Bushcraft Tarp Camping Alone (Bow Drill Fire)

I'm going to grab some of this dry grass now before it rains so that I'll have some tinder to start my fire. Put that in my pocket nice and close to my body so it warms it up and hopefully dries it out even more. I'm using a trucker's hitch to put up this ridgeline. Alright, I got my shelter up. I'm going to start working on making a bow drill so I can start a fire. Right now I'm just walking around looking for a dead standing tree. It's been raining for the last two weeks so everything that's on the ground is pretty moist. This is an old elk carcass. This is the spine and the pelvic area right here. I might actually have a use for some of this or if I can find a rib. I think the rain is about to set in so I'm going to get all my fire making materials ready to go. The last thing that I'm going to get to help me start my fire is some fatwood. The easiest place to find fatwood is in the roots or in the branches in the area closest to the trunk of the tree. I happen to have a really good piece right here. This would have been a branch that stuck out from right here and out and this would have been inside the trunk. Once I cut this open you'll see that this is all fatwood. Very heavy too. It couldn't have been better timing with the rain and the lightning. I've got everything that I need to start my fire and I've got my shelter up so I can stay dry. I was going to have some crackers with canned salmon but I just realized there's not a tab on here. And I don't have a can opener. Protein bar it is. Let's hope I don't get struck by lightning. I've got my spindle and my hearth board. My fire board. Now I just need a bow and then I'll explain how this all works. I'm looking for a branch that has some curve to it. Hence the name bow drill. Alright I've got my bow. You can see the curve here. It doesn't have to be super long. Usually from your armpit to your hand is a good length. And I usually like to grab a stick that has a Y in it or forks. I'll show you why. I'll take my paracord and tie a simple loop knot and I can just throw that loop right over that fork and then tie off to the other side. Makes things a little bit quicker. On the other side a simple clove hitch will do the trick and then I'll just wrap the excess around just so it's not in the way. Alright the bow drill is done. I'm going to crack open this fatwood now so that I can use it when I try to start my fire. Smells like fatwood. Fatwood has this amazing smell. Kind of like pine salt. But it's like addicting. I could sit here and sniff it like it's paint. It's good. It's also got this darker amber color to it and it's really dense. That's why I knew when I picked up that piece it was just heavy. It was dense. And now I just take the back of my knife which has a 90 degree edge and I scrape the fatwood. Getting nice fine shavings for my tinder bundle. I've got my tinder bundle which is just that dry grass that I picked earlier. And then I'm going to throw in some of this fatwood shaving. You don't have to do this part but it helps. And finally the most important component of a bow drill. You need a crock. One of the actual most important components is the bearing block which is what you use to hold down the spindle. Which I'm using a rib bone from that elk carcass that I found earlier. It might not work. I have something else as backup just in case though. I've burned in this hole. Now I'm going to cut a notch right here so that the dust has somewhere to collect. When you're done it should look something like this. And lastly you just want to make sure that you have everything within an arm's reach. So your crock with your tinder bundle and some kindling. Grab my tinder bundle. I couldn't have done it without you. I'm going to start working on dinner. I've got a butternut squash which is going to take a long time to cook. I'm just going to throw this directly on the coals. And the outside skin will get really burnt but the inside will cook really nicely. I've also got a ribeye and broccoli. Pretty basic and healthy meal which is what I like. I'm going to grab one more small dead tree for some firewood. So I have some for the morning. The elk rib bone bearing block worked pretty well for the bow drill. Native Americans or just indigenous people in general would use animal bones for stuff like this all the time for making drills. This rib bone worked pretty good. It's just super thin so my hand was getting really hot. To the point where I almost put on a glove but decided not to. I work a desk job so these pampered hands need a little roughing up every once in a while. Lake salt. Wow. Oh yeah. Starving. Skipped lunch earlier. Bon Appetit. Butternut squash. It's cooked to perfection on the inside. Yes sir. Yeah that's nice. This has been one of my favorite trips and videos to film so far. I don't know why. Just having a good time. Alright going to bed. Goodnight. Morning. Slept alright. Not great though. Some of that fat wood from yesterday. As soon as the fire is going I put my sleeping bag and pad away. Especially with how close the fire is I've learned my lesson a few times with embers. Putting holes in my bag and my pad. Some bannock. It's just flour and baking powder. Got some bannock with some mixed berry jam. It's delicious. That's just amazing. Also got three eggs. Always make sure your fire is completely out. You don't want to be the guy that starts a forest fire. That's it for me. I had a lovely time. I wish we got a little bit more rain but that thunder and lightning storm was pretty cool. Anyways I hope you guys enjoyed this one. Thank you very much for watching. And I'll see you next time.