International Rewilding Discussion Forum

Sewing leather on a sewing machine? Sacrilege!
Get ya some awls and glover's needles, nylon thread, artificial sinew or real sinew and you'll be set. Stitching awls give a nice saddle-stitch that looks similar to sewing machine stitches if that's the look you are going after.

Been gorging on as many Saskatoons as I can eat for the past 2 weeks, there are tons of bushes around my campsite loaded with 'em.  With little to no competition from animals or other humans, I've almost thought of setting up a little stand and selling them by the bucketful, but I'd rather eat them and share them with the family.

That's a beautiful tree. I remember walking by some in the dry savanna outside of Okahandja, Namibia and being intoxicated by their lovely scent , I love that smell!

Filipino hunter backpack; This is probably the coolest backpack I've ever seen:

http://jeffwerner.ca/2007/07/ifugao_hunter_backpack.html

I find it interesting how people can adapt to totally different environments than what they were brought up in.

I was raised on the sunny Canadian steppes (Saskatchewan) which are about as cold as the arctic in the winter but fairly warm in the short summers. Over the past few years I have come to prefer the subtropical hot desert.
I don't like rainy forested places, nice places to visit for the short-term but I need the dry arid open spaces and hills and the hot life-giving sun.

Good topic BlueHeron, this is something I have given a lot of thought and money towards, seeking out a landbase and learning which places are more conducive to gaining the majority of your food from the land and which aren't as practical for that way of life.

In a landbase, I look for:

-A warm to hot climate, preferably arid or semi-arid.

-Plentiful fruit trees for seasonal food supply and the possibility to grow vegetables.

-Wild meat supply so that birds or deer or fish can be obtained for food supply.

-Potable water from springs or streams, rivers or otherwise some fast-moving water source.

-A low density in population


Some of my observations regarding some areas are:

NW Arabia: From several trips living in the north-west Arabian peninsula and engaging in experimental living in the area, I have come to the conclusion that it has been too devastated ecologically for a practical approach to gaining the majority of one's food from that landbase. This conclusion has been reached through trial and error going out hunting on the land, travelling with pack animals on the land and seeking out wild plants and water sources on the land.

Practically speaking, the combination of overgrazing (mostly by goats and sheep- as camels tend to be rotated to new pastures more in terms of grazing), an increasing sedentary population, and in some places drought conditions have reduced the number of acacia and other trees to practically none in many areas, as well as the lack of rain reducing the number of wild edible plants and grazing plants available to both pack animals and wild ungulates (also affected by decades of over-hunting) and other game. The oases contain fruit trees and more plentiful water so they are not as affected by drought conditions compared to the surrounding desert but most of the wild ungulates and other mammals have either moved on to areas not affected by drought or survive in pockets here and there in greatly reduced numbers.

Namibia: This area contains a large number of wild ungulates and other species of game, probably the greatest density I have seen compared to all other areas, yet much of the land is fenced and the social situation is rather complicated due to apartheid and colonialism which tends to keep the races separate. There are also many wild birds and smaller game in the area. The coast is full of fish as well. There are not many fruit trees in most of Namibia, much of the fruit comes from South Africa or closer to the border near Botswana where a delicious wild citrus fruit called limon grows, so in that respect the area is lacking in edible flora while it will be many decades before there is a reduction in the vast numbers of wild game. The only other issue would be water, and most of the Namib desert does not contain surface water whereas the neighbouring savanna has many wells and riparian areas closer to rivers assure more of a reliable potable water source.

Mexico: A few trips to Baja have been the most productive in terms of gaining sustenance from the land compared to other places (although I have done more hunting for game  in NW Arabia). There are plentiful fruit trees in Baja to assure a reliable seasonal food supply and if dried or otherwise preserved, a year round food supply. There is a low population density, and also many wild plants to utilize for food including prickly pear, agaves and mesquite, as well as oaks and more temperate wild plants in the sierras. There are also fish in the middle of the desert (I seen one large black one that must have been 30 inches long in San Ignacio and many smaller sized ones)  in pools fed from springs as well as one of the richest coasts on the planet where seafood is plentiful. There are vast amounts of quail and other game birds in the desert as well as deer in the more rugged areas and in the sierras. Plenty of rattlesnakes and other small game as well. Water wise there are scattered springs and intermittent streams in a few locations.

I’d be interested to hear what other people look for in a landbase and what their observations have been.

Well said, Silverarrow.

I have no experience hunting with the blowgun, but I would imagine that if you could get close enough and get a head or neck shot in it would work. The power is certainly there, and if the dart is solid enough (the fletching and broadhead attached securely enough not to fall off mid-flight or when it hits the target)  it's only accuracy and wind that would need to be taken into consideration.

I wouldn't go any less than 8-9 feet for blowgun length to get maximum velocity out of the blowgun and to stabilize your aim, many of those rainforest tribes use 16-20 foot lengths from what I have heard but I wouldn't try that with metal pipe as it would be too unwieldy.

From what I understand blowguns are best used at ranges of less than 20-30 feet and the one I made I wouldn't have used at longer ranges than that as I wouldn't be able to maintain accuracy beyond that range...Not to mention that wind easily affects the accuracy of those light darts as well. perhaps a slingshot with small buckshot or ball bearings would work better than the blowgun. If the goose was moving around that much I wouldn't even attempt it with the blowgun, a bola or something would probably be better for flying waterfowl...