Since the beginning we’ve enjoyed spending time on the trail with friends. We call these Full Tang Expeditions, and as a few of them have made their way on to our calendar I think it’s time they got a formal definition and description. A Full Tang Expedition is a minimally-guided trip for friends, colleagues and […]
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End of the spring semester. Back from our final trip, the spring 2021 Wilderness Guide Training Semester is finished. In this episode of the podcast Christopher and I discuss two aspects of coaching people and how they differ. First is nurturing them to build their confidence, and second is focusing on accountability and what needs […]
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It took a year and a half, but the Moose Vegas field is now thick with clover. Life is getting pretty cushy at the field school compared to the early years […]
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– Ago Puteus Foris –
We’re a bushcraft, guide training and wilderness expedition school and traditional Maine Guide service founded in 1999. We help people become more skilled, more knowledgeable, more experienced and more confident by using traditional wilderness skills, a few simple tools and field-based experience. This is our media hub. For information on our programs, go to JackMtn.com, and check out our Calendar to see all upcoming programs.
When people aren’t around, wildlife has the run of the field school. This moose is a local resident, and helps to keep the cattails from taking over the shallow edge of the pond. Photo credit to Christopher. #fulltanglifestyle Continue Reading...
Since the beginning we’ve enjoyed spending time on the trail with friends. We call these Full Tang Expeditions, and as a few of them have made their way on to our calendar I think it’s time they got a formal definition and description. A Full Tang Expedition is a minimally-guided trip for friends, colleagues and […] Continue Reading...
This morning we begin week four (of nine) on the Wilderness Bushcraft Semester. Thanks to a bunch of recent rain, the rivers are near spring high water levels and we’ve taking advantage of it. Last week we covered basic poling in moving water, and this afternoon we’ll be pushing the envelope with some class 1 […] Continue Reading...
Fall in northern Maine is the best time of year for camping, getting away from the crowds of summer and for catching big brook trout and landlocked salmon. Join Jack Mountain head fishing guide Paul Sveum for 3 days of advanced fly fishing classes on the banks of the West Branch of the Penobscot at […] Continue Reading...
This morning we begin the fall 2021 Wilderness Bushcraft Semester; our 53rd long-term wilderness immersion program. Yesterday people arrived from Florida, California, Montana, Maryland, and other places around the country to our little town in northern Maine. They got a quick tour of the field school and we cooked a group dinner over the fire. […] Continue Reading...
Summer is quickly coming to a close. I’ll be heading up to the Jack Mountain field school at the end of the week for the fall semester, and with that knowledge always comes the urge to get things done here in VT. Putting up wood for winter and whitewashing the house seems to be an […] Continue Reading...
It’s been a busy summer in northern Maine. We’ve run a bunch of courses, as well as gotten out into the North Maine Woods on several occasions to explore. One of my favorite things is to take out young men and introduce them to bushcraft and life in wild places. The photo above was taken […] Continue Reading...
We just added an Advanced Fly Fishing Course to the calendar, running September 24-26 near Big Eddy on the West Branch of the Penobscot River. Taught and guided by Paul Sveum, (Registered Master Maine Guide), the course is designed for those who have taken our Introduction To Fly Fishing Course, and picks up where that […] Continue Reading...
We’re into the thick of our summer programming, having finished up the spring semester and the Summer Woodsman course. Currently we’ve got four spots remaining for the fall 2021 Wilderness Bushcraft Semester. It’s going to be a great course this year, and I’m already looking forward to to the warm days and crisp nights of […] Continue Reading...
End of the spring semester. Back from our final trip, the spring 2021 Wilderness Guide Training Semester is finished. In this episode of the podcast Christopher and I discuss two aspects of coaching people and how they differ. First is nurturing them to build their confidence, and second is focusing on accountability and what needs […] Continue Reading...
The fourth and final installment in our multi-episode reading of On The Trail; Selected Canoe And Snowshoe Trip Journals. This time I read the journal of a 2001 trip on the wilderness waterway through Everglades National Park in Florida. You can download a free copy of On The Trail from the downloads section of BushcraftSchool.com. […] Continue Reading...
“Fly fishing is beautifully regional.” – Paul Sveum Christoper and I welcomed our old friend and Registered Master Maine Guide Paul Sveum into the studio to discuss spring fly fishing in northern Maine. We discuss flies, fly fishing, temperatures that trout like, and a wide variety of other topics. Paul is teaching our Introduction To […] Continue Reading...
The third installment in our multi-episode reading of On The Trail; Selected Canoe And Snowshoe Trip Journals. This time I read the journals from a solo canoe trip on Allagash Lake, a canoe trip on the Big Black River, and a ten-day winter camping trip on the Quebec border with no sleeping bag. You can […] Continue Reading...
The four main jobs of the Jack Mountain Bushcraft School semester instructor are teacher, guide, mentor and coach. Christopher and I discuss this, and how the relationship changes and grows during a long course, in this episode of the podcast. You’ll also hear about the new bird neighbors who have built their nest in a […] Continue Reading...
It took a year and a half, but the Moose Vegas field is now thick with clover. Life is getting pretty cushy at the field school compared to the early years. Continue Reading...
After all the rain, we were able to get out on some local waterways that are usually too low to canoe in September. We shot this video on one of those waterways. Continue Reading...
First vlog in a few months. We’re into the third week of the fall Wilderness Bushcraft Semester, and have been out on the river teaching the finer points of life in a canoe. And when we’re on the water, the safety shorts are hard at work keeping everyone safe. Continue Reading...
This past weekend, Jack Mountain instructor and master Maine guide Paul Sveum ran an introduction to fly fishing course. Students got insight into reading water for likely hiding spots for fish, a chance to flip rocks and take a close look at the insect life that fish are feeding on, and that fishing flies are […] Continue Reading...
