It's December I've got my bushcraft
gear with me I'm here all day
it's December's bushcraft all day yeah
hi folks I'm Craig Taylor and as always
a huge thanks for joining me here on my
youtube channel
the bushcraft Padawan well as you saw
from that intro its December's bushcraft
all day ax the 12th one of the year if
my understanding of the basic calendar
is correct those of you that watch these
videos that our regular subscribers will
know that rather than just come out into
the woods and putter around aimlessly
they always like to come out with
something in mind some ideas some
projects and tasks that I want to tick
off they could be things that are new to
me there could be things that I want to
try out there could be things that I've
done before I just wanna keep my hand in
this month no exception I've got some
new kit that I want to try out a new tap
and a new lid for my metal mug I wanna
start a fire using natural materials
it's been absolutely soaking wet here
for weeks now I've never seen a December
so wet so I want to get some natural
materials either some bracken tada
that was fortuitous some Bracken or
maybe some honeysuckle something that I
know has been left out in the elements
through all this rain I don't want to
try that and bringing that to a flame
and then coaxing that into a fire if I
get a fire going I'm gonna cook up some
pancakes on these on fire using my
skillet and whilst that is cooking away
I'm probably gonna do a little bit of
field sharpening on my more agave
because I've noticed a little flat spot
towards the tip recently so nuke it fire
it in very very very damp conditions a
little bit of cooking and a little bit
of sharpening surround the year off
let's see how I get on I'm in a slightly
different area than where I normally go
folks I'm normally 2 miles north of here
today I'm two miles south of there in
this spot for no other reason than I
fancied a change in my last video my
last all day video I talked about the
fact that I had a new tab on the way it
has arrived it's an alt kicked rig 7
I'll put a link to it down below this
video is not a review video it's not an
unboxing type video or anything like
that I'm not big fans of reviewing
anything else I've actually used it this
tab has never seen the light
day until today it's not being put up
yet so unfair
to do an a review of it I might have
some first impressions in fact I've
already start to form some first
impressions but I'm gonna save those for
a first impressions video cuz I'm going
to record in a few weeks Sam this is
really all about just getting the
guylines attach the lid lock which lines
attached getting a feel for air for the
material getting a feel for anything
that I might need to do to modify this
tap soap to work for the way that I like
to put them up so going to get out my
day suck now get it rigged up is a
typical way that I normally do and then
I'll have some shelter to work under for
the rest of the day
as I said earlier in the video it's
rained a lot recently a massive amount
it looks like it's going to be clear
today but this is a British weather so
crossing my fingers isn't going to be
enough all now the top of my head safe
the tops up same way that I know I'm not
gonna go into detail in this video sorry
if that's what you're waiting for but I
think it's it's worth its own video in
its own right looking at my tap set up
some tips and tips
I'm just gonna be shown along the way
it's make life a little bit easy when
fucking these up and taking them down
and actually administrating yourself and
living on the reef so it's going to be a
stand-alone video I put it up quite high
today because I want to get a small fire
going underneath there and clearly the
last thing I want is setting it on fire
at least not today okay next week the
month after but not on day one so I'm
now going to crack on and start getting
my fire making and fire building
materials together and then that let the
pancake Fest begin I've moved a couple
of hundred meters from where mines
happen to this location not because
there's no Bracken there is actually
quite a lot because it's quite a
sheltered area soaking wet that bracket
is also quite sheltered so he's not
getting any sunlight other than there
isn't a great deal of Brits also not
getting any breeze either so I've come
out onto one of the rides in this wood
here where it's more open there's less
canopy above us it's much more open for
the wind to sweep through in the hope
that a combination of those things will
mean that this is drier than they wet
Bracken that's in the woodland in a day
in a darker more enclosed area so I'm
going to collect a good handful of this
move it back to the bivi area
store it off the ground under the tarp
just in case and then I'm going to crack
on with looking and for some additional
tinder to get this fire going but first
port of call is gonna be gathering some
of this Bracken
I'm discarding anything that looks
wetter than the rest are the sumdac
pieces here that's clearly been in
contact with some of the fallen logs I'm
discarding that and I'm only going to
the light-colored from is that the right
phrase frogs croaking frogs let me know
in the comments now go for the
light-colored stuff thinking the stuff
that looks like it's dry
what I'm going to go for at the moment
if a I can stop the dog knocking the
tripod over and B I can stop the dog
nicking the bracken is I'm going to go
for my and flint and steel onto some
char cloth in a bird's nest in the ferns
hopefully blow that into flame and then
add on some birch and some silver birch
twigs and kindling to help establish
that flame a little further just drop in
a few pieces of charcoal thing I do if
the tinder is marginal like it is today
there's an element of moisture in there
I do like to drop in a few pieces of
charcoal just to give it longer for that
heat to work to generate and build up
and rather any moisture
we go cut a piece
lost it all the chocolate go away all
the checkoff been out before I've had a
chance to establish the flame so I'm
gonna drop a little more in those of you
watching think you should have done this
a shooter than that
I have scrunched up and almost buffed
into powder a lot of the fronds of this
so this is sitting against some
incredibly fine material
the word booger Springs tonight
that's not having it right what I'm
gonna do here is I'm gonna go defaults
or some birch back shavings and I'm
gonna wear put the birch back Shea bees
in here and use that so I still don't
want to waste the bracket I've picked it
but clearly there's too much moisture I
guess in there for that to go from a
piece of charcoal so I want to get more
of that something more as resembling a
flame then the bracken then onto the
twigs I'm gonna go and scrounge scavenge
and forage some silver birch to
heptarian shavings back in a second
regular campsite viewers will probably
recognize my black metal mug there that
is there this is a staple in my outdoor
gear you'll probably see me cooking many
a bro probably pine needle tea ginger
tea or hot chocolate on this very thing
I've had this for decades 93 94 I've
probably bought it from all the shots
and back in the day when I was in the
Army I used to improvise a lid for this
just out a little piece of silver foil I
used to fold it back up and carry it
with me clearly that's silver foil is
long gone and as I'm a little more fish
than I was as a 17 18 year old I've gone
recently and splashed out from handmade
by wild crafts co uk there's a logo
there I've something a template of this
because this isn't a B C B this isn't a
crusade well this is a knockoff that I
bought years ago but I sent him an out
outline of it and he's very kindly made
me a lid to fit on that so I'm going to
use that today clearly the advantages of
this are that it stops leaves debris
falling in but it also helps I guess tip
for the water to boil quicker because
I'm not losing any of the heat and
through steam I'm not losing any of the
heat from the mulch because it's been
encapsulated like that so first time out
today let's get rid of some of that nice
shiny new look appearance of it let's
get some sort on it
yep I think she's ready hot chocolates
going down wealth skillets on the fire
some books are in there heating up
pre-mixed I come up with the dry
ingredients and and the D powdered egg
and the powdered milk can actually make
you know reconstitute out here as if I
were on a long species clearly that is
it gonna last very long when traveling
it's been overnight in the refrigerator
at home so now kick down probably enough
in there for - that's not one each okay
talking to the dog host disagree will
make let's bring them into shop guilt
trip maybe one on the three quarters for
me maybe a left burnt crispy left over
for you what do you say do you agree I
know it looks like I'm talking to myself
like spin that round there is a dog
there they suck promise promise I'll
give you some I promise okay but not
much
let's get these pancake mix up
for those of you thinking why is using a
plastic spoon it's because my wooden
spoon that had carved myself took great
pride in has actually split at the end
of the bowl around here there's a split
stack to forming so so I'm sulking at
the moment with wooden spoons I'm not
actually I've carved two or three in the
past week or two that are just out
drying out at home some of them in
various different stages of being
finished didn't we
oiled up whatever the phrase is lubed up
in the air and sputter everywhere and
she's not having all of it she being a
dog not the missus little bit syrup on
that this silly little bit of honey on
there
oh there is there's there's the money
shot no it is perfect
let's get my face into this fire is just
starting to die out which is good from a
fire management perspective probably get
one more out of this before the Ember
tell me let me know in the comments
below what's your favorite meal to cook
outside and what's your favorite dessert
to cook outside must be cook can't be
something you just take out with you and
eat out their favorite meal to cook when
outside doing this kind of thing and
your favorites and desserts to cook
clearly 9ds pancakes because I mean it
is a meal those ways to put in two for
one
- pancakes later the dog did get some I
promise I'm going to turn my attention
now to sharpening or touching up my Mora
gar Berg continually impress the fact
that I can manage to get it into a very
very good edge what I did notice though
a day or two ago was that and I'm not
going to try and hold this up to camera
because there's no way that I'll be able
to get in focus on the light shining at
the right angle but just just there
where my finger is on the edge of the
blade juicy whilst I'm out here so turn
my attention to or to bring out my
beaver bushcraft sharpening kit that I
bought crazy I think this was back in
the spring I don't remember I did record
a video on it and I'm gonna link to it
up here there's a video of there so I'm
just going to use the the diamond
lapping fluid that came with it
the 800-1000 double edged diamond stone
the whole blade train you know I'm just
gonna get to that spot so jump that spot
where there's a flat spot home that area
probably home the old the whole Blake's
I've been using it slightly today and
then I'll be on my way make him way back
to the motor i can feel they already
failed at the bear on the other side now
just gonna turn my attention to the
now push the bear from one side to the
other pushed it back again
push it back again pushed it back again
could see the bear couldn't see I could
feel the bear couldn't see that flat
spot anymore though so I've just taken
to the thousand side of the stone now I
do like this shout minke I'm going to
put a link to it in the video
description below you don't make any
money from it it's not a I'm an
affiliate link or anything like that
just a very very nice easy to use
effective sampling kit and nice people
as well always very very helpful you've
got any questions or queries
I'm still able to see a little bit of
the flats but but actually those last
sweeping strokes yep it's a goner so
let's just finish off by having a strop
I'm going to stop the whole blade or
even I've only been actually working so
I'm on the top third I'm a specific part
of that top third at that
and then final side final time on the
relatively clean side it picks up dirt
naturally but it's got no compound on
there yes very happy with that
eliminated that flat spot that was here
on the blade and just dropped the rest
have been using it a little bit today
good stuff there we have it folks
another bushcraft all day a in the bag
and of course December the last one of
the year so how did it go it was good to
get my new tarp out I'd rigged it up at
home or so I thought it was good to get
it out in the field though because what
I realized was I've not rigged up my
inner gear line that goes on the inner
roof to hang things from saddening
myself from so I've forgotten to do that
at home so it was good to get it out
here when I didn't really need to and
realize that mistake so I can correct
that back at home before I add before I
could fall foul of it for real didn't
need the tap to date has actually been a
very very nice dry day considering what
we've had recently so didn't need the
tap it was good to take it out did use
the metal mug lid as you saw that has
most definitely earned its place in my
bushcraft kit on a permanent basis from
now on whenever I take my metal mug out
which is all the time so that was good
to see the fire oh boy oh boy oh boy
that fire that took a lot of effort took
a lot of time what you may not have seen
because my battery ran out on the camera
that I was recording with at the time I
bring up several different batteries and
so it may not be obvious just how long
it took me to actually get that fire
going took me a long time much longer
than I would have so I don't want I
don't want you to be misled to think
that I got that fire going in super
quick time it's because of the failing
battery that made it look like it was
incredibly quick it very definitely
wasn't in the end if it isn't clear
depending on when my battery
now I'm not sure I sucked the charcloth
ice at the Heather and the bracken and
in the end I just went for good old
standard birch bark birch bark shavings
and I had to feed almost individually
the pencil led thickness twigs onto it
to get it going it took a lot of coaxing
it took a lot of hand-holding in some
respects I was disappointed that it did
that and I didn't have success first
time around from another perspective and
pleased that you know there was a reason
it took a long time and that was because
everything was sodden or was very very
damp and pleased that I was able to get
it going Oz pleased I was able to
persevere and still use the natural
materials and still get it going
although it wasn't plan a but hey you
know when does planner that ever really
work out when Mother Nature's involved
pancake was a pancake in the woods what
could possibly go wrong and the knife
sharpening it was it was good to spend
just a few minutes towards the end of
the day just getting that knife back up
to standard so that I can clean it oil
it when I get home and put it away for
the Christmas a new year period
speaking of Christmas and New Year by
the time this video goes out I expect it
will be at some point between Christmas
and New Year so I hope you and your
family who celebrate Christmas had a
very very Merry Christmas and in a few
days time it will be New Year's I hope
you have a very happy New Year's Eve and
a successful 2019 speaking of 2019 in
2018 I've done a series of bushcraft all
daya's you've just seen the final one of
the year last year 2017 I did a series
of bushcraft all-nighters what should I
do in 2019 do you think what should I do
next year should I go back to the
all-nighters should I stick with the old
days
should I do a combination of the two
should I do something else completely
and I'd be interested in your thoughts
in the comments below all nighters all
days of combination or something else do
let me know in the comments below I can
make no promises that I will stick to
what you asked for and is clearly it's
got
fitting around and you know my life and
the children and the kids life and the
wife and all of us and they believe dog
and all the rest of it but then yeah let
me know in the comments below what your
preference would be and why it would be
your preference personally I prefer the
old days they fit in nicely with of
working and family life they also mean I
can actually do more because and clearly
awake for the whole time about here
whereas when I do an all-nighter
I probably sleep for the majority of the
time so that was my reasoning last year
to go from an all-nighter to an all-day
i'm waffling on our i'm prattling on
thank you for watching this video thank
you if you've watched my other videos
for doing that throughout the year if
you subscribed thank you as always if
you've not yet subscribed and here's the
thing about three-quarters of my viewers
and nonsubscribers if you're one of them
please please do click on that that
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to me if you could click on that just
think i've got just over two thousand
subscribers three-quarters more of that
about 6,000 per acre and ah non
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successful channel and if I could get
those non subscribers to turn into
subscribers so it's christmas christmas
is coming up I've been a good boy all
year I've pushed a video out for you
every single week of the year at least
once a week but every week at least once
a week there's been a video so please
come on Santa all I want for Christmas
is for everybody that's an unsubscribe
to click on the subscribe button and
become a subscriber folks wherever you
are whenever you are whatever you're
doing have a great Christmas you've
already had a great Christmas have a
great New Year and I'll see you in my
next video Cheers
