* Mungo Says Bah * Bushcraft Blog: fishing

Showing posts with label fishing. Show all posts

Inspiring New Bushcraft Blog

I've just come across Andy's Belfast Bushcraft Blog - and if I could make the time between my busy schedule these days, I'd be fitting in a lot more of what he is demonstrating - trying out and making figure-4 deadfall traps, fishing floats, harpoon points, water-bottle filter, and making primitive arrow heads.

Reading his posts has inspired me. I think my next project will be to make a fish seine net or gill net from string - I made half of one with some flimsy cotton string a few months back, but I want to make a serious one which I can use for some primitive fishing.

Cheers,

Mungo

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A Walk in the East Don River Valley

The other afternoon I went for a walk down in the valley.

I came across some tracks that reminded me of raccoon prints, but they looked too small, but too large for rodents.

It was a nice day - spring had finally arrived. A Mallard paddled about slowly looking for a bite to eat.

Its companion, a Bufflehead (I think), paddled about too. I've never seen two different sorts of ducks pairing up. But we're in multi-ethnic world now.

A loud shriek drew my attention to a tree at the bend of the river - a Kingfisher was calling out, and looking for its next meal of a fish.

You can see the green beginning to appear on the riverbanks.

Not all the trees are verdant - that will take another few weeks until the leaves have replaced the buds.

It was a great day for a hike. I stood on stones in the middle of the river to get this shot.

On a sandy and stony bank, a story that had already happened unfolded in the spoor of a deer. Several firm steps led up to the river's edge, where the deer had apparently tapped about for footing, and stooped down for a drink of water. These prints were still actively filling with moisture, so I assume I had missed it by minutes at most.

Deer live all over these valleys in Toronto.

About 60 years ago, this area was an orchard, and a farm. There is an upturned vehicle in the creek here, but because of the woods about, there is no way a car could have recently entered the waters. I'm guessing it is at least half a century old.

A peculiar shape in the underbrush drew my eye. I thought at first it was a tire.

But as I crept closer through the scratchy brush, I saw it was an iron cover, laid on a brick tunnel, with galvanised rebar ladder bars leading down. I was excited, thinking this might lead into an old room of some sort. Clearly unused, as there are no trails leading to it.

But alas, it was only some sort of access port to a sewage main.

At a bend in the river, a fallen tree had started off the creation of a sieve. Muck, and garbage, and branches all collected there. I stepped across the fallen tree, so I could get across the river.

And landed on this beach. There's the tree from the other side.

Later on I sat on the beach higher up the river and took a few potshots with my slingshot at the mud-covered valley walls. All of a sudden, out of nowhere, a red hued Fisher (a kind of weasel) hopped along the river bank and stopped to look at me.

Then it ran on, up and now, snaking in and out of the grasses. It took off higher up the river, and vanished for a time.

It was swift, and it was all that I could do to keep my camera trained on it as it ran.

The river made a wonderful sound rushing by, on its way to merge with the West Don river, and then out into Lake Ontario.

Apple blossoms were beginning to appear from the old, gnarled apple trees that once comprised this old orchard. Most of the trees have since died off.

These are lovely woods. Mostly untouched.

A great place for a walk, and a great place to bring a dog along.

A swift movement in the trees drew my eye to a woodpecker. He was feasting on grubs and insects that decided to make a decaying tree their home.

Woodpeckers don't ever seem to relax. They tap and tap, and eat and eat and scurry up and down trees.

Maybe they go somewhere else to relax. I mean, I wolf my own food down often, and were someone to generalize my overall behaviour on the basis of lunchtime, I'd be well misunderstood.

These river walls have been a long time in the making. Muddy, clay walls.

Not sure what this little flower is. Anyone?

Those tracks again, beside those of a dog. I suspect these are Fisher tracks.

As I stood and listened to some rapids, I noticed more movement across the river.

The Fisher was back. And it appeared to be fishing.

It gazed intently into the waters.

It leaped in, submerged, and seconds later pulled a long, silvery fish onto the bank. It ate it while I watched.

When it was done, it swam across the river for some well deserved rest. I headed home, having been gone for an hour. It was rather nice.

Cheers,

Mungo

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A Fairly Complete Index of Mungo Bah Posts About Bushcraft, Camping, Canoeing and More...

As certain readers have requested, I have created a fairly complete index of Mungo Says Bah posts.

Please enjoy and comment freely!

Cheers,

Mungo

Backcountry Camping in Algonquin Park: Trip Booked!

I have just booked a back country site in Algonquin Provincial Park for a week in June. The site is at the end of 2 adjoining lakes. To get in to the first lake, there is a 2 kilometer portage through thick woods from the spot off the highway where I will park the car. Once in the lake, it should only take about an hour or two to paddle in to the site. It is a fairly unknown place to camp (at least from what I have read), and because of the effort to get into the site, I expect there to be no-one else on either of the lakes during the trip.

The little boy won't be coming with me, as he is only 5 months old, and cannot yet grasp a paddle in a coordinated manner. The hound dog will be coming though. He keeps the bears and the hippos at bay.

Fishing, canoeing, photography, gathering wild edibles. It's gonna be good!

Algonquin, here I come!

Hope you are having a good day.

Mungo

7 Days with Minimum Kit

I am planning to go on a canoeing and camping trip this summer. I might go with a friend of mine who really enjoys fishing. I am not great at fishing, and he doesn't have much kit, so I think this would be a good fit.

He would catch the fish. I'd cook 'em over the fire along with the bannock.

I want to bring minimal kit if possible, to make it both lightweight, but also a memorable trip where we could both learn bushcraft and minimalism lessons in the woods.

Flint and steel for fire, cooking
Cooking pot, 2 cups, 2 spoons, 2 Nalgene bottles and 2 bowls
Knives, axe, saw
Wool blankets
Tarp shelters
Compass
Fishing gear
Rope & 550 paracord
2 Therm-a-Rests
2 Sleeping Bags
Books (Rogers Mushrooms, and fiction)
Camera
2 Legless Folding Chairs
Food
Booze
2 cigars
Toiletries

I think that sounds basic enough. I didn't get into the varieties and quantities of booze - that would need further examination... :-)

Cheers,

Mungo

Where Can I Find a Therm-a-Rest NeoAir™ Air Mattress?

Okay, so I'm all big on using wool blankets to camp with.

And using flint and steel to light my fires.

And using a hobo stove and a wooden pole for a fishing rod.

(Okay, fine, I also use a naptha stove, carbon fibre rods for my tent, and a silnylon tarp... but I'm making a point.)

But can't I be allowed a little modern treat now and then?

Where Can I Find a Therm-a-Rest NeoAir™ Air Mattress?

From the Therm-a-Rest site:

The NeoAir mattress represents the world’s most advanced engineering in ultralight comfort. Beyond being the lightest air mattress available, we’ve utilized two patent-pending internal technologies, making it up to three times warmer and far more stable than any other uninsulated air mattress available. And when it comes to space in your pack, you’ll appreciate that it’s no bigger than a one-liter water bottle. Revolutionary by design, the gossamer NeoAir mattress makes comfort one less thing you’ll need to compromise when traveling Fast & Light.

° Ultralight & Compact: Weighs just 14oz. and packs down to the size of a 1-liter water bottle.
° Unrivaled Warmth: Our patent-pending reflective barrier returns warmth to your body and reduces heat loss to the ground, keeping you three times warmer than any other uninsulated air mattress
° Sleep Stable: When inflated, patent-pending Triangular Core Matrix technology creates an internal truss system, resulting in the most stable non-self-inflating air mattresses.
° Lasting Performance: Achieving thermal efficiency without down or fiber insulation means the NeoAir can be inflated directly without the added weight of a pump, or worrying about exhaled moisture wetting insulation and decreasing performance.

I like the fact that it is super small when packed up and weighs hardly anything. My current Therm-a-Rest mattress - while small - is still a pain to pack on my back. I just wish they'd lose the obnoxious yellow/green/diseased colour. Give me a tan coloured one please.

They are sold in Canada at Mountain Equipment Co-op for $149.00.

Sigh.

Indian Fishing: Early Methods on the Northwest Coast

While browsing through Tim Smith's Jack Mountain Bushcraft Network, I came across a thread started by Samuel Chapman.

He picked up a copy of Indian Fishing: Early Methods on the Northwest Coast, by Hilary Stewart for a good price and was asking if anyone else had read it. Tim Smith highly recommends it.

Now, I'm not really an avid angler, but I am more interested in the bushcraft that is illustrated in this book. Look at the following images and see how lures and hooks were made without using iron or steel. The intracacy of the lures and hooks and the craftsmanship in creating cedar bark fishing line is astonishing to me.

The book jacket's summary reads:

"Of the many resources available to the First Nations of the Northwest Coast, the most vital was fish. The people devised ingenious ways of catching the different species of fish, creating a technology vastly different from that of today''s industrial world. With attention to clarity and detail, Hilary Stewart illustrates their hooks, lines, sinkers, lures, floats, clubs, spears, harpoons, nets, traps, rakes and gaffs, showing how these were made and used--in over 450 drawings and 75 photographs."

Check out this preview of Indian Fishing: Early Methods on the Northwest Coast on Google Book Search.

Cheers,

Mungo

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