What is Bushcraft and why should I learn it

Bushcraft is one of the world’s oldest outdoor pursuits. The name Bushcraft was adopted to describe the fascinating practice of survival techniques and natural living skills. Bushcraft consists of numerous skills all incorporated into one. To learn the art of Bushcraft, you must also learn about nature and how you can best utilize some of the world’s most natural resources.

Many people choose to learn Bushcraft just in case disaster strikes in the future, while others just have a passion for nature and enjoy developing their practical skills. Bushcraft epitomizes the great spirit of pioneering and living natural in wild places. With its array of harsh realities and romantic aspirations, Bushcraft equips people for adventure travel and expedition, instilling invaluable values and a powerful sense of self reliance and identity.

The art of Bushcraft is a very diverse activity that can’t be mastered in a whole lifetime, but is the use of personal initiative that makes Bushcraft such a rewarding activity. Many people choose a specific discipline to specialize in, such as foraging for wild foods, tracking, fire craft and shelter building. While others choose to learn about as many bush craft disciplines as possible.

For anyone that is new to Bushcraft, taking the first steps towards learning more about survival and the wilderness can seem a daunting prospect, mainly due to the fact there is so much information to take in at once. But for individuals who choose to learn Bushcraft for a significant period of time, the feeling of satisfaction and self worth can be amazing.

The benefits of Bushcraft

Equips people with invaluable outdoor living skills

The core skills used for surviving and living within our natural environment are meeting basic human needs such as food, water, shelter and warmth.  Learning new skills that make outdoor living easier without using expensively manufactured technologies is very rewarding and does a lot for building self confidence. Some of the key outdoor skills that are developed through bushcraft include water collection and filtering, lighting methods, building robust shelters, and foraging wild foods.

Gives people a better understanding of nature

The key to bushcraft is developing a good understanding of nature and how its natural resources can be best utilized – whether this is for lighting fires, foraging wild foods, finding and filtering water, craftwork or making shelters.  Some of the outdoor living skills that are developed through bushcraft include: recognizing tracks and signs, wildlife stalking, medicinal use of plants, ecology and identifying various species.

It’s an excellent way to teach children important values and practical skills

Bushcraft is a great way to teach children new skills, values and discipline. It is an activity that keeps them out of trouble and encourages them to do something productive with their time. The skills that they can develop through bushcraft can also be passed on to other people in future generations.

An activity that can be learnt in a natural outdoor environment

What can be better than learning invaluable new skills in a beautiful outdoor environment? This is exactly why I love bushcraft, it encourages individuals to spend time outdoors in the fresh air and appreciate some of the amazing natural environments that the world has to offer.

Author byline:

This is a guest post by David at Capital Adventure Wales. David is a Bushcraft and outdoors activity enthusiast. He has written articles for numerous blogs and magazines.