Pursuit
Bushcraft
Fire, shelter, cutting tools, and traditional woodcraft.
About bushcraft
Bushcraft is the slow set of skills: making fire in the wet, shaping wood with a sharp edge, and building shelter from what the forest already offers. It rewards practice far more than purchases.
Season: Year-round; wet and cold conditions teach the most.
Learn these first
- Fire from a ferro rod in rain using processed inner bark and fatwood
- Axe and knife safety, plus field sharpening to a working edge
- Tarp and natural shelter configurations for wind and rain
- Cordage, lashings, and simple camp furniture
Kit that matters
- Full-tang fixed blade in a steel you can sharpen in the field
- Small forest axe or folding saw
- Ferro rod, tinder, and a backup lighter
- Canvas tarp, cordage, and a metal container you can boil in
Honest hazard notes
- Axe work fatigue — most cuts happen after the twentieth swing
- Cutting green wood on public land where it isn't allowed
- Hypothermia while learning fire in genuinely cold rain
Plan a bushcraft trip
Bushcraft reading
Coastal Rainforest Firecraft: Finding Dry Fuel When All Seems Lost
When the coastal rainforest has absorbed weeks of rain, finding dry fuel for a fire can feel impossible. This guide cuts through the wet to show you where to look, what to use, and how to process materials for a successful blaze, even in the soggiest conditions.
How to Customize an Axe or Hatchet: Handles, Edges, and Sheaths That Earn Their Weight
A stock axe is a starting point. Rehanging, re-profiling the bit, tuning the grip, and building a better sheath turn a factory head into a tool that fits your hands and your woods.
Ferro Rod vs. Bic Lighter: What Actually Works for Backcountry Fire
Forget the romantic notions of firecraft. When your life might depend on it, what's truly reliable in the backcountry: a ferro rod or a simple Bic lighter? We break down the real-world performance.
Build a Bombproof Tarp Shelter in Under 10 Minutes: Five Configurations
Learn how to pitch a reliable tarp shelter quickly, using five versatile configurations for various terrains and weather. This guide focuses on practical, field-tested methods to ensure a secure and dry night in the backcountry, even when conditions turn sour.
10 Bushcraft Skills Every Alone Contestant Masters
Based on a decade of Alone, we dissect the bushcraft skills that separate the finalists from the early tap-outs. This isn't just about survival; it's about thriving in isolation.
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Knife Steel Types: A Field Guide to What Each Alloy Is Good For
From soft, tough carbon steels that spark a ferro rod to super-hard powder metallurgy blades that hold an edge for a week of processing. Here is what every common knife steel is actually good for.
Knife Grinds Explained: Flat, Hollow, Convex, Scandi, Chisel and Serrated
The grind of a blade — how it tapers from spine to edge — decides how the knife cuts more than the steel does. Here is every grind, what it looks like, and what it is good for.
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How to Sharpen Every Knife Grind: Whetstone, Diamond Plate, Strop and Rod
Convex grinds get a strop. Scandi grinds get a flat stone. Serrations get a round file. Here is the right tool and technique for every grind, plus the exact sharpeners to buy from Amazon.
Knife Steel Guide: 100+ Blade Steels Ranked by Edge Retention, Toughness and Corrosion Resistance
MagnaCut wins overall, MagnaMax leads edge retention, 14C28N wins value, 3V rules hard use, Vanax and LC200N own saltwater. A ranked, comparative guide to 100+ knife steels with T/E/C data.
Bushcraft FAQ
What one skill should I practice first?
Fire in wet conditions. It's the skill that most often separates a bad night from a merely uncomfortable one.
Do I need an expensive knife?
No. A simple carbon-steel fixed blade you keep sharp outperforms a premium knife you're afraid to use.