North Gate Bushcraft Adventures Basic Course

Joe Robinet is a popular bushcrafter and outdoorsmen in the YouTube community. Recently Joe opened his own bushcraft school after learning and guest teaching under Terry Barney for some time. When I heard Joe was opening his own school North Gate Bushcraft Adventures http://www.northgatebushcraft.com/ I decided to jump at the  chance to attend his first class. I let a few of my close backpacking friends know that I was attending a bushcraft class and they decided to tag along, both of them had a growing interest in woodsman skills. 

The class was  $125 for a overnighter , I really found this to be more than affordable and although I haven't been told the price will go up I cant imagine it staying such a bargain, at $125 this course is a screaming deal even if it is a intro course.

I talked to Joe a few times on the phone before the class and he was great about answering my questions and giving me the info I needed it seemed like the class couldn't come soon enough.

The drive from northern lower Michigan was a long one the three of us made a few stops and made it to Corbeil Ontario in about 9 hrs and arrived a day early like many of my fellow students. We then rounded up our gear and awaited our ride to the site from co-instructor Fraser Clark. My first thought when I met Fraser was he was one heck of a nice guy who wasn't shy at all he immediately made us feel welcomed.

Fraser giving his best cameraman impression

The site was a short 5 minute drive from were we parked and then about a ten minute hike on Canadian Crown land. Being a Michigan man I'm used to sand and a little dirt here and there, around Corbeil it's a lot of rock with a bit of rock here and there quite a change of scenery for me but a welcomed one.

We met Joe as we walked into camp he was quick to welcome us seemed excited to get his first class under way. The first night was mainly setting up the camp and meeting the fellow students all of which I got along great with, the more I do group camps and the more bushcrafters I meet the more I realize that we all get along despite our differences, we were all there to learn and enjoy the great outdoors. 

The next morning class started and we were off to a beaver pond for some water procuring lessons.

Joe talking about how a stagnant beaver pond should be your last choice as a water source

After some time at the pond we were of to a nice little stream that was coming from the snow melt. We learned about a few different modern water purification methods and their advantages and weaknesses.

Everyone listening closely during water procurement

 Joe collected some water and took us back up trail for a little homemade water filter action.

 Joe crushing up charcoal for the filter

 some explanation

Filter Time

After finishing up the filter we tried water that was purified using different methods and although all was safe to drink you could taste the difference literally.

After going over some basic gear it was lunch time and Joe quickly put together a simple pot hook and stand. Something Ive seen in a few videos and blogs but was pretty cool to see in person, I was really surprised how sturdy it was.

After lunch we went on another hike near the beaver pond were a large pine laid, blown over from a storm long passed. This would be were I would sleep that night, earlier in the day Joe had said we were going to go over shelters and we would do a few together after Joe  showed us a few tarp shelter set ups I assumed when i volunteered to stay the night in a shelter we built it would be under a tarp... nope big ole pine tree. Now ive slept in natural shelters before but i have become accustom to the wonder that is my hammock set up I thought id be in for a rough night.

Joe under the beginning of my shelter

The class got to work putting up the shelter using no tools which you dont realized how nice a saw or axe is until you build a debris shelter. I slept like a baby that night under that big ole pine, very relaxing sleeping surrounded by pine boughs instead of nylon and bug netting. A big thanks to Joe lending me a sleeping pad that Canadian rock is not a soft feathered mattress despite boughs.

After the shelter was about done we all headed back to the main camp for some demonstrations on various tinder and fire starting techniques. I honestly didnt know mylar in a candy bar wrapper took a ferro rod so well until that day.

Joe rocking the flint and steel

Fire prep time

No one makes curls as fast as Joe

Once Joe demonstrated a split wood and twig fire we all practiced our fire building, Joe was kind enough to let me go for a bow drill, something I have yet to master he helped me making the bow and set and then instructed me on proper technique. The smoke rolled hard more than once, but it wasnt meant to be. But armed with new knowledge and confidence I promise that after this summer the bow drill will no longer elude me. A big thanks to Joe for taking time to go through this with me which is in no way a Intro course skill.

 My two friends had such a good time doing their one stick fire they must had lit curls another 15 times practicing their ferro rod something they had only done once before with me in preparation for this course. They both have a supreme confidence that if they have a knife and a ferro rod they will have fire, something I really thought was cool. Oh and Joe even gave me a elk antler bearing block for my future successful bow drill, thanks man!

Next up was knots something I never really used before but after this course I will, the Canadian Jam knot in particular I see being very useful, I use to just tie lots... now I tie knots ha.

After the knots it was axe and saw time and although the axe is a blast to use the course only confirmed my belief that if I had to choose between a axe or saw Im going with a saw all day long. I also learned that regardless if I use a silky or a bucksaw and Dane uses the other, he is still gonna out saw me!

Dane doing some chopping

Once the main events were done for the day we all gathered around the fire and enjoyed tinfoil dinners which were surprisingly great. We all talked about the day and us Americans made some jabs at the Canadians while they didnt hold back teasing us foreigners it was all in good fun and alot of fun it was. That night was as good as any that ive spent in the woods I went to sleep under my pine feeling accomplished and happy I drove all the way to little Corbeil Canada.

Final Thoughts......

Now when I signed up for this course I really didnt think I was gonna to learn alot outside the knots, I thought I was well outside a basic skill level, the main reason I took this course was to qaulify for the intermediate course, but Im not too prideful to say that I learned more than I ever would have imagined and reinforced things I wasnt as knowledgeable on as I thought I was. If anything else this trip revitalized my yearning to learn more about the outdoors and get outside my comfort zone (and hammock) and try new things and philosophies. 

 Joe is doing what I dream of, he his is taking a hobby that he loves and making a go at it, and I for one will be back for the intermediate class and someday I hope to be at the level Joe is and be able do what I love for a living, until then if Joe keeps teaching ill keep learning from him along with the many of his YouTube subscribers and those who make the great choice to attend his future classes.

All I have left to say is if your on the fence on taking a class from Northgate Bushcraft Adventures you wont regret learning from someone as humble and layed back as Joe. Im looking forward to what he thinks up for a intermediate course.

"Joe approved" ha

Wish I took more pictures I will next time for sure!

Special thanks to my fellow students for making this such a great time, To Fraser Clark for all his behind the scenes work getting everything organized and Joe Robinet for keeping the class down to Earth.

Thanks for reading guys and gals!

-Lain Veihl

  

A Short Stint in the Woods

Was able to get out in the back woods for a little bit, the wee one and lady even tagged along. Ive been beyond busy between work, moving and doing my Internship and it was nice to get out even if it was for a short time. Nothing spectacular just getting some fresh air and trying out a few new things before my trip to Canada for Joe Robinet's first class at his new school North Gate Bushcraft.

                                                           The little lady and myself

                                                   Checking out the "Cold Grass" aka moss

                My Sargent M3 has a nice tether point so I use it in my HPG KB to keep my sheath handy

The M3's first real work some nice dry maple

The Great White Wolf

More prep

I didnt use a ferro rod today the little one was getting antsy and I wanted to try out my new match case and storm matches, really like it so far but i couldnt get the bottom strike pad to light a match its too abrasive and seems to just remove material but the strike patch inside works wonders.

The always needed fire shot....

It was a great little get away and I and very happy with my kitbag this is the third trip ive used it, and so far.I have my load out about figured out, its great and when unzipped makes a little table to put your stuff on even. The exotac match case is nice idk if the bottom striker pad is a common issue or not but time will tell if i get it to work. I gave up alot to get up this M3 and I wasn't disappointed its a phenomenal blade and I look forward to using it more.

Thanks for reading and more to come soon I hope.

-Lain

A Quick Outing with The River Bottom Blades Puukko

I was able to get out for little bit on Monday for a little hike and try out a new knife, and brush up on some of my fire prep. I thought about bringing my .22 rifle for a little hunting but i had only taken one squirrel from the area and I didn't expect to see much, of course i saw 3 big grays in the first 10 minutes of my little hike.... The area I went to was about 80 percent hardwoods with some pines here and there, no birch around so I didn't have that temptation to grab some bark to light my fire, I use birch quite a bit for my fires and I find it good to keep up on different methods for tinder. I didn't bring a axe with me because I find I never use one during a simple day hike so it was just my saw and a Puukko Ive been wanting to try out from River Bottom Blades.


My little area I cleaned up, I like to find a nice piece of old pine to lay on the ground to keep my knees dry and gives me a solid surface to work on.

The tools for the day my folding saw and the Puukko, Ive used a few fellow bushcrafters silky saws and i think one of those are definitely in my future. Maple my wood of choice for my split wood prep.

The first splitting action, I find splitting a piece in half and putting them together to split in to quarters really makes my prep go faster, something simple that saves some time.

                                                                      Well it splits!

                                             I cannot complain scandis make great Curls
                                      

Took a couple strikes to get the curls to go, I could have make scrapings but didn't, the spine threw great sparks

Time for lunch, I brought some Miso soup packets I was given by my friend Gary, its great lightweight trail food.

I needed a way to hang my Mors pot so I strung a ridge line high up between two trees where the heat wouldn't melt my cord, then I got to making a long pot hanger the way Jeffy Geer showed me (nothing ground breaking but quick). Started by making a X on both ends of my stick with the saw, ensure I left enough wood behind the cut to hold my pots weight.

                                     Then I carve out the cuts leaving a top V for the hook.

                                                        Then Your ready to cook

                                                                             Time to eat!

                                                       Thanks for looking! -Lain

Great Anorak From Common Folk Self Reliance

I have had the pleasure of camping with Jeffy Geer of Common Folk Self Reliance twice now and plan on many camps with him in the future, Jeffy has trained at Karamat Wilderness Ways with Mors Kochanski and although humble is a wealth of knowledge. At most of the camps I host I encourage trade blankets (there are rarley blankets involved but quite a few tarps with gear laid out on them). My past camp was The Huron Deep Freeze and Jeffy had brought two Anoraks that he and his wife Bridget  make. Ive always wanted to try a wool anorak but never could bring myself to pull the trigger on one and am ill equipped to make one of my own so this gave me a great chance to look at one. Well as soon as i put one on i was sold. Wool was soft and very thick and the stitching was expertly done.

The Anoraks features include Buttons on the cuff for tightening

A wonderful Deep front pouch. I see alot of Anoraks with a front pouch that doest drop down at all. Jeffy and Bridget's Anorak has plenty of "drop" to ensure items placed in the pouch stay in the pouch. I keep my thick wool gloves, My saw, a ferro rod and few odds and ends in the pouch and have plenty of room for more.

In the above picture you can see the antler toggle and tightening snap on the 550 cord that is used for all the tightening on the anorak. You can synch the hood, V-neck, and bottom of the Anorak to get a better fit and less exposure to the elements.

One of the best features of wool in my mind is its quiet no sound of synthetics rubbing against itself and your going to be hard pressed to find a better insulator thats as durable as wool.

I wore this Anorak for the Majority of the Deep freeze that temps stayed around 5 degrees during the day with a -15 degree wind chill and at night got down to -5. I wore this anorak with a thin long sleeve merino wool shirt and a synthetic base layer and i was never cold. I even slept in it and had to remove one of my sleeping bags because I was beginning to sweat. Ive worn this on a few day hikes since this winter and its holding up great, and I don't see any chance of it getting beat up anytime soon, rock solid construction. (oh and they make you look cool a very important factor when out in the woods with no one around)

As of right now Jeffy and Bridget are not taking any orders they both work full time and make these in their spare time. If your interested in getting one keep a eye out of Common folk Self Reliance's facebook page. Ill have more on this and how it holds up in the future thanks for looking!

                                                         -Lain  

Killinger Blades Prototype test

   Ive been lucky enough to have a few chats with Chris Killinger of Killinger Blades https://www.facebook.com/pages/Killinger-Blades/580085562015710 , while being a stand up guy and axe junkie he also makes some of the finest looking bushcraft blades around. Chris no longer takes orders, being he has a fulltime job and Military duties he must attend to, instead he makes blades he wants to make and then sells then via his facebook and Instagram.

Chris loves feedback on his blades as any good knifemaker should and doesnt shy away from constructive critisism so he sent me a prototype he had made so I could play with it for a few weeks and give him my thoughts on the blade. Now Ill say this again I am not a knife expert in anyway in either skill or knowledge but I have owned quite a few customs and production blades and USED them so I know what works for me and what works better.

My first Impressions of the knife was it was a little big for my tastes with a 5-1/4 inch blade and being 10-1/2 inch overall it just seemed like more than I need. I am also not a fan of pommels, I use to be, I use to drool over them because in my opinion they make knives look cool but after owning a few i just never seemed to actually use the pommel so it just added weight and discomfort during power cuts. Im not a real gram counter but hey if i don't use it then i don't need it. If you like pommels and use them then power to you! Just not my thing ive seen them used and they do in fact work.

I was surprised by how light the knife actually was with its dimesnions and 3/16 thick stock i thought it be a real pants puller. Chris did a excellent job Removing steel from the handle and then grinding this blade very thin, everytime I pick it up I expect it to be heavier.

The sheath is superb the only real gripes I have is the retention strap it a little tight but thats better then too loose and I could only carry it scout style while on my belt. I did find I could strap it to my pack sling and it worked very well.

                                                                  Performance

 Food prep: Did I mention this puppy was Ground thin? wow this by far is the best slicer I have ever used it didnt matter if it was a tomato, Cheese frozen at -5 or a chicken, the thin blade just sailed through it all. I want to keep it just to replace all my kitchen blades with!

Wood working : I didnt do alot of fire prep with this blade or carving its just too big for carving and I didnt get out enough to put it through too many fre preps but i did get to use it enough to know it will handle all your fire making needs I think even Chris was a little nervous at the thought of me beating on it being it is ground so thin but I had zero issues with the blade and I dont think I dulled the thing the entire time i had it, held a wonderful edge that i just maintained with a strop. The O1 devolped a good patina by the time i was finished with my testing.

 Even the Lady tried it out she seems to enjoy making curls and is always trying to out do me...

                                                                   Conclusion
Fit & Finish - Being a prototype I didnt expect Perfect fit and finish and I didnt get it, but it was still very good a few small gaps near the the blade on the handle as well as the pommel all filled well with epoxy. The very edge has one spot where the grind is off a bit but doesnt effect the function of the knife. No real problems.

Ergonomics- nice fat handle with a great "coke bottle" shape was very comfy but the blade shape and pommel made power cuts a bit of a pain but still doable. I think if it had a nice rounded butt i would really love it.

Design- I really like the design I think it looks great and it works but as I stated above I wish it was scaled down a bit maybe to a 4 inch blade and 4-1/2 - 5 inch handle with no pommel and it be alot more practical for my uses and id be in love.

Final Thoughts : I believe Chris is already working on 2 more prototypes for this design one a bit smaller and one the same size minus the pommel. If your a big knife guy you cant go wrong with one of these and if you just like the design then keep a eye on Chris's Instagram and Facebook for his smaller pattern that may be popping up sooner or later. Remember Chris doesn't do orders so keep a eye out for when he puts a blade up for sale and you wont be disappointed! 

                                 Thanks for looking everyone, hope you come back soon!
                                                                     - Lain

Custom Scandi Blade Shootout!

Well im a self proclaimed Convex Junkie but i have been giving scandis another whirl to keep it interesting, I was able to get ahold of a Alan Wood Nortrek, Adventure Sworn Classic, and a Griffith Knives Grifflore. The interesting factor was i was running a Alan Wood knife against two blades made from Alan's most popular design each with their own twists.

Left to Right :
Alan Wood Nortrek http://www.alanwoodknives.com ,
Adventure Sworn Classic http://www.adventuresworn.com/gear/,
Chris Griffith Grifflore https://www.facebook.com/CGCustomKnives


 First Impressions/Fit and finish

AW Nortrek:
The Nortrek has a very interesting look to it at first i didnt know if i loved it or just liked it and was curious how well it would actually workout, the extreme tapered tang really balances the blade well and and the Jigged Camel bone handles had enough grip but i was a little worried how well i would be able to handle it got wet. Nearly perfect fit and finish blade edge has a different Satin/mirror finish i hadnt really seen before, like Alan took it from a lower grit straight to the buffer.

AS Classic:
I really thought this was the best looking blade of the bunch, great choice of materials and well done as i come to expect from AS the extra large pommel looked great for power cuts, my hand did feel a little cramped on the handle which is smaller than the explorer and mountaineer blades i have owned.
Im no stranger to AS knives and their fit and finish in my experience has been as good as it gets, however this particular blade did have a few things that im not sure id call flaws but i thought were notable and in the interest of this being a honest review i feel i should note, about half a inch on both sides of the blade were the liner and steel meet there was a very small gap, this was filled well with epoxy and i have no doubt was perfectly fine but it was there and very hard to notice(not sure you can see them in any pics) unless you were looking for it. there also was a few natural cracks (that sounds bad but i couldnt think of a better word) in the snakewood that may or may not bother a person , it didn't bother me but it had to be mentioned. id give this a Great F&F mark (it is worth noting that all four of my other AS blades ive owned have had what i consider a perfect F&F

GC Grifflore:
The look of this blade really caught my eye and the continuous curvature really sold me on the looks of this one, the handle is plenty long felt great in all the grips and seemed the most comfortable of the three just handling out of the box. Chris hasnt been at the knife game for long but he is doing a great job so far in my opinion, he has a way to go with his F&F to catch up with AS or AW but he has plenty of time. the right handle had a gap from the steel i could slide a piece of newspaper in and the bolts weren't quite flush with the handle. grind was pretty well done i wouldnt say as crisp as the other two but very good in its own right, id rank this one right around Average when it come to F&F.

F&F
Winner: Nortrek
Runner Up: AS Classic

 I carried all of these knives for nearly the same amount of time they preformed basic camp tasks well, i then sat down and did some side by side comparisons

Carving/notching (cross battoning)

Nortrek:
I was really wowed by the comfort of this blade seems like Alan is really pushing the limits of his designs as far has handles, as different as it looks, its a crazy comfortable knife, It crosss battoned very well and carving the pot hook was easy and went quick. I maintained a good grip the entire time and my worries of a slick handle vanished.

 AS Classic

Cross Battoned super well, power cuts where very easy with the extra large pommel i really could get a great amount of leverage with it. i did find my hand felt cramped and seemed to get fatigued fairly quickly i feel i need another half inch on the handle to put it over the top.

 Grifflore
Another wonderful Cross Batoning knife i think scandi is well suited for it, the handle was comfortable in all my grips and the blade shape seem to really help with leverage as well. had too much fun with it!

 Winner: Nortrek, man i was really starting to like this puppy at this point i gave it the slight edge because it was equal in handle comfort with the grifflore but i felt it cross batoned slightly better i think because the curvature of the top of the blade focuses the force of the baton instead of glancing off or sliding done like it does in a conventional drop point or spear point blade.

Runner Up: Grifflore

 Split wood fire prep
All the blades threw gobs of sparks off a ferro rod so i just focused on the prep here. which i got more pics but the darn camera battery was all but dead so for the rest of the review i had take my shots when i could..

Nortrek:
No problem here battoned with the best of them and made feathers with easy, I also drove tip into smaller pieces to split the wood and the tip had zero damage

Classic:
Battoned very well the large pommel made driving the tip very easy, made feathers very well and the smaller handle didn't bother me while feathering

 Grifflore:
I think the severe drop may slightly hinder the battoning of this blade as the baton would glance more running down the severe drop it seemed like i needed a few more whacks than the first two blades. The curvature also made driving the tip a little more awkward but was fine once i got the knack for it.

 Winner: Nortrek/Classic couldnt really put one in front of the other here
runner up:The Grifflore was only slightly behind the other two and if i used it more i may have gotten more accustomed to the curvature.

Final Thoughts.. all the blades proved to have amazing HT they all shaved and easily dispatched newspaper after a thorough few days in the woods. All were easy to touch up as well even though they didnt even really need it... 

Nortrek:

Man i was really wowed by this blade and with only a 4 month wait apposed to 9 years for his woodlore this is a great blade and awesome option the was a reason Alan kept making knives after the Woodlore he continues to push the limits of a knife with his ideas and this handle really opened my eyes that perhaps the "coke bottle" may not be the ultimate in comfort quite yet.

AS Classic:
A great blade in its own right, and as beautiful a blade as you will find but me med sized hands were yearning for my AS Explorer handles during most my work with it.

 Grifflore:
Coming into this i saw it as a true underdog but it was a pleasant surprise and it can roll with the big boys and as for bang for your buck its a home run, you get one for the same price or cheaper than alot of semi production blades so my question is why own a expensive production blade when Chris Griffith is making knives???

 The Final Verdict?

1. Alan Wood Nortrek, home run comes to mind when i think about this blade sitting in my safe, super comfortable, a great looking and unique blade oh and Stainless, now im normally a carbon guy but this 12c27 is great and low maintenance sure is nice when the snow is on the ground and temps are above freezing (it is available in carbon).

Now i may get some heat from some guys here but i said this was a honest review, Id take the Grifflore at number 2 all day, the cramped handle on the classic is just too much for me to over come , is the classic far behind? No. but if i had to choose id take the Grifflore. Now those of you with smaller hands may have no issue but it was a deal breaker for me. I will say id take my AS Wayfarer and Explorer over all three of these knives but i have to have a healthy variety so the Nortrek is here to stay awhile!