Survival Bushcraft vs. Leave No Trace, Weekend, Camping or Scouting

Many of you, followers this blog, seem to be very conflicted over the two terms; I on the other hand very much enjoyed learning about survival, just as I enjoyed working at Camp Gardner-the Boy Scout camp, located near Bragg Creek, just outside of Calgary. I also enjoyed getting outdoors with my kids at the weekend, going on day hikes, and practising our bushcraft skills like making fire-sticks  carving pot hangers, and learning how to properly build and start a camp fire. We, as do the Scouts always adhered to the core principles of Leave No Trace, as much as humanly practicable, or possible. However, it has recently been brought to my attention that many of you consider that these two schools of outdoor ethics may actually be at odds with one another.

Bushcraft, in my mind, is about surviving and thriving in the natural environment. It's about using-NOT ABUSING- natural materials; to practice age old skills like fire starting, fishing, hunting, shelter building, foraging, twine making, and wood carving. it is not about altering or destroying the environment. It is not about bashing, burning, destroying, chopping, "developing", garbage( INCLUDING CIGARETTE BUTS/FILTERS-which can take 40 years to decompose and which can be deadly to wild life), fuel/gasoline/oil spills, hacking, slashing.
Survivor bushcraft encourages us to use the Mother’s available natural materials in a responsible way.

While many of the "survival experts"???out there teaching SURVIVAL COURSES AS A WAY OF LIFE are pretty much free to do as they wish on their own private land; the seven key principles of "for real, survival bushcraft" are exactly the same as those practised by staunch followers of LNT or any other responsible person: plan ahead and prepare, travel and camp on durable surfaces, dispose of waste properly, leave what you find as you found it, minimize camp-fire impacts, respect all life, and be considerate of others. Knowledgeable survivors, in order to improve their own circumstances, will go to extreme lengths to ensure that they do not disturb, or especially harm; in any way, the natural beauty of their surroundings.

What “Survival Bushcraft” is Not About; and What True Believers in LNT Object to ; Especially When it is Done Under the Guise of "Survival Training" and Then Left in Wilderness Areas.

Cigarette butts represent not only a threat to MAN but to the continuance of life on earth. Not only are they deadly to all of The Mother's world; they take up to forty years to bio-degrade or disintegrate.

It’s fair to say that there is no real consensus on what skills and practices really constitute bushcraft or survival. Part of the reason for this is that it varies so much in different conditions and locations but the main reason is all the “reality” “survivor” television game farces.

There is general agreement about what Survival Bushcraft is not about. In recent years however, because of all the Crocodile Dundee and Rambo type action movies, there also seems to have been a disturbing increase in practices that are anything but low impact. It’s as if people think the woods and the wilderness can just be torn apart for their own enjoyment; typical are drinking camps and dens that have gone on for years in places close to urban areas. Nothing new there and not much you can do about it but clear up after they have gone home.What seems to be a new development is the widespread practice of building natural shelters in the woods.These are not the kind of dens that kids often tend to build, but serious attempts to copy the types of shelters shown in TV “survivor” shows. Several things characterise these shelters as having been built by this type of people: people with no real understanding of what bushcraft, pioneering or survival is all about though. While it is true that not even an insect or reptile can live in an area without leaving any trace at all; it is also true that it is of first and foremost importance to a true bushcrafter/survivor to “leave no unnecessary trace and then only of responsible usage.”

·         Hacking down live trees to build shelters or fires is destructive, unsustainable and definitely not what any of it is all about.

·         Leaving shelters built in the woods is an eyesore, potentially dangerous and definitely not what bushcraft is all about.

·         Leaving rubbish around or even buried is illegal, slovenly practice and definitely not what bushcraft is all about.

·         Lighting fires and then leaving charred ground with a ring of stones and beer cans is disgraceful behaviour, potentially devastating to the environment and definitely not what bushcraft is all about.

·         All these practices show a total lack of respect and understanding for the outdoors. It is the practice of a lout, not a SURVIVOR or bushcrafter.

·         When I leave a campsite, I make sure I leave no trace of ever being there.

·         Everything carried in must leave the same way, that means carrying your rubbish home with you ,when you’ve completed your little game.

·         Natural shelters should only be built where there is enough dead material to not impact on the local environment. They should always be dismantled and the site returned to natural condition before you leave. Using a tarp or a tent is almost always a better option.

·         You need the permission of the land owner before you can set up any kind of camp, natural or otherwise.

·         Camp fires are illegal in many places even if you do have permission to camp.

·         If you do have permission to light a fire, it must be lit in a container or on bare earth, not on leaf litter, pine needles or peat. Fires can spread and smoulder underground in these conditions and re-ignite with disastrous consequences. Wildfires caused by a foolishly sited campfire, damage large tracts of land and can devastate wildlife and livestock.

·         Do not cut trees or branches for firewood, live wood is full of water and does not burn well anyway. Collect fallen, dead wood or don’t have a fire at all if there is insufficient fuel. A stove or a small hobo stove is usually a far better option.

·         Make sure any fire is completely extinguished before you leave.  Pour enough water onto the fire area that you can pick out any ashes left over with your bare hands and scatter them to hide all traces of your fire.

·         Cover any scorched areas on the ground with fresh soil or detritus.

If you can look back and see remains of your campsite when you have packed up to leave, then you have no right to call yourself a real SURVIVOR