Na Na Na, Na Na - it's the one and only Bushman's Blog

Na Na Na - Na Na, it's the one and only Bushman's Blog

Micro Adventure to Priest's Hole Cave, Patterdale

Despite spending many nights undertaking traditional woodland camping trips, endeavouring to hone my skills by using what nature provides to fulfil my needs, I have never really spend much time in the hills. with hindsight, which is always a wonderful thing; I really regret not adventuring out into the hills and open areas of our beautiful countryside, instead of sitting looking at maps trying to find woodlands to camp in, all the while feeling contempt because I feel that I should be able to spend time in these locations but the law of the land inhibits me. However, this is where hiking comes in. instead of not spending time in nature, disheartened by the prospect of not having a protected right to use woodlands close to me, I was invited to go on an overnight trip to the lake district and jumped at the opportunity. 

I will never forget the first morning, I packed a cheap 'hiking' backpack with the equipment that I would usually use for the woods. Until this trip, I had never done a multi-day trip into the hills, only sedentary woodland camps so weight has never really been a problem, as long as I could fit it in the bag on my back, of course. Having packed, I rushed out of my flat and into the car park to wait for Charlie and Jordan, I had met Charlie once before at a woodland camp meet up but this was the first time I had met Jordan. After directing them to the flat over the phone, because maps on the iPhone are awesome, I was given my first impression of what was to come; most people wisely state that first impressions are very important, you will never get a second chance to make one and they will often have great baring on one's perception of a person. I pride myself on being a fairly good judge of character, and as they both slowly creeped into the car park, blasting out The Next Episode by Dr Dre ft Snoop Dogg, I knew we were going to get on brilliantly. After a brief stop off for snacks, we were on our way to the mighty Lake District.

When you're running on fumes and the only thing keeping you going is stubbornness. Photo by Charles Norris.

Not long into the hike it became apparent that I wasn't in the best physical condition, which was made all the worse by the weight of the equipment that was brought with me. Little did I know that some of that equipment was going to prove invaluable later on. After walking for what seemed like an eternity, I was sure we were getting pretty close to the hill, and subsequently the cave, which meant the chance to relax, enjoy the surroundings and chat with friends. However, this was not the case; possible the steepest and most foreboding set of stairs lay in front of us and that was the only way up. After pit stop for water and trail mix embraced the obstacle wholeheartedly, and I must say it was one of the physically demanding things I had done to date considering my fitness and the weight I was carrying. getting to the top of the "thousand stairs" as I called them (an elder scrolls reference, I'm sure every Skyrim fan will get) was such an amazing feeling, I had overcome something that I was sure would break me, and sharing it two amazing people who willed me on every step of the way made it feel all the sweeter. Knowing that they were going through everything that I was maintained the attitude that if they could do it, why not me?

Part of the path up to Priest's Hole that stretches into eternity. photo by Author

However, this was not the end. in the same way that Frodo and Sam had made it into Mordor, yet still needed to climb Mount Doom, I still had the scramble and climb to the cave to contend with. Once we made our way towards to the mouth of the cave, there was an overwhelming feeling of accomplishment, as well as exhaustion, which quickly manifested itself into laughter when after presuming we would have the cave to ourselves, or perhaps one or two people, it was filled with a group of stoners, and a few couples. Without sounding too offensive, the main reason for my laughter was the sight of one of the ladies, who we would be sharing the cave with that night, who filled it rather comprehensively by herself. how on earth she managed to get up to the cave is beyond me, moreover, she didn't move from her double sleeping bag until the next day which we all found to be quite amusing.

Due to the overcrowding in the cave, and the only conceivable places to lie were at about a 45 degree angle on jagged rocks, we decided to camp just outside the mouth of the cave, beneath a cheap builder's tarp that I use for a ground sheet. Our lack of preparation for this potential outcome was staggering, only overshadowed by our ingenuity in engineering poles from our camera tripods and what little cordage we had as guy lines. The problem with this type of tarp, over ones of better quality is the volume produced by the rain as it hits it. I'm surprised anyone actually managed to get any sleep that night.

Jordan & Charlie sitting under the infamous 'builder's tarp' held up using camera tripods. photo by Author

By far, the best thing to happen on this trip was meeting Yonnie, a real old mountain goat of a man, who was an absolute god send on that hill top. Once we had our tarp set up he got a bottle of champagne out of his tiny day sack, along with a cafetiere, spicy sausages, buns and sauce. Enough for all of us up there. After having hotdogs and champagne and the other food we had for dinner, we sat on the hillside, swapping stories taking photographs and generally having a brilliant time.

Enjoying a morning brew outside Priest's Hole Cave

  After a fairly broken night's sleep we began the descent back to the car and a greasy breakfast in a local village, but as we approached the carpark, we bumped into the group of guys we met the night earlier, who were smoking some pretty exotic tobacco. While the majority of the looked half dead, probably because they didn't have such a good night sleep, one of them had a large tissue wrapped around his hand. As it turned out, his had gone to pick up a fist-full of bracken to put on their campfire and unfortunately lacerated his hand rather deeply. I have heard stories of people cutting themselves badly trying to collect bracken, most probably presume it would break easily like grass. This is not a mistake I plan on making myself any time soon, it looks rather painful.

I learnt a lot from this trip, one of the most important lessons was the importance of preparation. Despite the fact that almost all of my equipment was poorly suited to this sort of trip, being heavy and bulky, It was by chance that I decided to bring a tarp, which was ultimately the reason we were able to stay out that night, albeit rather noisily. Another lesson was an appreciation of small kindnesses, after reaching the cave (feeling half dead) Charlie got out a packet of pork pies for us. They were very gratefully received. Looking back on it now, we ate very well indeed that nights, perhaps that's why I have such happy memories of the trip, rather than focusing on how wrecked my legs were. There is no doubt in my mind that the people I met on this Micro Adventure, made the trip the success it was, spending time with people outdoors definitely brings them together.

Jordan, Myself & Charlie (Cavemen) on our way down from Dove Crag. Photo by Author.

It's definitely a place that I will be visiting again, and would definitely recommend it to anyone else looking for an adventure. Be sure to prepare for the worse, but as always hope for the best.

What are the most important lessons you have learnt while out adventuring?

why not leave a comment and let me know

WHY DO I DO IT?

 WHY DO I DO IT?

Several weeks ago now, I found myself watching a video by everyone’s favourite Officer of confectionery… the Sgt Fruitcake. I believe it was some sort of giveaway video, in which he asked a series of questions that resonated with me. Some of the most basic but interesting questions that could be asked of any outdoors person. The questions were simply; how did you get into Bushcraft? Why do you still do it? And where do you hope it will take you?’

The first question is a very interesting one. I have always had a fascination with the natural world, as well as history. It was a combination of these interest which led to my passion for archaeology. So much so that went on to complete a degree in it. However, it wasn’t long into these studies that I realised that my fascination wasn’t with the material remains of the human past, or the ‘stuff’ unearthed in the archaeological record, but rather our connection with the natural world through material culture. In other words, what the artefacts can tell us about the people who used them and more importantly, how they interacted with their natural world. A lot of this of course is inference, which is where the bushcraft comes in. In my eyes, there is precious little difference between an individual conducting an experimental archaeological investigation, and one practising bushcraft in relation to primitive skills and techniques. Along with many other outdoor enthusiasts, I owe my introduction to this great pursuit to one man; Ray Mears. I had the pleasure of attending a carving course at Woodlore with Ray in 2014, which was an experience I will never forget. I have never been so star struck in my life. But that’s a story for another article.

Attending the Woodlore Carving Masterclass with Ray Mears, August 2014. photo by Author.

As for the second question of ‘why do you still so it?’ this is probably the hardest question of the bunch. Simply put, I don’t know why I carry on studying bushcraft; I suppose a fitting metaphor would be that the years of reading, watching videos and practising skills has enabled me to place my foot on the first rung of the bushcraft ladder. The acquisition of skills, knowledge and equipment (or as I describe them, the bushcraft trinity) is merely scratching the surface, the application of these things is the real endeavour. Once you feel comfortable staying outdoors and have the sufficient skills and knowledge of an area, spending time outdoors for multiple days becomes a pleasure as you feel quite at home there. I find it’s generally the fear of the unknown that puts most people off, or the thought of all the stuff you need to bring with you, but as the old bushcraft adage says; the more you know, the less you carry.

One of the main reasons I am dragged back outdoors is to spend time in beautiful locations with fellow outdoor enthusiasts. I have had the pleasure of meeting a lot of like minded, brilliant people that I have come to call friends  over the years. we are all very difference, but we all share an appreciation of the natural world, which is what brings us together. It’s a very long road when its walked alone, tamer is the road travelled with friends.

Some of the people that Bushcraft has introduced me to 
(from top left - bottom right; Brian, Jack, Peter, Charlie and Myself. photo by Author.

The third question is probably my favourite, ‘where do you hope it will take you?’ this question is particularly important as it allows you to add a degree of tangibility and focus to your learning. It is very important to have achievable and measurable goals set out. This is something I have always done. My very first goal in bushcraft was to be able to light and maintain a fire. The latter being the most crucial skill to develop. Most will be able to light a fire, but nurturing the flame into an established fire can sometimes be a challenge; especially when beginning. However, mollycoddling a fire can often hinder its development, so a certain milieu is required to optimise the fire. The same can also be said with the development of people, but now I’m getting really off-topic. Point being that learning to grow a fire and maintain it, without getting out of hand was a real goal and something I am always experimenting with. My current goals are fairly simple, I want to be able to undertake a long trip (a week or more) using minimal equipment. There’s one trip in particular that is close to my heart. This would be a canoe expedition in Sweden. In recent months, a have started to learn the basics of paddling from my friend Brian and immediately took a fondness to it. As you can tell by my face, I love being out on the water. Another goal for the coming year would be to make more effort to document trips, if only as a learning experience allowing me to review the trip critically and try to improve my practises in whatever way possible.

First time paddling a canoe and it was in a storm. Photo by Brian Trubshaw.

To summarise, this has been a very concise article outlining what drew me to studying Bushcraft, what keeps me studying it, and where I hope my studies will take me in the future. regardless of what your ability is, or what your goals are, the most important and ultimately valuable thing one can do increase understanding and kinship with the natural world is to spend more time in it.

Keep up the love for nature, and never stop learning.

What are your answers to these questions? let me know in the comment box below...