i have recently returned from a journeyman course.
and i thought some of you might be interested in how i got on.
the course is run by jeremy of islay birding and bushcraft on the 250 sq mile wild and rugged island of islay.
while not advertised as a bushcraft course as such, there were loads of bushcraft items covered and jeremy was more than happy to teach us any further bushcraft skills we wanted to cover.
a couple of us wanted to learn the art of the bow drill, and under jeremys expert guidance we both managed to achieve our first coal in about 9 minutes.
other topics covered included,
fire lighting, including the use of tinders.
different fire techniques, star fire, long fire etc.
use of different types of water filters.
gutting and cooking of fish.
wild foods, including seaweeds and which types are the best ones to obtain carbohydrates from.
different shellfish and how to cook them.
use of knots.
how to read the weather.
how to long line fish.
map and compass reading.
the list goes on.
the other members of the party were a great bunch.
there were margaret and billy and donald (who is from islay) all of us quite new to bushcraft.
donald was a real genius when it came to improvisation, out of junk washed up on the beach he made a lobster pot, baited with a couple of small fish which he caught, placed in a old rubber glove he also found on the beach.
while lobster didnt end up on the menu, he did manage to catch a crab with it.
we stayed up late sitting around the camp fire most nights and shared many a happy hour just chatting.
donalds tardis ( huge backpack ) was a great source of amusement, he had just about every thing we needed in there except the kitchen sink,
and i bet if he had dug deep enough he would have found one in there.
one of the most interesting things about the journeyman course on islay is the stunning landscape and its huge caves ( some could have accommodated double decker buses in them they were so big)
also amazing to a city guy like me the fact that we walked for 4 days and did not even see a foot print of another person let alone meet anyone.
while quite a strenuous course i noticed that if anyone of us started to flag, jeremy would stop and point out a bird or landmark giving the flagging person time to catch there breath without embarrassing them.
on the last full day we did a beach clean,
its surprising how much junk you get washed up from all over the world on islay
at the end of the course theres a nice hot bath, meal and hotel booked for you.
(all included in the price)
i even got to see my first whale on the ferry back to the mainland.
i kept an eye out for some iron pyrite while i was on islay, but no joy,
donald and jeremy between them sorted some out and posted it on to me after i returned home.
now thats what i call service.
thanks a million guys.
if you like the idea of 4 days in a really wild unspoilt landscape then i can thoroughly recommend it.
not only did i learn a lot,
i enjoyed every minute of it.
luxor1
and i thought some of you might be interested in how i got on.
the course is run by jeremy of islay birding and bushcraft on the 250 sq mile wild and rugged island of islay.
while not advertised as a bushcraft course as such, there were loads of bushcraft items covered and jeremy was more than happy to teach us any further bushcraft skills we wanted to cover.
a couple of us wanted to learn the art of the bow drill, and under jeremys expert guidance we both managed to achieve our first coal in about 9 minutes.
other topics covered included,
fire lighting, including the use of tinders.
different fire techniques, star fire, long fire etc.
use of different types of water filters.
gutting and cooking of fish.
wild foods, including seaweeds and which types are the best ones to obtain carbohydrates from.
different shellfish and how to cook them.
use of knots.
how to read the weather.
how to long line fish.
map and compass reading.
the list goes on.
the other members of the party were a great bunch.
there were margaret and billy and donald (who is from islay) all of us quite new to bushcraft.
donald was a real genius when it came to improvisation, out of junk washed up on the beach he made a lobster pot, baited with a couple of small fish which he caught, placed in a old rubber glove he also found on the beach.
while lobster didnt end up on the menu, he did manage to catch a crab with it.
we stayed up late sitting around the camp fire most nights and shared many a happy hour just chatting.
donalds tardis ( huge backpack ) was a great source of amusement, he had just about every thing we needed in there except the kitchen sink,
and i bet if he had dug deep enough he would have found one in there.
one of the most interesting things about the journeyman course on islay is the stunning landscape and its huge caves ( some could have accommodated double decker buses in them they were so big)
also amazing to a city guy like me the fact that we walked for 4 days and did not even see a foot print of another person let alone meet anyone.
while quite a strenuous course i noticed that if anyone of us started to flag, jeremy would stop and point out a bird or landmark giving the flagging person time to catch there breath without embarrassing them.
on the last full day we did a beach clean,
its surprising how much junk you get washed up from all over the world on islay
at the end of the course theres a nice hot bath, meal and hotel booked for you.
(all included in the price)
i even got to see my first whale on the ferry back to the mainland.
i kept an eye out for some iron pyrite while i was on islay, but no joy,
donald and jeremy between them sorted some out and posted it on to me after i returned home.
now thats what i call service.
thanks a million guys.
if you like the idea of 4 days in a really wild unspoilt landscape then i can thoroughly recommend it.
not only did i learn a lot,
i enjoyed every minute of it.
luxor1
