Friday 31 August 2007

Unrolling My New Blog Roll

I’ve just reorganised my blog roll, and I thought I’d tell you a bit about what I think is cool about each of these writers.
I correspond with some of them, and join in the discussions on their comments sections.
Bloggers: If you didn’t get a mention it was either because you don’t post often enough, or that I’m saving you and your blog for a day when I’ve got very little happening in my own life, but fancy doing a post.


Bushcraft and The Big Outdoors

The American Bushman
Kit reviews you can believe in, and if you were wondering about the rising price of steel, its because its all been made into knives and he’s bought them all!

Pablo’s Nature, Wildlife and Bushcraft
Very cool blog with lots of great content. Pablo’s posted regularly since 05 and has taken some really nice pictures of plants and animals. His bushcraft and web design skills are very good.

Mungo Says Bah!
Set against the backdrop of Canada; the adventures of a chap and his dog.

Dynamite Skills
One of the first bushcraft blogs I started following. He took a course with Tom Brown’s school and it changed his life. He’s not posting as often as he used to but is still well worth a look.


Living Off-Grid

The Hobo Stripper
A great blog with an unusual mix of stuff, in any given week she’ll be talking about anything from home canning Elk meat to the psychology of getting bigger tips when dancing in a strip club, and everything in between. If she can post as often as she does, while living in a truck in the woods, what possible excuse do any of us have?

The Adventures of Urban Scout
He’s young, he’s idealistic, he’s opinionated, he’s unafraid. And if you were ever wondering what bushcraft and blogging have ever done for anyone, they’ve brought him the affections of Penny Scout.

Adventures in Feral Failiure With Penny Scout
She tells many of the same stories as Urban Scout but from her perspective, giving you that soap opera vibe, but with a bushcraft twist. PS. She’s cute.

Fishing

Urban Fly Fisher
Urban is stretching it a bit, (just look at the photos on his site - not a building in sight) but he certainly fly-fishes a lot and has a very entertaining style.

Mike Ladle
Doc Ladle is THE MAN for fly and lure fishing in the UK and in the Caribbean.
The perfect counter point to the ‘technical’ fishing writers, his philosophy is to use as little gear as possible and to have a really good understanding of fish behaviour. Clunky site with fantastic content

Sea Fishing Blog
A chap called Jamie fishing the Cornish coast mainly from a kayak. People send him fishing questions and he gives good, clear advise on how to catch more fish.

Fflogger
A few people post on this one. Have a look at this article on hiking in to Colorado’s Gore range to fish for cutthroats, adventure fishing at its best.
http://www.fieldandstream.com/fieldstream/fishing/photogallery/article/0,13355,1566070,00.html

My Neighbourhood Bloggers

The Boudica of Suburbia
She’s very funny.

The Greenwich Phantom
Current affairs: if it moves in Greenwich he knows about it
Local history: if it moved in Greenwich............
Very, very well written.

Hunting

The Hog Blog
Prolific, well written and most importantly, he gets out there and does stuff, creating a window for us suburban types to gaze longingly through.

Firearms

The Gun Nut
After twenty five years writing about things that go bang and spit lead David E Petzal knows a thing or two about the subject. The discussion board is often hilarious. Sometimes intentionally so.

Check 'em out
Bushwacker.

Those Thirteen Little Words Every Dad Wants To Hear

If you read the discussion boards on the Outdoor and Hunting/Fishing sites you’ll be familiar with the problem so many of us are wrestling with: how can I pass my enthusiasm on to my boy, get him to share in my obsessions?

During our recent adventures in the Languedoc region of France Bushwacker jnr and I wandered down to the bank of the Canal du Midi which connects the Atlantic and Mediterranean coasts of France. While we were feeding the ducks we sat on a drain outlet were rain water (and being France probably other kinds of water) ran into the canal. A four-inch perch (?) swam into view, exposing itself in about three inches of the clear warm water. It looked just like you could reach in and grab it.
My lad kept trying to, and to his frustration Mr Fish kept swimming off.
His frustration built up as Mr Fish kept taunting him by coming back, and swimming off, coming back, and swimming off.
On our third visit he said
“Dad, I don’t care what I have to do, I’m catching that fish”

I know that feeling little dude!
Bushwacker.

Canal du Midi on wikipedia