Monday 22 May 2017

Ten Years Of This Blog!



Mental. I just go an alert to let me know that it's ten years yesterday that I sat on the sofa, at the now Ex-Mrs SBW's house, and mused that there was a dichotomy between my life in the suburbs and my thirst for a life of adventure and wild food. The Suburban Bushwacker was born.

From that first post:

To awake from my comfortable homeostasis, rediscover my physical self and embark on the adventure of reconnecting with the natural world. Fat and lazy as I am, I get the feeling it’s going to be a rude awakening! I live in one of the most highly urbanised societies on earth, and it shows. Mainly around the middle!

Ambition:
Hunt, and kill a massive Elk with a bow. To skin it, butcher it, put it’s meat on the table and in the freezer, hang its skull and antlers on the wall, spread its hide across our bed and love-wrestle Mrs Bushwacker on top of it in its honour.

Between here and there:
Lose quite a lot of weight, gain quite a lot of muscle, develop endurance, learn archery, learn bushcraft and stalking skills, choose then buy (or trade for) all the kit needed to trek out into the wilderness, kill and bring back the body of my noble prey.

Why Hunting?
Ever since I started eating meat again, I was vegetarian for a few years in my teens and early twenties, I have felt a growing need to have an honest (and some would say blood thirsty) relationship with my dinner. 
I’ve noticed a lot of hunters refer to killing an animal as ‘harvesting’, just as there is no polite word for a euphemism, on this blog killing is called killing. I’ve met too many people who can/will only eat something if its origin is obscured. Fish, but only if it does not have a head, prawns without their shells, chicken but only when it comes from a plastic tray, and then only the white meat. These are people are afraid of their dinner. Our food deserves our respect. On the days when our skill and tenacity overcomes the animals guile and awareness, we earn the right to eat the flesh of another being. If you cant (or won’t) kill it, gut it, cut it, and cook it what gives you the right to eat it? I believe in celebrating and honouring the life that is taken so we may live. 

A couple of million readers later I'm still in touch with a few of you, and still reading what you're writing. I've shot a few deer, and eaten a few more, I've seen the highs and lows of accuracy with a variety of rifles, fallen in love with some amazing handmade outdoor equipment. Some of which I've been lucky enough to own.

If real life didn't keep getting in the way, I reckon I would have bow hunted that Elk by now, but ho-hum perhaps its the journey that's been important rather than the freezer full of Elk.

Still to come from the laptop of SBW:

I'm going to continue with the gear reviews, and possibly be designing a few bits too.

Target shooting will continue apace. I've not posted nearly enough on this blog about my .22LR and 7.62X51 adventures. Might even get some .50 cal mini-cannon in!

I'll be going back to Scotland: more Roe, more Reds, Goats, Boar, Mountain Hare and that so far so elusive Sea Trout

There's still the possibility of some bowhunting for Rabbits in Spain

Finland for Beaver and panning for gold

The Kiwi grand slam

And my long, long, overdue return to the US of A.

Thanks for reading
more tales to tell very soon
Your pal
SBW


8 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hi Sten
Has it really been 10 years? WOW
ALthough the volume of posts has deminished these last few years. I still look in from time to time.
I see you are planning a return trip to Scotland in pursuit of more deer and other critters. May I suggest a bit more preparation this time around. As preparation prevents piss poor performance. 4 shots and 4 misses is not the way to fill the freezer, and you owe it to your quarry.
Good luck with the sea trout. I have tried my hand at fishing for these wonders of the water a handfull of times. But have alway failed to connect with a single fish.
Atb Clem

Justin said...

Good to hear you're still at it, I always look forward to reading your adventures as I've since started following a similar path.

The Suburban Bushwacker said...

Clem
Once the scope was actually mounted there were no misses and only one runner.
Feel free to re read the story.

Try the Eden at the end of St Andrews golf course car park.

Chad J. Love said...

And you probably thought I'd forgotten about reading blogs...

Congrats! As for me, I'm on a now year-long hiatus, but I'm getting close to maybe scribbling again. We'll see. In the meantime, keep it up.

Anonymous said...

Sten
Forgive me If I don't re read the tale of woe and failure. Entertaining as it was the first time around.
My sea trout fishing has mostly been on the Deveron and the Taf. I'm not much of a fisherman.

Atb Clem

Exploriment said...

Keep having fun doing what you’re doing!

Hubert Hubert said...

Ten years? Barely started! Keep it up, mate!
HH

The Suburban Bushwacker said...

Dude I was thinking of you the other day, how are you?
SBW