Author: BCS Ltd

Snow on the Hills!

Posted on September 24, 2018 by - Uncategorised

It’s that time of the year!  Anyone spending time on the mountains should be thinking about packing the following;

  • Crampons
  • Ice Axe
  • Spare winter warm clothing
  • Head Torches + Spare batteries (All year round)
  • Group shelter
  • Orange Survival bag + Foil Blanket
  • Back-up GPS

As well as extra equipment please make sure you know how to;

  • Use your Ice axe and crampons effectively
  • Your map and compass work is on point
  • Check out what the weather is doing (MWIS)
  • Check out what the avalanche hazard is (SAIS)
  • You’ve worked out a safe line of travel, taking into account all of the above as well as taking into account your own personal skill set (honestly!) This can be done by studying your maps prior to leaving home.
  • Always leave a route card and/or tell someone of your intentions and what time you will be back.

If you’re struggling with any of the above then why not join us on one of our winter courses? We don’t just concentrate on Survival techniques for when things go wrong, but look at prevention rather than cure!

If you’ve been on one of our courses before, summer/winter/exped the we are offering 15% off your winter courses this 18/19 season…..bargain!

BCS 10 Year Anniversary Birthday Bash

Posted on September 20, 2018 by - Uncategorised

BCS would like to invite previous clients and associates to our 10 year anniversary party on the 22nd and 23rd of March 2019.  The event will be held at a remote Bothy in the highlands that sleeps 20, first come first served. Anyone booking after the first 20 will have to bring tents.

The event is a laid back affair and BCS instructors will not be working. Please get in contact with us if you are interested.

This event is FREE. Please bring food/drink.

The Real Survival Experience

Posted on September 18, 2018 by - Uncategorised

A short videos sent in from one of our clients on the morning of day 2 of our multi-environment Survival course.  Want authenticity when you book on with a Survival company?  All our instructors have years of experience and come from a mixed background of civilian and military, to give you the most realistic and up to date information/experience money can buy.

Here’s what some of clients said about the 3 day course from this weekend;

It was a real pleasure to meet you and work with you all over those few long days last weekend. Many thanks to Neil and Grumps for the superb instruction and patience along the way. For me, the course hit the donkey on the nose and I will continue to practise the skills that we were taught, back home. Corrin

Hi team I can only reiterate what everyone else has said, good team led by fantastic instructors, throughly enjoyed my weekend & learnt lots of new skills, watch this space for example pics!  Loving the photos as did not take many. All the very best for the future team Mark

Dear all, I also arrived home and my dog went crazy, it seems that I still have the survival smell on me. It was a wonderful time and, even with a bad memory, I will not and won’t forget this! In three days we really bonded and I miss all of you. I keep on thinking back to all of you and your specialties. Niel and Graham, thank you very much for an excellent course. Niel with your expertise on everything and Graham  with the sheep stories (although I didn’t understand much of your English, I enjoyed your great sence of humor). Mark with the great building drive and other Mark from Edinborough with your great social skills. Greg with your enthusiasm and the bright look at life, Corrin with your surplus of nice army stories and all those jokes, Anna with your special remarks ” fire?, it’s useless!”, Jelmer with your drive to go on and enthusiasm (I love you😊). Again it was an amazing experience, I will also send some pictures and feel free to use them where ever you want👍🏻. All the best and regards, Dirk.

Same here guys. Just completed our trip from the Highlands to the lowlands. It was a very special trip for me with  special people. I wont forget this for a very very long time, unless i get lymes ofcourse😉 But even then, fuck it, it was well worth it. Thanks again guys, all of you Jelmer

Wow! Great pictures!! Thanks a lot guys. Especially for the really amazing time we had. These three days felt like a lifetime and I already miss to be out in the nature with all of you. Take care and maybe life let us cross our paths again! Anna

Hi all, firstly thanks all for a fantastic time, an experience I’ll never forget. Neil and Graham you were top lads and what u both know about the survival subject is unbelievable 🙂
I don’t think I could have been stuck in the wilderness with 8 nicer people so again folks thanks for making it the experience it was. Greig

 

BCS on tour. Fjallraven shop training Southern.

Posted on September 11, 2018 by - Uncategorised

Once again a big thankyou to all the shops that turned out to our first Southern training course for Fjallraven; Cotsolds, Tisos, Trekkit, Elis Brigin, Bushcraft Store, Taunton leisure, Crib Goch and Trailblazer Outdoor.  We have been running courses aimed at shop employees distributing Fjallraven for 4 years now, and in our eyes this is the best way to train up individuals that are being asked the question by customers. So what do the attendees learn?

Similar to our Multi-environment courses we cover;

  • Clothing choices and which materials to use in which environments

  • Pitching tents in a wild camping setting

  • Use of a range of stoves, from gas to petrol

  • Location lessons, including what type of equipment they should be selling to their clients; whistles, survival bags, PLB, foil blankets

  • Game preperation

  • Navigation skills including map and compass and GPS

If we can help your establishment with outdoor, clothing or equipment training then please get in contact with us.

First evolution of the LSI begins

Posted on August 26, 2018 by - Uncategorised

Well done to all attendees on the first module of the LSI (Land-based survival instructor) the award is an independently accredited qualification, through the Institute of outdoor learning, run by BCS and our partners, to ensure quality in the Survival industry. Quick video of @buzzstewart24 during a fire lighting demo. We are taking on candidates for next year and anyone interested in becoming a Survival instructor should get in contact either via BCS or the LSI website. For more info click HERE

Foraging Courses

Posted on August 21, 2018 by - Aquisition/Food, Uncategorised

It’s that time of the year again!  Autumn in our view is the most exciting season when it comes to wild foragables.  The berries are all on the go and the Fungi are popping up here and there, and as folk who spend the majority of the time outdoors, it’s this seasonal shift that is as noticeable as the change in temperature.

It’s these shifts that our ancestors would come to know and more importantly rely on, as they lived in a more symbiotic way with the land than us.  Spending a day out finding food for free and learning new species of fungi that can be eaten (and more importantly not eaten) definitely makes you think that you’re doing what people have done for millennia.

We are practioners of Survival, and as you may well know, the aim of the game in Survival is to get yourself rescued within the 72 hour window, which automatically negates the need for food.  However missing the 72 hour window of rescue will mean having to do your best to hunt and gather what can be found around you.  This ties in nicely with the Survival Pyramid, which states that in hierarchy “Will to live” is the most important, followed by “knowledge” and last of all “kit”.  It’s the Knowledge part of the triangle that is important when foraging.

With plants, fungi, berries, roots etc, there’s no tidy trick to remember what’s edible and what will kill you.  The emphasis is very much on you to get out there with a field guide and start the journey of collating a list of foods that you could live off should the worst happen……..and it’s not that difficult.  BCS have a number of courses running over the autumn that can help you if you get stuck, or can act as a basis to build from.

But if we’re honest (and it doesn’t make good business sense to say this)  There’s a huge amount of satisfaction attached to getting out there yourself, so that’s what we’d recommend to begin with.  But remember never eat something you’re not 110% sure you can identify as safe to eat, and if you get stuck…….give us a shout!

 

New Filming Project

Posted on August 11, 2018 by - location

We’re getting pretty excited about our new filming project in collaboration with the guys over at SumoSurvival.  Each episode will be dedicated to Debunking some of the Survival myths that we all accept as being true, whilst at the same time confirming some of the more unbelievable ones.

The Series “Pseudo Survival” will be available on YouTube, as well as being posted up on our website and social media.

The first episode will be all about the Survival/mountain whistle and it’s effectiveness and range in a number of scenario’s.  We’ll be testing everything as accurately and scientifically as possible to give you, the viewer, the most accurate information we can, to be able to make your choices on equipment and techniques safetly.

We’ve got a long list on what we think we should be filming, but if you’ve ever wondered about techniques that you quite frankly thought were BS, then leave us a comment below or send an email to info@backcountrysurvival.co.uk.

As soon as the first episode comes out we’ll let you know!

30% off Expedition Skills Courses

Posted on July 20, 2018 by - Uncategorised

We’ve got a few places left on our Mountain and wild camping 3 Day Expedition course.  Usually this course comes in at £360, we’re giving it away for £250. Still not convinced? Read a trip report from one of our clients that attended last year.. Here

Contact us direct for booking information. Offer Valid until 01/08/18 or until full.

Survival Science: Potassium Permanganate and Vape fluid

Posted on July 13, 2018 by - Aquisition/Water, Fire, location, Medical, Uncategorised

Potassium Permanaganate (KMnO4) is one of the best Survival chemicals you can carry about with you. It has the following uses;

  1. Water Purification – Add enough crystals to turn your water a light pink colour. Leave the water for 15-30 minutes and it’s good to go.
  2. Medical – Pot Per has an extensive range when it comes to sterilization of such ailments as fungal infections, open wounds and tropical ulcers.  It is featured on the WHO model list of essential medicines. When using as a disinfectant drop enough crystals into the water to turn it a deep purple, then apply to infected area.
  3. Fire Lighting – Pot Per is an oxidizing agent, which means it attracts electrons.  When mixed with anything highly calorific such as Anti-freeze, Break fluid, sugar or Glycerol you get ignition (see video above)
  4. Location – The crystals are a very deep Purple colour, this has a highly effective contrast against the white of snow. Sprinkle liberally into an inverted V, approximately 15×3 ft in size, the pot per will then “bloom” massively.

So where do you get it from?  You can buy Potassium Permanaganate online in places such as vet suppliers, ebay and laboratory chemical vendors for  as little as £15.00 for 500g. If you’re sensible with it, this amount will last a life time!

Which woods for friction fire?

Posted on July 10, 2018 by - Fire

Bushcraft and Wilderness Survival Courses in Scotland

In this blog we will be dealing with wood choice, identification and selection for friction fire.  Friction-fire technique will be covered in the next blog.

 

 

As the season progresses we as instructors are asked many questions by clients on our courses.  Perhaps the biggest “inspiration” for blog posts are these questions, especially if they are asked continually.  Due to time constraints on some of our shorter Survival courses techniques such as making hand or bow-drills from scratch are not possible, and to be honest our thoughts on friction fire are somewhat “double edged”.

Generally the attendees on our courses are on the spectrum from complete novices to reasonably experienced outdoors people, every now and then we’ll get someone that is very much skilled-up and want to progress further. For the average person booking on a single multi-day course the likelihood of mastering friction fire is slim, by mastering I mean being able to source the correct woods, making sure they’re properly seasoned, fashion them into their constituent parts and finally getting the technique down to a tee. For this reason and given the level of clientele’s basic skills, we always feel that the realistic foundations should be addressed before leaping into the intricacy’s of friction-fire. To put it simply, we’d rather see everyone leave our courses and be able to start a fire with a lighter/fire-steel, and safely/consistently maintain said fire.

 

 

Q. Is Friction-fire a realistic way to get a fire going in the wild?

A. Yes and No! As experienced outdoors folk and instructors, every member of the BCS team is capable of heading out into a woodland environment, Identifying the appropriate tree’s, choosing the appropriate standing dead wood and fashioning them into a hand/bow drill set. Now ask the same instructor to do this same exercise in the torrential rain, or in a purely soft wood forest. The answer is going to be very different, probably a No!

In our opinion, friction fire has too many variables to be 100% successful, 100% of the time, compared to a ferrous rod. As an amateur or semi-skilled person, even being put in the same environment where success is almost guaranteed, there’s an overwhelming chance that they’ll fail.  Having said this, the more you practice and bring your own skill set up, the higher the chances of success in a favourable environment……more tools in your tool box!

Remember; From an Anthropological point of view, friction fire was used as a traditional living skill, whereby the friction fire sets that were used were kept in an indoor setting, or kept dry 100% of the time or dried/seasoned prior to use.

Choosing your woods

Q. What am I looking for when selecting wood for a friction fire?

A. As the old saying goes; Fail to prepare, prepare to fail!  We’ve included a table below to give you an idea of what woods should be used in combination if you’re just starting off, however just as important as your combinations is the “state” of the wood.  By “state” we mean how old or seasoned is it? there are two main considerations when choosing seasoned wood for your friction fire set;

  • If the wood is green then you’re on a hiding to nowhere.  Any piece of wood that’s green means it’s still alive, like all organisms, if the woods alive it needs moisture to survive, as we all know moisture will put a fire out. As you can see in the close up picture below, cut into the inner wood, if you see any green then it’s no good. Discard it or keep it in a dry place for next year. Note – Woods such as Hazel & Ivy will give you an ember when slightly green, although this is unusual for other woods.

The wood on the left has been cut as a hearth board for a bowdrill set.  You can see the green tinge to it if you zoom in. This piece has a good 6 months worth of seasoning to go until it is ready to be used.  Note; If you are unsure of the age/condition of the wood, then place it against your lips, you will be able to easily feel any moisture as supposed to your finger tips that aren’t as sensitive.

 

 

 

 

 

Another good signifier that your wood is not seasoned/too wet is to begin spinning the spindle against the board .  If you look closely you will notice that the shards of punk wood being deposited are “sausaging”.  This is to say they are long thin strips of wood coming off either the spindle and/or board.  This is the classic sign that either the spindle or board are not seasoned, and to try and get an ember from this set will not be impossible but will take a ridiculous amount of work.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  • If the wood is starting to rot or turn into “punk wood” then it’s no good, you need good solid seasoned wood which turns into a fine dust for friction fire to work.  When you cut into the wood if it’s got streaks of dark grey/blue then it’s starting to rot.  Similarly if the wood is crumbly or fibrous its past its best.

Of course you can select and cut the wood you need green, then keep it in your house or shed ready for future use.  To give you a rough idea it takes 1 – 1.5 years to season wood for friction fire (7% moisture content), however in a “survival” scenario you won’t have this luxury, so identifying “standing dead wood” still on the tree is a great skill.  A top tip for this during the spring/summer is to look for the branches that don’t have any leaves on them, as they will be dead.

The opposite piece of wood is in optimum condition for friction fire.  The wood is a pale, smooth and “creamy” texture to it.  When placed against the lips you can feel it is bone dry, and as discussed above has no grey fletchings signifying it is not “past it’s best.

 

 

 

 

 

 

When a spinndle is spun against the board the dust is coming off in a fine brown/black dust.  This is a signifier that both spinndle and board are in ideal condition.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Below is a table of combinations for the Bow Drill friction fire, the Bow drill is used as it’s the most likely technique used by beginners. Please be aware that this is our personal findings, and various species of woods, environment and individual user will all have a bearing on a successful outcome. The following gradings have been given for success rates;

Excellent – >90% first time success with very little effort/technique.

Average – <100% Success with moderate output. Good technique used

Poor – <60% Success. High physical output needed. Good technique used

Note-  The above percentages have been given for “standing dead” wood.

[table id=2 /]

Q Should you use a hard wood spindle on a soft wood board?

A. This question is always hotly debated! Mears/Kochanski have always written and taught the hard on soft rule, and if you look at the combos above the mix’s with the ‘Excellent’ rating against them are all Deciduous woods with a harder spindle on a softer wood board……with the exception of Hazel on Douglas Fir.  Having said that, at the time of writing this blog, my favourite combo is Ivy on Ivy. To put it in a nut shell, if you’re just starting out, try and keep to the hard on soft rule, as you’re likely to have better luck.  Just try and remember that all broad leave tree’s are hard woods and all coniferous woods are Soft woods, having said this some hard woods are softer than other hard woods……It’s up to you to get to know the different qualities of woods.

 

 

 

 

 

 

10 Amazing Facts about Mushrooms

Posted on June 29, 2018 by - Uncategorised

Getting psyced for the mushroom season here at BCS! Please be aware that there’s no rule of thumb when coming to identification of Fungi.  Make sure you pick them with someone that know what they’re doing, and take a good field guide with you. Field guides that we use are the Collins Mushroom I.D and Richard Maybe’s “Food for free”.

It’s easy to poison yourself with Fungi, as there are many dopplegangers/look-a-likes out there.  It’s also worth remembering that the calorific value of Mushrooms in a survival context is very low. 90% of the flesh of fungi is water, so in a real life scenario you are better avoiding them for the small calorific return you’ll get rather than run the risk of poisoning.

It’s also worth learning how to take a “spore print”.

 

Here’s a few amazing #mycology facts.

 

1. Mushrooms are genetically closer to humans than #plants, having went their own #genetic way 1300 million years ago.
2.Fungi breath #oxygen and exhale #co2
3. More than 80% of the #earth under your feet is mycelium.
4. The mushroom is the tip of the iceberg, and is the fruiting body of the #mycelium. The fruiting body makes up less than 5% of the organism.
5. The largest organism on the #planet is a #honeyfungus which is 2.4 miles across!
6.The hardest #natural material in nature is #Sporopollenin which the mushrooms spores are made of.
7. Mushrooms spores can #survive the vacuum and #radiation of space.
8. Death Cap (Amanita phalloides) is one of the most #deadliestorganisms on earth. They contain #amatoxin, once ingested you’ve got no hope of recovery ????
9.#psilocybin mushrooms (magic mushrooms) are being researched by #johnhopkinsuniversity to treat #depression #addiction and many other #psychological problems.
10. Mushrooms taste good, and are #free !

Final place for 2018 – Land Based Survival Instructor

Posted on June 27, 2018 by - Uncategorised

We have 1 place left out of 8 on our Land-based Survival Instructor Award (independently accredited by the IOL) starting this August and running for 12 months. The award modules are taking place in N.Scotland, S.England, N.Wales and NW. England. If you want to work within the industry or personally want to get skilled up then send us an email or visit https://www.landsurvival.co.uk/ #survival #bushcraft #Leader

SumoSurvival #118 Weather forecasting

Posted on June 26, 2018 by - Navigation, Uncategorised

Thanks to Si and our friends Sumo Survival for having us on episode 118 of their podcast. Neil gobs off for half an hour on #synoptics #weather fronts and #cloud formations!

http://www.sumosurvival.com/episode-118-weather-forecastin…/

For those of you that are looking for the Synoptic resource you can find the link here – https://www.backcountrysurvival.co.uk/2018/04/17/synoptic-resource/

Which woods for friction fire?

Posted on June 19, 2018 by - Fire

Bushcraft and Wilderness Survival Courses in Scotland

In this blog we will be dealing with wood choice, identification and selection for friction fire.  Friction-fire technique will be covered in the next blog.

 

As the season progresses we as instructors are asked many questions by clients on our courses.  Perhaps the biggest “inspiration” for blog posts are these questions, especially if they are asked continually.  Due to time constraints on some of our shorter Survival courses techniques such as making hand or bow-drills from scratch are not possible, and to be honest our thoughts on friction fire are somewhat “double edged”.

Generally the attendees on our courses are on the spectrum from complete novices to reasonably experienced outdoors people, every now and then we’ll get someone that is very much skilled-up and want to progress further. For the average person booking on a single multi-day course the likelihood of mastering friction fire is slim, by mastering I mean being able to source the correct woods, making sure they’re properly seasoned, fashion them into their constituent parts and finally getting the technique down to a tee. For this reason and given the level of clientele’s basic skills, we always feel that the realistic foundations should be addressed before leaping into the intricacy’s of friction-fire. To put it simply, we’d rather see everyone leave our courses and be able to start a fire with a lighter/fire-steel, and safely/consistently maintain said fire.

 

 

Q. Is Friction-fire a realistic way to get a fire going in the wild?

A. Yes and No! As experienced outdoors folk and instructors, every member of the BCS team is capable of heading out into a woodland environment, Identifying the appropriate tree’s, choosing the appropriate standing dead wood and fashioning them into a hand/bow drill set. Now ask the same instructor to do this same exercise in the torrential rain, or in a purely soft wood forest. The answer is going to be very different, probably a No!

In our opinion, friction fire has too many variables to be 100% successful, 100% of the time, compared to a ferrous rod. As an amateur or semi-skilled person, even being put in the same environment where success is almost guaranteed, there’s an overwhelming chance that they’ll fail.  Having said this, the more you practice and bring your own skill set up, the higher the chances of success in a favourable environment……more tools in your tool box!

Remember; From an Anthropological point of view, friction fire was used as a traditional living skill, whereby the friction fire sets that were used were kept in an indoor setting, or kept dry 100% of the time or dried/seasoned prior to use.

Choosing your woods

Q. What am I looking for when selecting wood for a friction fire?

A. As the old saying goes; Fail to prepare, prepare to fail!  We’ve included a table below to give you an idea of what woods should be used in combination if you’re just starting off, however just as important as your combinations is the “state” of the wood.  By “state” we mean how old or seasoned is it? there are two main considerations when choosing seasoned wood for your friction fire set;

  • If the wood is green then you’re on a hiding to nowhere.  Any piece of wood that’s green means it’s still alive, like all organisms, if the woods alive it needs moisture to survive, as we all know moisture will put a fire out. As you can see in the close up picture below, cut into the inner wood, if you see any green then it’s no good. Discard it or keep it in a dry place for next year. Note – Woods such as Hazel & Ivy will give you an ember when slightly green, although this is unusual for other woods.

The wood on the left has been cut as a hearth board for a bowdrill set.  You can see the green tinge to it if you zoom in. This piece has a good 6 months worth of seasoning to go until it is ready to be used.  Note; If you are unsure of the age/condition of the wood, then place it against your lips, you will be able to easily feel any moisture as supposed to your finger tips that aren’t as sensitive.

 

 

 

 

 

Another good signifier that your wood is not seasoned/too wet is to begin spinning the spindle against the board .  If you look closely you will notice that the shards of punk wood being deposited are “sausaging”.  This is to say they are long thin strips of wood coming off either the spindle and/or board.  This is the classic sign that either the spindle or board are not seasoned, and to try and get an ember from this set will not be impossible but will take a ridiculous amount of work.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  • If the wood is starting to rot or turn into “punk wood” then it’s no good, you need good solid seasoned wood which turns into a fine dust for friction fire to work.  When you cut into the wood if it’s got streaks of dark grey/blue then it’s starting to rot.  Similarly if the wood is crumbly or fibrous its past its best.

Of course you can select and cut the wood you need green, then keep it in your house or shed ready for future use.  To give you a rough idea it takes 1 – 1.5 years to season wood for friction fire (7% moisture content), however in a “survival” scenario you won’t have this luxury, so identifying “standing dead wood” still on the tree is a great skill.  A top tip for this during the spring/summer is to look for the branches that don’t have any leaves on them, as they will be dead.

The opposite piece of wood is in optimum condition for friction fire.  The wood is a pale, smooth and “creamy” texture to it.  When placed against the lips you can feel it is bone dry, and as discussed above has no grey fletchings signifying it is not “past it’s best.

 

 

 

 

 

 

When a spinndle is spun against the board the dust is coming off in a fine brown/black dust.  This is a signifier that both spinndle and board are in ideal condition.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Below is a table of combinations for the Bow Drill friction fire, the Bow drill is used as it’s the most likely technique used by beginners. Please be aware that this is our personal findings, and various species of woods, environment and individual user will all have a bearing on a successful outcome. The following gradings have been given for success rates;

Excellent – >90% first time success with very little effort/technique.

Average – <100% Success with moderate output. Good technique used

Poor – <60% Success. High physical output needed. Good technique used

Note-  The above percentages have been given for “standing dead” wood.

[table id=2 /]

Q Should you use a hard wood spindle on a soft wood board?

A. This question is always hotly debated! Mears/Kochanski have always written and taught the hard on soft rule, and if you look at the combos above the mix’s with the ‘Excellent’ rating against them are all Deciduous woods with a harder spindle on a softer wood board……with the exception of Hazel on Douglas Fir.  Having said that, at the time of writing this blog, my favourite combo is Ivy on Ivy. To put it in a nut shell, if you’re just starting out, try and keep to the hard on soft rule, as you’re likely to have better luck.  Just try and remember that all broad leave tree’s are hard woods and all coniferous woods are Soft woods, having said this some hard woods are softer than other hard woods……It’s up to you to get to know the different qualities of woods.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Asprin from Willow Bark

Posted on June 13, 2018 by - Medical, Uncategorised

It’s a well known fact, Salicylic acid can be found in Willow bark, and as you may know Salicylic acid is close to the compound acetylsalicylic acid that is better known as Asprin. But can you extract the active compound out in the field without a complex setup/laboratory conditions?

The family Salix contains some 4-500 species within it; Weeping, pussy, green, crack, grey etc. The Latin “Salix” is where we get the word “salicylic” acid from.  Before you go rushing out into your garden/wilderness please be aware that sound identification of the species is essential…..Willows can be notoriously hard to identify as they appear in many shapes and forms and are prone to hybridism, and you don’t want to identify the wrong tree and end up poisoning yourself.

The opposite picture is a goat willow, which are common up in the highlands of Scotland.  The bark has diamond shaped markings on the bark and is a slight hue of blue to brown. The leaves of a goat willow are easily identifiable if you know what you’re looking for; the goat willow has oval leaves (as opposed to the long leafs of other willows) and have a “waxy” texture……again be 110% sure of the species of tree before committing to the following process.

To go back to the original question; Can you extract the acetylsalicylic (asprin) straight out of the willow using primitive techniques? – The short answer is no! Acetylsalicylic is a synthesized form of the simpler compound called Salicin.

Can you harvest Salicin from a willow? – Yes absolutely, although it is not as refined or effective as the acetylsalicylic acid. It should however be noted that when metabolised, Salicin is converted to Salicyclic acid.

Safety

Benefits attributed to Salicin include; Analgesic (painkilling) Anti-Inflammatory (reduces swelling) Joint pain and bloating.

Dangers of ingesting Salicin; Some people may be allergic to Salacin and may develop anaphylaxis, stomach upsets or haemorrhaging. It’s worth mentioning this, as there are potential dangers to consider when using new chemicals.

It’s also worth mentioning that the LD50 in a mouse (the maximum Lethal Dosage that would kill 50% of mice in tests) is >500mg per kg of body weight link here . This could mean that a lethal dosage to a 80kg man would be 40g, which is an exceptionally high dose.

Having said all this, willow bark has been used medicinally for at least 2000 years.

The process

Identification

As stated above, make sure you have correctly I.D’d Willow for starters. The active part of the willow that contains the highest level of Salacin is the inner bark, that is the white fleshy part between the outer bark and the inner wood.  There’s a few blogs out there that show folk going straight into the trunk of the tree to harvest this inner bark, however this leaves an ugly mark on the trunk, and can also lead to the whole tree becoming infected.

When doing this procedure I like to look straight branches, around the thickness of two thumbs, that can easily be sawn off, leaving the main body of the tree untouched.  Please remember the countryside code and when not on your own land, seek permission and/or be as careful to leave no trace as possible.

 

 

Cutting

As you can see in this picture a saw has been used to cut the required branch from the tree.  One of the great quality’s of Willow, alongside trees such as Oak, Lime and hazel is there ability to “coppice”, this is when the tree loses a branch or limb, it will quickly send forth new growths from the damaged site, replenishing the missing limb and encouraging further growth.

 

When cutting a branch/limb of a tree, always do your best to cut at 45 degrees, this will allow the tree to heal quicker, and will stop rain water and/or disease from settling on a flat surface and festering.

 

 

Sizing

As stated above the LD50 of Salicin is remarkably high, especially when harvested from source, however, I’ve always cut my lengths to approximately 30cm’s, which has proven safe for everyone (thus far). The actual dosing of Salicin harvested in this way is sketchy as there are no resources out there that accurately show dosages. If you are sensitive to certain substances err on the side of safety and half this to begin with

 

 

 

 

Harvesting the Inner Bark

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Score down the length of the branch with a knife, be certain that the cutting edge of the knife makes contact with the wood under the bark remember; It’s the inner bark that you are trying to harvest.

Once the length has been scored peel the outer and inner bark off the wood, a good sign that you’ve got both off is to feel the wood underneath the bark, it should feel smooth and slippery to the touch.  Keep teasing the bark layer all the way round in an attempt to peel off in one piece.

 

Once you’ve go the peeling started it should come off without too much trouble.

 

Separating inner and outer bark

This is the tricky part, time should be taken to take separate the outer from the inner bark.  Start by getting a finger nail between the two and gently peel them apart.

 

The main purpose of this is to offer more surface area to the hot water when you go onto extract the Salacin from the bark, making the process a lot shorter than it otherwise would be with the bark left on.

 

 

The picture to the left shows the inner bark processed and ready for the next step.

 

 

 

 

 

Preparing for the boil

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cut the prepared inner bark into small strips, again this will help speed the process of extracting Salacin from the bark in the long run.  Drop the inner bark into a pot, and cover with approximately 1 Cup of water (10 fluid ounces/half pint).

Boiling

Fashion yourself a pot hanger and adjust so the flames are licking the bottom of the pot.  Bring your water to the boil and then let simmer for 30-40 mins, it’s handy if you have a number of “settings” on your hanger to make sure you’re not overheating the mix.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The sign that your Salacin is ready is the water will take on a very light brown to pink colour to it, let it cool down and drink as and when you need to!

The importance of Group Shelters Fjallraven Windsack 3

Posted on May 15, 2018 by - shelter

What safety equipment do you guys carry with you when you’re out in the nature? Whistle, orange survival bag, foil blanket, head torch, first aid…….check!  How many of you carry a group shelter or “bothy bag”?  Running courses in the Highlands of Scotland, we would put a conservative number of our clients turning up with one at 50%.

“But I always carry an orange survival bag with me, this does the same thing right?” Yes and No, we’ll come back to that argument in a second!

 

Cast your minds back to School (daunting I know), now remind yourself of the 4 main ways the body loses heat…..here’s a quick reminder;

Radiation – We are constantly radiating body heat to the external environment, the 2nd rule of thermodynamics states that “heat passes from a warm source to cold, to try and reach an equilibrium”.  This is why we wear clothes right?  The clothing basically stops the heat dissipating from our body quickly, and traps warm air against our skin.

Conduction – Same as above, if you lie, lean or make contact with a colder surface than your body temperature, you will lose heat to that cold source. Hence why we use sleeping mats/thermorests.

Evaporation – As we all know sweating is natures way of losing heat as quickly as possible when we are trying to achieve “Homeostasis”, the act of balancing our body temperature with the outside climate. This is paramount in hot climates or when exercising.  However evaporation can be one of your biggest enemies when you are soaked with rain or sweat and are stationary. Your body warms the water particles against your skin, turning the water into vapour, and carrying heat and energy at quicker rate than air away from you.

Convection – In an outdoor setting convection is “wind chill”.We’ve all been there, hanging out your hoop, overheating going up a steep hill, then you get to the top you rest for 5 minutes all the while getting hit by the wind, you wish you were on the move again! The wind moves heat away from the body at a faster rate. (This shows the importance of the layering systems in clothing) Below is a wind/temp conversion chart.

This goes to show you that it can be 10 degrees, but with a 30mph wind, it’ll feel like -1!

The Gruesome Twosome

In the majority of hypothermia cases in the outdoors it’s very rarely just the one heat loss mechanisms that does the harm, usually a mix of two or more.  The real problem is when individuals get wet, either through sweat or rain/snow (Evaporation) and there is a significant wind chill (Convection).  Evaporation+Convection = Big trouble! This is when the “rule of three’s” comes into force, without adequate protection from the elements you’re going to last a maximum of 3 hours before the symptoms of Hypothermia are so bad…..it’s probably too late.

Lunchtime in the FR Windsack 3

Group Shelters and the Fjallraven Windsack 3

Like most things in life it’s the simple things that can make all the difference.  The fjallraven Windsack 3 and other Group shelters are basically a tent material that can fit individuals, or a number of you in and keep you sheltered from the elements.  Group shelters aren’t just a survival piece of kit, but can also be used to have your lunch in, if you can’t get out of the wind.

So looking back at the 4 mechanisms of heat loss the Wind sack 3 and group shelters will stop;

Radiation – Fjallraven use the same materials as the outer on their tents (40D TripleRip nylon) , this means that any radiated heat is trapped in the bag itself and is allowed to freely circulate.  This is even more evident when there are two or more of you in there, the temperature will noticeably rise quickly

Conduction – When using a group shelter, ruck sacks should be placed on the ground and sat-on to stop conduction to the ground.

Evaporation – Ok, so a group shelter won’t stop the act of evaporation, however the heated vapour will be trapped in the bag itself to avoid excess heat loss. The great thing about the wind sack 3 is the three individual zippers, which allow airing and stop excess condensation on the inside.

Convection – You’re still going to feel the wind if it’s strong enough in a group shelter, but it’s not going to be able to draw the heat away from you at the same rate.

A miserable way to spend a night, but will save your life.

As was stated above “an orange survival bag does the same thing”, yes it does, but can only really be used once and is a “one person shelter”.  Don’t ditch the orange survival bag, just make sure you carry a group shelter with you from now on.

It’s worth noting that the orange survival bag should be pulled over the head, with an “air hole” made for breathing/avoiding condensation (pictured).  This will assure radiated heat is trapped in the bag with you.

 

 

 

Most group shelters will come in bright colours, this is obviously so rescuers can spot you, should you need to deploy it “in anger”, the Wind Sack 3 comes in UN blue. The two colours that are unnatural and are picked up easiest by the human eye are Orange and UN blue, so when buying a group shelter bear this in mind.

Two other great features of the Wind sack 3 that we’ve noticed are the reflective tape around the outside….easily picked up at night, but also the carabineer on cordage (pictured) that you can attach to you in high winds (those of you who use a group shelter regularly will know all about the potential for the wind to rip it straight out your hands!)

Let’s be honest here, many of you will be on a budget and might not be able to afford the Wind sack 3 , however a trip to any reasonably reputable outdoor shop and you’ll be faced with a wide range and at a reasonably cheap price.

Don’t just take our word for it, here’s an incident that happened this winter in the Cairngorms

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Natural Navigation; Shadow Sticks

Posted on May 14, 2018 by - Navigation

You Should never substitute good map and compass work for natural navigation, Natural nav should be used to supplement a comprehensive knowledge of modern techniques.  The use of using naturally occurring  phenomenon also gives us a greater understanding of how our planet works in relation to the sun, stars, winds and plant life.

One of the more tricky natural nav techniques individuals have a hard time getting their heads around are shadow sticks.  In this short Blog we’ll go through the basics.

As we all know (hopefully) the sun rises in the East and sets in the West. At 12 o’clock mid day the sun is at it’s highest in the sky or “Zenith”. This means at 12 noon, the sun is directly in the South in the Northern hemisphere, and North in the southern hemisphere.

NOTE Please adjust for BST, or whatever light saving time used for you’re country. After the last Sunday in March, the clocks go forward, meaning the sun is at it’s zenith at 1300.

So if we know that the sun rises in the East and sets in the west, we can be sure that the sun is in a constant transition from East to West throughout the day. Using a straight stick, ideally waist height, drive this into the ground.  Where the shadow of the top of the stick falls is you’re WEST marker.

NOTE, this first marker as it is, is not pointing to “West”, all we know is that if the the sun is in the East it must be throwing the sticks shadow in a more westerly direction, as shadows form on the opposite side of a light source.

For this method to be accurate we need to leave the shadow stick at least 15-20mins, the longer you leave the shadow stick, the more accurate it will be.

After 15-20 mins the sun has traveled further to the west, and is thus throwing it’s shadow in a more easterly direction than before NOTE This last shadow is not pointing East, but is in a more easterly direction relative to it’s position 15-20 minutes ago.

 

The final stick you place in the ground is your EAST marker, you can place a long stick between the two WEST and EAST markers. Then with a second stick, bisect the West/East line to give you your N/E pointers, remembering the old acronym Never Eat Shredded Wheat, will help you with this!

Fjallraven Abisko Review

Posted on April 26, 2018 by - Clothing, Uncategorised

BCS head instructor Graham Melloy Reviews the Abisko Hybrid Jacket, along with the Abisko Tarp.

 

ABISKO HYBRID JACKET

So with the winter passed but the weather still being fairly unpredictable I have been using a hybrid jacket that covers a multitude of arenas and when combined with other layers it is a diamond item. I am talking about the Abisko Hybrid Jacket…. Light, simple design, small pack down size and great against cold winds. It is constructed from G-1000 Lite with fast drying MT on the shoulders and hood. Ventilation is through a rear yolk along with a fixed hood.

I have been using the jacket on a regular basis and on its own it is great for smaller treks and activities giving plenty of ventilation. The lightness of the material should not put you off as it is very hardwearing. I have combined it with the Keb Loft jacket whilst out on the coast and I have been very warm to the point i have been too warm!

 

 

This jacket will be great in the summer combined with the Abisko Trek Lite trousers and some of the High Coast range. From a survival point of view it is a very good light shell type jacket which will give protection from the elements and is very quick drying.

So this garment is going to be put to the test this year and it will definitely be in my bag for Africa next year.

ABISKO TARP

I have been using a Fjallraven 3m x 3m Tarp now for just over a year and I must say that I am very impressed. Having used tarps or shelter sheets/Basha’s for 3 decades now this has to be up there as one of the best i have used. I have used it in all 4 seasons with comfort combined with a gore-tex bivi bag and sleeping mat.

The tarp is made of the same material that the Fjallraven tent range is manufactured in which is the strong 40 D TripleRip Nylon. It has 6 x 2mm Dyneema guylines as well as several other attachment loops. The tarp can be used on its own or strung up above a tent as a large vestibule/work area.

Weighing in at only 500g the tarp stuffs in to its own pocket which is located on one corner which is a bonus. Although it is expensive it is a no nonsense piece of kit.