Notebooks and Diaries

[Pablo]

Does anyone keep a bushcraft or wildlife notebook or diary?

What sort of style is it (sketchbook/notebook/size) and what do you put in it?

In the past I've used a hardcover A6 sketchbook and put in wildlife observations, weather, simple sketches of plants etc. I've also designed a simple database for wildlife observations.

Interested to know what you folk do and how important it is to you.

Pablo

[JohnC]

I make small A6 notebooks for writing anything down in.
I also bind any articles I download together in A5 size books. Keeps them all together. I don't group the articels in any way, (probably should) but they make nice reference/reads.

[Doc]

On the subject of diaries : I like to know sunrise, sunset, moonstate, and the local tides would be good too. Very few diaries have this information these days - I suppose most folk aren't interested any more.

I saw some diaries in Waterstones (Elfin? or some such name) that had some of this info, but unfortunately also had pages of new age mumbo jumbo too.

[Graham_S]

i always have a notebook and pencil in my pocket just in case i have a flash of brilliance when i'm out and about. also handy for impromptu maps of resources (just where in the woods is that punky log for tinder?)

[BlueTrain]

I have attempted to keep such a notebook, though not necessarily as a diary. I recorded mostly comments or notes to myself about equipment experiments, gear lists or packing lists, and so on. Later I usually made a MS Word narrative saved onto a diskette. Those have been more useful.

I tried to note how far I went, both in getting to the trailhead and actual mileage on the trail, notes of the weather, brief comments about gear, if anything ususual was used, people I met on the trail and so on. The notes about the weather are more to put me in the place again rather for any scientific purposes.

Overall, the purposes of the notes are to help me recall the trip itself as an event, plus the details of the trip to help me with other outings. I try to have something experimental in nature to try out but I often go to the same places. So far I haven't been going often enough to get tired of them, though some places are much nicer than others and some are less visited than others.

I sometimes make an attempt to make a formal plan of an outing, which is only of limited value. I miss being about to go when I have the urge, rather than having to make plans weeks ahead of time. That's what comes of having other people in your life, I guess. The funny thing is, the harder and firmer I make plans for an outing, the more likely it will rain. I also doesn't help to live further away from good places to go.

One good thing about keeping notes electronically is the ability to be neat and to revise the notes as I have more time.

I never have done any artwork of any sort nor maps, though I often share comments about my outings (on other forums, however).

Another thing that is interesting is how different an outing is in person, if you follow me, than it seems like it will be as you sit in your room and think about it. It is either colder, wetter, nicer, or just positively wonderful when everything combines to give you a perfectly still and sunny day in the spring with absolutely no one else around.

[Doc]

Elfin diaries are here:

http://www.elfindiaries.co.uk/

Despite all the New age stuff it has the useful sunset/moonstate/what to see in the night sky. L

[gregorach]

No good for moonstate or tides, but if you're interested in sunset / sunrise times and the location of the constellations, you can't better a little gizmo called a planisphere. Lighter than a diary and good for all eternity (OK, not quite, but close enough)

[Schwert]

I keep a number of journals and notebooks. I like the water resistant forestry notebooks like the ones in the above image as well as some better paper leather bound ones for more personal notes.

I generally carry a small Moleskine notebook and recently found a leather slip cover for it that I really like.



A decent notebook and a nice pen or pencil are always part of my kit.

[Pablo]

Schwert,

That's a great photo and I like the leather cover for your notebook.

What do you record?

Pablo

[Schwert]

I make all sorts of notes. On a daytrip walk I will generally make some notes prior to leaving about compass directions and elevations for significant trail changes. I will note bearing to known peaks etc, all in a general way. I will usually make notes of any new gear I am hauling, my camera equipment and my other choices including food and water.

Then once underway, I will note times at certain spots, new bearings, sketch stuff, make photo notes, list any details of my equipment fthat are presenting problems or working better than expected.

Really I am trying to have both a day document for navigation should the weather turn bad as well as have a record of events that I can look back on years later.

If you look at that first photo the open yellow notebook has a list of elevations, and time along with some other notes about the location. I will do this as I go in a random way. When I stop for a bit of water or a snack I will record my elevation and time. I may note temperature and bearing to some feature. I may note that I am adding or removing clothing, or taking photos. Many times when I am going and returning by the same trail I will cache a bottle of water. I always note this location with elevation, time, and some compass bearing. I have never had to use my notes to find these, but it seems good practice and you never know.

My daily pocket journal in that leather cover also gets similar things just more urban notes...things to buy, web sites to visit, quotes I like, whatever.

[scanker]

I too like the leather cover for the notebook. Is it bought or made? I saw one online but postage from the States was $30. I might have to try my hand at leathercraft!

[Schwert]

That Moleskine cover was locally made by Renaissance Art. The owner of the shop is a friend and makes all sorts of bags and journals. The green and brown paper covered journal in my first image was made by him long ago.

Making one of these covers would be very straightforward.

http://www.renaissance-art.com/

[scanker]

Ah ha. That was the site I looked at. Ask your friend if he can make the postage a bit more reasonable!

Thanks for the reply though - it looks like I'll have to have a bash myself.

[Schwert]

I never really know why companies have postage the way they do...just easier I guess to ask for the moon rather then figure out what is reasonable. A leather cover like this would easily fit in a USPS global priority mailer and cost $5.

I have sent books and the like over however, and paid a fortune for slow boat service, so I guess I understand.

If your own creation does not suit, PM me and I can get one over in a priority envelop.

[scanker]

That's a very kind offer Schwert. I'll see how easy it looks to get leather and have a go, otherwise I'll certainly PM you. Thanks a lot.