Tents, Tarps and Tinder

---

The second day of training was much better than the first. We are getting to know each other and we are doing a lot of activities in groups. We start the day with a couple of forest games. They played this hide and seek game where we had to hide in 5 seconds. There is this guy on the course, Ray. I was hiding behind a tree with 4 others and he couldn't find anywhere so he picked up a short log and stood with it up to his face! lol... I had to take a photo of him.

Probably the most important thing that we worked on today were Risk Assessments. We surveyed the site and made judgements on the various things around that could be a hazard. The forest area that we are using is beautiful. There are lots of deciduous trees that are still waiting to get their leaves. We looked at a birch tree and identified its parts and uses. Apparently you can 'tap' the tree and get birch syrup from it much like a maple. Paul, the instructor said that you can get a gallon overnight. The most important things that we are learning are using the forest as a resource that can be sustained for future generations. There is a girl on the course named Fern. She runs a business called Foraging with Fern! She was bending down looking at something on a dead log. I went to ask what she was getting. There were some mushrooms growing out in a bunch. They are called turkey tail mushrooms because they have stripes on one side. She uses them for tea for a cold. They are also good for boosting the immune system after chemo. Who knew that a mushroom could do that. She only took a couple of small ones from the stack because the spores continue to grow new ones. She said that she can get over a cold in two days drinking a tea made from the mushrooms. Very cool.

There are little voles in the forest that I'm trying to see. They are apparently like a skinny little mouse. I wandered down near the creek at lunch time but couldn't find any but found a lovely little outdoor chapel. I took a photo of the Kids in church. They loved the outdoor setting! We spent the morning learning some knots and how to set up a tent tarp between two trees. We used a lopper to make tent pegs and set up the shelter. We then used a bush saw to cut timber to make a fire surround and used a steel and flint to light the tinder that we collected yesterday. We are going to do more 'fire' stuff tomorrow. An altogether lovely day!

There are lots of forest anemones and they look really pretty in between the trees on the forest floor. There is still quite a bit of mud around even though it hasn't rained for a couple of days. I luckily have my boots which are very muddy at the moment and drying by the heater.

---

Photos

Scout Hut
This is the room where we do our indoor stuff

Tension Knot
This is the knot at the second end of the tarp. This is to hold the tension across the top rope

Inside
There is actually quite a bit of room under the tarp.

Out Tiny Fire
We were only allowed to light a fire using tinder to the size of a matchstick. We used a steel and flint and some cotton wool to get a flame.