The Bushman Chronicles!

Discussion in 'Adventure, Hiking, Backpacking and Travel' started by Bushman5, Jan 8, 2017.

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  1. Bushman5

    Bushman5 Member

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    went light load out with the Scout Rig. No stove that day :) (although to be fair i could have made a fatwood fire and used the gi cup to heat water, but I like roughing it sometimes.)
     
    Last edited: Dec 31, 2018
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  2. Bushman5

    Bushman5 Member

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    nonsense! :D I'm 200 lbs of kitty cuddling trucker.

    she was just a bitter old dried up hag,one of those cranky WASP old blue rinse types that probably calls the Police on kids playing outside or because someone outside of her tony cul-de-sac looks and acts different (there are literally hundreds of thousands of these types in Metro vancouver and on the North Shore)
     
    Last edited: Dec 31, 2018
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  3. BlueDogScout

    BlueDogScout Member

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    I’m ordering the ikea canister this week I’ll keep you posted on that. Switch up to a bottle kit, (all the cool kids are doing it! ) and your good to go!
     
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  4. BlueDogScout

    BlueDogScout Member

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    Ooooo that’s it. Your a cat and she’s a bitc... we um dog so you don’t play well lol
     
  5. Bushman5

    Bushman5 Member

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    ^ there we go. You summed it up much better than I :)
     
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  6. BlueDogScout

    BlueDogScout Member

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    Lol happy to help
     
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  7. Bushman5

    Bushman5 Member

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    Jan 1, 2019, clear, cold - "The New Years Day Snowshoe Trip, Slip & Slide On Icy Forest Service Roads, Use New Knife, Fire & Coffee In The Woods, Blow Up BearBangers In the Snow Tour"

    went for a quick rip up to the Cheakamus / Whistler BC area for a few hours of New Years Day snowshoeing.

    The FSR was pure ice, covered with a bit of snow. I had intended to go the end of the road and snowshoe about 15 kms in, towards an old mine.

    IMG_2513.JPG

    When I saw a Toyota 4x4 with decent tires , locked diffs , struggling to make the grade up, I knew my 2wd open diff truck had no hope in hell. A jeep passed me , the occupants laughing their asses off as i piled snow into the truck bed to get some weight for traction.

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    Then they slid about 100' and went off the road into a 4' ditch. I had a smug look on my face while digging them out and chopping cedar boughs to line the wheels trenches so he could crawl out. Dude was super humble and red faced.......we had a good laugh all roun.......dudes GF and other lady friends were ribbing him non stop.


    Even in the flats I slid, despite the LS diff. Eventually I reversed so slowly back down the FSR. As I was doing so a fast moving Dodge dually diesel with studded tires came flying up the FSR, towards me. Crap!. I was still going in reverse, very limited traction. Driver of the Dodge looked panicked as he tried to stop from slamming into me.

    I pulled off the most beautiful driving move i have ever done. I saw a 2' patch of dirt road behind me on the FSR ......I accelerated in reverse, hit the parking brake, locked up the rear drivetrain and cranked the wheel HARD, swung the truck HARD around on the icy road, then popped the parking brake off and gave the engine gas. Perfect reverse spin , gunned the engine and the Dodge missed me by about 3 feet. Got back down the paved road and the Dodge driver was YEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH BUDDDDDDDDDY! wicked move! wicked move! f******* crazy *** S*** man! never seen a maneuver like that!

    I was a little pissed that he had been speeding on the FSR , around a blind corner, but its the little victories in life that make the day. I was actually pretty damn proud of myself for pulling that move off.


    Got to the pull out parking area and got the snowshoes and webbing ready. ALWAYS tether your truck keys in winter! (anytime really)

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    and while this photo was taken when i GOT BACK to the truck hours later....its relevant ANYTIME. DO NOT LET YOUR EXHAUST PIPE GET BLOCKED BY THE SNOW BANKS! (CO poisoning)

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    donned the webbing rig and the snowshoes. headed out along a deep snow packed area under the power-lines.



    reached the river

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    fresh snow om hemlock boughs
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    "snowshoe tracks in snow" $25,000
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    Aaaawwww.......love. (its a myth, a waste of money and time. Get a dog or a few cats and live life! )
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    the bark had fallen from this tree....leaving a network of trails
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    I stomped thru the crunchy snow for a bit, remeoved the snowshoes and walked 1 KM to the old quarry (popular with the pro dog walkers). Donned the snowshoes and headed out

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    cut thru a section of woods and emerged under the powerlines.


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    gathered birch bark from the constantly shedding trees.

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    tons of dry firewood, ready for harvesting. IMG_2544.JPG IMG_2545.JPG


    This area is THICK with Grizzlies, cougars and wolves.
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    I had the Bark River MacV-SOG Recondo knife coated with Sno seal, keeps the leather sheath oiled and makes cleaning sap off the blade much easier.
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  8. Bushman5

    Bushman5 Member

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    more
     
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  9. BlueDogScout

    BlueDogScout Member

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    Yes we need more
     
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  10. Bushman5

    Bushman5 Member

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    Using the Recondo i quickly chopped some hemlock boughs to make a gear platform. Had I spent the night, i would have made a THICK bough bed and lean too shelter in front of the fire.

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    Using the Recondo to slice off Spruce pitch bubbles (fire accelerator, burn treatment etc)
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    hot cup of strong dark roast insant coffee




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    love love love the SMALL MagPul Suppressor pouch
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    after coffee and fire i explored more IMG_2579.JPG

    found TONS of this moss, I line my boots with it, use it a TP, compression dressings etc. IMG_2580.JPG IMG_2581.JPG IMG_2583.JPG IMG_2584.JPG IMG_2587.JPG IMG_2589.JPG
    NO, i'm not taking a leak here....just showing off the AWESOME webbing!
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    hmmmmmmmmm......block one end with snow, hang a tarp on the other...........add a stove...... HOT SHELTER! IMG_2610.JPG IMG_2612.JPG


    After about 5km's slogging, Day turned to night. Did not stop me from firing off some bear bangers.......





    set the Youtube player speed to .25 (sloooooooow) its really cool
     
    Last edited: Jan 3, 2019
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  11. OKcherokee

    OKcherokee Member

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    There’s nothing taking a leak out in the wide open in the wilderness.
     
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  12. Bushman5

    Bushman5 Member

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    But i did not until back at the truck........LOL
     
  13. Bushman5

    Bushman5 Member

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    Also found a (probably stolen) boat, with outboard. Not a lot of boat lakes around here......:p

    IMG_2616.JPG
     
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  14. Reno Lewis

    Reno Lewis Knot-A-Challenge Champion

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    Just a heads up, you need to enable embedding on third party sites for your videos to work here. Otherwise you have to watch them directly on YT.
     
  15. Reno Lewis

    Reno Lewis Knot-A-Challenge Champion

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    That might just be one of the most aesthetically pleasing trip reports so far (IMO).

    I miss the snowy expanses of the North. Haven't seen that in person in a long time, save for being up in the mountains a few times.

    Beautiful area.

    As an aside, I think I need a couple of those Daka pouches. Seems DS Tactical doesn't have the suppressor pouches anymore though, which is unfortunate.
     
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  16. Bushman5

    Bushman5 Member

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    Yea I cleaned them out of most of their daka pouches.
     
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  17. Bushman5

    Bushman5 Member

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    Jan 4/2019, -15 C (-35 to -50 C with windchill), clear sunny, "The Ice Cold Howling Wind, Animal Tracks, Van In The Woods, SnowShoe Tour"

    Got up late, zero heat in the apt, and it was hovering at 1 deg C inside. The two House Panthers were curled up under my blankets, stealing my heat.....It was hard to get out of bed.....

    Finally turned on the heat for the first time this winter. Got a late start due to firing up allmy trucks and letting the fluids get HOT, and circulate for half an hour, also charged up the batteries.

    finally rolled out at 1300 hours and drove up to the Cheakamus area of Whistler. Under the shadow of Black Tusk peak I parked the rig by the end of the road and headed out.

    Had Dad's newly varnished snowshoes with me, my L.R.R.P.R. webbing, a couple of knives, food, etc

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    It was COLD. -15 C at the trailhead, and the winds were coming down from the North hard. Temps were droppign depsite the sunlight and clear skies. I had my new surplus CDN Army anorak shell on as a windblocker, plus my down jacket, plus a fleece and thermals. Core was warm.

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    mmm cold water on a cold day. New SADF surplus 2L canteen. Love these canteens! IMG_3067.JPG

    heading out on solid snow, about 4' deep compacted down to 3'. Frozen enough to walk on with the odd postholing happening.

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    first time these have been used in 30 years. They are 50+ years old.
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    non one has been up here in a long time. Just animals. found lots of tracks, including a medium feline (probably bobcat) and a kitten < the tracks zigzagged beside each other for about 1km. Some of the snow around the tracks had blown away, leaving a nice "plaster" relief of the track IMG_3078.JPG

    my tracks IMG_3079.JPG IMG_3080.JPG

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    the wind was picking up, but the anorak kept it out of my insulated layers. The hood is oversized and that helped too. Going to sew coyote fur on the hod brim for added protection.

    on and up the FSR. Silence except for the wind and the odd Raven pair swooshing and croaking overhead.

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    wind polished snow, some sections dry powder from a few days ago, others icy patches. IMG_3090.JPG IMG_3093.JPG

    on and on, down the road.

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    Last edited: Feb 5, 2019
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  18. Bushman5

    Bushman5 Member

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    BIG ol Raven pair flew overhead here and disappeared into the trees.

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    old spur road off the trunkline IMG_3101.JPG

    more murder mittens tracks, filled in slightly with with windblown snow. IMG_3105.JPG IMG_3109.JPG

    diverting down another spur road. IMG_3111.JPG

    stolen/dumped van? one would think that......but here in Whistler the workers cannot afford to pay $3000 - 5000+ a month for rent, so they often live in their vans/campers up the logging roads in the spring/summer/fall and then cram into a suite with 10 others for the bitter winter and slit the rent multi ways. This van had all 4 wheels chocked with rocks, not something a thief dumping a vehicle would do. IMG_3112.JPG IMG_3114.JPG IMG_3115.JPG IMG_3116.JPG IMG_3117.JPG

    kept looking up to the sunny spots to see if I could spot any big cats sunning themselves. No luck. IMG_3122.JPG

    this icicle cluster was "creaking" in the cold icy wind blasts, sounded surreal. IMG_3123.JPG IMG_3124.JPG
    i'm thinking hare tracks?
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    ah the old truck, has a Detroit diesel engine. Not much left of it. Peopel have been coming up in the summer and torchin away chunks of metal for scrap. The old Braden 50,000 LB hydraulic winch is gone, thats an impressive feat seeing at weighs about 1200lbs. IMG_3133.JPG

    sad to see old classic cab shapes likes these torched and shot at. Its a narrow cab, you can only fit two people inside and its close quarters. Big ol long west coast mirrors, twin air filter housings, dual exhaust stacks. Part of the engine is missing now as is the duel diesel tanks (they are the FIRST thing to go) IMG_3134.JPG IMG_3138.JPG

    wind wasa just howling down this valley. I picked a fine spot to have a brew up.....LOL.......fingers went numb in 30 seconds while fiddling with the MKettle SAS boiler. IMG_3144.JPG

    Dusk about to wrap her arms across the landscape. The Winds picked up even more at this point. -50 C on the ridge witht the windchill IMG_3145.JPG
     
    Last edited: Feb 5, 2019
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  19. Bushman5

    Bushman5 Member

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    snowshoes embracing the snow and winds and cold.

    IMG_3146.JPG

    more tracks
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    L.R.R.P.R. webbing rig. This is actually the second one i've built (got a second SORD Patrol yoke /webbing belt). Its a trimmed down version of the first L.R.R.P.R. webbing, smaller buttpack, no roll pouches. IMG_3152.JPG
    titanium fuel container for the Mkettle alky fuel. I have two of these on board the webbing
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    ya'll recognize this lighter! (EXOTAC) IMG_3155.JPG
    alky stoves don't work that well in extreme cold, so I "tweak" the fuel a bit by adding a teaspoon of naptha fuel to each fuel container. The alcohol fuel is around 0 to -10C in temp, and evaporates extremely slowly as a resut, with lower heat output. The slight addition of naptha makes it a little more readily flammable. Its a fine line, be warned.

    boiled water, made coffee and boiled more water to put back into the canteen, to keep it from turning into a block of ice.
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    knife pron IMG_3159.JPG

    some mountain biker left behind a bike tube. PERFECT! tinder, or snowshoe bindings. Cut off the valve stem section and rolled up the tube and stowed it away IMG_3165.JPG

    burning pinecones to warm the fingers before heading out. IMG_3166.JPG

    piece of inner tube up in flames. Nice heat output. IMG_3169.JPG

    headed back, it was getting dark quickly and the winds were just screaming fast. Temps were dropping even more. Good ol down jacket really helped pump out the heat as I slogged back on the trail.

    Thats it. Thanks for stopping by.
     
    Last edited: Feb 5, 2019
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  20. BlueDogScout

    BlueDogScout Member

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    Thanks man that was sweet! I love the titanium fuel container
     
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