Saving Judgement: Three Guys Go to the Woods

On the heels of our Bloated Bushcraft article, some of you may find this useful. While I’ve never had the pleasure of meeting Jeff face to face, I hold him in high esteem for his woodsy knowledge, love of family, and zest for life. Hope you enjoy his thoughts on saving judgement…

by Jeff Heigl

Three guys go out in the woods. The first one sets up a canvas tarp that he bought online, rigging it with paracord. He unfolds his wool blankets, takes his Swedish ax, and gathers firewood, He unpacks his gear and places a stainless pot of water on the fire he made with flint and steel to boil water and makes tea.

The second opens up a tarp made from a bed sheet and erects it with line made from natural plants. He takes a ‘hawk he forged and likewise gathers wood and builds a fire using a bow drill. He heats rocks and drops them into a birch container made waterproof with a mixture of pine sap and charcoal. When the water boils he dips in with a hand carved wooden cup and makes a tea from chaga and wintergreen.

The third guy rigs a plastic tarp from Walmart. He uses baling twine for stringing it. He lays out a sheet of plastic and places his sleeping bag on it. He takes his Estwing ax, and, like the others, he gathers firewood. He lays the fire but doesn’t light it. His stainless frying pan and Sierra cup are placed at the ready. Taking up his rifle, he goes hunting.

Which one got it right?

To my way of thinking all three. They came into the woods confident in their equipment and skilled at what they wanted to be skilled at. Each was where he wanted to be, doing as he chose. In the eyes of ‘plastic tarp guy’, the first two had limited themselves by lighting a fire. They had chosen to stay in camp while he was free to hunt and explore. Homemade tarp guy was confident to the extreme. He knew how to make do with what he could make or procure with his own hands. Canvas tarp man knew that his equipment was up to the task, and even though he purchased it, he had what he needed to do what he wanted.

That’s how it is here as well. Doing it all isn’t feasible for 99.9% of us. Bills to pay, college, jobs. Face it, a lot of us live in urban areas that frown on fires, much less forges. Those of us that do live in rural areas or even close to true wilderness are too busy going out to enjoy our ‘backyards’ to knap flint for each arrow just so we can hunt. We still have bills to pay, homes to maintain, families to raise. So we take our experiences in small doses when we can get away. Lol! Seems like there’s never enough time!

To those that are truly in the .01%, I say Great! To be able to afford that lifestyle as a hunter/gatherer must be wonderful. But again, for most of us… not feasible.

So, at the end of this little ramble/rant, let’s not be too hasty to judge one another’s skills. Some follow Nessmuk, some follow the Native American route, and others grab a few cans of beans, some flour, and whatever firearm they need and light out into the wilderness.

Just a few thoughts from an old man sitting on a stump in the woods waiting for shootin’ light.

Keep Doing the Stuff of Self-Reliance,

~ Todd

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