View Full Version : Bed
stuart f
31-01-2006, 17:01
Hi all, i have been thinking about the systems we all use to get a good nights sleep, many people have taken to using hammocks,therma-rest mats,bivi bags ect ect which can leave a rather large hole in your wallet. So i thought maybe for the newcomer to this forum/bushcraft or someone who cannot afford such items,that they can still enjoy a night under the stars and get that all important good nights sleep.
Even in survival situations one of the most important elements is rest,without it we can become even more stressed,thus affecting our ability to make good or even life saving decisions.
Most books i've read tell you the importance of a good bed but don't really give much in the way of construction methods.
So here is a picture tutorial.
http://i438.photobucket.com/albums/qq106/bushcrafter1/rSmall.jpg
First of all i lay on the ground to mark my body length,then i put down the base logs and hammered in four pegs,the pegs stopped the bedding spreading from body weight. By raising the bed of the ground it acts as a comfy chair for sitting in front of the fire.
http://i438.photobucket.com/albums/qq106/bushcrafter1/sSmall.jpg
Here you can see the bed taking shape,and how the pegs are doing their job,also note the log at the head end which i like to use to help raise the browse acting like a pillow.
http://i438.photobucket.com/albums/qq106/bushcrafter1/uSmall.jpg
The browse was then laid on,in this case pine branches, the deeper the browse the more comfy it will be.
http://i438.photobucket.com/albums/qq106/bushcrafter1/vSmall.jpg
And here we see camp.
http://i438.photobucket.com/albums/qq106/bushcrafter1/qSmall.jpg
Also please remember to clear up after your self,returning everthing back to mother nature, as i'm sure you would anyway.
May i point out that all timber used was dead wood already lying around,and the pine branches were cut from a tree which had been blown over in a storm a few days before i made this bed.
bambodoggy
31-01-2006, 17:33
Top job Stuart....nice looking set up you made there :)
Quite similar to the one we made in Sweden last year:
http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a345/bambodoggy/Sweden019.jpg
and just starting to add the thick layer of bowes:
http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a345/bambodoggy/Sweden024.jpg
Who needs thermorests! lol :lmao:
Cheers,
Bam. :D
The Joker
31-01-2006, 17:45
That looks really comfy Stuart, Top job :D
Blimey! Bam, that's better than the one I sleep on in my bedroom :sigh:
Top beds. Almost look good enough for sleeping on! :D
Greenpete
31-01-2006, 19:03
Nice one! I have often thought of making a bed like that but I have such trouble sleeping I always end up in the sleeping bag with a cheap old roll mat and thus get the predicted bad night!
This post has inspired me to try the methods pointed out here at last!
Thank guys :)
Pete
nice job stuart, how long did it take you to put that lot together? :)
Larch boughs make lovely bedding as the needles are so soft, much more comfortable than pine. Stack them till about waist height and climb onboard.... its like a very springy matress :D
Ed
stuart f
31-01-2006, 19:43
nice job stuart, how long did it take you to put that lot together? :)
Hi tomtom, i did this about a year ago when i walked following a local river from source to end. Anyway it did,nt take that long as all the materials were close to hand,i'd say it took about a couple of hours to make the whole camp cosy for the night.
Topcat02
31-01-2006, 20:03
Very nice indeed, and totally eco-friendly.
stuart f
31-01-2006, 20:03
[QUOTE=Ed]Larch boughs make lovely bedding as the needles are so soft, much more comfortable than pine. Stack them till about waist height and climb onboard.... its like a very springy matress :D
I have used a few different materials,spruce boughs are quite prickly to use on there own but i have used them,i just topped them with ferns or dry grass or even heather to make it comfy.
stuart f
03-05-2007, 22:49
See my last post No 19.
Cheers Stuart.
fredcraft
04-05-2007, 13:28
Really nice jobs on the beds Stuart/Bambo !
A question comes to my mind seeing those setups. I was wondering about insects, are they inclined to climb in the branches of the bed ? In other words, did any of you who use that technique ever woke up with "ants in your pants" ... litteraly I mean :D
Thanks for the info,
Cheers !
bambodoggy
04-05-2007, 14:05
A question comes to my mind seeing those setups. I was wondering about insects, are they inclined to climb in the branches of the bed ? In other words, did any of you who use that technique ever woke up with "ants in your pants" ... litteraly I mean :D
No not at all....in fact no more so than sleeping in a dossbag on the floor and less then bundled up in a leafhut :)
A couple of HH fungus or similar on the fire to keep the flying biters away and bob's your uncle :lmao:
Cheers,
Bam. :)
fredcraft
04-05-2007, 14:15
A couple of HH fungus or similar on the fire to keep the flying biters away and bob's your uncle :lmao:
Ahh, good tip ! Thanks a bunch !
twisted firestarter
04-05-2007, 14:17
Looks great but I'll stick to my fat airic thanks :theyareon
http://www.alpkit.com/airic/
w00dsmoke
04-05-2007, 14:26
These are great text book examples and sure they will do their job however I have some serious reservations about this type of shelter in temperate regions and especially in the north and west of Scotland.
Okay the single person coffin type shelters are great but I'd be really interested in other shelters or tarp set ups that folk have made and actually used for extended periods. I lived rough in the early eighties and got by on a couple of poncho's summer and winter but it wasn't easy. What have you found out that works best?
Nice pictures :)
I tried it as well. I used spruce boughs to sleep on. I laid them in a fish grate pattern. A few layers. I used it in combination with a tarp.
What I didn't like about it where the resin stains and a little hole in my bivibag. Next time I will top it off with dry grass. Good idea indeed Stuart!
stuart f
30-12-2009, 19:27
Just re-posting the pictures back up as i had to change to photobucket.
Cheers Stuart.
I hadn't seen this first time round, so glad you changed your account.
Nice one Stuart :approve:
Thanks for sharing :cool:
Have you tried heather and myrtle for the browse ? Very springy and it smells wonderful :D
cheers,
M
_scorpio_
30-12-2009, 19:50
i have done similar with just a tarp and a lot of grass. there was a huge grass field next to the woods so it didnt take long to get more than enough to be comfortable, and surprisingly warm.
its awfy wide, where you expecting company ;) or does it just look like a double from the angle?
thanks for re-posting btw
stuart f
30-12-2009, 20:40
I hadn't seen this first time round, so glad you changed your account.
Nice one Stuart :approve:
Thanks for sharing :cool:
Have you tried heather and myrtle for the browse ? Very springy and it smells wonderful :D
cheers,
M
Hi Mary,yeah i've tried heather before and its really rather good,i never thought about adding the myrtle though,but i will give it a go thanks.
its awfy wide, where you expecting company ;) or does it just look like a double from the angle?
thanks for re-posting btw
Hi Stoo,i think it must be the angle of the photo as it was just a nice size.
:bluThinki Or are you trying to say i must have been a fat git a few year ago:D On second thoughts don't even answer that :lmao:
Cheers Stuart.
Great pics, looks very comfortable.
Barn Owl
30-12-2009, 21:59
Ever tried a bed like that with some hot rocks below it Stuart?
Indeed has anyone?
Good re-post mate.
Admit it Tam, you're thinking of it, seriously, you are, aren't you :D
It must've been damned cold at Wiston right enough :lmao:
cheers,
M
Barn Owl
30-12-2009, 22:18
Admit it Tam, you're thinking of it, seriously, you are, aren't you :D
It must've been damned cold at Wiston right enough :lmao:
cheers,
M
Oh you better believe it Mary.:D
stuart f
30-12-2009, 22:20
Hi Tam,i have never tried hot stones under a bed,but i tend to take one in beside me when i turn in for the evening.
Mary i was thinking the same thing :lmao:
Barn Owl
30-12-2009, 22:29
Memo to self...
Don't stick half a dozen cold Guinness in belly when it's Baltic.
You're not getting any younger.
Big Nanook o' Lomondside must have an Aga in his abdomen.:lmao:
stuart f
30-12-2009, 22:40
Memo to self...
Don't stick half a dozen cold Guinness in belly when it's Baltic.
You're not getting any younger.
Big Nanook o' Lomondside must have an Aga in his abdomen.:lmao:
Aye,you know things are bad when you have to get up for the loo and you start pee,ing ice cubes:hatscarf::D
Great work Stu - Appreciate your posts as always mate!
Craig.
drewdunnrespect
30-12-2009, 23:01
great repost and i remember seeing it last time its just a shame i still havent tried it yet
drew
Tam, on thinking about it, I reckon if you did that with hot rocks all you'd get would be a sauna.
cheers,
M
Is it okay to sleep in the forrests up in your area?not from a safty point but do the forestry decision allow it?
great thread and the beds you made are excellent:
I live in the NE of Scotland and this is what I have used for a number of nights.
http://i46.tinypic.com/vnch20.jpg
Just a simple A frame bed using peat sacks and stacking fern first then grass on top.Then my HH hex tarp goes over the top, It doesnt look comfy but you would be pleasently surprised.
CBJ
stuart f
02-01-2010, 13:28
Is it okay to sleep in the forrests up in your area?not from a safty point but do the forestry decision allow it?
Hi Hog,the wood i set up in is,nt forestry commission land,it was just a narrow wind break wood next to the river.
If you check out this site http://www.outdooraccess-scotland.com/default.asp
It will better explain than i ever could.
Hi CBJ,i have'nt tried out an A frame set up as of yet,but its something i've always wanted to do.Yours looks really comfy though,thanks for posting the pic.
Cheers Stuart.
Celt_Ginger
02-01-2010, 15:42
We made a similar one a while back. Used it with soft rush as bedding. Nice and spongy and comfortable. It's quite wet here so soft rush is in abundence.
Here's the shelter during construction.
http://i232.photobucket.com/albums/ee291/garyminiss/Shelter/123.jpg
Plated spruce root to hold up the cross piece
http://i232.photobucket.com/albums/ee291/garyminiss/Shelter/126.jpg
Stakes to hold the logs in place
http://i232.photobucket.com/albums/ee291/garyminiss/Shelter/127.jpg
Raising the bed
http://i232.photobucket.com/albums/ee291/garyminiss/Shelter/130.jpg
Completed bed, it has been raised high enough to sit comfortable on and with room for hot rocks below.
http://i232.photobucket.com/albums/ee291/garyminiss/Shelter/128.jpg
The lean to being prepared. It was continued right round the sides and then thatched in using a combination of moss below the bed height and spruce boughs above it.
stuart f
02-01-2010, 16:53
Nice one CG,i liked the way you used the spruce roots for the bindings,rather than using paracord goodjob.
Thanks for posting up your photos.
Cheers Stuart.
bhofmann
07-01-2010, 12:14
If you make it well, like Celt Ginger did, I see no reason to take it down. Save someone else, and yourself, the work next time, and will certainly reduce the number of trees that would be cut or clipped to make the bed/bench. You guys have made some impressive bed shelters. Maybe I will too one day, but finding that many fallen trees is not easy where I go, and cutting them down for just one or even two nights is a no-no for me.
Aussiepom
21-01-2010, 22:15
Well constructed classic lean-to shelter there from C G, (though I wouldn't be storing an axe by planting it in a live tree), and I second bhofmann; why take it down?
One thing I've never been too sure about with the lean-to types though is that the 'roof' has to be at a steep angle to shed the rain, but on the other hand, the slightest breeze is going to blow the rain straight into the shelter.
Before anyone says it, it's not just a matter of positioning the shelter according to the prevailing wind either - I've regularly set up camps in sites where the wind is blowing one way one hour, and the opposite way the next hour. Or of course, if there is no prevailing wind until after you've set up your shelter, you could once again be snookered!
Any solutions anyone? (Apart from using a tarp, as I currently do.)
Native Nathan
21-01-2010, 23:32
Well constructed classic lean-to shelter there from C G, (though I wouldn't be storing an axe by planting it in a live tree), and I second bhofmann; why take it down?
One thing I've never been too sure about with the lean-to types though is that the 'roof' has to be at a steep angle to shed the rain, but on the other hand, the slightest breeze is going to blow the rain straight into the shelter.
Before anyone says it, it's not just a matter of positioning the shelter according to the prevailing wind either - I've regularly set up camps in sites where the wind is blowing one way one hour, and the opposite way the next hour. Or of course, if there is no prevailing wind until after you've set up your shelter, you could once again be snookered!
Any solutions anyone? (Apart from using a tarp, as I currently do.)
If you lash the Almost vertical branches to the Upper Horizontal branch/support it offers some protection from the wind blowing it dowm
I too agree with not taking it down, save the trees and allows other to see what can be accomplished with a bit of elbow greese and some knowledge
And it allows others like me to think of the talented guy that build the bed/shelter that i'm on/under
craigsalter
23-01-2010, 15:14
Great idea of a picture tutorial, I would like to add that the best night sleep I have ever had camping was on a bed of pine. True I woke up smelling like a magic tree air freshener but it was warm and as comfy as my matress at home.
Bushcraftsman
23-01-2010, 17:51
In the A frame one that CBJ posted, what is used to actually make the initial layer that everything sits upon? and also how do you attatch it to the two side rails? i've always wanted to make an A frame like this but never known what to use for that part?
Thanks
Hi sorry I took so long to post a reply . I have only just noticed the last post
I used peat sacks for the initial layer. I slit 2 holes on either side at the top then the bottom and slid the poles through them. The length of the sacks gives the width of the bed so there was plenty of room. The only trouble doing it this way is the sacks sag in the middle but the edges are taught so you have to make sure you put plenty of material in the dips and then over the whole lot so you have an even layer.
http://i46.tinypic.com/30s7hft.jpg
A better way is to find a suitable material that you can sew as a single tube, this saves on you having to mess about keeping the seperate sacks together and in my opinion makes the tension of the bed more even.
Hope this helps
CBJ