A couple of us from the Woodlore offices took some time out to visit the Traditional Living Skills course last week to see how everyone was getting on. This is a brand new course for Woodlore which has been designed as a ‘next step’ from the Fundamental. The Traditional Living Skills course is aimed at teaching you how to live comfortably in the forest with minimal equipment.
Steve having a go at the hand drill method with some help from Dan
Last weekend saw the very last of our Introduction to Bushcraft courses for the year. Our newest member of the office team, Harvey, went along to join in with the fun and see what happens on our courses.
The British weather did not let Harvey and the rest of the group down, staying beautifully hot for the duration of the course. Surely it’s going to chuck it down soon?!
The Hootchie – Harvey’s home for the first night
Woodlore Field Staff member Sarah Day recently found an unusual-looking plant at home, and has been doing some research to find out exactly what it is:
Common Broomrape (Orobanche minor)
Woodlore’s Wilderness Emergency Medic level 1 course
June was an exciting time for Woodlore, with our first ever Woodlore Emergency First Aider course taking place. It’s the first in a new range of Woodlore First Aid courses, providing a solid introduction to the application of First Aid in the outdoors.
Preparing to tackle the rapids of the Ardeche Gorge, France
The dates for next year’s canoeing expedition in the Ardeche have now been released on our website and are available to book. Next year’s course has now been moved forward to September, in order to take advantage of the warmer water and more reliable water levels, after the monsoon seen in May this year!
To take a look at photographs from previous year’s trips to the Ardeche, please visit our Course Photo Gallery.
Ray Mears observing deer remains found on the Woodsense course
Toby Stevens, a student on our recent Woodsense Course, managed to take some great photos during his week in the woods (in between spotting snakes and dodging water pistols of course…).
You can see what Toby and his fellow students got up to in the Woodsense 2010 section of our Course Photo Gallery.
Due to some recent cancellations, the Woodsense course is one of the few UK courses this year with spaces remaining. To book your place, please visit the link below:
As we’re sure you know, this is Woodlore’s first foray into the world of blogging. Being so new to this, with only a few months under our belt, we’re keen to know what you all think.
We’re always keeping a close eye on the comments you post on our blog, but from now on we’ll be picking a ‘Comment of the Week’ and rewarding that person with a £10.00 Woodlore Voucher, which can then be used against any of our camping equipment or Bushcraft courses.
We appreciate every reader we have, but it would be fantastic to have some feedback from you to find out what you think of our posts.
We look forward to hearing from you.
Ray Mears in a traditional birch bark canoe
We are pleased to announce that Ray will be doing a short lecture tour in Scotland and Belfast later this year.
Ray Mears’ skills with nature and in bushcraft have been acquired through working in some of the world’s remotest and harshest environments. In this fascinating presentation Ray brings together 30 years of study with a compelling story of wilderness, its wildlife and the bushcraft skills necessary for survival.
Ray will be talking at the following venues:
For over a year now, we’ve been sending out Woodlore stickers with every single order from our Online Shop. Now, we’re giving you the chance to win a £10.00 Woodlore voucher, by showing us just where your sticker has ended up.
Adorned with the classic Woodlore logo designed by Ray so many years ago, these stickers have made it as far as Russia, Japan, Australia, Brazil and almost everywhere in between. If you’ve ordered from us during this time, we want to see where your sticker has made it.
E-mail us with a picture of your Woodlore sticker, and the best five entries chosen by the Woodlore Team will win a £10.00 Woodlore Voucher, which can be used against any of the camping kit in our shop, or against a Bushcraft Course of your choice.
To get the ball rolling, here’s Roger French’s entry, on the back of his 4×4, all the way from South Africa:
Roger French, South Africa
All entries must reach us by Wednesday 30th June 2010.
The forge at Gransfors Bruks, Halsingland, Sweden
The following article has been taken from our Meet the Suppliers section, an area dedicated to some of Woodlore’s most important bushcraft kit suppliers. Alongside Gransfors Axes, we also feature profiles on New Zealand-based company Swazi Clothing, the Swedish knife-maker Julius Pettersson, and S. Djarv Hantverk, a family-owned Swedish company who produce traditional woodcarving tools, such as the Spoon Knife.
Gransfors Bruks is a family-owned company, situated amongst the mountains and valleys of the beautiful Halsingland countryside in Sweden. A modest team of only twenty-five people, the axe forging is taken care of by just five highly-skilled smiths. The Swedes are often referred to as the world’s greatest axe enthusiasts, and Gransfors Bruks is one of their finest forges.
The Ray Mears & Woodlore Bushcraft Blog 