Western Illinois Meet: Sign-up and Info!


Prof

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Western Illinois Meet 2012: Photos and Wrap-Up!

The Professor's 2nd annual spring meet was held MAY 4, 5 and 6, 2012. The location was south of Macomb, Illinois.

Photos begin at Post #97


These were some of the activities:

* Forge your own flint striker with a professional farrier/blacksmith
* Practice identifying chert and flint. Find your own pieces for your fire kit!
* Practice flint and steel firecraft
* Make a fire with the bowdrill in bushbumming29's session
* Work on your Bushcraft Basic Certification with "peer tutors" in workshop sessions. Materials will be available. A photographer (my wife) will take pictures for you to post on BCUSA. Bring your camera; if you don't have one, we'll use ours and burn your photos on a CD.
* Hang your hammock or tarp in the trees, or set up your tent in the mowed area.
* Porta-potty is available
* Potable water is available, bring your own containers.
* Bring your own food and cook it. (Nearest grocery store is 13 miles away!)
* Fires allowed in approved areas; bringing a stove for back-up is good!
* Lots of seasoned firewood available - bring your axe or saw
* Cutting of live trees allowed ONLY in designated areas, so ask first.
* Children must be supervised by parents at all times
* Not responsible for accidents!

THE LIST:

1. The Infidel
2. Noisemaker
3. unswydd
4. bartman
5. Brazito
6. MysticFlight & Jr.
7. Milz and nephew
8. bushbumming29
9. old man (and son)
10. Joe Willson
11. sdjsdj
12. Spiffyguy
 
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Use to go to college in Macomb. Wish I could come out professor!
 
Really looking forward to this in May Professor!
Just in case anyone is interested I'll be bringing a couple of deer hides to play with.
We'll go through the process of de-hairing and membraning. I have a couple that are brain dryed and need to rehydrate to soften and dry. Should be fun. I'll bring my beam and fleshing knife and anyone can use mine if they want to try it. I'll also have my smoking bucket with punky wood and skirt for smoking the hide. Once smoked it can be cut and made into what ever you want.
Now I'm no sewing expert so you'll have to have your own ideas and patterns if you want to make something like a possibles bag or what ever. I'll just provide the hides. I will bring needles and thread for sewing tho. If you have a thimble BRING IT!!!!! The hide is very tough and very hard to push a needle into. :p
 
This sounds great, Marsha! We have some leather tools, so we'll bring them. With the blacksmith on-site, awls and other tools can be made-to-order. I think it is a lot easier to sew deer hide if the holes are pre-made.
 
How'd I miss this? I'm in for all 3 days, as long as i stay without work. Looking forward to see some new faces. Standing by...Bart
 
Thanks Bart!

Directions by PM will be sent to any members who sign up in this thread.

I have to get the tractor started this weekend to begin mowing the parking/tenting area. Hammock and tarp campers can find a spot in the nearby woods.
 
MysticFlightjr and I are IN for at least Saturday. Friday and Sunday depends on if his father will trade weekends with us or not
 
Please add me to the attending list.
I would also like to bring my nephew along who's really taken an interest to all things outdoors lately.
 
OK, Milz and nephew, I have you on the list! I will PM detailed instructions from your direction about a week before the meet.

I mowed over there today, and soon will have the porta-potty recharged. There is a fairly large mowed area for parking and tenting. There are trees for hammocks and tarps.
 
TheProfessor said:
OK, Milz and nephew, I have you on the list! I will PM detailed instructions from your direction about a week before the meet.

I mowed over there today, and soon will have the porta-potty recharged. There is a fairly large mowed area for parking and tenting. There are trees for hammocks and tarps.
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Do we need to process some firewood prior to the meet?
 
I completely missed this thread somehow. I am considering going, but I'm not sure if I'll be set. Do we need to bring anything more than basic necessities for 3 days "car" camping?

-Farm.
 
Anyone open to carpooling? Would love to make it, (assuming 'sconsinites are welcome of course! ;-P ), but may need to take out a loan to pay for the gas.
 
Farmboy said:
I completely missed this thread somehow. I am considering going, but I'm not sure if I'll be set. Do we need to bring anything more than basic necessities for 3 days "car" camping?

-Farm.
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You'll want to bring plenty of food; the nearest grocery is 13 miles away. Feel free to bring axes and saws; there is lots of dead wood to process. If you don't have those items, there's lots of wood already cut.

If you want to do some blacksmithing, you might want to bring some leather gloves and safety glasses.

We have a land nav exercise; bring a compass. I'll provide maps. Again, I have a few spare compasses.

If you lack some gear, PM me and we'll likely be able to find you something to use. I have some spare tents and tarps.

I have about a mile of binder twine to practice braiding rope. Bart has a BIG spool of paracord and will sell you what you need to make ridgelines and line kits for some of the bushclass projects.

Last year, we sewed up some haversack kits and some bush chair seats. You can bring your own fabric, or we can bring some extra. You might want to PM to reserve that.

The price of gas is a bummer, but that and and a few groceries are about your only required costs.
 
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For those that may be considering this, the Professor goes well out of his way to plan activities for his get togethers. I made one of the canvas seats last year and came away with lots of flint. I didn't get around to getting a striker made. This sounds like a great time. I'm going to try to make it down but not sure yet. Work has a lot of traveling planned for me this summer.
 
unswydd said:
WOOOOOHOOOOO! Getting close.... I'm getting excited!
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Yeah, me too! The porta-potty is ordered and the grass is mowed. We're looking forward to leather working. I'll get out directions soon.
 
I meant to ask, is there available water where we are going to be? I'll need moving water for the hides I'm bringing. I could rinse them before I come tho if needed.
 
unswydd said:
I meant to ask, is there available water where we are going to be? I'll need moving water for the hides I'm bringing. I could rinse them before I come tho if needed.
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There is a little creek running through the camping area, but it's dried up right now. We have a pond 200 yards from camp with water in it. Drinking and wash water is available from a well up at the house. We will have to haul it to camp, but I have a cart for that. We can find some 5-gallon buckets for soaking hides. Tell me more and I'll try to have what you need rounded up!
 
I have a nice selection of leather tools as well I will bring! Also if anybody is interested I have a rather large supply (bad habbit) of Camel Snus tins everybody can have
 
MysticFlight said:
I have a nice selection of leather tools as well I will bring! Also if anybody is interested I have a rather large supply (bad habbit) of Camel Snus tins everybody can have
Click to expand...

Cool! Last year at Hardwoodsman, OLJ had made flint strikers that just fit in those. I even considered buying Snus just to get the can, but settled on Altoids instead.

It'll be here before we know it. I have the porta-potty on site, and the parking -tenting area is all mowed. I'm looking forward to meeting you guys. Leather working should be fun! We'll bring what leather and tools we have, too.
 
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