On the Wilderness Canoe Expedition Semester we cooked a campfire dinner using the outdoor kitchen at the Guide Shack. Dutch oven chicken, Dutch oven pork, grilled pork chops, lentils in the thermal cooker and rice on a rocket stove. It turned out great.

Note: This post was originally published on this site in December, 2010. I was rereading it this morning and thought the modern world could use a good role model for self reliance, one that wasn’t interested in selling them guns, survival gear and an end of the world mentality. —- I’ve been writing a lot [...]

The iconic Moose Vegas sign, deep in the woods of Aroostook County, Maine.

It’s been a long break, but we’re back. Introducing instructor Tessa Storey and recorded in the Guide Shack, we discuss current events, our upcoming programs and the best beer of 2022. Here are two photos of that beer on the East Branch of the Penobscot that we talked about on the podcast. PHOTOS:Tessa and Tim [...]

Today we begin the Wilderness Canoe Expedition Semester, our 4-week canoe guide training course. It is our 58th long-term program, and our 24th year. Spring has been slow to arrive to Aroostook county, but the snow has retreated and we can finally drive into the field school (it is deep snow that stops us, not [...]

Tussilago farfara, coltsfoot. The first flower we get in the spring. This plant flowers before the leaves come out. This ground was covered in snow six days ago.

First mushroom of the year, Gyromitra esculenta or false morel. Don’t eat this one. Growing on ground that was covered with snow six days ago.

Our new ride, the Tater Raisin’ Van. Just a few days out from the start of the spring season, have spent a lot of hours on the road lately getting this thing back to the county. Named after the one and only Dick Curless of Fort Fairfield, Maine. Read about Dick Curless Listen to Tater [...]

Shot on April 26, 2023, opening up the road into camp and the first drive in of the year. The snow is still deep in spots, and I had to move a few trees, but I was able to drive into the field school. And just in time, as people will be arriving in a [...]

Ice going out on the Aroostook river in Masardis on April 14, 2023.

We filled our spring and summer courses exceptionally early this year, and now we’re into the season of the churn. The churn is what I refer to as the season where people realize they will be unable to attend due to injury, change in life situation, etc. To date this year we have lost 2 [...]

If you want to learn to fish, there are four steps. Learn about water, specifically freshwater ecology. Learn the natural history of fish in general, as well as the individual species you are targeting. Learn about what fish eat and how to mimic these foods. Learn about tackle and techniques. In our modern world, people [...]

We are excited to announce the route for the Wilderness Canoe Expedition Semester coming in May. For the past decade we have been running this program during the summer, which has limited where we could go to those waterways that had water during the frequent summer droughts. By moving it back to May, it has [...]

For 25 yeas I have been guaranteed by cigarette smokers that they never leave their butts laying around. And for 25 years, I have been picking up cigarette butts off the ground, likely from the people who have previously guaranteed me that they never drop their butts on the ground. In 2023 I am saying [...]

Spring is right around the corner, and we’re looking forward to an exciting month on the remote rivers of northern Maine in May on the Wilderness Canoe Expedition Semester. We get a lot of questions about recommended fishing gear for our spring programs, so today I want to address this. While we do have fly [...]

If you are coming to the field school from late May through mid-July, you’re going to want to have a smudge pot. These are metal cans in which you keep a smokey fire going to deter the bugs. Now is the time to start preparing for this need by getting a metal coffee can, which [...]

I just finished a 7-day fast where the only things I took in were water and strong black coffee (because weak coffee is the devil). I have done a bunch of these, stretching back to the mid-1990’s, and while there is a renewed interest in fasting as a result of the intermittent fasting diets, it [...]

We’re welcoming a new instructor to our team for the Boreal Snowshoe Expedition. Blake Towsley has a lot experience with living out in winter. Among other things, he has worked with us in the past on summer and winter programs, completed numerous extended snowshoe treks, spent several weeks with David Bosum in Quebec, taught with [...]

The Guide Shack, my off-grid cabin home for 12 years, with the solar-powered lights shining into the darkness. A warm and dry retreat in the cold Aroostook winter. So many great memories, and so many more to come. Shot on January 25, 2023.

If you’re coming to the field school in winter, park at 1041 Garfield road. Don’t try to drive down Smith Farm Road to the field school because you will get stuck in the snow. We haul your gear in via snowmobile, you walk in (just less than a mile) on snowshoes on the snowmobile trail. [...]

Programs are filling earlier than usual for 2023. While we still have some short programs to schedule, the following programs are currently full with a waiting list: Winter Woodsman Boreal Snowshoe Expedition XI 6 Month immersion WCES – 4 week canoe expedition Wilderness Bushcraft Semester – Session 1 We still have four spots in session [...]

I had a great trip to Alberta for the Frostbite Symposium. For my keynote I talked about using instructional design principles in designing outdoor education programming. There was a lively Q and A session at the end of the talk, which always feels good if you are speaking. At least some of the audience managed [...]

I finished my Wilderness First Responder course today and have a current certification more advanced than first aid in a long time. Part of my motivation for taking the course was to learn how the protocols had changed in the 27 years since getting my WEMT. It turns out that while a few of the [...]

I am taking a wilderness first responder (WFR) class this week. I have wanted to take one for a while now, but finding the time to get away is always a challenge. As we’re still in the shadow of the holidays, this seemed like a perfect opportunity. My first medical course was a wilderness emergency [...]

This time of year we’re bombarded with ads about getting someone the perfect gift. A smaller subset of those ads suggest that we give an experience rather than a tangible item. If you are looking for that gift for the outdoors-person, consider joining us in February for an immersion experience in Cree culture with our [...]

Are you thinking about joining us for a course in 2023? After reading through our site, many people have questions. And we have answers! Want to talk with us? Jump on one of our Office Hours Question & Answer sessions on our community platform at BushcraftSchool.com. Next session takes place on Tuesday, December 20th at [...]

Our new online course, Foundations Of Outdoor Cooking (Cooking 401), is live on our community platform at BushcraftSchool.com. Currently there are three lessons available, with a few more ready to go. The plan is to release five lessons per week, with a total of around 30 lessons. The goal of the course is to provide [...]

I have been fielding a lot of questions about snowshoe sizing recently, and wanted to put something down regarding getting the optimum size for your body weight. I am on the record as saying I don’t like modern snowshoes because they are usually too small, especially for bigger people. They come from the mountaineering tradition, [...]

I’ve been working on a new online course, Foundations Of Outdoor Cooking, for a few weeks now. It is designed to prepare people to be able to feed themselves well on one of our long-term programs, as well as in any remote environment with no kitchen infrastructure. The premise behind the course is to use [...]

This January (2023) I’m headed to Alberta to speak at the Frostbite Winter Camping Symposium. The event is a celebration of living and traveling outdoors in the north during the winter, with lots of instructional programs and experienced people. As hot tent camping and traditional winter travel skills have exploded in popularity in recent years, [...]

After a 2 year hiatus due to covid, we’re back to running winter programs in 2023 and couldn’t be more excited about it. Since there was no way to social distance inside of a hot tent, the Boreal Snowshoe Expedition (BSE), a program we started running way back in 2003, took a two-year break. I [...]

Photo: 24″ Packsaw from Pole & Paddle Canoe Note: This article was first posted at BushcraftSchool.com, our private online network. We are transitioning to posting all of our media for our community there, with a few things posted here. If you like this sort of thing, consider joining us there. It’s free to join. We’re [...]

For about 20 years I have recommended the Mora Classic #2 for courses. After using a different knife for the past four years I think it’s time to update my recommendation to be inline with what I use on a daily basis; The Morakniv Wood Carving Knife 106. The Mora 106 is a smaller carving [...]

I’m in Austin, Texas, until the New Year. I’m here a month or two each year, as my kids are in school here. Last winter I met Chris Hyde, the founder the Natureversity Outdoor School here in Austin. This morning we sat down and recorded an episode (21) for the Natureversity Podcast. Here’s a link [...]

I have heard from a few people coming on winter programs that it has been hard to find snowshoes this year. We’ve all been dealing with supply chain woes for a few years now, so it isn’t a surprise that these, too, are hard to source. I have a bunch of military surplus magnesium-framed snowshoes [...]

Yesterday we finished up the fall Wilderness Bushcraft Semester. It was our 56th long-term immersion program. We are running one more program, the Autumn Woodsman, in a week, to finish our 23rd year. Time flies. The picture was taken as the sun peeked over the horizon at Sunrise Cove, a campsite on a remote lake [...]

This weekend we begin our 56th long-term immersion program, the fall Wilderness Bushcraft Semester. It has been a busy spring and summer, and I’m looking forward to the cooler weather that fall brings. I’ve had a little time since we took off the water at the end of the Wilderness Canoe Expedition Semester, which has [...]

File this under alumni doing awesome things. Pat Wilson was a student on the spring semester and stayed on to work with me this summer. He started talking about doing a big canoe trip before winter, and got it in his head to canoe the length of the Mississippi river. After lots of planning and [...]

I just put up our winter schedule for 2023 and it will include a lot of weeks spent in hot tents off the grid. For a number of years I’ve had the idea of getting a thermoelectric generator to charge batteries while out on the land in the winter. In winter we spend a few [...]

In our 23 year history, we have had only a handful of instructors teach with us on our semester programs. These individuals represent the top of the outdoor industry. We’d like to introduce our newest instructor and the first woman to join the team, Tessa Storey. Tessa has recently completed both her Journeyman and Engagé [...]

After spending the past 4-weeks on the water running the Wilderness Canoe Expedition Semester, I’m back at the field school and have tales to tell. We spent the first week training everyone and doing expedition planning. It was a deep dive into everything canoeing, including paddling and poling, as well as cooking on the fire, [...]

Although it has been full with a waiting list for a few months, the past few days have seen 2 spots open up on this fall’s Wilderness Bushcraft Semester. This is a usual, but not predictable, occurrence. So if you’re interested in joining us for the 9-week fall course and working toward your Journeyman certification, [...]

This year’s project is nearing completion. In an outbuilding at our headquarters we’re building a library/classroom and calling it the Athenaeum. Check it out in this video.

I just posted our schedule for 2023. There are a few changes compared to recent years. First, we won’t be offering a Wilderness Guide Training Semester. Instead, we’ll be offering the Wilderness Bushcraft Semester (WBS) twice. They have been the same course all along, but we’re going to eliminate any confusion by changing the name [...]

Today we begin our summer term at the field school with the Summer Woodsman course, followed next week with the Canoe Expedition Skills course. After a short break for the 4th of July, we move into the 4-week Wilderness Canoe Expedition Semester. It’s a busy summer schedule. But it doesn’t feel much like summer in [...]

I just added a page to our site including updated local driving directions and arrival time info. If you’re coming to the field school, these directions should get you here.

On May 11, 2022, our fly fishing director Paul Sveum published an article in the Orvis News titled “5 Bushcraft Tips For Anglers.” I really enjoyed reading it, as will you if you click through (link). I always enjoy Paul’s writing style, and it’s great to see him getting recognition for both his fishing and [...]

The field school is quiet, the parking lot is empty, the course is completed. Our 54th long-term, professional training program wrapped up on Friday. As has always been the case, I spend the first day or two at the end of a course wondering what to do with myself. I’m writing this on a Sunday [...]

Video shot on the final trip of the spring, 2022 Wilderness Guide Training Semester. A tiny bit of paddling and a lot of poling a tiny stream.

Today is halfway day on the spring, 2022 Wilderness Guide Training Semester. The significance of the day is that we’re exactly halfway to the finish line on our 9-week semester. I haven’t been posting much media this course, but to get you up to speed we started in deep snow and a deep freeze, had [...]

Duties: Gardening, Chicken Wrangling, Homesteading, Informal Teaching, Media Dates: May 22 – August 27, 2022 (14 Weeks). Longer duration possible Hours Per Week: 10 Compensation: $15 per hour = $150/week, We are wanting to create an incentivised economic model, something like a farm stand where staff and students pay cash for the items grown. This [...]

Its close to the end of February and our 2022 programs are just about full. I just updated our master calendar with the current number of open spots in each of our scheduled programs through the fall. So if you want one of these spots, don’t delay! Below is a list of courses and how [...]

An excerpt from our latest video on using an army surplus, Vietnam-era medium Alice pack with a tumpline as an alternative to a traditional canvas canoe pack. I love traditional gear, but some of it is very expensive. If you’re wanting a traditional canoe pack, either to hold all of your gear for an expedition [...]

An excerpt from our latest video on the cook kit I carry with me canoeing, snowshoeing and car camping. The entire thing fits in a 30 litre blue barrel and allows me to cook for small groups of up to 4. When guiding a larger group, I switch it out for a larger wooden wannigan. [...]

An excerpt from our latest video on the pump-up solar shower I’ve been using for ten years. A simple and great piece of kit to make a warm daily shower simple and easy. For the whole video and links to the pieces needed to assemble it, go to our private online community at BushcraftSchool.com.

Part 2 of my discussion with Paul Sveum about simplifying fly fishing. We discuss #6-10 of the top ten things Paul wishes someone would have told him when he was getting started in fly fishing. PHOTO: A Y-stern canoe on the Bonaventure River in Quebec, headed upriver to fish for Atlantic Salmon. Show Notes: JMB [...]

This episode featuring Paul Sveum began as a blog post, but we decided to have a conversation about the top ten things to keep in mind when getting into fly fishing. This is part 1, where we discuss points 1-5. PHOTO: Paul fishing an Aroostook County stream. Show Notes: JMB Podcast Episode 111 | Simplifying [...]

Most modern people don’t use their hands for much. At the field school we use them hard, every day. From tying knots, holding knives and tools, swinging axes, paddling and poling canoes, the body is the engine that gets work done in the woods, and it usually falls on the hands to do the brunt [...]

After considering a variety of options, the route and plan is set for the 4-week Wilderness Canoe Expedition Semester for summer, 2022. The course will start with a week at the field school where we’ll learn all about canoes, paddling, poling, making fire, cooking over a fire, thermal cookers, axe safety, making rope, knots, trip [...]

The Winter Woodsman and the Boreal Snowshoe Expedition, as well as the northern Quebec snowshoe trip with the Cree have been cancelled for 2022 due to Covid. Part of our job is to always keep an eye on the safety of the group and the individuals in it. It is impossible to socially distance in [...]

This year marks 20 years that I have held a license as a Registered Master Maine Guide. I am licensed in the hunting, fishing, recreation and sea kayaking specialized categories. A few years ago I had plans to get a tidewater fishing guide license in order to get them all, but it’s on the back [...]

After finishing year 22, long-term program number 53 and 20 years as a full time Registered Master Maine Guide, I’ve learned a few things. I know what works and just how hard I can push people before their brains or bodies quit. I’ve seen the flaws in our systems and corrected most of them. They’re [...]

In 2020 we bought a house adjacent to the field school. It allowed us to have an office and some inside storage in the included outbuildings. The office was a fantastic upgrade. I love the off-grid lifestyle, but running a business off-grid was always a challenge. In 2022 we are planning to update the loft [...]

A number of years ago I crossed paths with Ezra Smith on a canoe course. He went on to build a wood canvas canoe, then traveled in that canoe the length of the Northern Forest Canoe Trail. I was guiding a trip on the Allagash when, on the last leg of his journey, he walked [...]

I love to see sign of the animals on the land, like this beaver-chewed ash tree along the river. Such signs tell me the ecosystem is healthy. But is health an objective thing, or culturally defined? In our modern, western world, health is often associated with the body. It is the worship of the appearance [...]

Out for a walk on the land today, enjoying some solo time and the luxury of wandering with a camera. We’re supposed to get a storm over the next few days, and something tells me the snow will stick until April or May, so this was my last fall day to enjoy the weather and [...]

I originally posted this in 2016. A lot of people have lost loved ones recently. I don’t have any sage words to say about how to deal with the loss. Do the best you can, and if it isn’t enough talk to someone. ————————————– During our courses I talk a lot about the time I [...]

“No matter what anyone says, men in the cities spend their lives and win their bread fighting other men. In primitive places they fight nature and are drawn to other men by the common battle. The difference in character and viewpoints between a hunter and a salesman is as fundamental and irreconcilable as though they [...]

If you eat a great meal at a restaurant, is the type of spatula the cook used responsible for the taste of the food? If you see a beautiful house, how important is the type of hammer the builder used to the final structure? If someone has a beautiful website, do you ask them what [...]

One of the more philosophical individuals who’s taken our semester program over the years posed a very good question to me a few years ago, and since then I tend to pose it to others who engage in long-term bushcraft and survival practice. It was a year after he had taken the course, during which [...]

I was recently a guest on the Nature Reliance Media Podcast with Craig Caudill. We had a great conversation about a wide variety of outdoor-related topics including my time in Alaska, the North Maine Woods, how expeditions are where stupid ideas go to die, and more. Here’s the link to the podcast: Nature Reliance Media [...]

Coaching from shore while students navigate the rips.

Gear sales drive the outdoor industry, not small guide services or outdoor schools. Years ago outdoor gear manufacturers and retailers learned that they needed to create a desire to buy among people in order to make money. They advertised aggressively and convinced people that the outdoors could be a fun and rewarding place to recreate, [...]

Looking through some photos from the spring semester and am reminded of the day we went up to a nearby lake to work on paddling canoes and there was a game warden and a truck full of brook trout. They were filling up external tanks on several float planes with trout, then flying low over [...]

Coaching canoe poling from shore at the starch factory rips. It was a super fun day, as you can tell by my smile.

Just a few scenes from a trip during the spring semester. We camped by a beautiful rapid and made the kitchen right next to the water. No story, just another beautiful place near the field school in northern Maine.

We finished up the fall, 2021 Wilderness Bushcraft Semester yesterday. Now Moose Vegas is empty and the moose have the run of the place again – there was a big cow on the road this morning. It was our 53rd long term program, and we had a student on the course who wasn’t alive when [...]

Matthew Rhode just successfully completed the Journeyman Certification on the fall Wilderness Bushcraft Semester. We welcomed him into the studio to discuss the course, his approach to time management, the usefulness of a table, and how to be successful on our program. PHOTO: Early morning during solos, looking east. Show Notes: JMB Podcast Episode 110 [...]

We’re nearing the end of the fall, 2021 Wilderness Bushcraft Semester. We just finished a 48 hour primitive living experience and are headed out on solos tomorrow. In this episode of the JMB Podcast we discuss these experiences, as for listener input on the next step for our online network at BushcraftSchool.com and ask for [...]

It’s been a few years since we’ve built one of these on a course. A coracle is a simple boat that can be built with brush and a tarp. Back in the day they were known as bull boats, because instead of a tarp they were made with the skin of a bull. They go [...]

Coal burning bowls and spoons in preparation for a primitive living experience at the end of the semester.

Keeping the trails clear at the field school is an ongoing process. In this video we were out on a crisp October morning and it felt great to swing an axe.

This year has been the most prolific for mushrooms that I recall in northern Maine. The local woods have been full of mushrooms since June, including these Amanitas I took a picture of the other day. I have eaten more boletes than any other year, as well as Suillis and other related genera. We also [...]

Had another great day out on the water recently with a few of the guys on the fall semester. It is such a pretty time of year in northern Maine.

We’re back after a long hiatus to talk about resiliency, the need to balance stress with recovery, sleeping out in the cold with no sleeping bag in front of a fire, and the need to prepare your hands for a robust outdoor life. We just finished week 6 (of 9) on the fall Wilderness Bushcraft [...]

We’re a week past halfway day on the fall ’21 Wilderness Bushcraft Semester. We just spent a few days on the river with beautiful weather and the leaves just starting to turn colors. Hope you enjoy coming along.

The calm water of the river is reflecting the clouds and colors in the sky.

Out gathering some highbush cranberries (Viburnum trilobum) for supper. They are just starting to be ripe.

From a recent canoe outing on a perfect fall day. These are the types of photos you look at over winter to get excited about open water.

There is a huge bounty of wild food on the land right now. In this video are featured some of the mushrooms and apples I gathered on a short walk the other day at dusk, and what I do to preserve the calories so I can consume them later.

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.

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 [...]

Saw this little guy hiding under a bunch of coltsfoot leaves. They sit so still and won’t move so they are easy to not see.

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 [...]

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.

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.

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 [...]

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. [...]

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 [...]

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 [...]

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 [...]

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 [...]

New for 2021, a 3-week introduction to bushcraft and canoe tripping, or the practical arts of life in the woods lived by hand, with no experience necessary or assumed. We’ll spend a week at the field school learning the skills of the forest and canoe, then spend two weeks canoeing the 99-mile Allagash Wilderness Waterway [...]

This is our 2000th post. Over the years I have found blogging, and more recently podcasting and video, to be a great way to communicate with our audience. It allows us to publish what we want when we want, without the gatekeepers that were the norm twenty years ago. Our initial blog was setup by [...]

Class photo, Introduction To Fly Fishing, May 2021.

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 [...]

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. [...]

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

Fly casting in the pond during the introduction to fly fishing course over Memorial Day weekend.

Nearing the end of week 7 of the semester, we’re out working on advanced canoe poling maneuvers on the Big Machias River near Ashland, Maine. These are difficult techniques to master, and no one in history has done so without getting humbled by the river at some point. #fulltanglifestyle

Casting practice during the Introduction To Fly Fishing Weekend.

Our week 6 and 7 canoe trip on the Allagash Wilderness Waterway during the spring, 2021 Wilderness Guide Training Semester.

Roasting coffee beans in a frying pan over an open fire.

Different trees are flowering at different times, especially at this time of year. We use that to locate trees such as apple trees whose fruit won’t be available for a few months. By noting where the trees are by the flowers, which is easy this time of year, we can come back when the fruit [...]

We had a bunch of interesting weather, including hail, rainbows and 30mph headwinds on our first overnight canoe trip. Students learned a lot about how to safely navigate water falls and ledges in a solo boat by station lining.

Higher education is changing. Whether due to covid or other factors, traditional education is being disrupted. While 4-year college degrees are still the norm, alternative education routes are growing dramatically in popularity. A question we get regularly is how can students pay for our program. Enter the 529 college savings plan. A 529 plan is [...]

“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 [...]

Out looking for trout on Aroostook County logging roads. Bring a stream thermometer, especially in the early spring. If you’re interested in learning more about fly fishing, check out our 3-day introduction to fly fishing course coming up May 27-30. The guy fishing in the clip at the end of the video is Registered Master [...]

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 [...]

Come see what it’s like to have complete control of your canoe by using a pole in white water as our students navigate an old dam, a few ledges and some challenging rips. We also take a break to check out a moose carcass, and look for sign of what’s been feeding on it.

Mother and baby bear tracks in the mud leads to a discussion of the art of animal tracking.

A wide-brimmed hat and a piece of fabric to flap in the breeze is a decent defense against flies.

Today is halfway day on the spring semester; Four and a half weeks done, four and a half weeks to go. Life is returning to the land as the warmer days are filled with birdsong and the buzz of insects. The leaves are coming out, and we’ll have fresh fiddleheads to eat any day now [...]

Last year we had a single black morel mushroom growing in an old garden space near the Guide Shack. This year there are about 100 of them. I’m not sure what it is about this soil that they like so much, but I’m happy to have them.

Before relying on a gear system to keep your stuff dry on a remote expedition, it’s important to test it to make sure it works.

Several pots, shiny and new, going over the fire for the first time.

Episode 130 of the vlog is a short collection of clips from around the field school.

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 [...]

We were out on Squapan Lake recently to practice canoe paddling strokes and to see if we could get the trout to bite. A state fish stocking truck full of brook trout was at the boat launch when we arrived, and several float planes were taking fish to remote ponds in the North Maine Woods. [...]

Join us on a day trip poling canoes on the Blackwater River during week 4 of the spring, 2021 Wilderness Guide Training Semester. We do this trip every year when the water is high in early spring as it’s a great place to lean to pole a canoe in quick water. And it’s beautiful and [...]

Christopher shot and edited this video on our recent poling trip on the Blackwater River.

At the JMB Field School we’ve got slightly more than 3000 feet of frontage on the Aroostook River. The Aroostook is a beautiful, clean, clear water river that flows northeast from the headwater lakes to the border with Canada, crossing the border at Fort Fairfield before flowing into the St. John River and turning south [...]

At least we didn’t have any fun while cooking this chicken and sourdough biscuit dinner! Cooking a bird or a beaver this way was the impetus for the original swivel pot chain. Before it went on the fire I trussed the chicken, a fancy way to say I tied it with twine to hold it [...]

The second installment in our multi-episode reading of On The Trail; Selected Canoe And Snowshoe Trip Journals. This time I read the journals from a 1999 Allagash Wilderness Waterway canoe trip and a 2001 St. John River canoe trip, both in Maine. I’ve run a lot of trips on these rivers in the 20+ years [...]

Staying warm and dry in a shelter while the snow falls outside.

Our first day on the Aroostook River during the spring, 2021 Wilderness Guide Training Semester. Island Rips is on the back side of Samsquanch Island, right across from the field school. At the right water level, which we’ve got right now, it’s great place to practice poling canoes in quick water. Introducing Marge The Barge, [...]

I’m trying something new – creating an audiobook. For episode 101 of the JMB Podcast I read a chapter from my book On The Trail. The chapter is a journal from a June, 2000 canoe trip on the Swan Lake Canoe Route on Alaska’s Kenai Peninsula. The plan is to work through the book so [...]

On days with heavy rain, snow or wind, our camp cook shed with a wood-fired cook stove is a refuge and a luxury.

A video tour of fabulous Moose Vegas at the JMB Field School. It functions as our student camp and is where we do a lot of our instruction.

Recorded at the beginning of week 2 of the spring 2021 semester, we discuss the value of a tangible approach to education as contrasted with an abstract approach. Also we discuss a variety of current events and the genuine surprise felt at making it to 100 episodes. PHOTO: Building a hoop house shelter. Show Notes: [...]

This morning we’re starting week 2 of the 9-week Wilderness Guide Training Semester. This week we’ll continue with our deep dive into self-reliant living in the forest with more useful plants and campfire cooking skills. We’ll also be adding our first shelter of the course, where students will spend four consecutive nights before moving on [...]

Big picture riff on why making things from the land matters, and how using materials that other people don’t value is useful in the long run.

Looking back on having had covid and clearing winter blowdowns from the trails at the field school. RIP Chris McCafferty.

Yesterday we began our 51st long-term program, the Wilderness Guide Training Semester, and the first field school program of 2021. After a winter filled with Covid-related challenges, it’s feels fantastic to be back out on the land and working with people. We’ve got a long way to go and a lot of material and miles [...]

Welcome back to the JMB Podcast. After a winter break, we’re back at the field school and beginning the spring 2021 Wilderness Guide Training semester today. For episode 99, we discuss what we did over the winter, which includes catching Covid 19, working to get healthy, working with birds at a museum, and a few [...]

We’ve just added a 3-day introduction to fly fishing course at the field school May 28-30. It will be guided by Paul Sveum, Master Maine Guide. Tuition is $450. Details are here. Gear, Casting, Fishing, Fly Tying Participants will arrive Thursday evening and we’ll start Friday morning at 8. We’ll learn the art of casting [...]

Congratulations are in order for Paul Sveum, who recently upgraded his Maine Guide license to master. In order to do so he had to document 10 years or work guiding, with a minimum number of hours each year. Maine first licensed guides in 1897. In those early years, you had to have a game warden [...]

After struggling to keep up with a wide variety of different communication channels over the last few years, I’ve decided that it’s too much and have decided to simplify the channels I stay current with. Social media messages, email, texts, comments, messenger, whatsapp, etc. – it all adds up. These days every website seems to [...]

The instructor-student relationship needs to be based on honesty and verifiable facts. If someone asks me a question as to whether I’ve eaten a certain plant, I can tell them yes or no, as well as what I thought about it. If someone asks me about the medicinal properties of a plant, the waters are [...]

Our next online course topic will be part of a series on outdoor cooking, and will be focused on thermal cooking. I want to make people’s transition to life at the field school, or life in general for those who will never join us at the field school, easier. Being efficient with food preparation, and [...]

We’re adding a new program this summer; a 3-week introductory course for those who want to learn to live and travel safely and with style by canoe in the back country. After a decade of running our 4-week Wilderness Canoe Expedition Semester, we’re changing things up a bit, shortening it by a week, and adding [...]

I’m about halfway through the book Course Design Formula by Rebecca Frost Cuevas. So far I’ve really enjoyed it and learned a lot about putting together a well-designed course, how teaching online is different than teaching in person, and a whole bunch more. Why am I reading this book? Because we’re going to be adding [...]

December 27th in the evening I had a little bit of a scratchy throat. I woke up on the 28th with zero energy. I stayed in bed, not doing anything and getting weaker, until January 8th. That night I went out for a covid test and tested positive. They told me to go to the [...]

The second article in the Bangor Daily News from my discussion with Sam Schipani is titled “How To Pick An Axe” and was published on November 12, 2020. Link: How To Pick An Ax Ms. Schipani lists six things to consider when choosing an axe. As with the first article she wrote based on our [...]

Last week I was interviewed by Sam Schipani from the Bangor Daily News about axe safety. The article went live on November 3rd, you can read it here: How To Use An Axe Safely I think she did a solid job summarizing the key points of axe safety. What do you think?

We just wrapped up the fall, 2020 Wilderness Bushcraft Semester. 50 is the number of the day, as it was our 50th long-term program, and this week I celebrated my 50th birthday. I always get nostalgic at the end of fall semesters. As I was walking through the woods from Moose Vegas to the Guide [...]

For episode 98 of the JMB podcast, we discuss the process of developing wilderness instructors and guides. We outline the following steps to the process: Take a course and get the Journeyman certification Take a medical class, first aid or wilderness first responder Take and pass the test to become a Registered Maine Guide Go [...]

It’s near the end of the fall semester, so we invited some of the current Wilderness Bushcraft Semester students into the Guide Shack so you could hear directly from them about their thoughts about the course. Listen in as they describe their experience and answer a few questions about it. PHOTO: Spring semester students at [...]

In this short video, we walk through our newly built group shelter. We’ve been consistently having nights below freezing, so having a warm space for people to dry off and defrost their bones is a big bonus for our students. Just based on the general shape and color of the structure, we’ve started referring to [...]

If we have learned anything from the pandemic, it’s that you’re on your own when things get tough. Unless you give a lot of money to politicians they don’t care whether you live or die. So this is a great time to start taking control of your self-reliance needs. In northern Maine we’re sure of [...]

We offer several different types of programs, and in this episode of the podcast we describe and define what they are and who they’re for. Two weeks to go in the fall, 2020 Wilderness Bushcraft Semester. PHOTO: Big breakfast in camp. Show Notes: JMB Podcast Episode 96 | Differentiating Professional Training Programs Kid-Friendly? Kid friendly, [...]

I’ve been dragging my feet in making this decision, hoping there would be a vaccine or a change or something. But as people are trying to make travel plans for our February programs, it’s time. I’m officially cancelling the 2021 Winter Woodsman and Boreal Snowshoe Expedition due to the covid. I have been confident we’ve [...]

Minimalism in the wild. In episode 95 of the JMB Podcast Christopher and I discuss the idea of minimalism as compared and contrasted with ultralight in the backcountry. We often discuss our traditional approach to camping, characterized by heavy gear and lots of it. But we also enjoy going light with improvised gear. Going light [...]

In episode 94 of the JMB Podcast Christopher and I discuss the concept of transference; where lessons learned in one space are applied in a different space, in a different way. Sometimes called lateral thinking, it’s about developing deep knowledge. It’s also about developing deep knowledge of problems to be solved. PHOTO: Frost on the [...]

During the Wilderness Bushcraft Semester we do two-night solos where participants head into the forest alone with very minimal kit. For many people it isn’t easy to unplug from the modern world and be alone with themselves. We can get so distracted with life, the internet and everything that our minds are almost never where [...]

In episode 93 we get listeners caught up with current events, then discuss how in bushcraft (and many other aspects of life), the advanced skills are the basics mastered; there is not a separate set of skills for advanced practitioners. It’s all about depth of knowledge. PHOTO: Canoeing on a northern Maine lake Show Notes: [...]

We welcomed Ryan Holt into the studio for episode 92. Ryan is a Jack Mountain Bushcraft School alum and has completed 4 challenges on the television show Naked & Afraid. He is the owner of the Human-Nature Hostel in Roxbury, Maine. We talk about his time on tv, his work running a hostel for Appalachian [...]

This morning we’re starting week four of the fall, 2020 Wilderness Bushcraft Semester. We spent last week camped on a nearby lake working on canoe skills. This week students will be building their second shelter and spending four consecutive nights in it. We’ll also be working on crafts such as building a bucksaw when you [...]

Recorded on September 8th at the new Jack Mountain Bushcraft School hq studio, episode 90 features Tim Smith and Colin Clifford talking about Colin’s recent 10-day Allagash solo canoe trip. PHOTO: Tim Cole coming into Round Pond on the Allagash from a few years back. Show Notes: JMB Podcast Episode 91 | 10-Day Allagash Solo [...]

Recorded on July 2nd by a very tired Tim Smith and Christopher Russell, episode 90 is about the challenges faced in participating in, as well as running, our semester courses. It was hot and buggy and we were tired from a long semester, but we talked about events that were current and prognosticated on some [...]

Yesterday people trickled into the field school. We enjoyed a campfire and conversations about past experiences, future plans, what they hope to get out of a few months in the woods, etc. This morning the real work starts. The particulars, where all the details matter. A group of future instructors honing their craft. Today it [...]

After 12 years of scheming to do so, I finally purchased the remaining 19 acres in the block of land at the field school. This gives us a block of 80 acres and about a half a mile of riverfront on the Aroostook river. Although this area is not being developed and is losing population, [...]

It’s been a long, hot summer, as well as a while since I’ve published anything on the web. Lots of changes have happened, and life looks a bit different than it did before starting the spring semester in early May. We had a busy summer of programs, running a Summer Woodsman, Advanced Boreal Summer Survival, [...]

In episode 89 Christopher and I discuss the philosophy of friluftsliv, a traditional Scandinavian approach to the natural world. Loosely translated, it means “open air life”. It’s different than how most people see nature in the USA, and is the basis for the part-time, yearlong immersion program we’re currently developing, to be run in southern [...]

We just wrapped up week 7 of the Wilderness Guide Training Semester. Weeks 6 and 7 were spent on the Allagash Wilderness Waterway, and it’s appropriate that during a guide training semester we had to do some guide stuff. Specifically, we had to medically evacuate a participant on the trip. For the story, listen to [...]

In episode 87 we discuss the new part-time, yearlong immersion program we’re currently developing, to be run in southern Vermont. We also catch up with current events at the field school. PHOTO: Turtle on the Aroostook River. Kid-Friendly? Kid-friendly, no profanity. Links: The Friluftsliv Forest Program JMBS Master Calendar   iTunes Link | Play, Download [...]

We’re wrapping up week 5 of our spring semester today. After a late start to the course, we had a late start to spring as winter held on in northern Maine through mid-May. Then we had two days of spring weather. Then a five-day heatwave. And now it’s June. We had the field in Moose [...]

This video was shot a few years ago (notice the slow introduction), and features Paul Sveum demonstrating how to sanitize water (ie. make it safe to drink) when you have no pot. You need to boil it, which is why a pot is such a valuable item to carry, but you should have a backup [...]

It’s been ten years since I took this photo. The kid is now in middle school. The basket has been retired and sits in a corner of the guide shack holding fishing gear. Of all the photos I’ve ever taken, it remains in my top ten. And a reminder that life happens fast.

Video by Bosum Media & Photography of our March, 2020 trip to northern Quebec. We’ve been running trips with our friends David and Anna Bosum, through their cultural tourism business Nuuhchimi Wiinuu, for 20 years. The experiences there have all been amazing. But don’t take my word for it, watch the video.

Join me for a walk up Jack Mountain and a few other favorite spots in the local woods.

In episode 86 of the JMB podcast Christopher and I discuss the effect the coronavirus has had on each of our lives, I rant about national canoe certifications and how they’re meaningless to me after getting burned by them a few times, I explain how we’re creating our own standalone canoe certifications, and then we [...]

Our next live video event is scheduled for Wednesday, 4/15/20, at 11 am eastern time. It is a live video event on BushcraftSchool.com – a virtual office hours for those people taking our online courses. If you’re a member of Bushcraftschool.com, click on the Events tab. If you’re not a member, it’s free to join. [...]

The first lesson from our new Household Handcrafts course, available for free at BushcraftSchool.com. This lesson teaches how to make a folded paper or bark drinking cup. The point of the course is to learn some crafting techniques using common household items.

Back from a long hiatus, for episode 85 Christopher and I discuss his new project: The School Of The Forest Podcast. He’s interviewing people who are not directly in the bushcraft business, but their work can help us learn more about our world. Want to learn more? Listen to the episode. PHOTO: SOTF Podcast Page. [...]

How we manage the academic side of our professional training programs. We manage the day to day via a private group on our online community at BushcraftSchool.com. We manage the academic work and documentation via a private Google Classroom via Google Docs. Students use a tablet to complete their academic work.

We’ll be doing our first live video event on BushcraftSchool.com – a virtual office hours for those people taking our online courses – on Friday, April 10th from 7-7:30pm EST. If you’re a member of Bushcraftschool.com, click on the Events tab. If you’re not a member, it’s free to join. This will be our first [...]

Kids never listen, especially when we’re trapped at home for social distancing. The ice won’t melt itself, and no hair dryer works without electricity.

We’re finishing up the preparations for our next online course: Introduction to outdoor cooking (Skill 117), available for free in our online community at BushcraftSchool.com. The goal is to make you an efficient outdoor cook capable of feeding yourself under a variety of conditions, NOT to make you a professional cook or chef. This will [...]

I’m coining a phrase today and calling it The YouTube Effect. It’s about how watching experts do something makes us overconfident, but does not make us more skilled. I was listening to the Hidden Brain podcast, specifically the episode titled “Close Enough: The Lure Of Living Through Others.” One of the segments was based on [...]

A lot of families are stuck indoors these days, and parents are looking for interesting things to do with their kids. Here are two things you can do right now. First, watch the Local Living Video Project from our friends at Koviashuvik Local Living School. They are posting a series of videos on outdoor skills [...]

Have you joined our online community at BushcraftSchool.com yet? We’re currently live with our weather understanding and observational forecasting course and adding a lesson every day. We are also about to add a few more online courses. We’ve pushed our spring semester back a few weeks due to the virus, and as such should have [...]

If you’re stuck home with your kids, eventually someone will need a haircut. I’ve been cutting my own for a long time and it’s no big deal. When I don’t cut my own hair, I have a Hollywood stylist do it. It costs $850 each time, but it’s worth it. I figure it’s just the [...]

We’re offering a free online course during the coronavirus shut down in our digital learning space at BushcraftSchool.com. It’s the same 30-day course we run during our semester programs. It’s a minimal time commitment, maybe 15 minutes per day, with the intended learning outcome that you will learn something useful about the weather and be [...]

Introduction to our new online course. Nature 191: Understanding The Weather & Observational Forecasting.

As a safety precaution amid the ongoing expansion of the Coronavirus, the Wilderness Paddlers Gathering scheduled for this weekend in Vermont has been cancelled. As a result I’ll be staying home and working on a new pack basket mold.

We were recently written up in Outdoor Life magazine in an article by Tim MacWelch titled The 10 Best Survival Schools for Hunters and Anglers. It’s always nice to be listed amongst the industry leaders, especially when it’s in a magazine I used to read as a kid. Often articles of this sort are written [...]

We’re six weeks out from the start of the Wilderness Guide Training Semester. I’ve been busy making preparations all morning for clearing our road, fixing the roof on the cook shed and getting the stove pipe operational, etc. April is a tough month at the field school, so getting the details in order will help [...]

We had a recent cancellation for this spring’s Wilderness Guide Training Semester, resulting in an open spot now being available. If you’re interested, get in touch with us. The course starts in 8 weeks. We’ll be starting on snowshoes, canoeing 300 miles of northern Maine rivers, living on the trail, becoming an expert with an [...]