringer,istodrapetheskinaroundasmalltreelimb(oralariatstretchedtightly),overlappingitbyaboutonethirdofitself,androllingandfoldingtheskinontoandintoitself,tuckinginalllooseendstillit’stightlyrolledtogether.TheaccompanyingphotosshowthisbetterthanIcouldhopetodescribe it. Place a solid stick (approximately 1” in diameter) through theopeningandtwist theskin till tight,pull, twistsomemore,andthenpullsomemore. The moisture will run and drip out (place the bucket to catch thedrippings).Thiswill takeonlya fewminutes.Nowstretch theskinasopenasyoucangetit,andrepeat.Afterthesecondwringing,openandstretchtheskinover the rope to really open the fibers up as much as possible. Pull in alldirections.Thiswill allow thebrainbetterpenetrationon reimmersion.Returnthe skin to the solution. Repeat this process till you’re certain of completepenetration.Theaverage10sq.ft.skinshouldbeputthroughthisprocessfouror five times.Youcan’tget toomuchbrain into the skin,but youmaynotget

enough.Afterthefinalbraining,wringtheskinafewextratimestoremoveallpossiblemoisture.

You’llfindthatthisistheonlystageintheprocessthatactuallyattractsflies.If a fresh skin is used, the fleshing process isn’t smelly, but flies sure areattractedtothebrain.

Wringingexcessmoisturefromskinbyhandbefore…

puttingitaroundropeandoverlappingbyaboutonethird.

Rollingitintoitselfandinsertingstickandtwisting.

Wringingouteverybitofmoisture.

SewingofHoles

Holes.Everyskinhasahole…ortwo…orthree…ormore.Somebig,somelittle,and now’s the time to do something about them.On occasion I’vewaited tillfinishedwith the tanningbut thenendedupwithpatches,whichdon’t lookallthatbadbutaremoretroubleandmoretime-consumingthanwhatwe’lldonow.At thispoint Iuseartificial sinew for the thread.Later,when I finish the skinout,Iredothepatcheswithrealsinew.Anystrongthreadwillworkatthisstage,butitmustbestrongenoughtowithstandthestretchingandrubbingthattheskinwillendurefromnowon.

Mostholes,exceptbulletholes,willlieinsomeparticulardirection.Sewtheminthedirectionthattheylie.Whipstitchtheholeshutandtieofftwice.Theskinwillbeabusedfromnowon,somakethemgood,tightstitches.

Poorlysewnholeswilltearout,andweakthreadwillbreak.Inadditiontoallholes, sew the thinner scores shut, as they toowill invariably tear.Do all thesewing from the former flesh side, because the hair side will be used as theoutsideofanyfinishedproduct.

Holesewnbeforefinishing.Puckerswillbeeliminatedwhilestretching.

Most skins have some form of scar tissue from old wounds. The mostcommonarethelong“scrapes”runningdownthecenteroftheback,madewhenthe animal goes under barbedwire fences. Scrape these a littlewith the smallbladeofaknife.Sometimesyoucangetridofthem,sometimesnot.

You’ll also often find larger areas of scar tissue, a result of amore seriouswoundtothedeerinthepast.Cutthemoutnowandsewtheholeshut.Ifthesedon’tcompletely tearoutas theskin’sworked, they’lldryhard.Asingleseamshowslessandiseasiertodothanapatch.Afterthestretchingandworkingoftheskinthatfollows,allpuckersnowvisiblewillbeeliminated.Youcanleavetheholessewnasiswhenfinished,thoughoftentherewillbestiffnesswherethestitches are. I resew with sinew. Usually the hole will have to be elongatedslightlywhenthisisdone,toeliminatethepucker.

Iftherearemanyholesthatrequireconsiderabletimetosew,theedgesoftheskin may begin to dry too much and stiffen and you may need to add moremoisture.This normally canbe accomplished simplybywringing it onemoretime,todispersethemoisturealreadyintheskin.

Manytimesatthispoint,ifIwanttodelaythenextstep,I’llonlystretchtheskin once completely around to open the pores and then roll it in towels (toabsorbmoisture),sealittightlyinaplasticbag,andputitineitherthefridgeorthe freezer. It can be left for several days like this in the refrigerator, orindefinitelyinthefreezer.Iflefttoolongintherefrigeratorit’llsourandrot.Thefreezerhastheadditionaladvantagethaticecrystalshelpsomewhat,overtime,inopeningandstretchingthefibers.

Finishing

Atthispoint,ifweweretothrowtheskinoutonthegroundoroveralimb,inafewhours itwouldshrink toa fractionof its sizeandbecomequitehard.Ourpurposenow,therefore,istopreventthisfromhappening.Thereareanumberofmethodsofworkingtheskinsoft,butI’llcoveronlytheoneIcurrentlyuse,asIfindittheeasiest.Withthismethod,atanypointduringthedryingprocesstheskincanberolled(asmentionedabove)andplacedintherefrigeratororfreezer.

Theweatherdoes,ofcourse,affecthowquickly theskindries.Mypersonalpreferenceisaslowdryingdayoverahot,windyone.Afast-dryingskincanbehelltokeepupwith.

Whatwehavetodonowiskeepthefibersoftheskinfromdoingwhattheywantnaturallytodo:shrinkandpulltogetherastheydry.Forthiswe’llpullandstretch the skin around the lariat all the time that it’s drying. I’ve read oneaccountofaNavahomethodofusinghandsandfeettodothestretching,whichI’vedonesuccessfullyonsmallerskinsinbythefireduringthewinter.AsI’vesaid, variousmethodswork.Allmethods have one thing in common: to keepeveryfiberintheskinstretchedandopentoitsfullestwhiledrying.Withouttheadditionofthebrain(oils),therawhidewouldstilldrystiff,thoughnotasstiffasifnotstretched.Theadditionoftheoilsallowstheindividualfiberstopullapartandactuallyswellandsoftenastheydry,butwemustkeepeachandeveryfiberstretchedtoitsfullestandmovingoverandpasteachothertheentiretimethattheskin’sdrying.Soalternatepulling theskinwidthwiseand lengthwise. (Theaboveactionofthebrainisn’tscientificfact,justmyobservationsandtheeasiestwaythatIknowtodescribewhat’stakingplace.)

Tieoneendofthelariattothebaseofatreeandtheothertoalimbabout6’up and pull it tight. Now drape the skin around the rope and pull it in alldirectionstheentiretimethatit’sdrying.Beginattheneckandgrabahandfulof

skinandreallylayintoit.Youdon’tneedtoworryaboutthethickerpartsoftheskintearing.Leanbackanduseyourentirebodyweight.Handoverhand,workyourwayalldowntheskintotherump,thenturnithalfwayandbeginpullingtheotherdirection(lengthwise),repeat…andrepeat…andrepeat.

Whenpullingthethinneredgeareas,suchastheflanks,taketwohandholds,one in about 6” to 8”where the skin’s thicker, and pull like hell, and anotherhandhold gripped at the edge with a little lighter pull. This ensures that theheavier central portions get enough stretching and, in the process, you don’toverdoandripthroughatthethinneredge.

Holdingskinin6”to8”fromedgesandstretchinghard.

Asecondgripatthethinneredgeandalittlelighterpull.

Atanypointtheskinmayberolledintowelsandplaceintherefrigeratororfreezer. As it becomes drier, the towels may be omitted and the remainingmoistureallowedtodisperseontheskin.

Nowhere’samajortimeandeffortsaver,atipgleanedfromafellowtanneratthe’85NAPRWestern.“Why,”sayshe,“take theextra timeandeffort to rollthe skin in towels and refrigerate? If you’ve got the time towork it out, justthrowitoutontothegroundandletitairdryfor10to20minutes.Thenstretchitopenagain…andrepeattilldry.”

Well,Ithought,ifthatdoeswork—andnoreasonforitnotto—I’dbettergiveitatry.

ThenextskinthatIdidwasanaverage10squarefooterandItriedit—anditworked!Andwhata timeandeffortsaver itwas.It tookabout31/2hoursformetofinishthatskinout,butonlyhalfthattimewasspentstretching.However,youmust use caution not to let the skin overdrywhile it’s not beingworked,

otherwiseyou’llhavetogobacktothebrainsolution.Theideaistoallowonlyacertain amount of the moisture to evaporate (at the same time, the skin willshrinkproportionately)andtoopenupthefibersbystretchingbeforeanyportionof the skinhasdriedbeyond thepointwhereyou’re able to easily stretch andsoftenit.Keepaclosewatchonit.Andifsomethingcomesupandyouwanttoquit,wrapandrefrigerateorfreezeit.

Youshouldalsoputtheremainingbrainsolutioninthefridgebeforeitsitsoutinawarmroomtoolong,asitwillsourinahurry.Youcanuseitonanotherskinor you may even have to use it yet again on this one if you haven’t gottencomplete penetration. I’ve used the same solution, with the addition of morebrain and water, on as many as 10 skins—but that’s just being cheap. Freshsolutionseemstoworkbetter.

At this point I think of the skin as being in one of three stages—wettest,mediumwet,anddry.Inthewetteststage,theskinwillspendmoretimeonthegroundthanontherope.Themidpointofdryingisthemorecriticalstage,andyou’llspendmoretimestretchingorrubbing.Whenyou’reprettysure that theskinisdryandyou’rejustascertainingthatfact,youcanspendlesstimeontherope.

Ataboutthetimethethinnerareasaredryingout,concentrateyoureffortsonthethickerneck,back,andhamareas.

This is also the stage that the term “blood, sweat, and tears” pertains to.Unconditionedknuckleswillblisterandbleed.Ithelpstousebandagesoverthefirstknucklejoint,ortight-fittingrubbergloveswithfingertipscutoff.Timewilltoughenthem.

Begin rubbing the skin around the ropewhile stretching as soon as it driesenoughtodosoeasily.Thishelpstocrushandstretchthefibers,raisesthenapto a fluffier texture, and creates friction that helps speed the drying processsomewhat.Rubwithvigor.

Don’t quit till you’repositive that the skin is dry.Any little bit ofmoisturewilldetract fromaNo.1qualitypieceofbuckskin.Remember thatas longasthere’sanymoistureatallleftintheskin,itwillshrinkandstiffenasitdries.Ifyoustayedwithit,theaverage10sq.ft.skinwouldtakeapproximately31/2to4hourstofinishout.

Thefinishedbuckskinwillbecreamywhiteincolorandassoftandfluffyasthebestof flannel.But…if this finepieceofmaterialwereallowed togetwet(andremember,itwillseemtodrawmoisture,justasbrainandotherthingswilldrawflies),you’d findyourselfback towhereyouwere fourhoursago. If it’sallowed todrynaturally, itwill shrinkand stiffen.So thoughwe’vegot a finepiece of buckskin, we’re certainly not finished with it. It makes no sense todeviseclothingorbagsifwecan’tactuallyuseit.

Whenstretching,reallylayintoit.

IfIwerelimitedtoonlyonephototoillustratethischapter,thiswouldbeit.Thisshowsthedetailofthefibersthatwe’reworkingwith.

Smoking

Whatwedonow is smoke the skin.Aswith theoilsof thebrain,weneed topenetratesmokeintoeveryfiberofthenow-softbuckskin.I’veheardofvariousthingsthisdoestotheskin,butI’veneverdefinitivelylearnedhowitdoesit.Ido know itworks, however, and it’s a necessary step to end upwith a usefulpieceofmaterialthatwilldrysoft(orwillrequireonlyaminimumofrubbing)afteragoodwetting.

Theoldwayof smokingskins is to sew it intoacone from theneck to therump,leavingtherumpopen.Intoaholeintheground(roughly6”indiameterby18”deep),placehotcoalstoadepthof6”to8”andcoverwithpunkywood.What’swanted is a smudgeofdense,warmsmoke.Stake theopenendof theskinoverthesmudgeandtietheneckareatoalowtreelimboratripod.Smokecanalsobepipedtothehangingskinanumberoffeetaway,makingiteasiertocontrol the fireor smokeandeliminating thepossibilityof scorching the skin.It’sagoodidea,also,tosewapieceofmaterial,suchasdenimorcanvas,tothebottomoftheskinasadditionalsecurityagainstscorching.Keeptheskinopenso that the warm, dense smoke can penetrate overall. When you see thediscolorationofthesmokeseepingthroughthethinnerareas,inverttheskinandsmokeitfromtheotherdirection.

This iscertainly thequickestway tosmokeoneskin,or justa fewof them.Notincludingthesewingandsetuptime,theactualsmokingtakesfrom15to30minutes per side, depending on how dark a shade is desired. This methodactuallyforcesthesmokethroughtheskin,whereasinthetipimethod(describednext)thesmokeisabsorbedbyexposureandthereforetakesconsiderablymoretime for complete penetration. I seldom use this method, as it requires myconstantattentionandInormallyhaveanumberofskinstosmokeatonetime.I’ve read, and been told, that the smoke has to be warm to accomplish itsmission.Coldsmokeapparentlywon’twork.Myself,I’venevertestedthecoldsmoketheory.

Ismoke99percentofmyskinsinatipi.I’veusedasmallshedbefore,whichis fine for pelts or individual skins but too small for any quantity of skins. Iknow of some people who place their stove right in the lodge. This isinconvenient, tomyway of thinking, as theymust burn the coals outside andthen transport them to the stove to avoid scorching the skins. It’s also mucheasier to tend the smudge in the smokefreeout-of-doors. Iplacemy18’ lodgenexttoaledge,putthestovebelow,andpipethesmokeabout12’tothecenterof the lodge. I also put a rain cap on the end of the pipe to help disperse therisingsmoke,whichpromotesmoreconsistentcoloringoftheskins.

Tietheskinstotheuppermostpartofthepoles.Irunapieceofheavythreadthroughtheedgeoftheskinwithaneedleandthentieitaroundthepoleslooseenoughtohangfreesothatallpartsareexposedtothesmoke.Theycouldalsobe tacked to thepoles.Eithervery long legsorastepladder isnecessary.Withthismethodyoucanhang8to12skins,dependingonthesizeofbothskinsandlodge,andallwillcomeoutthesameshadeandcolor.Afterclosingthesmokeflapstightasifforastorm,withlinerinplace,putatowelortwointhecrotchformedbythepolestoslowtheescapeofthesmokeasmuchaspossible.

Beforehangingtheskins,buildalargefireinthestove,usingahardwoodthatwillproducelong-lastingcoals.Oakismyfavorite,thoughcharcoalwillsuffice.Remembertodisconnectthepipe.Bythetimetheskinsarehungandthelodgeisclosedtight,thecoalsshouldbeaboutright.Replacethepipesoastoheatit

quicklytocreateagooddraft,andthenalmostimmediatelycoverthecoalswithfine-shredded,punkywood.Therottenest,mostpunkywoodthatyoucanfindisthebest.Don’tconfusesoft,wetwoodwithrotten,punky.Ifwetwhengathered,spreaditout todry.Thewoodneeds tobepunkyandunburnable tocreate thedensesmokethat’snecessary.

We don’t need to addmoisture by burningwet stuff. I’ve tried using greenwood,whichburns evenhotter than the dryoak.Wedon’twant straight heat,whichcouldscorchtheskins.Acombinationofpunkycottonwoodandredcedarsawdustleavesmyskinsalight,bright,livelytan.Thesamecombinationusedinthefirstmethodofforcingthesmokethrough,ismuchdarkerandnotnearlysolively.Thechoiceofwoodswilldictatethefinalcoloring.

Ibeginthisprojectearlyinthemorningonadaywhennorainisexpectedintheimmediatefuture.Rainwillalwaysenterthelodgeattheapexandrundownthepoles,andyou’retakingachancewhenyouhangadozenunsmokedskinsina lodge. A sudden squall would create havoc. By hanging them early in themorningofaclearday,Icanbegintheactualsmokingbefore8a.m.andbythetime that I quit for the day at about 10 p.m., I feel secure that if it does rainduring the night enough smoke has penetrated the skins that a bit ofmoisturewon’thurt.Iwould,though,havetheskinscutdownandinthehouseatthefirsthintofastormwithinthefirstdayandahalfofsmoking.

To keep a steady, heavy cloud rising from the stove, you’ll have to stir thecoalsevery20minutesorsoandkeepaddingmorepunkwhennecessary.Everytwotothreehoursyou’llalsoneedtorebuildthefireformorecoals.Note:Don’tforgettodisconnectthepipewhendoingthis!

I follow this process for three 12-to 14-hour days while working on otherskins only a few feet from the stove. Late in the afternoon of the third day Iremove the skins, soak them in cold well water, and hang them from aclothesline.MosteverythingthatI’vereadonthesmokingofskinssaystoplacetheminasackovernighttoallowthesmokeandcolortoset.Idon’tdothisandhavehadnoilleffectswithmyresults.Aftertheskinshavedried,Ipullandrubeachonebyhandtoensurethatthesmokehasdoneitsjob,andthenletthemair

foranumberofdays.

That’sit.Younowhaveafinepieceofbuckskinthat’sworth$10ormorepersquare foot. Better than that, you have the satisfaction of having taken a rawpiece of material from nature (no kit here!) and, by your own labors, havecreatedafine,beautiful,usefulfinishedproduct—somethingthatyoucanpointtoandhonestlyproclaimwithpride,“Imadethis.”

Smokepipedtotipifromstoveplacedbelowledge.

Anumberofskinshangingintipiforsmoking.

“Hair-on”Supplement

Leaving the hair on when brain tanning requires the application of a fewdifferentrules.Theskin(pelt,hide,whatever)shouldnotbesoakedinthebrainsolutionaswithbuckskin,as thiscan result inhair slippage. Instead, thebrainshouldbepaintedontheformerfleshside,allowedtodry,thedriedbrain“film”scraped off, and then repeated till you’re certain that you have completepenetration. Remember that you’re penetrating from only one side. With thesame thickness buckskin, that might require eight applications (soakings andwringings), but here you’ll have to domore than twice that number. Thinnerpelts(fox,cats)mightgetbywithonlyoneortwoapplications(Iwoulddofouror five at least; remember that you can’t possibly overbrain). The thickest,toughestpelt that I’ve done is the beaver.After successfully doing five extra-large,blanket-sizedones,Iwouldn’thesitatetoapplythesolutionasmanyas40to50times.Thismeanslotsofwork,thoughthefinefinishedresultshavebeenwellworththeeffort.(Icandoacoupleofbuckskinsinthetimethatittakestodo a large beaver.) The beaver I skin “open” and stretch around on a willowhoop or some such. I lace it, using needle and artificial sinew (waxed nylon)thread,stitchesabout1”apart.Laceitwiththeholesprettyclosetotheedgeandbeespeciallycarefularoundtheface.Whatwe’retryingtodoissaveallwecan.

Iprefertoworkallotherpelts“case”skinned.Thedriedpeltcanbekeptonthestretcherforthebrainings.Whenthelegsarelefton,Istaplethemopentothin slats. I skin the paws as open as I can and soak them in the brain (theyshouldbe“tanned,”butIknownothingofthat;Ionlydothingsthenaturalway,thoughsoakingintheoilsofthebraincan’thurt).Earsshouldbeskinnedouttothevery tip; Ialsosoak these.Allmeatsandfatsmustberemovedfromtheseareasor theywilleventually rot, ifgottenwet,and thehairwill thenslip.Thefinalcoatofbraincanbeapplied,applied,andappliedoncemore.Saturateitasmuch as you can, then maybe place a warm, damp towel (damp with brainsolutionisfine)onthefleshside,placeitinaplasticsack,andallowittostandtillitbecomesaspliableaswhengreen.Don’toverdoit,oritcouldbegintorot

andcausehairslippage.Thenworkitovertheropeorbyhandtill it’sdryandsoft.

For deer with the hair on, I wouldn’t even bother with brain tanning, Thehollow hairs of the deer break off if you even look hard at them. The onlypractical use for a hair-on deer is as awall hanging, and even then it doesn’tneedtobesoft.Ihavedoneonedeerrobe.Nomore!Itwasnice,butyoucan’tdoanythingwithitbutpickuphairswhereveryoumightvisit,eventuallyendingupwithapieceofbuckskinanyhow.It’sjustnotworththeextrawork,anditisahugeamountofextrawork.I’vereadwhereIndiansjustthrewtherawskinonthefloorofthelodge,andwhenthehairallfellouttheyhadasoftenedpieceofrawhide ready tobrain intobuckskin.One thatyouwanted forawallhangingcouldbesaturatedwithpureneat’sfootoil(forbetterpenetration),orbrainedandonlyworkedsemisoft.

Yet if you insist—and also for elk, buffalo, and other creatures—here aresometipstokindahelpyoualong.

Followthepreparationstepsupthroughpage288.Now,I’mnottalkingaboutskins or hides with the legs or faces left on. Then begin to paint the brainsolutionon,scrapingbetweencoatingsaswiththepelts.Apply,apply,andapplyagain—youcan’tdotoomuch.Youwillhavetojudgeastohowmanycoatingseach peltwill need. Finally, lay the frame out flat and apply the brain till theskin’ssaturated.(Youmightevenrepeatthisseveral times.)Whenthepelt’saspliableaswhengreen,don’tcutitfromtheframe,astherewillbetoomuchbulkforyoutoworkoverarope.Instead,standtheframeupand,beginningwithacanoepaddle(orsomethingsimilar),begintorunatooldownthehide.You’llbestretching the hide and at the same time squeegeeing themoisture out.You’llonlybeworkingthefleshside.Theepidermiswillrestrictthestretchingprocess,andyou’llworkyourbuttoff,butkeepatit.Youmust,tillit’sdryandsoft.Asthehidegetsdrier,graduatetoasmallersticktostretchwith(arounded-downaxhandlewillworkwell).

Along about now you’ll begin to wish that you hadn’t begun this project.You’llthinkit’sa“buster,”butit’llbeworthit.Someoneonceshowedmeanold

photoofNativeAmericanwomen“playing”bybouncingchildrenupanddownon a buffalo hide like a trampoline. “Playing,” hell—theywere stretching thehide soft!Whicheverway you decide to do this, itmust be continued till it’scompletelyfinished.Nohalf-hourbreakshere.Forthisprojectitwouldbebesttohaveoneormorehelpers.Ifyou’veproperlypreparedthesurfaceandappliedenough brain to achieve complete penetration, and if you keep the properstretchinguptillit’scompletelydry,you’llendupwithafinerobeindeed.

It’sbest tosmokethefinishedpeltorrobeinasmokehouseorinthetipi.Ifthelegsandfacearelefton,it’llbeimpossibletosewintoabag.

Thisisonlyaquickiejottingofsupplementarynotesforhair-onbraintanningand is far fromcomplete.Still,whenused in conjunctionwith the rest of thisbook,theabovematerialshouldhelpyoutoendupwithafineproduct.

SewingwithSinew

Assuming that you’re reading this because you’re either involved inbuckskinningorjustinterestedinamorenaturalwayoflife,Iwanttoshowyouhowtouseanothercompletelynaturalproductforthethreadswhenturningyourbuckskinintoclothingorwhateverotherproductsyou’remaking.

Sinew,onacritter,isatendon.“Critter,”inourcase,ismostlikelyadeer.Onourcritterwehavetwosourcesofconvenient,usablesinew:thetendonsofthelegsandtheloinsinew,ofwhichtherearetwoflatstrips,onelyingoneithersideofthebackboneontopofthemeat.

The leg tendons are shorter andmoredifficult towork into threads.Since Ihavenofirst-handexperienceworkingwithlegtendons,I’llcoveronlythemoreeasilyworkableloinsinew.

Elk loin sinewwill run a little over 2’ in length, buffalo closer to 3’.Deersinew,whichImostlyuse,runsabout15”to18”longandisfinerthantheothertwoanimals’.Sinewcanbeobtainedfromsomebuckskinningsupplyhouses.Asinglestripcontainsaheartysupplyofthreads.

Iobtainallmydeersinewdirectlyfromthecritter.Strippingisn’tadifficultchore,butwhendeerareusuallyavailabletomethetemperaturehasatendencytobewellbelow the freezingmark.Althoughworkingwithbarehandsmakesthejobofremovalmucheasier,itcanbemightyuncomfortable.Thesinewcan’tberemovedfromafrozencarcass.

Adullkniferunundertendonwhileattachedtodeer.

Finalscrapingcleanofstrip.Bottomhasbeenpulledloosefromcarcasswhiletopremainsattached.

Mosttimes,thesinewisavailablefromadeerwhoseskinisalsoobtainable.

After skinning,makea cutupagainst andparallel to thebackboneabout1/4”deep.Withyourfingers,pullawaytheouterlayeroffatandexposethesilverysinew lying atop themeat and running from the shoulder to the hip, 1” to 2”wide and tapering. Take a dull knife (a butter knife works well) and aboutmidwayinlengthrunthisunderthesinewandbeginworkingthebladeineitherdirection,separatingthemeatfromthesinew.Caution:Toosharpabladewillcut the tendon.Clean thestriponly towhere itenters thehip,orgoes into theshoulder,whicheverwayyou’reworking.Leave it attached to the carcass andcleanittheotherway.Whenit’sseparatedtheentirelength,butstillattachedatbothends,continuetoruntheknifebackandforthseveraltimestogetthestripascleanaspossible.Removeallmeatandfat.Whenthisisascleanasyoucanget it,begintoworktheknifeintothehiptill itpullsfreeat thatendandthenremove it from theshoulder.You’llneed tocut somewhat into themeatat theends to free theentire strip.Once it’s loose from thecritter, again scrapebothsidestillcompletelycleanandthenlayitoutonaflatsurfacetodry.Whenyoubuyloinsinewfromasource,thisiswhatyou’llget.

Thedriedloinsinewstrip.

Gettingindividualthreadsfromthisiseasy.Grabthestripbetweenthumbandforefingerofeachhand,closetogether,andworkthesinewbackandforthandaroundandaround for a few seconds.Thiswill break the strip into individualthreads. Do this the entire length and you’ll have a real conglomeration ofthreads that can be stripped off as needed in the thickness desired: thickerthreads for sewing soles to moccasins, medium threads for general-purposegarment and bag sewing, and fine delicate threads necessary for quill or beadwork.Thesefinerstrandsarethemostdifficulttoworklooseinanylength,but

withabitofcareandpatienceitcanbedone.

Sinewissurprisinglystrong,asitmustbetohaveservedasbowstringsfortheverypowerfulPlainsIndians’sinew-backedbow.It’scertainlyasstrongasmostofourmodern-daythreads.

Sinewthreadscanbepulledoffindividuallyasneeded,ormanymadeupinadvance.WhenmakingthemaheadoftimeIfinditeasiertoseparatethemifthestripiswettedfirst(afterhavingbrokenthethreadsapart).

Towardthemiddleofthestrip,attheedge,begintoworkthefibersfreeinthethicknessdesired.Asthisisworkedlooseyou’llfindthattowardthewideendofthe strip the thread will be somewhat thicker than at the other. This is theforwardendofthethread.Whenthethreadisseparatedwet,Iusemymouthonittillsoft,thenlayitonaflatsurfacetodry.Whenyou’rereadytobeginsewing,wetthethreadthoroughlyasbeforeandthreadthethickendthroughaneedle(agloversneedleworksbest)andgotoit.Beforetheavailabilityoftheneedle,theIndianswouldletthethickerenddry,andthatwouldstiffenenoughtosufficeasaneedle throughaholepunchedwith an awl.You’ll discover thatwithbrain-tannedskinsyouwon’trequireathimble.

Insteadofaknotattheendofthethread,sewthroughthematerialonceandthenagaintocreatealoopthroughwhichyou’llwrap(tie)thethreadthreetimesandthenpulltight.Letabout3/4”ofthetailofthethreadlieinlinewithyourstitchingandsew itunderasyougo.As the sinewdries itwill shrinkslightlyandstiffen,conformingtothestitchingandcreatingatightknotandseam.Pullthestitchesastightaspossible.Whenthethreadbreaksyou’llknowthatit’stootight.Whenyoureachtheendofonethread,tieitoffasyoubegan(aloopandwrappedthreetimes).Pullittight,andlettheendofthethreadruninlinewithandunderthenextstitches.

Breakingthreadsloosebytwistinginfingers.

Entirestripbroken(tookaboutthreeminutes).

When the end of the seam is reached, tie the thread off twice, just in case.Thentaketheneedleandrunthethread“through”thecenterofthebuckskinforabout 1” and cut it off (try this with commercially tanned leather!—can’t bedone). Take the rounded butt end of your scissors, or something similar, andflattentheseams.Ofcourse,allseamsaresewninsideout.Asmentionedbefore,allsewingwithbraintanisontheformerfleshside,theformerhairsidebeing

theoutside.

Separatedthreadsreadyforuse.

When finished, the seams will hardly be visible, the knots will be almostindistinguishable,andnoloosethreadswillbehanging.

By using sinew, you’ll be just onemore notch up on today’s technologicalworld. You’ll have taken another small step toward self-fulfillment andsufficiency. And you’ll enjoy knowing that an otherwise fine piece ofworkmanshipinyourfinishedproducthasgainedabitmorevaluewithjusttheslightestbitofextraeffort.

Smokedskinshangingfromline.

Index

Aboriginalpottery.SeealsoPottery,primitiveAdzesastoolsAnimalpartsascontainersAntlersastoolsArrowconstruction cane fletching materials process toolsArrowheadsAtlatls(spearthrowers)Awlsastools

BakingBanklinesBarkcontainersBasketweaveBaskets coiled materials processBirds,trappingBoilingBonesastoolsBowconstruction backingwithsinew finishing glossaryofterms materials process toolsBowdrillsforfiremaking making parts usingBowsandarrows bowstrings constructingarrows constructingbows SeealsoArrowconstruction;Bow constructionBowstringsBraintanning braining finishing

fleshing framing hair-onmethod holes materials overview skinning smoking surfacepreparation toolsBroilingBuckskintanning.SeeBraintanning

CanearrowsCeltastoolsClamsClayinpotterymakingCoals,cookinginCoiledbasketsCoilinginpotterymakingContainers,primitive animalparts bark baskets cordage stone wood SeealsoPottery,primitiveCookingmethods,primitive baking boiling broiling usingcoalsCordage making usinganimalmaterial usingplantmaterial

DeadfallsandtraplinesDeer cuttingup fielddressing processing skinningDeerskinpotsandbucketsDiggingsticksastoolsDrillsforfiremaking

Entranceofshelters

FielddressingFiremaking,primitive bowdrills cordage handdrills tipsFiringmethodsinpotterymakingFish,trappingFletchinginarrowconstructionFlintknapping rules safetyconcerns techniquesFloorofsheltersFoodpreparation tools

GatheringGlue inarrowconstruction inbowconstruction

HaftingHanddrillsforfiremaking, parts usingHantavirusHotrockcooking

Insects

Jerky

Kilnsinpotterymaking

Lean-tos

ManoandmetateMeat cutting hanging andhunting/trapping nutritionalvalue preservation SeealsoDeerMortarandpestleMudpack,cookingin

NetsNuts,gathering

Packrats trappingPaddlinginpotterymakingPaiutedeadfalltriggersystemParfletchePemmicanPottery,primitive aboriginal clay construction firingmethods materials safetyconcerns temper

RabbitsticksRocks.SeeStonesRoofofshelters

SandstoneastoolSeeds,gatheringShellsastoolsShelters,primitive design genericconstruction lean-tos location materials safetyconcerns thatchedwickiups wickiupsSinews andbowstaves sewingSkinningSkinsforbraintanningSmokeholeofsheltersSnakesSnaresandtraplinesSpear-throwersStaves curing heatingandbending locating andsinewglueing stringingSticks astools throwingStones containers

cooking astoolsTanning.SeeBraintanningTemperinpotterymakingThatchedwickiupsThrowingsticks.SeealsoAtlatlsTools,primitive adzes antlers awls bluntinstruments bones bowandarrowconstruction celt diggingsticks flintknapping foodpreparation hafting shells sticks stones vises wood workingwithTraplinesandsnaresTrapping birds fish packrats SeealsoTraplinesandsnaresTriggersystemsfortrapsTwininginbasketmaking

Visesastools

WallsofsheltersWickiupsWood containers astools SeealsospecificwoodenitemsWoodenawlsastools

Resources

Primitivelivingandsurvivalisanabstractsubject.Exceptforaveryfewpeople(such asmembers of themilitary involved in evasion or escape), no onewillever need these skills. Themost primitive of cultures absorbmodern skills asquicklyas theyareexposedto them(useofsteel, firearms,andsoon),andallcultures have been exposed. If we were to be teaching survival skills in amodern,realisticmannertothegeneralpublic,wewouldwritematerialtoreflectthis.Weareprimitivebychoice,andourmaterials(includingthisbook)teachyou

how to successfully live with nothing. If you are looking for “realworld”informationortryingtostayalivewhenthechipsfall,youwillwanttocheckouttwobooksbyCodyLundin:98.6Degrees:TheArtofKeepingYourAssAlive(Layton,Utah:GibbsSmith,2003)andWhenAllHellBreaksLoose:StuffYouNeedtoSurviveWhenDisasterStrikes(GibbsSmith,2007).Youalsomayvisittheauthors’website,www.prairiewolf.net,whereyoucan

ordertheirbooks:

PrimitiveWildernessSkills,AppliedandAdvanced

“How-to”BuildThisLogCabinfor$3,000

InstructionalDVDsandvideotapesarealsoavailable,showingtheprinciples

andtechniquescoveredinthisbook.Subjectsincludeprimitivefireandcordage,bowandarrow,deerfromfieldtofreezer,brain-tanbuckskin,breakingrockandmakingarrowheads,constructingshelters,andcreatingbows.

AbouttheAuthors

John andGeriMcPhersonhavegatheredwilderness skills, to someextent, fortheirentirelives,JohngrowingupintheAppalachianMountainsofNewYorkState and Geri in the woods of Minnesota. They continue to live on thehomestead that they have built (log home and outbuildings, outhouse, noelectricity, gravity-fed water), beginning in 1978. Their focus has been theprimitive side of outdoor andwilderness skills, and since themid-1980s theyhave been writing about and teaching what is presented in this book.“Survivorman”LesStroudtrainedwiththemontwooccasionsduringtheearly1990s.

Theyhavebeenfeaturedinmanylocal,national,andinternationalmediaover

theyears, includingOutdoorLife,SportsAfield,BackwoodsHomeMagazine,TheHistoryChannel,NationalPublicRadio, andVoiceofAmericaTV.Theirwritingshaveappearedinothermedia,aswell.Knowninternationallyasleadersin the field of primitive skills, John (eight years a paratrooper) and GeriMcPherson are in their fourth year of teaching these skills to the survivalinstructorsof theU.S.ArmySpecialOperationsSurvival,Evasion,Resistance,andEscape(SERE)school.

PublishedintheUnitedStatesby

UlyssesPressP.O.Box3440

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eISBN:978-1-569-75358-3

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Acquisitions:NickDenton-BrownCopyEditor:MarkWoodworth

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