Define Bushcraft!!

[AdrianRose]

Hi folks.

Hope that you are all well.
I've been lucky enough to be asked to do a another radio interview for the BBC and demonstration tomorrow all about bushcraft and specifically wild food foraging.

As part of the interview I'm going to be asked what bushcraft is, now I've given this plenty of thought and I've come up with an answer/definition that I'm happy with, but it got me thinking.

"what would YOUR definition of Bushcraft be" in just one paragraph.

Ive seen the Wikipedia definition so don't go copying and pasting it here you naughty boys!

:) looking forward to your answers

All the best

Ade.

[CanadianMike]

Am wondering it myself! Lol, to me it's rather just lightweight camping on a budget, with emphasis on skills rather than fancy gear. Except for Martin....... and no plaid slippers involved either. :)

[Marvell]

To me ...

Bushcraft is the enjoyment of the outdoors with minimal impact using largely traditional skills which have been replaced by technology or become lost in the general populous. Many prefer to use nature fibres and hand made tools, whilst others enjoy the same experiences with army surplus or modern camping gear. Adherence to a code is not required, though some believe that Ray Mears describes "the one true way" and there are others who consider their way more pure and frown on those who use more contemporary equipment. Though there is considerable crossover with survival skills, the goal is the antithesis; being one of purposefully going forth in to nature and embracing it rather than being stuck out there and trying to get back. Bushcraft is largely defined in terms and boundaries by its practitioners, but is consistently a placid pursuit and when practiced in groups, there is a consistent ethos of social inclusion and knowledge sharing. Bushcrafters come from many walks of life and have varied levels of experience, but share a consistent love of nature whilst maintaining a personal adherence to their own methods and beliefs.

[CanadianMike]

Nicely said!

[Humakt]

Yeah, what Marvell said.
Though you may want to reduce it to just his first sentence for the purpose of a radio soundbite.

[JonnyP]

Crafting in the bush..

[JEEP]

Bushcraft is relying on ancestorial knowledge and skills, instead of modern gear and gadgets, when immersing yourself into The Nature.

[Ashley Cawley]

I wrote an article about this years ago @ http://www.naturalbushcraft.co.uk/wilderness-skills/what-is-bushcraft.html

In it I said: "For me Bushcraft is about learning to become comfortable in the outdoors, learning to live within nature, using it's resources in a sustainable maner, always striving to learn more about flora, fauna & wilderness skills, for knowledge is the most important tool, it weighs nothing and gives you the ability to not only survive but flourish."

Hope your interview goes well Ade.

[TinkyPete]

Marvell and Ash put it very well.

For me:

Bishcraft is going into nature to live and work in all its environments. Working with nature and its seasons to be comfortable in it and with use of skills that conform rather than destroy the environment. Learning more of nature and her surroundings, using skills many of which are now in decline or lost to try and find ways to relearn or learn how they interlink with me and nature.

[Kernowek Scouser]

I think if anyone came up with a definitive list of what Bushcraft is AND a reasonable amount of other people agreed with the list, I'd be lucky to tick two, maybe three boxes out of ten.

I can carve a spoon, I can light a fire, I could make water reasonably safe to drink and I could probably build a shelter, but I would be buggered when it cam to finding food.

I am a hiking backpacker with a couple of outdoor skills, whether this also qualifies me as a (basic level) bushcrafter, I don't know.

So I'm going to give you the Switzerland answer, Bushcraft is whatever you want it to be.

For me, what I do, whether it be bushcraft or not, is about all enjoying the outdoors, without f@*king up the outdoors, for others to enjoy after you.

You didn't want a helpful answer did you :D

[FishyFolk]

I think if anyone came up with a definitive list of what Bushcraft is AND a reasonable amount of other people agreed with the list, I'd be lucky to tick two, maybe three boxes out of ten.

I can carve a spoon, I can light a fire, I could make water reasonably safe to drink and I could probably build a shelter, but I would be buggered when it cam to finding food.

I am a hiking backpacker with a couple of outdoor skills, whether this also qualifies me as a (basic level) bushcrafter, I don't know.

So I'm going to give you the Switzerland answer, Bushcraft is whatever you want it to be.

For me, what I do, whether it be bushcraft or not, is about all enjoying the outdoors, without f@*king up the outdoors, for others to enjoy after you.

You didn't want a helpful answer did you :D

What the Scouser said...except I can find food. Provided I have something to fish with, or a gun, or it's autumn with berries about.

[biker-bri]

It should be -" being at one with nature " it doesn't matter if you use expensive gear to be comfortable when outdoors, so long as you respect where you are.
My outdoor skill's are limited, so I rely on whatever other skill's I have learned and the tools that I already have. Adapt and survive

[FishyFolk]

It should be -" being at one with nature " it doesn't matter if you use expensive gear to be comfortable when outdoors, so long as you respect where you are.
My outdoor skill's are limited, so I rely on whatever other skill's I have learned and the tools that I already have. Adapt and survive

Perhaps it should be the ability to be comfortable in Nature with the tools you have at your disposal while making the least impact on the same nature depending on circumstances. In a survival situation I won't give rats hind quarters for nature, and will use gasoline to start a fire even if it burns down the forest if it mean rescue if I have gasoline at my disposal. If camping for leasure i will do anything I can to ensure i make as little a footprint as I can while harvesting in a sustainable way.

[biker-bri]

Perhaps it should be the ability to be comfortable in Nature with the tools you have at your disposal while making the least impact on the same nature depending on circumstances. In a survival situation I won't give rats hind quarters for nature, and will use gasoline to start a fire even if it burns down the forest if it mean rescue if I have gasoline at my disposal. If camping for leasure i will do anything I can to ensure i make as little a footprint as I can while harvesting in a sustainable way.

Totally agree I can't say more than that.

[luresalive]

It's an amalgamation of ancient and modern skills that enable us to live comfortably in a wilderness situation with nature being our guide and our goal...


But whatever way you put it mate, I'm sure you did us all proud.

[AdrianRose]

Thank you all so much for your definitions of Bushcraft.

I think that this for me is the true wonderment of what we do, the fact that there is no one true definition. The reality of it is that we have differing definitions because we all have differing needs, reasons, hopes, wants, interests and expectations of when we go out.

For some it's the ability to sit rich in the knowledge that we can start a fire, for others it's the ability to track an animal or carve a spoon and for some it's a little bit of everything.

As for my definition, it's simple. I, like most people are bound by twenty first century rules, jobs, mortgages and constraints. I wake in a morning, take a sharp breath in and run around all day caring for my daughter, going to work, juggling our finances etc etc

My definition of Bushcraft is that it is the place where I can exhale.

Ade

[Silverback]

My definition of Bushcraft is that it is the place where I can exhale.



Very eloquently put.......I agreed 100%

[Tony1948]

Right on Ade,in total agreement,plus wot the others said.:rock-on:

[HillBill]

Bushcraft is practical working knowledge of nature.

[Oakenwise]

I go by Ray Mears' definition. For me, Bushcraft isn't just "camping out in the wilderness using traditional methods". It's the culmination of the many thousands of years our ancestors had to hone their skills and make a living in whatever environment they found themselves. But that's just the survival aspect of Bushcraft. I think that Bushcraft's most important role is to enable those who feel a powerful connection with nature to live off the land and see it for all it's worth.

Oh and I totally disagree with FishyFolk. Nature is something to be both revered and preserved to the highest degree, even in a survival situation.

[FishyFolk]

Oh and I totally disagree with FishyFolk. Nature is something to be both revered and preserved to the highest degree, even in a survival situation.

Everyone is entitled to an oppinion. But if nature tries to kill me, I'll fight back...I'll rather revere it once I am no longer, or as long as I am not in mortal danger...and I was talking an extreme situation where all other options of affecting rescue was out...