tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-198050352024-03-07T23:00:04.731-05:00Dynamite Skills"You know, like numchuck skills, bow hunting skills, computer hacking skills. Girls only want boyfriends who have great skills." <br>
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--Napolean Dynamite<br>
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The main purpose of this blog is for me to document and share my practicing of skills. While, I won't be practicing numchuck skills or computer hacking skills, I am practicing bowhunting skills and a slew of other survival skills. I may have posts about other things as well though.Sassmouthhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06118738459126760028noreply@blogger.comBlogger130125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19805035.post-3936301649338512842010-11-21T19:44:00.007-05:002010-11-22T00:50:29.821-05:00Soap Making 2I made soap today. I have an abundance of pork fat from <a href="http://dynamiteskills.blogspot.com/2010/06/pig-roast-butchering-and-stone-weapons.html">the pig we butchered</a> so instead of using just bison fat like I did <a href="http://dynamiteskills.blogspot.com/2009/06/bison-soap.html">my first time</a>, I used pork lard too. I spent most of the time calculating the proportion of lye to fat. I had a reference that gave me the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">saponification</span> values (SAP) for beef and pork fat. That is the amount of Potassium Hydroxide (<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">KOH</span>) in milligrams it takes to make soap out of one gram of fat. Beef tallow = 197 and Pork lard = 194.6.<br /><br />I used a half pound of each and averaged the SAP value to 195.8. For one pound of fat I needed .1958 lbs. of lye. But since I used Sodium Hydroxide (<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">NaOH</span>), I had to multiply by the fraction 40/56.1 to get a proper conversion. Finally, to make the soap milder and less caustic to naturally acidic human skin I discounted the lye by another 15.5% to come up with a final number of .1179lbs. or 53.47 grams.<br /><br />While this seems a bit complicated, it's pretty cool. Once you know the SAP values of various fats and oils you can concoct you own mixtures. This time I tried a relatively simple 50% bison/50% lard mixture, but in the future I could throw in olive oil or another type of oil. Each fat and oil has different properties that can affect the hardness, amount of lather and other characteristics of the finished product.<br /><br />In this picture I weighed half a pound of beef tallow.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk5opeHP19FWgq44UvTwetXiNytL7gXrUuOTlEYdQfHPzbCmTo3sribheOFrZZ5-kabKsFFjpNa0ASVO3m-RZgIeTn-tUZUc3xrf-bW9UVpMNaGemom_T864zO_kSZZPsq_45Vgg/s1600/DSC00965.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk5opeHP19FWgq44UvTwetXiNytL7gXrUuOTlEYdQfHPzbCmTo3sribheOFrZZ5-kabKsFFjpNa0ASVO3m-RZgIeTn-tUZUc3xrf-bW9UVpMNaGemom_T864zO_kSZZPsq_45Vgg/s320/DSC00965.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5542242176107015938" border="0" /></a><br /><br />I mixed the beef tallow and pork lard together in a pan over low heat. I then added the grams of lye crystals to water. The lye and water reacted and heated up to around 120 degrees with no outside heat required. I monitored both pots and once they were both around 95 degrees I poured the lye into the fat mixture.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCqXszeIpuGGW4V51CzPI6gG_jHxN5WWx3rpQ5Rx89tlIf6JZKaU7hujoCTKUyTeZUwX3Cm8_aQSD1IvNizIndYppA6O_Tqpm1-6PgUbrXa6iPvBE18HpWE3V-GdeOc9W07RrAjQ/s1600/DSC00967.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCqXszeIpuGGW4V51CzPI6gG_jHxN5WWx3rpQ5Rx89tlIf6JZKaU7hujoCTKUyTeZUwX3Cm8_aQSD1IvNizIndYppA6O_Tqpm1-6PgUbrXa6iPvBE18HpWE3V-GdeOc9W07RrAjQ/s320/DSC00967.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5542177281233115810" border="0" /></a><br /><br />After combining them I stirred the mixture for about 25 minutes. Almost right away the mixture smelled like soap.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIDGeF8OLdY3hxpKdR0j1uFJO3CLncydjrQxLbw7uiMTaOjnNQDSgOwZ9N08CGmxlXZvtsY2mQYa2bfSxQhehREzMfIj75UCc3lxg5MwL0vCG_uL96mNyr6H5awuxr8OdUaSzGRw/s1600/DSC00968.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIDGeF8OLdY3hxpKdR0j1uFJO3CLncydjrQxLbw7uiMTaOjnNQDSgOwZ9N08CGmxlXZvtsY2mQYa2bfSxQhehREzMfIj75UCc3lxg5MwL0vCG_uL96mNyr6H5awuxr8OdUaSzGRw/s320/DSC00968.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5542173807258776178" border="0" /></a><br /><br />After 25 minutes the mixture thickened up. I added purple dye and lavender scent and mixed it together. It actually took a fourth of the bottle to change the color very much.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh28pzf8HwJtXrc-bPBP6sgmbRgAbK8fy4l5LN0NhZtSCbvJGcQYMPPZfCztWfilWXAv_E00L8fAq3Ynyn6r9jFucd2KsHb1gQ6M8YSazaTEGXN4o5CmhQxINnQ3CnFMOTJTaazKA/s1600/DSC00969.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh28pzf8HwJtXrc-bPBP6sgmbRgAbK8fy4l5LN0NhZtSCbvJGcQYMPPZfCztWfilWXAv_E00L8fAq3Ynyn6r9jFucd2KsHb1gQ6M8YSazaTEGXN4o5CmhQxINnQ3CnFMOTJTaazKA/s320/DSC00969.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5542173802827899922" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Finally, I poured it into a rusty cupcake tin which I dedicated to <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">soap making</span>.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8rt4E0S9DwPT7ED_GVRwOSpwW1nU9fwTVVt6xLgTFCXk_4DzgSc14_jIp7OmWvpsudZx5wq6ofbgasEhn1BJWi768xRtE7bJ1IOKHMGitRwzAiHtk93tSq2xR1t9FSh29eXuhDQ/s1600/DSC00970.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8rt4E0S9DwPT7ED_GVRwOSpwW1nU9fwTVVt6xLgTFCXk_4DzgSc14_jIp7OmWvpsudZx5wq6ofbgasEhn1BJWi768xRtE7bJ1IOKHMGitRwzAiHtk93tSq2xR1t9FSh29eXuhDQ/s320/DSC00970.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5542173792944110242" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Here the soap will sit for a couple days to harden up. After that I will pop them out of the tin and let them cure for a couple weeks before using them. My hope is that using lard will make the bars softer and perhaps lather better than the 100% bison mixture.<br /><br />The recipe I used was:<br />1/2 lb. bison tallow<br />1/2 lb. pork lard<br />53.47 grams lye crystals<br />enough water to dissolve the lye.<br />dye and scent to taste.<br /><br />I read online that lye crystals are no longer sold in stores because they have been used to make illegal drugs. If this is true then I will eventually run out of a critical ingredient in soap. This gives me more motivation to harvest my own lye using wood ash. I hope to experiment with that in the future.Sassmouthhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06118738459126760028noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19805035.post-78691696433134363792010-11-14T23:29:00.004-05:002010-11-15T00:28:47.272-05:00Dehydrated EggsSometimes I have more eggs than I can deal with. It's a good problem to have. When I can't get rid of them at work, I've started dehydrating them. Basically I just scramble them up and poor them out onto wax paper on the dehydrator trays. It can be tricky putting the trays in without spilling egg.<br /><br />This is what it looks like after it's dehydrated.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1AfseDTXJKzgUIwgViSma1XBStpWqwGsZRAV7EdQYbDMXQ_qF0FAekR5-qFXN8jbCwLMtAVMoic8pa9nxYHYTOm6goasghrz454y4ugcZJyZOQboUmpSInThff-rELukDOyM_gw/s1600/DSC00963.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1AfseDTXJKzgUIwgViSma1XBStpWqwGsZRAV7EdQYbDMXQ_qF0FAekR5-qFXN8jbCwLMtAVMoic8pa9nxYHYTOm6goasghrz454y4ugcZJyZOQboUmpSInThff-rELukDOyM_gw/s320/DSC00963.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5539634090878056834" border="0" /></a><br /><br />The dried egg flakes off the wax paper easily. I next add it all into the food processor. This chops it up into little crumbles. This is where I stop. Using a <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">mortise</span> and pestle I was able to grind it further into a powder. The egg still caked together though, at least in the humidity of the Pacific Northwest. It's not really worth the extra effort to try to make powdered eggs.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJgAuUDWGln4ggP85Cg6Jjg-NtWs42CUx_9t8Fz03HMejT_hX1bX7y7jxmLTs3MAUCe5iWFKWOsz0gosbYBDNkRUVS8BiquuuavgQpHCFFuyIfxT5sjfeNoO4YfwDvh20MXcRqVQ/s1600/DSC00964.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJgAuUDWGln4ggP85Cg6Jjg-NtWs42CUx_9t8Fz03HMejT_hX1bX7y7jxmLTs3MAUCe5iWFKWOsz0gosbYBDNkRUVS8BiquuuavgQpHCFFuyIfxT5sjfeNoO4YfwDvh20MXcRqVQ/s320/DSC00964.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5539634078863013938" border="0" /></a><br /><br />It's pretty simple to cook them with a little water. They don't transform back into a nice scrambled egg consistency. Instead each little crumble hydrates and keeps it's form. They taste just like normal eggs, but the form they are in is strange.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEe-uNlrCaJDDlpFdVltKG_N5i7FcivhDksmtA9rxBYg0PatCZPl87pL3zzc0qQjkic1XotJsnL_q5uTPEY2EN35T4bFx1IBvgTvdYvrC6PhoF-WL0HjjCHZg4Gf3M4Dv9iyzCEw/s1600/DSC00942.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEe-uNlrCaJDDlpFdVltKG_N5i7FcivhDksmtA9rxBYg0PatCZPl87pL3zzc0qQjkic1XotJsnL_q5uTPEY2EN35T4bFx1IBvgTvdYvrC6PhoF-WL0HjjCHZg4Gf3M4Dv9iyzCEw/s320/DSC00942.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5539634071136282530" border="0" /></a>Sassmouthhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06118738459126760028noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19805035.post-82000818795617781232010-10-03T23:54:00.007-04:002010-10-04T02:01:20.239-04:00Survival Trip 1This post is actually one month overdue. I have been distracted by many things and am finally getting around to writing this survival trip debriefing. My friend Andrew and I drove out to the Tillamook State Forest west of Portland. We didn't have a definite spot we were heading for. A water source near our camping spot was a requirement and there were plenty of streams on the map. We discovered that there was BLM (Bureau of Land Management) land on the way to the state forest and opted to camp there. We passed many official camping sites as we drove towards the eastern boundary of the Forest.<br /><br />Another requirement was that we were fairly isolated from other people. It kind of kills the survival vibe when you see other people around. We turned off the main road and drove a ways. We stopped when we saw a grassy clearing among the Fir trees. We inspected the area and found heavy Elk sign. Besides scat everywhere we saw where they had laid in the grass.<br /><br />I immediately wanted to camp there. It was 50 yards from a stream and had nice shelter possibilities. Because we were in the hills a lot of the terrain was sloped but the clearing was flat.<br /><br />The first night we eased our way into survival mode. No tents or mattress pads. We gathered grass for bedding and used our sleeping bags. The next day we began in earnest. I allowed myself the following items: the clothes I was wearing, a knife, and a 40 oz. stainless steel container full of water.<br /><br />Typically shelter is the first priority, but we kind of cheated by finding our shelter location the day before. Because the weather was mild and the sky was clear we bumped water up to our first priority. Since we had also found our water source the day before we made fire our first priority so that we could sterilize water for drinking.<br /><br />The biodiversity of the forest was low. We theorized it was because of the logging that had gone on there and because of the elevation (1500+ ft). As a consequence, we only found a couple of tree species to make fire by friction with. We tried alder first, constructing a bow drill kit from trees by the stream. I dug up roots to use for the bow string.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcWQyjelS1ZWOX3E4MhDSOc0e8l-_ByQIRNcCySGVm9wfVcDOXEem3oiLmdNSCOccJ9ZKLE4Si_vJxv4D8Rx_iSWz1lODVIVb6Jp3aoLzMWMrU_ZRd7dTfZa6qNIZH_WS4fVfueA/s1600/DSC00946.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcWQyjelS1ZWOX3E4MhDSOc0e8l-_ByQIRNcCySGVm9wfVcDOXEem3oiLmdNSCOccJ9ZKLE4Si_vJxv4D8Rx_iSWz1lODVIVb6Jp3aoLzMWMrU_ZRd7dTfZa6qNIZH_WS4fVfueA/s320/DSC00946.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5524053062199027346" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Andrew assembled the kit and gave it a try while I prepared our shelter. The roots snapped before too long. After a few more tries he quickly exhausted the supply of roots. At that point we could have made some cordage from plant material, but it would have taken a lot of time and likely would have broken too. We decided that in a real survival situation we would have a used a shoelace. We substituted in some paracord instead.<br /><br />Neither of us could get a coal, although we made plenty of smoke. We decided that alder wasn't going to work and set off on a hike to find a different type of wood. We took the opportunity to graze on thimbleberries on the way. Eventually we found a Big Leaf Maple tree along the road. We took several dead branches with which to make a fireboard and spindle.<br /><br />When we got back to the camp we made the kit and tried again to make fire. We had hope because Andrew had made fire with Big Leaf Maple before. Despite our best efforts and plenty of smoke we could not get a coal.<br /><br />By that point it was close to 4pm and we had been working on making fire most of the day. We built a fire and lit it with a lighter. Once we had a fire going Andrew filled my bottle from the stream and set it in the fire. Before the trip I bought the stainless steel bottle specifically so we could boil water in it. Otherwise we would have had to make some container to boil water in.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_5zHUfiRDvQSRFwLj-F2VHkOFyRSEM8Mm7n86Gba82jN8TkhgCTUUyNYuVK0WqWdRMwhcLOuxl1AefoucA27qcqQhsUjAraGBbrGbcSa4JbBZ_suCLv2WjgxIzSNq78ImwELF3w/s1600/DSC00948.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_5zHUfiRDvQSRFwLj-F2VHkOFyRSEM8Mm7n86Gba82jN8TkhgCTUUyNYuVK0WqWdRMwhcLOuxl1AefoucA27qcqQhsUjAraGBbrGbcSa4JbBZ_suCLv2WjgxIzSNq78ImwELF3w/s320/DSC00948.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5524048349855243346" border="0" /></a><br /><br />We had fire and water and I had somewhat prepared a place to sleep. Because the weather was nice we decided that instead of a shelter from the rain we would use the fire for warmth and try to reflect as much of its heat at us.<br /><br />In the clearing there was a downed tree that provided a natural wall. I cleared out the area and made it level. I laid down the grass we gathered from the night before and gathered more as well.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZkmbCcAekq6xyxOsNEUCwyQR6NP2T9Z4o9fZnjq5Rs0QFVHUAr2RQhaj9lBOHOXucors1kImsm6q0Ah-deJWw15CcLrlx9-Q7nuYWDAepKmWVTHfDpXLkYtYxyhwZV2NgYLBHIg/s1600/DSC00943.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZkmbCcAekq6xyxOsNEUCwyQR6NP2T9Z4o9fZnjq5Rs0QFVHUAr2RQhaj9lBOHOXucors1kImsm6q0Ah-deJWw15CcLrlx9-Q7nuYWDAepKmWVTHfDpXLkYtYxyhwZV2NgYLBHIg/s320/DSC00943.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5524053085788497218" border="0" /></a><br /><br />We then built a reflecting wall opposite the downed tree. This way we would have the heat reflect off both walls onto us. We added branches to the top to contain more heat. Finally we gathered a bunch of firewood to feed the fire all night. We finished at dusk. In truth it was a pretty sloppy shelter and if the weather had turned bad we would have been sleeping in the car.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT77KehtbheAlohJmdmZP9OIiFSJX85eM2d6yB29tPwK5iYi-MATBn2eTUsmuBBCrzRsioMTd2DQzhmVvhpDS1CN3y2xu58KTiQVjDen5itXL2YL_fByZVIAUZQ7eoMyHixxnD7g/s1600/DSC00949.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT77KehtbheAlohJmdmZP9OIiFSJX85eM2d6yB29tPwK5iYi-MATBn2eTUsmuBBCrzRsioMTd2DQzhmVvhpDS1CN3y2xu58KTiQVjDen5itXL2YL_fByZVIAUZQ7eoMyHixxnD7g/s320/DSC00949.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5524053078322590674" border="0" /></a><br /><br />It was interesting sleeping on the grass bed with no cover. It was a balancing act keeping the fire small enough to be in control and big enough so I didn't have to wake up every 20 minutes to stoke it. I woke up cold several times throughout the night to feed it and eventually just grabbed my sleeping bag as a cover.<br /><br />The next morning we contemplated our situation. We had fire and water. We could definitely improve the shelter. I had eaten naught but thimbleberries and wood sorrel for the past 24 hours. Food became our priority, but throughout the past day we had seen little in the way of wild edible plants. The stream had little to no fish. We could attempt to make and set traps and then wait till the next day to see if we caught anything.<br /><br />We decided that in a real survival situation we wouldn't have stayed there. We would have headed downhill along the stream until we found more diverse life. At lower elevations we could have been fat on blackberries and hazelnuts.<br /><br />We returned the camp to the way we found it and headed out. The donuts I left in the car were delicious, but truthfully going a day without substantial food was pretty easy. I didn't really think about eating that much and by not eating, I was able to make the water I brought last a long time.<br /><br />So it seemed that we failed in most aspects of survival, but the experience taught us a lot. Next time we go out we decided that we would focus on one or two aspects of survival instead of trying to do it all at once.<br /><br />Later that day we met up with some of my friends for a long labor day weekend camping trip. It was back to cozy camping. We had a great time and used the opportunity to practice and teach some skills. Andrew gathered cedar and made another bow drill kit. After a couple people tried it, I was able to make fire, somewhat redeeming our failure of the day before.<br /><br />We taught a few of the other guys how to make some traps. My friend Dan set up his first figure four deadfall. I made sure he knew that that log was going to fall too slow to catch anything.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy1stETHxUNowXNIFsJAG9vO2Lxm8KpF8HHWW2YpryEEOyybPs5HyKHi59gZDg0wIbYFI6ccIg2g1Rcm6K-5vrsQ-KnniP5yvepjfUgsq1DO1Y57LNrEcQm8oxteP9lqsj4S9TJQ/s1600/DSC00954.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy1stETHxUNowXNIFsJAG9vO2Lxm8KpF8HHWW2YpryEEOyybPs5HyKHi59gZDg0wIbYFI6ccIg2g1Rcm6K-5vrsQ-KnniP5yvepjfUgsq1DO1Y57LNrEcQm8oxteP9lqsj4S9TJQ/s320/DSC00954.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5524048340178695666" border="0" /></a><br /><br />I found a fresh (one hour old) roadkill squirrel near the site and brought it back to the camp. I pulled out the plastic sheet I keep in my car for just such an occasion. :)<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPzEA7OMv9LWm0RHZl1cGCi5ebYDCjDqwwxBWFxxkQ_aFwJq8HEZjJbinzJlLC5P8-URBm5sIEjqfm_20sRn6A69bS_x1d1ogWkxK_jmFNLZYmI9D2cpZj7J3EmgiBDvnrFdEJXw/s1600/DSC00955.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPzEA7OMv9LWm0RHZl1cGCi5ebYDCjDqwwxBWFxxkQ_aFwJq8HEZjJbinzJlLC5P8-URBm5sIEjqfm_20sRn6A69bS_x1d1ogWkxK_jmFNLZYmI9D2cpZj7J3EmgiBDvnrFdEJXw/s320/DSC00955.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5524048330022520114" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEZ9_823j-w6-D46Q5XkvVxRJPedu9fol3g9ZxGnQFbCAUjLd83VjSRN7TDNM4Lww0eyMmb2MaCsUiTWLbfw-nH2pMEoqerr9nQLb7fjXsniELhXOfqxZBY06slv-tCNzbmhad8A/s1600/DSC00958.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEZ9_823j-w6-D46Q5XkvVxRJPedu9fol3g9ZxGnQFbCAUjLd83VjSRN7TDNM4Lww0eyMmb2MaCsUiTWLbfw-nH2pMEoqerr9nQLb7fjXsniELhXOfqxZBY06slv-tCNzbmhad8A/s320/DSC00958.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5524039924956136178" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Skinned<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHp0eexzqrVz0Sa0R_13r_EYziB3QhfUnryT0W8COy2nxC1Uo_Zh-7fnAiiFTexPfB_Ss1lu1FjwJIS5J8j5te7w8Rn47yLgCE7Pf6vM1bhA2N92SEZaiYWph9JuyTXF8MeSiaag/s1600/DSC00961.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHp0eexzqrVz0Sa0R_13r_EYziB3QhfUnryT0W8COy2nxC1Uo_Zh-7fnAiiFTexPfB_Ss1lu1FjwJIS5J8j5te7w8Rn47yLgCE7Pf6vM1bhA2N92SEZaiYWph9JuyTXF8MeSiaag/s320/DSC00961.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5524039919827503474" border="0" /></a><br /><br />I improvised a hide rack with a plastic water bottle on top of a piece of wood. It's dried and ready for tanning.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPYH59xuwC0z-VZ2koQle5zuPCzzrzuYQmdPSKpHIhHYRKq4duEgtD6nybLs3-SIyccTdwV1rSYZr_Vx63xUfsKtjlkl9OUllrwc6Cl6XaMYHJeIw8nZgY6sH1uuhjWqiotQj_Vw/s1600/DSC00962.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPYH59xuwC0z-VZ2koQle5zuPCzzrzuYQmdPSKpHIhHYRKq4duEgtD6nybLs3-SIyccTdwV1rSYZr_Vx63xUfsKtjlkl9OUllrwc6Cl6XaMYHJeIw8nZgY6sH1uuhjWqiotQj_Vw/s320/DSC00962.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5524039907324996802" border="0" /></a><br /><br />I cooked the squirrel legs and back straps on coals and several friends joined me in the treat.Sassmouthhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06118738459126760028noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19805035.post-81754002413353464962010-07-12T00:47:00.005-04:002010-07-29T17:01:11.052-04:00Chicken ButcheringMy friend Tess raised some meat birds this spring. We butchered them a couple weeks ago. She had three hens and a rooster. They were only a few months old and were already huge. They were so big that they didn't move much and when they did they waddled. The rooster was terrifyingly big. I was scared of him. I was happy that Tess was the one to grab him from the cage. It was a fine trade off for me to be the executioner.<br /><br />Neither of us had killed or butchered chickens before so I did some research online. Two sources were particularly helpful. <span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">WARNING</span>: Both these links show graphic bloody chicken death in picture or video form. <a href="http://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=109583">The first</a> had very detailed pictures of the whole process from killing to cutting the meat into pieces. We decided that we wanted to skin the chickens instead of plucking because we thought it would save time and energy. We were right. To get information on skinning I found <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xgo6Qlaff_4">a video</a> on <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">youtube</span>.com. I assumed that the people in this video were interested in efficiency more than using the whole bird because they discarded some parts that were worth keeping such as the organs and neck.<br /><br />Most of the sources I found showed people using a metal cone to secure the chicken upside down so its neck could be cut and it could bleed out without flapping its wings about. I wasn't able to find one or build one of my own. Instead I held both legs in one hand as Tess held the head and a wing. With my free hand I slit the artery under the jaw. Inevitably the birds flapped about a bit as the blood drained out. After we were sure they expired, we hung them up to finish bleeding.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkPhW2hzGk8dHKs5lQ8BMlCj-i5zrmx3lv7DVjabLbTm4sgHMr8VY0QxJ564XsXtFrQM8a6mabIKQolkstK_1kZLBv3n9ta-HMMx9uJDP0me8-b91WE_J9gAlr9XY2V0vWGnMVxQ/s1600/P1020063.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkPhW2hzGk8dHKs5lQ8BMlCj-i5zrmx3lv7DVjabLbTm4sgHMr8VY0QxJ564XsXtFrQM8a6mabIKQolkstK_1kZLBv3n9ta-HMMx9uJDP0me8-b91WE_J9gAlr9XY2V0vWGnMVxQ/s320/P1020063.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5492881239687740530" border="0" /></a><br /><br />We each butchered two chickens. Tess gave me the rooster. Fully cleaned and gutted he weighed in a 11 1/2 lbs! Almost as big as a turkey. You can see in the picture below how big his body was.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuG-9IhcdzkkJLtV3Q6fDlYFBmfEPA6kJoF-I9mk50uOcoSgOw5pFj5f316TMBdcl0mdT-rirIoONCl9hHhpIQOXtcDXrB-HK80dDh8pNO0ijfpRtiP7F-EsbmHXsAS4JCS92Rfg/s1600/P1020066.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuG-9IhcdzkkJLtV3Q6fDlYFBmfEPA6kJoF-I9mk50uOcoSgOw5pFj5f316TMBdcl0mdT-rirIoONCl9hHhpIQOXtcDXrB-HK80dDh8pNO0ijfpRtiP7F-EsbmHXsAS4JCS92Rfg/s320/P1020066.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5492878773501565618" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Tess began the skinning process the same as with any animal.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgORL7mn1_vI3ySCUlqf274PZIF5xyHt0OJ2R9E8kDE1Y7l-1aAlxoGUC-FdCTiY4mpkDOgJGchyRAyqj4eIFKtk7wD42CJCUTUCHkyjkXydnEQFV4Pupc6aELrKdfbreiIIWFTxQ/s1600/P1020065.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgORL7mn1_vI3ySCUlqf274PZIF5xyHt0OJ2R9E8kDE1Y7l-1aAlxoGUC-FdCTiY4mpkDOgJGchyRAyqj4eIFKtk7wD42CJCUTUCHkyjkXydnEQFV4Pupc6aELrKdfbreiIIWFTxQ/s320/P1020065.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5492881229963072562" border="0" /></a><br /><br />In this picture both of us cleaned our second bird.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKzVmmSlsuing4zoauyfG2XZ3z4WtSySP78Qh0H_gl9QwAEGtCpjDZKVriiIHewcBrzNPnLduFfpl7CfJtupVq-23nlN4roWrn7H0HQJ8CJGfkBdf1TzASc2KnKdd59FWRW4Fm1A/s1600/P1020069.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKzVmmSlsuing4zoauyfG2XZ3z4WtSySP78Qh0H_gl9QwAEGtCpjDZKVriiIHewcBrzNPnLduFfpl7CfJtupVq-23nlN4roWrn7H0HQJ8CJGfkBdf1TzASc2KnKdd59FWRW4Fm1A/s320/P1020069.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5492878764793204882" border="0" /></a><br /><br />The rooster fully skinned and gutted. Keeping the neck on made it easy to carry and rinse off with the hose.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgK7412_WD7pJJpqF0WmMTGsdns0ls7LPLSUPYvwlGXCTUBxmZNamvkC5DsxkM9ROR-DcTeHAAjTn2eC7br6SgwbTYztZ8W87KGYWHzQzP_Uv2jjsPMr4XR0E8_6Hq0_GUVfbi2fw/s1600/P1020081.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgK7412_WD7pJJpqF0WmMTGsdns0ls7LPLSUPYvwlGXCTUBxmZNamvkC5DsxkM9ROR-DcTeHAAjTn2eC7br6SgwbTYztZ8W87KGYWHzQzP_Uv2jjsPMr4XR0E8_6Hq0_GUVfbi2fw/s320/P1020081.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5492878763299817298" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Killing something is never easy to do emotionally and I was nervous about it. It was especially challenging to kill at close range and hold the animal as it died. Now that I know I can handle it, I plan to raise some meat birds next spring. I really like the idea of eating meat that I am responsible for from egg to oven. I'll probably buy baby chicks, but "egg to oven" sounds better.<br /><br />So far I shared one delicious baked chicken breast with a friend. My roommate and I grilled up two legs and I made some stock from the carcass including the neck, hearts and livers. Its probably not the best season for chicken stew but I'm going to give it a try anyway.Sassmouthhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06118738459126760028noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19805035.post-5452738272908079692010-06-30T00:36:00.019-04:002010-07-12T00:47:33.143-04:00Pig Roast, Butchering and Stone Weapons TestThis is a very late post. This event actually took place at the end of May. My brother organized a pig roast at my place the week before his wedding. We had never roasted a pig before but my brother researched how to do it online.<br /><br />We started Friday night by digging a pit in my backyard in the rain. With three of us it didn't take too long. We then lined the pit with scrap stone counter top slabs and added additional rocks to the bottom.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEib7clFzmOJHBfYthKquijHL9Ln3yeffCDalfcO5qxbBeQXZKJHihfcBUuMMjWmDzgGK7Z-J1vIkYhKeG8uDA2ZB054OtaziSqygsoFVlyx4Uf4L9zJDAvNQ775y6Xzg1zm9cfllQ/s1600/DSC00779.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEib7clFzmOJHBfYthKquijHL9Ln3yeffCDalfcO5qxbBeQXZKJHihfcBUuMMjWmDzgGK7Z-J1vIkYhKeG8uDA2ZB054OtaziSqygsoFVlyx4Uf4L9zJDAvNQ775y6Xzg1zm9cfllQ/s320/DSC00779.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5488426212675618370" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Early Saturday morning we started a fire in the pit. We let it burn for 2-3 hours to make sure the rocks were red hot.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghIfTgEX0cK6_lJg4QNOSJff-b7KwUmFsaSgnVIsv_HsHbvlZN13VhUIAeJsqNQZXpoWbjNVykACWjSAfmfCPq8xY2jfhGZa96MGGVzkkClBFS55SNAKSklW7Rp3vgptrh5OWNvw/s1600/DSC00782.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghIfTgEX0cK6_lJg4QNOSJff-b7KwUmFsaSgnVIsv_HsHbvlZN13VhUIAeJsqNQZXpoWbjNVykACWjSAfmfCPq8xY2jfhGZa96MGGVzkkClBFS55SNAKSklW7Rp3vgptrh5OWNvw/s320/DSC00782.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5488426205051487794" border="0" /></a><br /><br />While we monitored the fire, our friend Jason acquired the pigs. They were freshly killed and cleaned that morning. The pig we bought for roasting weighed about 80 lbs.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-azjemLvPwhY615Exvssjfs2czyBMNfUg1FiTtfeyyelgHpr869GV9kbNnAFGnpso5jPQwdyhtWACOVAraO6BYBrCMszIMyaI5ik5CoXDf5kjni8ouPdTAp83E1ZToZbZTuN0qQ/s1600/DSC00794.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-azjemLvPwhY615Exvssjfs2czyBMNfUg1FiTtfeyyelgHpr869GV9kbNnAFGnpso5jPQwdyhtWACOVAraO6BYBrCMszIMyaI5ik5CoXDf5kjni8ouPdTAp83E1ZToZbZTuN0qQ/s320/DSC00794.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5488431221997708610" border="0" /></a><br /><br />We stuffed it full of meat and vegetables. On the right side of the picture there is a chicken stuffed with a Cornish game hen stuffed with garlic. We also had squid stuffed with carrots and bison sausage. Other people put hot rocks inside the pig to help cook it thoroughly, but I think they might be wasting space where other food can go.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhriDWVk2qDmuyW5eAdRWpHu25YUi9fs93eqX1tVyLxkzoeXQ271yet1ADN9uzgas4PeCZtgmTpuyGh33sHtD5XzrltggMhE6Vt29nt83Vn4OBKbhyphenhyphentzR3t0VJlLHY2y9e-DqGl_A/s1600/DSC00796.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhriDWVk2qDmuyW5eAdRWpHu25YUi9fs93eqX1tVyLxkzoeXQ271yet1ADN9uzgas4PeCZtgmTpuyGh33sHtD5XzrltggMhE6Vt29nt83Vn4OBKbhyphenhyphentzR3t0VJlLHY2y9e-DqGl_A/s320/DSC00796.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5488431238302593746" border="0" /></a><br /><br />After we stuffed it, Jason sewed it up and then we wrapped it in foil and chicken wire. The foil was mainly to keep it clean and moist. The chicken wire helped keep it in one package when moving it.<br /><br />Once we had it all prepared, we shoveled some dirt on the fire to put it out and create a level surface to rest the pig on.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioMB7TxJ8N9zYDfuCWeWZXvSB30QbyLkkXJ29aCLIefcTFFTrJwxdYiOn2PbIOI2-obGHLVVubwBUY38G9ELt5KvpMCmGhyphenhyphenA2KMQJDtbbIdFMwroi61tVWcnrs61kbCttVRpt_HQ/s1600/DSC00801.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioMB7TxJ8N9zYDfuCWeWZXvSB30QbyLkkXJ29aCLIefcTFFTrJwxdYiOn2PbIOI2-obGHLVVubwBUY38G9ELt5KvpMCmGhyphenhyphenA2KMQJDtbbIdFMwroi61tVWcnrs61kbCttVRpt_HQ/s320/DSC00801.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5488431250357891410" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Then we laid down freshly cut grass as another barrier against dirt. On top of that we laid the pig.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKNKkhxH295lKbUcPoTm9c95sYBXfEXbgnAa66XlvjUGvA0nnZXvs2kms_3y913DHzpfKzXe41oLfR7N0sp1FKZ9DljJAxuOvZ04f3c14wIDsG6Eu4JXL4oTJQKW09C2SOuyHPHQ/s1600/DSC00802.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKNKkhxH295lKbUcPoTm9c95sYBXfEXbgnAa66XlvjUGvA0nnZXvs2kms_3y913DHzpfKzXe41oLfR7N0sp1FKZ9DljJAxuOvZ04f3c14wIDsG6Eu4JXL4oTJQKW09C2SOuyHPHQ/s320/DSC00802.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5488438525124726082" border="0" /></a><br /><br />More grass on top.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1MzC0gmtRx33CSTXi-KzCRasXUqqvWtbgDaxYFqZoGypEs1z2UmMBpQ6gWzauGWHI_lqyKh983ttBSG6pDnRwkSre3aB4zk0jc8R3Je2pZZCKtQxZQ33YkI6-M9xUA0EANAW-NQ/s1600/DSC00803.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1MzC0gmtRx33CSTXi-KzCRasXUqqvWtbgDaxYFqZoGypEs1z2UmMBpQ6gWzauGWHI_lqyKh983ttBSG6pDnRwkSre3aB4zk0jc8R3Je2pZZCKtQxZQ33YkI6-M9xUA0EANAW-NQ/s320/DSC00803.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5488438536648233170" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Then we shoveled dirt on top to seal in the heat. We continued to add dirt where ever we saw steam escaping. We allowed the heated up rocks to cook the pig for about 7 hours.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigCEg9Gm3eFW20aEqmBNH-EJjwcP-hxa3NyWCXW2s-i6rwvNxdbcTOlkZCXgWyLcjmD1q9MWoogZw12qs7b-4_JtsnDw-RaaQVPmClOnzmmX-4iKr3-Z2id6XZsmuHD9cPtQI1YA/s1600/DSC00804.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigCEg9Gm3eFW20aEqmBNH-EJjwcP-hxa3NyWCXW2s-i6rwvNxdbcTOlkZCXgWyLcjmD1q9MWoogZw12qs7b-4_JtsnDw-RaaQVPmClOnzmmX-4iKr3-Z2id6XZsmuHD9cPtQI1YA/s320/DSC00804.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5488438552180365698" border="0" /></a><br /><br />When we removed it, we were very pleased with the results. The pig was completely cooked. Because there was no direct flame and all the moisture was trapped, the meat was very tender and juicy.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgpImRSggGkRfIBWtKL87GW2stA3cP07l-P5kFcZIWewCFZqR_2AvhG4kB9f6reuW7vp_2oq3cgKtl1Ci5TSLvj41CcYMTtaFhU4-4Z56mt_jeVMBCLRCX6dBPBjDAqdSb_Rwdvw/s1600/DSC00839.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgpImRSggGkRfIBWtKL87GW2stA3cP07l-P5kFcZIWewCFZqR_2AvhG4kB9f6reuW7vp_2oq3cgKtl1Ci5TSLvj41CcYMTtaFhU4-4Z56mt_jeVMBCLRCX6dBPBjDAqdSb_Rwdvw/s320/DSC00839.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5488444372689892306" border="0" /></a><br /><br />The other meat and vegetables inside were also pretty well cooked.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3VvlVVoaNDp6IhnrBAMt6YnkFhf1CDxfXVBZbTO7_kB8S1NgG-2jmgZsgjRWw6vM_42HIxKVjR5HXL6BwtkiZIyZEpxRMtbdToDH6IBvpPOzOl1gTR6Gec1HvFlhXkK5OxefFSg/s1600/DSC00842.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3VvlVVoaNDp6IhnrBAMt6YnkFhf1CDxfXVBZbTO7_kB8S1NgG-2jmgZsgjRWw6vM_42HIxKVjR5HXL6BwtkiZIyZEpxRMtbdToDH6IBvpPOzOl1gTR6Gec1HvFlhXkK5OxefFSg/s320/DSC00842.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5488444361627454018" border="0" /></a><br /><br />A slice of squid stuffed with carrots and bison sausage.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOJZgmwOyW0HpAbARNNaGCWqVkNc-Lv6wHvSzceKvp8kacS3rCmL-2R1KZtiA1j7lGOYfo9fxd5zHZM6c7bIsXeVT9hRLCHY-cBmdiLZeyNJ-Ptgfi2Ex8GJimhE7XUxWVp_OEAQ/s1600/DSC00843.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOJZgmwOyW0HpAbARNNaGCWqVkNc-Lv6wHvSzceKvp8kacS3rCmL-2R1KZtiA1j7lGOYfo9fxd5zHZM6c7bIsXeVT9hRLCHY-cBmdiLZeyNJ-Ptgfi2Ex8GJimhE7XUxWVp_OEAQ/s320/DSC00843.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5488444347884010530" border="0" /></a><br /><br />While the pig cooked for 7 hours, we butchered a 330 lbs pig. We strapped its legs to a long pole and four of us carried it over our shoulders like you would see in a movie. We rigged up a tripod with some long logs and hung it for butchering.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-Y3vIdgLzLR2GBgJPin64wrfvLYJj2h04jk3EonpwvA7IziThTA4DobUyRA5DHOe9vHWoMiPWCOvaXGimddeK9peJ4qAOAWPgM_reXX4FINDqioeDsjLgScq745mcsiv2g8TkUg/s1600/DSC00808.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-Y3vIdgLzLR2GBgJPin64wrfvLYJj2h04jk3EonpwvA7IziThTA4DobUyRA5DHOe9vHWoMiPWCOvaXGimddeK9peJ4qAOAWPgM_reXX4FINDqioeDsjLgScq745mcsiv2g8TkUg/s320/DSC00808.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5488761560865753714" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Before we started butchering it we tested some primitive stone weapons. My brother wanted to test the effectiveness of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macuahuitl"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Macuahuitl</span></a> he made. A <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Macuahuitl</span> is a wooden sword lined with flakes of obsidian. According to written accounts by one of <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Cortes's</span> men, an Aztec warrior cut off the head of his horse with one.<br /><br />Because the way pig was situated, he had to kneel to take a swing. He also had <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">to be</span> careful not to hit the tripod. Despite the less than ideal positioning, his first swing cut through to the bone. A few more swings and some sawing removed the head. The <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Macuahuitl</span> is truly a deadly weapon and I imagine it could decapitate a man without too much trouble.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrxwpKQEirGx8_piq3UXsStIadqcyvdlaB8N33QGfmX1ks2pxOi_i8dRuRNjN5TMpMKob8sD_0w_cqYHovn2bBFYGrUYlcrZE-dasuyWxsC-fKoegCTK6HkB9vEhg3vh5V4J4DOg/s1600/DSC00812.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrxwpKQEirGx8_piq3UXsStIadqcyvdlaB8N33QGfmX1ks2pxOi_i8dRuRNjN5TMpMKob8sD_0w_cqYHovn2bBFYGrUYlcrZE-dasuyWxsC-fKoegCTK6HkB9vEhg3vh5V4J4DOg/s320/DSC00812.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5488761570190341234" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Next I gave it a thrust with <a href="http://dynamiteskills.blogspot.com/2009/01/obsidian-spear.html">my obsidian spear</a> being careful not to damage the precious <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">bacony</span> parts of the animal.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvc3eIz7vk5MVEZL-PI8JDhJpNuS5tY9ejatVjuqJclK79RwauTi7SpYtvQ2WAEpInq8Ybi3CFT6FXipt4Z8MoV9XLmsOmY67KPFSuKOajJ0K9C8AJgSOrk6TCMG0rexroQ30Cwg/s1600/DSC00818.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvc3eIz7vk5MVEZL-PI8JDhJpNuS5tY9ejatVjuqJclK79RwauTi7SpYtvQ2WAEpInq8Ybi3CFT6FXipt4Z8MoV9XLmsOmY67KPFSuKOajJ0K9C8AJgSOrk6TCMG0rexroQ30Cwg/s320/DSC00818.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5488761577957080946" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Despite the tip being dull it penetrated pretty deeply without too much effort.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQtUvS_O1z908pkU58wL97KSdIM9iZkCD1ElZPqN0KIRGe2X6-0j4W-EfYWXb89iaAlPzTxfLyU48lbNaL7f58K8RuLXuRaU7UgiRY0caGGzEED3CBA54ull75hQZN7qoYh_H2Bw/s1600/DSC00819.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQtUvS_O1z908pkU58wL97KSdIM9iZkCD1ElZPqN0KIRGe2X6-0j4W-EfYWXb89iaAlPzTxfLyU48lbNaL7f58K8RuLXuRaU7UgiRY0caGGzEED3CBA54ull75hQZN7qoYh_H2Bw/s320/DSC00819.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5488761587538575746" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Andrew K shot my <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjarjimiBG0bAHSUT8pqGXLlb-RAhs8i_gybVsQWQyWYbpSMQZCFiOMYha3RjkhdDKYEUsthqX_Uca8oHdxnz4qE61UrQImxOmdG6jyNDf1nN-MpqvTeJOaocAxL9KPSyIhHZr6g/s1600-h/DSC03631.JPG"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">dacite</span> pointed arrow</a> and to his credit struck home on the first try despite the low quality of its construction.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPoLC5yJJiy8xVCGGTNTvpRgRYLgQ8WoxTRPuxZc_E-EUi028R9rP01tImT7PZeafLqkH-yuwAPhV41Gm2Ln4eMMeAhbnUyB5BR70R05ZqIRAH7WoXdneB7M22JeBS9OSfjS6EsA/s1600/DSC00821.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPoLC5yJJiy8xVCGGTNTvpRgRYLgQ8WoxTRPuxZc_E-EUi028R9rP01tImT7PZeafLqkH-yuwAPhV41Gm2Ln4eMMeAhbnUyB5BR70R05ZqIRAH7WoXdneB7M22JeBS9OSfjS6EsA/s320/DSC00821.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5488776113258080322" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Like the spear, the arrow penetrated pretty deep.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfNRfHeUGU5v70kXv3eAdKb6_cKUhusqMwjPsHX-txZGZS2QEj3dvYngmGT4E5Zyf0aRMAsPXZgN0HebtKXHYMXFAfDCUFBQjPPQgbDIUzgyQ5rzD1X8frsAsxOiKOiKTWKo9iRA/s1600/DSC00824.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfNRfHeUGU5v70kXv3eAdKb6_cKUhusqMwjPsHX-txZGZS2QEj3dvYngmGT4E5Zyf0aRMAsPXZgN0HebtKXHYMXFAfDCUFBQjPPQgbDIUzgyQ5rzD1X8frsAsxOiKOiKTWKo9iRA/s320/DSC00824.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5488776121677748146" border="0" /></a><br /><br />After our weapons testing, Jason led the crew in butchering the pig. Most of the meat went towards making bacon. Since then I've tried a few slices and it is delicious. There will definitely be more pig roasting and butchering in the future.Sassmouthhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06118738459126760028noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19805035.post-3985094062823502552010-05-05T22:33:00.007-04:002010-05-05T23:21:19.152-04:00New Chicken CoopThe chickens I bought two months ago have gotten pretty big. Too big to keep in a bin in the house. They are still too small to put out with the big girls though so Sunday I finished building a new coop for them. I found a design on backyardchickens.com that was pretty easy to build. I scaled it down 25% to make the footprint 3'x3' and made several other modifications.<br /><br />http://www.backyardchickens.com/web/viewblog.php?id=3951-2StoryCoop<br /><br />This smaller size made it impractical to have a ramp lead from the bottom level to the top so I put in a ladder instead. The birds can actually just jump from the ground up to the top level. It took a couple days for the birds to learn how to go up and down. I had to move one from the bottom back up to the top because it couldn't figure it out and it was starting to get dark.<br /><br />I added a built in feed holder. It allows me to dump a bunch of feed in and forget about it for awhile. The lid is slanted so the birds don't sit up there and poop on it.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtCQiWd35a0kdcJCqwOPMd-3ULNWqNgl_UlRnEe6DplbG0njm1SDLGD1EXWR1vhVugtuu5irLnW-b8V1vEbfGHHuoYRZiEVXgEjErihYgS13jhWfTu50fW-ohd5ei0uBmVj1RdwA/s1600/DSC00765.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtCQiWd35a0kdcJCqwOPMd-3ULNWqNgl_UlRnEe6DplbG0njm1SDLGD1EXWR1vhVugtuu5irLnW-b8V1vEbfGHHuoYRZiEVXgEjErihYgS13jhWfTu50fW-ohd5ei0uBmVj1RdwA/s320/DSC00765.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5467984823735403458" border="0" /></a><br /><br />I had intended to add a pretty big run, but realized I didn't have enough chicken wire. Instead I built a small run that adds another 3'x3'. In total it is way bigger than the bin they were in. It will be easier to expand the run if I want. I just need more chicken wire. In the picture below you can see the older ladies coming over to check out the new birds for the first time.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjU0IpkSzI3O3hR64GNLARvOu60qC9AcAMKIBmhdX57ImuMuXnODu470fM_c1kX3xjerYESpqbxaajJi6leFk-r3ZDoHypJ7zB7M4HmGcebg-V61ePwF2x36Wq17JcpT5nThUL1Q/s1600/DSC00767.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjU0IpkSzI3O3hR64GNLARvOu60qC9AcAMKIBmhdX57ImuMuXnODu470fM_c1kX3xjerYESpqbxaajJi6leFk-r3ZDoHypJ7zB7M4HmGcebg-V61ePwF2x36Wq17JcpT5nThUL1Q/s320/DSC00767.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5467984804556895202" border="0" /></a><br /><br />At the back of the run I left a movable flap of chicken wire so I could get to the water bucket. It is held firm with two rocks.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpn7yIkaciMeVkanr1Tmkqi9QZKY-Q_4WmCQQa2NcuOwhgsNbx_t0j7HwpBWeoOZgXIftCBw_24EVS5KV4szvsedCVm6WJ83BxEEVE5DGFQ96vWeADOvJhwR_lqpkTZVnK-jiQAQ/s1600/DSC00770.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpn7yIkaciMeVkanr1Tmkqi9QZKY-Q_4WmCQQa2NcuOwhgsNbx_t0j7HwpBWeoOZgXIftCBw_24EVS5KV4szvsedCVm6WJ83BxEEVE5DGFQ96vWeADOvJhwR_lqpkTZVnK-jiQAQ/s320/DSC00770.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5467988575905673522" border="0" /></a><br /><br />In the larger coop I finally installed the waterer that is gravity fed from my rain barrels. The valve opens when the weight of the water in the dish is too light. With a 55 gallon barrel dedicated to this water source, I essentially don't have to worry about water for my chickens except for when the temperature is below freezing.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIMy9JqFUhP2ItPERmfainc4mCy5Tbf4vG63g89ug3J0oyd4uJNrd3GkpxpMJtb8C_Zn7pUraRLxEIowHG-naLrkuwAKKzP3QOlUVv1ud_62KKFIju9TOcXLBIgwh6lmsD1EIvYg/s1600/DSC00772.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIMy9JqFUhP2ItPERmfainc4mCy5Tbf4vG63g89ug3J0oyd4uJNrd3GkpxpMJtb8C_Zn7pUraRLxEIowHG-naLrkuwAKKzP3QOlUVv1ud_62KKFIju9TOcXLBIgwh6lmsD1EIvYg/s320/DSC00772.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5467984794340317602" border="0" /></a><br /><br />The new coop has another use. If I decide to get a rooster and raise chicks, I can use this additional coop to isolate a mother and her chicks. I imagine I'll have to make some improvements to it to make it cozier, but the hard work is done.Sassmouthhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06118738459126760028noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19805035.post-28321439295976610302010-03-03T23:27:00.006-05:002010-03-04T00:52:06.543-05:00New ChickensI stopped at the store on my way home tonight. I meant to run in quickly to grab some more egg cartons. I had forgotten to pick some up a few days earlier when I bought feed. I decided to check out supplies for raising chicks. I was surprised to find the aisle lined with feed bins full of baby hen chicks. I bought three Rhode Island Reds and two Leghorns. They were only about $2.50 each. Together with the gear and food, the total was $60. In my excitement I forgot to buy cartons. :)<br /><br />The little ones chirped all the way home and haven't stopped yet. I put them in a plastic bin and they seem to be doing well so far. The infrared heat bulb kind of distorts the true color in the pictures below. The light colored ones (Leghorns) should grow up to be white, while the darker ones should be a reddish brown when full grown.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-yOPDZIGshUPbLDmepP533GRY9yTUs6_2dJSEQxVA6N22b_S7Kh8O-20DcpPC5gTJdHPacWdp3bxc55Jmf-Td-iyRZcDrfiuZmooZuraOlAZwE74q9zeGFHdklpn2yT_3JJmoHQ/s1600-h/DSC00690.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-yOPDZIGshUPbLDmepP533GRY9yTUs6_2dJSEQxVA6N22b_S7Kh8O-20DcpPC5gTJdHPacWdp3bxc55Jmf-Td-iyRZcDrfiuZmooZuraOlAZwE74q9zeGFHdklpn2yT_3JJmoHQ/s320/DSC00690.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5444643903613205442" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-7Q3ZPg970SyhBG8rTX5iqruzGX9XXaEJyKx5V5P9Yr_3u7bxI1x-oltodfYbJH77jiGytuWApBZxIvoGAVEtrwZa9Gwk18y-XV-4tJIQekB2CY-fkL_ePYOmBO-5CZU5JyQuHg/s1600-h/DSC00703.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-7Q3ZPg970SyhBG8rTX5iqruzGX9XXaEJyKx5V5P9Yr_3u7bxI1x-oltodfYbJH77jiGytuWApBZxIvoGAVEtrwZa9Gwk18y-XV-4tJIQekB2CY-fkL_ePYOmBO-5CZU5JyQuHg/s320/DSC00703.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5444638111305418562" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE-ZatZSvoTDYPG6dB1eNEusC5TY__8Kpgi3xU4DyRYL3gXTuunIZYrq8oLmo0h6qSM5RpDT96l03jWMX7tSn3awRhaYZIw-Lz1f237ZGwL3QkOhaOEShkfsJ7MsKEPFEO5MrZmA/s1600-h/DSC00702.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE-ZatZSvoTDYPG6dB1eNEusC5TY__8Kpgi3xU4DyRYL3gXTuunIZYrq8oLmo0h6qSM5RpDT96l03jWMX7tSn3awRhaYZIw-Lz1f237ZGwL3QkOhaOEShkfsJ7MsKEPFEO5MrZmA/s320/DSC00702.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5444638097774342882" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Leghorns<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg96qS08_rO28vTtvGiFK3F8FmT62Ionhr019Ye5VTJqIXgVEhq6HOdPoLatraacZcGNcJdXrRVbEFwQDR_rl7ft9gu01gyvWNpfZuJf7m1v9TkNTuTXJZFP7eRCCnbuDzOUTYoBw/s1600-h/DSC00695.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg96qS08_rO28vTtvGiFK3F8FmT62Ionhr019Ye5VTJqIXgVEhq6HOdPoLatraacZcGNcJdXrRVbEFwQDR_rl7ft9gu01gyvWNpfZuJf7m1v9TkNTuTXJZFP7eRCCnbuDzOUTYoBw/s320/DSC00695.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5444634679798331826" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Rhode Island Red<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0RLFadGRsD8h-ZqPLZsBR-c2aOsORoR_bSlJI1MRW4DU9EKXOWHzaXuB636P0hDEgHuWerSNnryhuqhZ_QMy97bgBmGO3yI00zzAasOmguNdqnw8abtnOOyuApEDIiN8UiWtNwg/s1600-h/DSC00699.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0RLFadGRsD8h-ZqPLZsBR-c2aOsORoR_bSlJI1MRW4DU9EKXOWHzaXuB636P0hDEgHuWerSNnryhuqhZ_QMy97bgBmGO3yI00zzAasOmguNdqnw8abtnOOyuApEDIiN8UiWtNwg/s320/DSC00699.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5444634662871162114" border="0" /></a><br /><br />On a sadder note I found one of my birds lying dead in the front yard Sunday night. I believe it jumped over the porch rail and Ace attacked him. He had been waiting for the chance since I first brought the chickens home.Sassmouthhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06118738459126760028noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19805035.post-90672770159983261622010-02-22T00:00:00.004-05:002010-02-24T00:08:13.718-05:00This Is What Healthy Lungs Look LikeLast Saturday my friends and I butchered a bison. Most of the pictures are similar to the first two times we did it so I don't have anything new to say about it. My friend did capture this interesting video of me. I learned this trick from my friend Tony.<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/wf50dz2OtA4&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/wf50dz2OtA4&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>Sassmouthhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06118738459126760028noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19805035.post-41292006041844457142010-02-01T23:10:00.015-05:002010-03-10T18:05:54.077-05:00Rain BarrelsLast weekend I finished installing my rain water catchment system. The system will function as an emergency backup water source. My house runs on well water that is powered electrically. If the power goes out, I have no water. If I owned the house I would install a backup system, but as a renter it doesn't make a lot of sense. Also, I learned that if a dog should happen to rip the faucet off the outdoor spigot, I have no water pressure which makes it hard to get water. So having 220 gallons of water stored is a little insurance against water system failure.<br /><br />Although it will function as a back up water reserve for household use, it will be the primary water source for my garden. This is why I located it on the uphill side of the house. With the future garden being downhill of the rain barrels, I should have enough water pressure to water the garden. The catchment system is also situated near my chicken coop and will serve as the water source for my chickens as well.<br /><br />To begin I obtained four 55 gallon plastic barrels from a friend. I researched quite a bit on the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">internet</span> to figure out the best way to set them up. The following links are where I got most of my ideas. The first link especially contains the technical details I needed. If you look at it, you'll see from the pictures that most of my system uses ideas found within.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.broward.org/extension/pdf/waterconservation.pdf">water conservation <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">pdf</span></a><br /><br /><a href="http://skagit.wsu.edu/MG/images/RainBarrel/RainBarrelSetup.pdf">skagit.wsu.edu <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">pdf</span></a><br /><br /><a href="http://aedra.com/%7Esotto/shtf/workbench-309-reuse-rainwater-with-an-easy-to-build-rain-barrel.pdf">August Home Publishing <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">pdf</span></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.emmitsburg.net/archive_list/articles/gardening/water_barrel.htm">A Spouse's Guide to Building the Perfect Rain Barrel System</a><br /><br />Each rain barrel has two bung holes on top.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7D-o-KiWAVXR_DwmAgc1WJwfEnjH9B2E6c4obCqURp1uHljS1r8sktweH8i9ANIZpIDCpV93ECXhWLOOpdtdS7qvAYjI2wGvjXzkKeZYDjDrYjENaNbZ-mMaOj1UrCk7ZHospiA/s1600-h/DSC00567.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7D-o-KiWAVXR_DwmAgc1WJwfEnjH9B2E6c4obCqURp1uHljS1r8sktweH8i9ANIZpIDCpV93ECXhWLOOpdtdS7qvAYjI2wGvjXzkKeZYDjDrYjENaNbZ-mMaOj1UrCk7ZHospiA/s320/DSC00567.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5433499578039894114" border="0" /></a><br /><br />The bung holes are perfect for this project because the have a built-in threading. I simply drilled out a hole in the center.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1Kg1pv39oJmPyT4f7Rp_jl0EPfVJZkYQd1dnafni9htRiOeJrRrDwUr8ZRPH31rvLjB2Pc9HOoppA6n1P1zZk0_jdfn1m1X_UZaALHoP7KmC0kKG-RfOyNr-I5LffHZ4NWlgqlQ/s1600-h/DSC00568.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1Kg1pv39oJmPyT4f7Rp_jl0EPfVJZkYQd1dnafni9htRiOeJrRrDwUr8ZRPH31rvLjB2Pc9HOoppA6n1P1zZk0_jdfn1m1X_UZaALHoP7KmC0kKG-RfOyNr-I5LffHZ4NWlgqlQ/s320/DSC00568.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5433499594883026850" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Here you can see the PVC piece threads into the bung cap perfectly. This made the project so easy because I didn't have to drill out my own holes and worry about making a water-tight seal. All it took was a little <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">teflon</span> tape wrapped around the threading of the PVC piece. Not using a permanent sealant also allows me to reconfigure or move the system with ease.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR4wB2aR7ACrU2UzKTSvkDADUczUGJ5SP3KCTrgeDf8NOZO1IxiIarxVpjcMkCKfDmlhX0DcKIdr60NA_l8Dw3S4Hh-AkI79SmFK3ayyTYzRav2Eb2Xs-aZcsrBvOyFro8pUP5Tw/s1600-h/DSC00600.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR4wB2aR7ACrU2UzKTSvkDADUczUGJ5SP3KCTrgeDf8NOZO1IxiIarxVpjcMkCKfDmlhX0DcKIdr60NA_l8Dw3S4Hh-AkI79SmFK3ayyTYzRav2Eb2Xs-aZcsrBvOyFro8pUP5Tw/s320/DSC00600.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5433515013525623922" border="0" /></a><br /><br />As you'll see in the pictures at the end of the post, the rain barrels are actually set up upside down. Therefore, I had to make an opening on the bottom of the barrel to collect water.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAZ91wZAuN2r2-jvfK1Kel7gRLr-1kS19uMy926hec89QKESdHCOBaJg6xIKgY9FInylyiQJk0YDaZ1TV8PqXm-QgRfs4t36KJObuun0WSLx8iueKwjw-dmcK7c4ypniSgsyWeKg/s1600-h/DSC00569.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAZ91wZAuN2r2-jvfK1Kel7gRLr-1kS19uMy926hec89QKESdHCOBaJg6xIKgY9FInylyiQJk0YDaZ1TV8PqXm-QgRfs4t36KJObuun0WSLx8iueKwjw-dmcK7c4ypniSgsyWeKg/s320/DSC00569.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5433510139140699218" border="0" /></a><br /><br />I added a screen over the intake to filter out debris and to keep mosquitoes out. My entomologist father warned me more than once to do this.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEict8icAT3emTE-kU9ZE6T6IWTyYyssuZl-__CCCgAarNU1ADts6fNiXbAWUGMCwZNKYeoagxe1ggB-jQJF8jIi97ZuxMAQqanDWPvZILkphCvsLBdcmUhY6IFwnH18oAYlVa1E1A/s1600-h/DSC00604.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEict8icAT3emTE-kU9ZE6T6IWTyYyssuZl-__CCCgAarNU1ADts6fNiXbAWUGMCwZNKYeoagxe1ggB-jQJF8jIi97ZuxMAQqanDWPvZILkphCvsLBdcmUhY6IFwnH18oAYlVa1E1A/s320/DSC00604.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5433515022033131314" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Below you can see the barrels set up in series. It took considerable time to get the cinder blocks level. They aren't the prettiest things to look at, but they are a cheap and effective solution. Elevating the barrels is necessary to have a place for the pipes to go, but the added benefit is that they are elevated above the garden as well.<br /><br />After installing the outlet piping on barrel 1, I set up a piece of twine as a guide for installing the pipes for the other three.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin2kSKZ8x1bOoEMHH_OR98aaehraqH9K-fG9wTHGfCu5JUkdGcir0jM-nv_jt3kTPFL2qn3hWVy4imTi3ho8knqz0Z3V8Kast-93XoopWS_57BjxziKFHasRqY4sBS85Fzs4heiA/s1600-h/DSC00599.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin2kSKZ8x1bOoEMHH_OR98aaehraqH9K-fG9wTHGfCu5JUkdGcir0jM-nv_jt3kTPFL2qn3hWVy4imTi3ho8knqz0Z3V8Kast-93XoopWS_57BjxziKFHasRqY4sBS85Fzs4heiA/s320/DSC00599.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5433510148683378098" border="0" /></a><br /><br />The following pictures show the completed system. Rerouting the downspout was easy. I bought the elbow piece under the gutter and the plastic piece that wraps the corner and one piece to secure it to the wall. The other parts are from the original downspout.<br /><br />Behind barrel 1 you'll notice a hose. I took advantage of the second bung hole on the barrel and added a pipe that terminates in a hose fitting. This hose will eventually lead to the chicken coop. I have a water dish that hooks into a hose that fills automatically using a valve triggered by the weight of the water in the dish.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcJu2E_asacxJXnMUos9AsZtlqaXaK8Vbsp1ej7etQ1GKikpEtUjp9LJK1K4cLokLtAZ7LZCsWh2DW6HBqas31zrQw1Y5CysvjB0kS3RseU0Yty8u2GtmsVMWvwVNFTcpMyEcj_A/s1600-h/DSC00606.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcJu2E_asacxJXnMUos9AsZtlqaXaK8Vbsp1ej7etQ1GKikpEtUjp9LJK1K4cLokLtAZ7LZCsWh2DW6HBqas31zrQw1Y5CysvjB0kS3RseU0Yty8u2GtmsVMWvwVNFTcpMyEcj_A/s320/DSC00606.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5433518985660726274" border="0" /></a><br /><br />There are a few special features to mention. First, in the picture below you'll notice a pipe at top between barrel 1 and barrel 2. Along with a valve under barrel 1 I can prioritize its filling. I simply shut the valve. As water fills barrel 1, it spills through the pipe into barrel 2. From there the water goes down into the pipes and fills barrels 2, 3 and 4 equally from below.<br /><br />If I open the valve then all 4 barrels are filled equally. The purpose of this is to make sure the chickens always have water (which comes from barrel 1). At the end of the pipe under barrel 4 there is a faucet where I will connect a hose for watering the garden. With the valve shut, no water from barrel 1 will be used.<br /><br />Barrel 4 has an overflow pipe at top with a hose fitting. I don't have a hose for this yet. I will most likely send this water to the front yard for use in the garden somehow.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOvp23tO67Oaz3HEG8XwufcDS76CYuS1PtQ1iA7zRwrViB6sKcL-v1M61aDnX-ZWcgEXs-nvE0K6BX28J2xr69OWlqt00sP54G81UA0SHdrvx2ALLgb7I3ruE6Yh4amsZifEdA5Q/s1600-h/DSC00605.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOvp23tO67Oaz3HEG8XwufcDS76CYuS1PtQ1iA7zRwrViB6sKcL-v1M61aDnX-ZWcgEXs-nvE0K6BX28J2xr69OWlqt00sP54G81UA0SHdrvx2ALLgb7I3ruE6Yh4amsZifEdA5Q/s320/DSC00605.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5433518973746395746" border="0" /></a><br /><br />One of the nicest things about this system is that I can easily add new barrels. None of the pipes are permanently in place. It rained Monday and last I checked barrel 1 was full and the others had 4-5 inches. For fun I opened the valve and watched the water level in barrel 1 go down and in the others rise. No leaks to report. It's working great!<br /><br />Update 03/10/2010: After sometime I noticed that the water level in barrel 3 was not equal to barrels 2 and 4. I figured out that barrel 3 had no way to vent air. My solution was to drill a very small hole near the top to let the air out. There was so much are built up that it blew out air for a good 20 minutes straight. The barrels are all level now.Sassmouthhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06118738459126760028noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19805035.post-86144608420357357512010-01-10T23:58:00.008-05:002010-01-12T00:40:59.496-05:00Tanning a Nutria - Part 2If you haven't read Part 1 of this series, you can read it <a href="http://dynamiteskills.blogspot.com/2009/11/tanning-nutria-part-1.html">here</a>. Sunday night I finished the Nutria tanning project I started at the end of November. At the end of Part 1 I set the racked nutria by the wood stove to dry. Over the course of a few nights there, it dried out. One weekend my friend Andrew and I decided to work on our hides together. He obtained an animal from the same source. His was much larger than mine as you'll see in the picture below.<br /><br />I used the same metal scraper my brother and I used on the bison. It was pretty easy except the details of head. Half of the time was spent carefully scraping around the ears, eyes, nose and lips.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdSSVACJDxZuEPLtEyPFIwpPLZJwYUh-_vlM3-Jy7jJRFlW1Df4TKZo-Wy__pV4kcblQCh3b4jiQ5EqtQiEEb-FsVktW7hh3N8VEUSnEjVTXYcEtEOpc_Ns3jPoxtQ4vnEjRwTcQ/s1600-h/DSC00562.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdSSVACJDxZuEPLtEyPFIwpPLZJwYUh-_vlM3-Jy7jJRFlW1Df4TKZo-Wy__pV4kcblQCh3b4jiQ5EqtQiEEb-FsVktW7hh3N8VEUSnEjVTXYcEtEOpc_Ns3jPoxtQ4vnEjRwTcQ/s320/DSC00562.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5425345362262516690" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Andrew did an open skinning and used obsidian to scrape. He tanned it and laid it out in the sun and then never saw it again. I guess someone walking by took it.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw0GyK7jcNfjkNt3CJnjaH-ef_kQfE5RfnlToEksPP_e5mGm2XAx6U92mpcrCLs6922Ogx-fttyMNnWOEdD4VJKg8-MYK6Lgpgm9Uf44BBOWVUT1v19DsG5KFvl8Q2ab315THypw/s1600-h/DSC00563.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw0GyK7jcNfjkNt3CJnjaH-ef_kQfE5RfnlToEksPP_e5mGm2XAx6U92mpcrCLs6922Ogx-fttyMNnWOEdD4VJKg8-MYK6Lgpgm9Uf44BBOWVUT1v19DsG5KFvl8Q2ab315THypw/s320/DSC00563.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5425345369568121714" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Saturday I began the long process of tanning. I used a mixture of soap, oil and water. I rubbed it in till it started getting soft. Then I poured on more mixture and folded the trash bag over top and let it saturate for several hours. When I came back it was fully saturated and flexible.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU0dATceeKLOySqCT_b8AX9nOhpvbrP19C_70AzgAfJ4OIoCmIwuIwraA1fB0LgL2lem9lJ355bTgQsscXi-F5WsgBq-hzk9AWe-kTaKkErOKS_KbIOODRDqGCkawCcsU03UajTQ/s1600-h/DSC00574.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU0dATceeKLOySqCT_b8AX9nOhpvbrP19C_70AzgAfJ4OIoCmIwuIwraA1fB0LgL2lem9lJ355bTgQsscXi-F5WsgBq-hzk9AWe-kTaKkErOKS_KbIOODRDqGCkawCcsU03UajTQ/s320/DSC00574.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5425356684772730658" border="0" /></a><br /><br />I started a fire in the wood stove to warm the air. I popped in the new Wolverine movie and settled in for many hours of stretching and drying the hide. I wrung out as much moisture as I could. Then I pulled it back and forth over a rounded post stretching all parts of the hide. Wolverine ended. I put in Watchmen and continued. The skin changed from blue to white meaning it was getting drier. Two and half hours later when Watchmen was winding down, the hide was basically dry but still felt a little cool to the touch. I continued to work the hide as I watched The Ladies Man although it was basically done at that point. The next morning the belly was soft and flexible as can be. The back was just the slightest bit stiff. Overall I was very pleased. I think the lesson was to wring it out more and towel off the fur side before stretching.<br /><br />The next day I buffed the hide with a pumice stone to soften it up and get rid of skin fragments. In the picture below the right side has been buffed.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivsQAi9-MU-14l1bVHaC4Ajp2KhYS2XY7UqyBtlNUXTwm2VmNffuV31XkXekJE-2GPKFJPzJ32CdOvvkEscquxwakXg6pGqQ9xIF0D3UTx7Y3xYIGXlnhh010oAFFqNp40byNI5A/s1600-h/DSC00576.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivsQAi9-MU-14l1bVHaC4Ajp2KhYS2XY7UqyBtlNUXTwm2VmNffuV31XkXekJE-2GPKFJPzJ32CdOvvkEscquxwakXg6pGqQ9xIF0D3UTx7Y3xYIGXlnhh010oAFFqNp40byNI5A/s320/DSC00576.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5425356689855591250" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Sunday night I got out my smoker. I used to have a pail to contain the fire and support the top pail. Without that I had to rig up this monstrosity of wood and stone to support the top pail and funnel the smoke up. The efficiency of this device was pretty pathetic. 75% of the smoke probably never reached the hide. It might be hard to tell in the picture but there was a skirt of denim sewn onto the hide and connected to the duct. Using the duct prevented the flame and heat from scorching the hide.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN3knSKCZqDVmcGZrhvvOexY23TbRlOHumzZ1d3E_r6DwYlSRzAZSRRmGYDP-p1UBGdCwohEeSdtdW3cxr8aI4yQG2dp4zwuqLy8ig7Oseyp-qEboPWWFJ2OQpNNktEMt_vLJsuQ/s1600-h/DSC00588.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN3knSKCZqDVmcGZrhvvOexY23TbRlOHumzZ1d3E_r6DwYlSRzAZSRRmGYDP-p1UBGdCwohEeSdtdW3cxr8aI4yQG2dp4zwuqLy8ig7Oseyp-qEboPWWFJ2OQpNNktEMt_vLJsuQ/s320/DSC00588.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5425719646557544498" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Here you can see that the smoke was definitely reaching the hide through the duct. I later <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">clothes-pinned</span> the arms and mouth shut to keep the smoke inside longer. To get smoke I built up a bed of coals and then added wet wood and live evergreen branches. I had to constantly monitor it to keep it from flaming up or burning out. After an hour and a half I took it down.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6U7td3w4CgXVX71w_2pupSs59tO_wdBLVu8dWsp2Ukc5DykwQZdEMK1w0DUZ2F3e25aKbdX1yuxdIMd-eB0Gsf9UfT2XBTiqXQ0XN812Qs1PB0H0bIfEitTMuvobJyo_92S29rQ/s1600-h/DSC00578.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6U7td3w4CgXVX71w_2pupSs59tO_wdBLVu8dWsp2Ukc5DykwQZdEMK1w0DUZ2F3e25aKbdX1yuxdIMd-eB0Gsf9UfT2XBTiqXQ0XN812Qs1PB0H0bIfEitTMuvobJyo_92S29rQ/s320/DSC00578.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5425353495104276450" border="0" /></a><br /><br />The picture below shows the finished product. The picture quality isn't that great so it's hard to tell the difference between this and the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">pre</span>-buffed picture earlier. But the color is definitely darker.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaMcMyuWNwfmLzeRJ9Uy42f1N6aMDC_-jN5sql770b5psD7-Olm9jzU5dMp8xvI4OwV7u9sLKXcgExeg-6gGOPb7mbO2sSabqk3WCIZUtLq-g997uwd5UPBlQ_6fOVXlfN8wOz7w/s1600-h/DSC00589.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaMcMyuWNwfmLzeRJ9Uy42f1N6aMDC_-jN5sql770b5psD7-Olm9jzU5dMp8xvI4OwV7u9sLKXcgExeg-6gGOPb7mbO2sSabqk3WCIZUtLq-g997uwd5UPBlQ_6fOVXlfN8wOz7w/s320/DSC00589.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5425349502355426066" border="0" /></a><br /><br />I'm very happy with the finished hide. The hair stayed on and it's soft and flexible enough to make a puppet out of. There were some holes to sew up and I lost the eyelashes, but other than that it's pretty nice. The only thing left to do is make something with it. Most likely I'll sew the bottom together to make some type of bag. I'll post pictures if/when I do that.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy1gsgQTQkemZLpF33b-LZ0r9anD0O64pDvo3_aPm9B6W7jhsWBOsBx4Xi3wizMufg4x3wy-03TDwZS57A5LVKhKkYvlGaRPsoEtLdNmGZ_QPQxrGoRmz0c7VYVOy_HDfMeHOxdg/s1600-h/DSC00594.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy1gsgQTQkemZLpF33b-LZ0r9anD0O64pDvo3_aPm9B6W7jhsWBOsBx4Xi3wizMufg4x3wy-03TDwZS57A5LVKhKkYvlGaRPsoEtLdNmGZ_QPQxrGoRmz0c7VYVOy_HDfMeHOxdg/s320/DSC00594.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5425349509435603794" border="0" /></a>Sassmouthhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06118738459126760028noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19805035.post-88717986406830974412010-01-06T22:10:00.012-05:002010-01-07T11:38:29.175-05:00The Chickens Are All Grows UpI thought I would give an update on my chickens since a lot has changed in 3 months. I spent many hours patching up all the holes in the fence to keep the dog inside. Over the course of a month, it was a battle between us. He found rotted pieces of fence or low places he could jump over. He even broke out going under the house and knocking a downspout down in the process. I thought I finally had him until he decided to jump the porch fence despite the 5 foot dropl. In the end a plastic coated wire leash was the solution. Now he spends his days on the front porch where he wants to be.<br /><br />I tell you this because in my failed quest to contain the dog in the backyard, I succeeded in keeping him out and the chickens in. I was finally able to let them free range. I simply open the door in the morning and close it at night. In the picture below, you can see how different the run is compared to the lawn. The run used to be as green. The lawn has since been scratched up in many places but is mostly still green. I really think the chickens are much happier now.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8AonE1irctV3vj9ggRvsw8q0WcmQy6uRicsepIcbjIaRhxXT7yD97cYip_mxxkTYUxQlk7RVTX_qwxEtocyZj7j4yIBE8BTsVvKdt9w5JU_ckcu7AyrfkeR2cmjf-PO3Kaba96g/s1600-h/DSC00543.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8AonE1irctV3vj9ggRvsw8q0WcmQy6uRicsepIcbjIaRhxXT7yD97cYip_mxxkTYUxQlk7RVTX_qwxEtocyZj7j4yIBE8BTsVvKdt9w5JU_ckcu7AyrfkeR2cmjf-PO3Kaba96g/s320/DSC00543.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5423837037820547522" border="0" /></a><br /><br />This picture taken a couple weeks ago shows how much bigger and healthier they are now. The reddish colored ones which I now believe to be the Sex-links breed look a lot better. Some of them had been missing a lot of feathers.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-KCgno4o0ao2-1KPmXv1WgY_6MUCd5zX9LpdwqfJgbRFPDLZI36SoHdB5420hx6677Ht6XZpTU5emDuUKgVLVyUG7IfJhAt0w4L1ojhRRmTQUOWekQoVEKnKhZUC452Uf6HeMnw/s1600-h/DSC00571.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-KCgno4o0ao2-1KPmXv1WgY_6MUCd5zX9LpdwqfJgbRFPDLZI36SoHdB5420hx6677Ht6XZpTU5emDuUKgVLVyUG7IfJhAt0w4L1ojhRRmTQUOWekQoVEKnKhZUC452Uf6HeMnw/s320/DSC00571.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5423837061176772674" border="0" /></a><br /><br />As I mentioned in my <a href="http://dynamiteskills.blogspot.com/2009/09/chickens-have-arrived.html">last chicken post</a> the screen I put over my droppings pits didn't allow the droppings to fall through. I swapped it out for some plastic coated chicken wire. Despite the larger holes it is still pretty sturdy for the chickens to walk on and allows the poo to drop through. I can get away with cleaning it every two weeks though one week is better.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgybFsWfzkYfTQBtE9CLfk7NNTrBuQD0xXep7QlUK9QjUN3rE6aepI2TES5DHhOVhcsEZoXCa-obc8vJOhK3REf9eQO7L0Fd3FzJSGpwLin63NlLNT3r87f_JwGvcdIhiS6-qu2wQ/s1600-h/DSC00544.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgybFsWfzkYfTQBtE9CLfk7NNTrBuQD0xXep7QlUK9QjUN3rE6aepI2TES5DHhOVhcsEZoXCa-obc8vJOhK3REf9eQO7L0Fd3FzJSGpwLin63NlLNT3r87f_JwGvcdIhiS6-qu2wQ/s320/DSC00544.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5423837055930708370" border="0" /></a><br /><br />At some point in the late fall my chickens stopped laying eggs. I really didn't understand what the deal was. I actually had to buy a dozen eggs at the store. Then I read that egg laying is related to sunlight and that a light in the coop would help. I installed a 60 watt bulb on a timer to give the chickens solid light from 5am to 7pm. After a few days, they started laying again.<br /><br />In December we had a week of temperatures in the teens. I felt pretty bad for the hens. I put towels over the openings under the roof and the door to prevent drafts and keep the body heat in. At night I put coals from my wood stove in between two metal pans and put them in the coop to add some heat. The water froze every day so I put out a pan every morning. I'm glad the birds were all bigger and fully feathered. They made it through the week with now problem.<br /><br />Over the course of the last month the egg production has steadily increased. I started noticing some really small eggs mixed in with the normal eggs. I figured out that the small ones were the first eggs of one of the hens. As of this week I'm up to 6-7 eggs a day including the small ones. I expect over the course of the next month the tiny eggs will be replaced by normal sized ones. Below is a picture of the spectrum of egg sizes, shapes and colors they are laying right now. They range from "just bigger than a quarter" to "can't close the carton, jumbo sized".<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBcQmjUDhS_bQbuXZghLCBPblj8ooAq-4xVRTxvpAZ_CBGGC0-9Pt2UmSojI6wSb8e-6IuxqOcns1bCIcNHTErvXxIemDje6unDOPYWZXGGmnLtUFQ24haJMAfPdocAZ4AwREgCg/s1600-h/DSC00572.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBcQmjUDhS_bQbuXZghLCBPblj8ooAq-4xVRTxvpAZ_CBGGC0-9Pt2UmSojI6wSb8e-6IuxqOcns1bCIcNHTErvXxIemDje6unDOPYWZXGGmnLtUFQ24haJMAfPdocAZ4AwREgCg/s320/DSC00572.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5423852493724503618" border="0" /></a><br /><br />While the one on the left is pretty darn small, the one on the right is dog gone big too!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvEv60tn2Mg4niKWMSMDd3wz_r7fFmGFwdQpVxPxik-W0-txNfx1Jz-8jFVaQMCO9wITqO9z6u8nP27J6ZoZZVzb3g-H17fDFH0mnsdykys-plRSuzG4eyNPX_ts4WKMzfV1UvQA/s1600-h/DSC00573.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvEv60tn2Mg4niKWMSMDd3wz_r7fFmGFwdQpVxPxik-W0-txNfx1Jz-8jFVaQMCO9wITqO9z6u8nP27J6ZoZZVzb3g-H17fDFH0mnsdykys-plRSuzG4eyNPX_ts4WKMzfV1UvQA/s320/DSC00573.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5423854025790040882" border="0" /></a><br /><br />The next big project that I'm working on is hooking up rain barrels to harvest rainfall from my roof. As part of that project I plan to hook up a new chicken water dish that will be fed from the rain barrels. If it works like I plan, watering the chickens will be one less task for me to worry about.Sassmouthhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06118738459126760028noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19805035.post-39738709445577396362009-11-22T23:51:00.004-05:002010-01-12T00:54:44.266-05:00Tanning a Nutria - Part 1My brother came over today and brought me a gift. A dead nutria. I've wanted to tan one for awhile. My first introduction to the nutria was when my <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">SCA</span> crew bought a tanned hide and sewed it into a pouch as a gift for our crew leader. She loves soft, cuddly animals.<br /><br />Since moving to the Portland area, I've been able to see them alive in the wild. There are at least three that I see from time to time at work. I've often mentally hunted and trapped them. They are pretty trusting around humans. The Trackers Northwest group sometimes teaches classes where they trap Nutria so I've seen hides in the tanning process. In fact, I'm told this Nutria came by way of <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">TrackersNW</span>.<br /><br />I laid it out on the stainless steel table my brother and I bought a year ago with butchering animals in mind. No worries with blood and guts soaking into wood. It also is a high table so it's comfortable to stand around when working. It's worked for bison, deer and now nutria. I digress.<br /><br />The body wasn't stiff so that made it easy to work with. The smell was only mild. Not bad.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB-rMZYKMR1YwyUmsga5kVJRyQwMSQaYbb3it9FpqKtZwWVD_iRPiVZQc_pa8EliFrXn0MarF45cmUxmZ2f1d49tt2o3zIRdTu6CZf-6U2fmOcphqrbLZqTdcfcpfDdHXDwU3kyg/s1600/DSC00552.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB-rMZYKMR1YwyUmsga5kVJRyQwMSQaYbb3it9FpqKtZwWVD_iRPiVZQc_pa8EliFrXn0MarF45cmUxmZ2f1d49tt2o3zIRdTu6CZf-6U2fmOcphqrbLZqTdcfcpfDdHXDwU3kyg/s320/DSC00552.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5407163473939834066" border="0" /></a><br /><br />With the <a href="http://dynamiteskills.blogspot.com/2009/03/bison-butchering-class.html">bison</a> we cut a line down the center of the belly, cuffed the legs and the neck. With the nutria I "case" skinned it instead. I still cuffed the legs, but the only other cut was around the anus (and later the tail) and connecting that to the back leg cuffs as seen in the picture below. I used two flakes of obsidian for all the cutting. One flake is at the bottom right corner of the picture.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk52nM98ghXBWgcdGkwFyFqb62FoVeXKMVtg3rLBbUjp3MYKZ2I0GWQ1KkKz7ZQzGHWpsC849Dy8Djd-Jt3pw3GBgx6KeYz4f2Qbr1peEN-ddcVJy5MsA6BH-ZMlymAKoZ_6mNFg/s1600/DSC00553.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk52nM98ghXBWgcdGkwFyFqb62FoVeXKMVtg3rLBbUjp3MYKZ2I0GWQ1KkKz7ZQzGHWpsC849Dy8Djd-Jt3pw3GBgx6KeYz4f2Qbr1peEN-ddcVJy5MsA6BH-ZMlymAKoZ_6mNFg/s320/DSC00553.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5407163462868426482" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Once I got started it was relatively easy to pull the skin over the animal until I got to the head. The head took a lot of time because of the eyes, ears and mouth. The plan is to tan the full hide including the head. In the picture below you can see the skin rolled right over the animal and is hanging on only by the tail. I ended up cutting the tail skin off completely because it didn't want to come off the body.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj21XD0dfz4v209oSUjIMmtdy8RUPg8WMLpVKoGYaR-LYfUVgx2FbJ7VLh4kF03PiDft9vxr_mA9zOjyiuczaMXzLVF3tgcInexJ76b3wO9NqeGbQ_58lql0JXgDqQAeW9UyKf5gQ/s1600/DSC00556.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj21XD0dfz4v209oSUjIMmtdy8RUPg8WMLpVKoGYaR-LYfUVgx2FbJ7VLh4kF03PiDft9vxr_mA9zOjyiuczaMXzLVF3tgcInexJ76b3wO9NqeGbQ_58lql0JXgDqQAeW9UyKf5gQ/s320/DSC00556.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5407163456494416434" border="0" /></a><br /><br />The last step was to fashion a stretching board. I used an old shelf and shaped it to fit the animal. Now I will let it dry out. The next step after drying will be to scrape all the meat, skin and other parts off. Sitting by the wood stove this guy should dry out <a href="http://dynamiteskills.blogspot.com/2009/05/bison-hide-tanning-part-1.html">faster than the bison</a>.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHCe8AAqwJSB18RfECwc3Dy61hiDi1xMUk78lHPwrtWbu0NJpRkV9gm20sdaCTEZXeRdT2B-oROLB-VMPkzAXiteD1b7smzPe7q_vMLlBjbN9FD9Zr7t2pHN0UW8ywGngLXVrmKQ/s1600/DSC00560.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHCe8AAqwJSB18RfECwc3Dy61hiDi1xMUk78lHPwrtWbu0NJpRkV9gm20sdaCTEZXeRdT2B-oROLB-VMPkzAXiteD1b7smzPe7q_vMLlBjbN9FD9Zr7t2pHN0UW8ywGngLXVrmKQ/s320/DSC00560.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5407163444550122546" border="0" /></a><br /><br />I decided that I wasn't going to eat the meat because I didn't know how long it had been dead and exactly where it came from. My brother wanted to keep the bones though so I did get some practice gutting. It was a piece of cake compared to a bison.<br /><br />Read Part 2 <a href="http://dynamiteskills.blogspot.com/2010/01/tanning-nutria-part-2.html">here</a>.Sassmouthhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06118738459126760028noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19805035.post-45382140436891679902009-11-09T23:47:00.005-05:002009-11-11T00:27:58.869-05:00Cauliflower MushroomSunday I took a walk in the woods to find a spear shaft. It was one of those slow walks where I walked at the pace of nature stopping to identify trees with my field guide. In an hour's time I covered probably only half a mile. I was looking for young maple trees of a diameter suitable for a spear shaft, but had no luck. I got to know that area of the woods a lot better though.<br /><br />As I approached a creek crossing I spotted this beautiful cauliflower mushroom below. It was growing at the base of a very large cedar stump.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsxgL15znFVcRrlvj4PBL-EM3dP-oXNMP12R0J9rHqobS6V-J_XwSLz187qTDxQPYRL91E5K8ZdhzDx8dFnfOITbelAQbLoqIDKwJmXtQ2h-nh3RjzyS1yC9PCmcYf_aYfCzHl1w/s1600-h/DSC00546.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsxgL15znFVcRrlvj4PBL-EM3dP-oXNMP12R0J9rHqobS6V-J_XwSLz187qTDxQPYRL91E5K8ZdhzDx8dFnfOITbelAQbLoqIDKwJmXtQ2h-nh3RjzyS1yC9PCmcYf_aYfCzHl1w/s320/DSC00546.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5402335139613776658" border="0" /></a><br /><br />I cut it from the ground leaving much of the root in place. Hopefully the mushroom will be back next year or the year after. When I got it home it weighted in at 6 lbs. One field guide I read said they grow up to 30 inches wide and 40 lbs.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrXfDAihGRQ8jdw5ZLdbN1T1Umwtkf9hRn4SWALo1ZjlIyQ6AE7yu4Wt7-vocIx0BIzt95DfJOJEAvDkJbjKfH74EtgiwrjC9radcUrVZnpXLL8kcSOkJtdEY1w93qzNm8hd9Z9w/s1600-h/DSC00549.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrXfDAihGRQ8jdw5ZLdbN1T1Umwtkf9hRn4SWALo1ZjlIyQ6AE7yu4Wt7-vocIx0BIzt95DfJOJEAvDkJbjKfH74EtgiwrjC9radcUrVZnpXLL8kcSOkJtdEY1w93qzNm8hd9Z9w/s320/DSC00549.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5402335131844657154" border="0" /></a><br /><br />I am a complete beginner when it comes to harvesting wild mushrooms so I'm pretty nervous about eating them. This one however is pretty easy to identify and is considered one of the best to eat. Tonight I tried a small portion fried up in butter. It was pretty good. My plan is to eat a little more each time to make sure my body is <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">OK</span> with it. In conclusion, free wild food is awesome!Sassmouthhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06118738459126760028noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19805035.post-64886378167066903482009-09-27T23:06:00.010-04:002009-09-29T01:25:54.286-04:00The Chickens Have ArrivedI finally got my chickens yesterday. I picked up 8 young hens from a person I contacted via <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">craigslist</span>. They were $12 each which is the best deal I found. Most ads I saw priced them at $15-20. Before I get ahead of myself, let's talk about the run.<br /><br />I wanted at least part of the run to be tall enough for me to walk around in so I decided to build a ~6 ft tall door. I sunk two posts I found and then built a door with some 2x4s I bought.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxe16tKu69yF91WagsR-9Q8pJx2PBeYFMhr3G1HnhyphenhyphenEDMcdeeIO2_AZh1L8USX8AzuJoirB0sxn0zSUSTeU3pSbI1WCtXs5-xAkEG8xltFi1-HK-LT19oQfSdGB2YBx-H7eQHpUw/s1600-h/DSC00040.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxe16tKu69yF91WagsR-9Q8pJx2PBeYFMhr3G1HnhyphenhyphenEDMcdeeIO2_AZh1L8USX8AzuJoirB0sxn0zSUSTeU3pSbI1WCtXs5-xAkEG8xltFi1-HK-LT19oQfSdGB2YBx-H7eQHpUw/s320/DSC00040.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5386367919898127746" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Next I pounded in metal posts I found. They were various heights so it was interesting to figure out the best arrangement for them. Basically the height of the run got shorter the further from the door. There were even a few really short ones that I used to support a metal roof piece I found. This will provide some shade and shelter from the rain.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQTbQq2qNJ9fmk93igkdOcl-_jxH5ciN4BGD_cqS7mZUAwaJQP6oWdRhUWo-7zoV0iawe9mStckip0L4m8TPTI8EQLxxbLXSBch0FEwNLgM9zDIcKY4l8KblNow7HU71N9tlJLdQ/s1600-h/DSC00041.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQTbQq2qNJ9fmk93igkdOcl-_jxH5ciN4BGD_cqS7mZUAwaJQP6oWdRhUWo-7zoV0iawe9mStckip0L4m8TPTI8EQLxxbLXSBch0FEwNLgM9zDIcKY4l8KblNow7HU71N9tlJLdQ/s320/DSC00041.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5386367908499178530" border="0" /></a><br /><br />I added a few more 2x4s on top of the door posts and to the first set of metal posts to make the run a little more solid. I ran the chicken wire out 6-12 inches on the ground and laid rocks on top to prevent the dog from digging under and murdering the ladies. I may try to make this a little more presentable in the future. I'm thinking about putting soil on top and planting something the chickens will eat.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRGOtE6lJs_-0WoG5P20gBnMGlh5cisFsakuHFEl0JDa4YGUY8O9Ymy26va4IEEzkNEam-T0zWwEciDXxGJvSkDIy5Wq96tfNphz7mELI85zvbgnoobL-a_vyo0IFrUFXRhjYhlw/s1600-h/DSC00044.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRGOtE6lJs_-0WoG5P20gBnMGlh5cisFsakuHFEl0JDa4YGUY8O9Ymy26va4IEEzkNEam-T0zWwEciDXxGJvSkDIy5Wq96tfNphz7mELI85zvbgnoobL-a_vyo0IFrUFXRhjYhlw/s320/DSC00044.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5386363621325247442" border="0" /></a><br /><br />The extra height allowed me to add in some roosts at various heights and a rope swing. I'm hoping these things will keep them entertained. I haven't seen them use them yet though. I also noticed tonight that at least some of them weren't using the roosts in the coop so maybe they just don't want to roost.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8hf2h7P1pI0xkfP0Vk9yaTTCFRgDUVtYUmliIrJoiGJ_IyDDE84AOP3nOGL6lDz4boDb91vyKW6jHPtrkeqFyMVVfuC-lkmShE5AHaIMbPedMg7dms9F5xOoa2mcvndyRR8wy7Q/s1600-h/DSC00046.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8hf2h7P1pI0xkfP0Vk9yaTTCFRgDUVtYUmliIrJoiGJ_IyDDE84AOP3nOGL6lDz4boDb91vyKW6jHPtrkeqFyMVVfuC-lkmShE5AHaIMbPedMg7dms9F5xOoa2mcvndyRR8wy7Q/s320/DSC00046.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5386363611262019202" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Here are the chickens minutes after arriving. They immediately went for the feed and then a dust bath. Also notice Ace casing the joint.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguec1Xxa-Hh1ad7t0h-F5Dy55rsUOAdWWIh0_eGp8zb0tFkVyaDyjOxZpaTAGobUFIOQ-CF4057Wznke6La1GTfr_v92DR5DWgYC6bxYgOQJFUatuhTy6odiYlKUXuEHmCwm43ew/s1600-h/DSC00048.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguec1Xxa-Hh1ad7t0h-F5Dy55rsUOAdWWIh0_eGp8zb0tFkVyaDyjOxZpaTAGobUFIOQ-CF4057Wznke6La1GTfr_v92DR5DWgYC6bxYgOQJFUatuhTy6odiYlKUXuEHmCwm43ew/s320/DSC00048.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5386363602113523842" border="0" /></a><br /><br />The chickens scratching and bathing. I believe I have 5 Rhode Island Reds and 3 Buff <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Orpingtons</span>. I made my own feeder and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">waterer</span> to save money. I think they will last awhile without need of a refill. In the future I would like to hook up a rain catchment system to supply the water.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjowSdc8K1H55jfp8rcCO21wjYvMcRqrZqOxnLFXUuYSiR6RRrvbw10hwBqGJXSfFzsdVFxQrp5n_yU6HHYEwdOI_JsBd_EMfI4x0OcyzKJOO0N_zLTLtVdIS75W-2Aj_Xm9XjBLw/s1600-h/DSC00045.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjowSdc8K1H55jfp8rcCO21wjYvMcRqrZqOxnLFXUuYSiR6RRrvbw10hwBqGJXSfFzsdVFxQrp5n_yU6HHYEwdOI_JsBd_EMfI4x0OcyzKJOO0N_zLTLtVdIS75W-2Aj_Xm9XjBLw/s320/DSC00045.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5386355132354689442" border="0" /></a><br /><br />I think these are Buff <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Orpingtons</span>, "Buff" being their color.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV6_kiAew0PTupcalO9useijOCSouVv_S4Zlf5BAanISe6wFDKUZbmiuthMqNNfUqPVTuE0vwp8pdXP0ubqHE-SsTiZIyPZYoonL95c3pXSqo9Y5GZnJTgpP1fcAf6mADrBZsp_Q/s1600-h/DSC00047.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV6_kiAew0PTupcalO9useijOCSouVv_S4Zlf5BAanISe6wFDKUZbmiuthMqNNfUqPVTuE0vwp8pdXP0ubqHE-SsTiZIyPZYoonL95c3pXSqo9Y5GZnJTgpP1fcAf6mADrBZsp_Q/s320/DSC00047.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5386355124830288898" border="0" /></a><br /><br />When I woke up this morning there was one egg in the nesting box. After work there were three more. You can see that they are different sizes, shapes and colors. I think these chickens are 5-6 months old and are just starting to lay. Some may not be laying yet. I ate the eggs tonight and they were tasty. The yolks were very dark yellow.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh9PZFael7SEVR8GarJK69eCmiBmCzDtS5ILsW7nO4Otw-MhKnTzmuGy_74-praoZZxaXax5iIf77hh9k-xOPrO52S6mgJQ_FHAXKQ1wc5ZJB79prj2wf6tDRPT48YMokAhJIq6Q/s1600-h/DSC00053.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh9PZFael7SEVR8GarJK69eCmiBmCzDtS5ILsW7nO4Otw-MhKnTzmuGy_74-praoZZxaXax5iIf77hh9k-xOPrO52S6mgJQ_FHAXKQ1wc5ZJB79prj2wf6tDRPT48YMokAhJIq6Q/s320/DSC00053.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5386734624684460018" border="0" /></a><br /><br />The only issue so far is that it looks like I underestimated the size of chicken poo. The poo isn't falling through the screen on my droppings boxes. I think I will buy a screen with a larger mesh size. Otherwise it defeats the purpose.<br /><br />BONUS PIC - I noticed this kind creature praying for my chickens. I haven't seen one of these guys since I was a kid. Good vibes!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2L1ZSz23X56nAEGD0fH32N15HV4NK-QSEt7NrhyphenhyphenwjVQUdGSwQ7uJ8vYQZPW9ufIBOKzLmoaDL0Jfpn8O2tKFiqHIGzb8z8amxZ7Aw63CO958qJ6oCo6eJi4ViuUlTwi1tYXWqPQ/s1600-h/DSC00049.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2L1ZSz23X56nAEGD0fH32N15HV4NK-QSEt7NrhyphenhyphenwjVQUdGSwQ7uJ8vYQZPW9ufIBOKzLmoaDL0Jfpn8O2tKFiqHIGzb8z8amxZ7Aw63CO958qJ6oCo6eJi4ViuUlTwi1tYXWqPQ/s320/DSC00049.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5386355112475144738" border="0" /></a>Sassmouthhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06118738459126760028noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19805035.post-22764183147477640432009-09-15T23:58:00.006-04:002009-09-16T16:10:50.371-04:00Chicken Coop ConversionI've been working on converting my doghouse into a chicken coop for many weeks now. Last week I finally finished. It was a challenge to customize an already existing structure and to use as many free materials as I could.<br /><br />I started by elevating the structure on cinder blocks and wood I <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">scavenged</span>. I did this because it is my understanding that chickens like to roost off the ground and almost every coop I've seen is elevated. Raising the coop without assistance was a chore because the doghouse was pretty heavy. I used a combination of levering and my car's jack to elevate it into place. It was also a pain to get all four corners level since it is on a slight hill.<br /><br />I next cut out the side to add on a nesting box. This provided a few benefits. First it made the overall size of the coop larger to comfortably accommodate more birds. Second it will allow me to gather eggs from outside the coop and soon to be added run.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUElXlHliySduSC7N10hcT1Zmr9Fw3056-cwAIEn8ADUETpdeMPu9EZ-1Me4u-qQRjuAqrV8qSRNAIrS8Uqtj65e36efdIncWj_agxOD5dlGj8dATs3GaEdDImg8Fd3iQDdQAgDQ/s1600-h/DSC00029.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUElXlHliySduSC7N10hcT1Zmr9Fw3056-cwAIEn8ADUETpdeMPu9EZ-1Me4u-qQRjuAqrV8qSRNAIrS8Uqtj65e36efdIncWj_agxOD5dlGj8dATs3GaEdDImg8Fd3iQDdQAgDQ/s320/DSC00029.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5381924685143068754" border="0" /></a><br /><br />The nesting box was completed with wood that I already had. The two sides were recycled from the pieces I cut from the doghouse wall. The box is very large compared to the recommended size I read and should have more than enough room for the six chickens I plan to buy.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUm3gIn8woMjukB2krNFKyWwn7xIjVZE-cqDcBk97OcQdhECTfABY1Vo4DmEQlXPYBLPGfJZGL__TFpH3L47IarDPhQM6m4RrXm-UmElllSNXkef6g3oHzkIhefScJ2Rdp-vcJmA/s1600-h/DSC00030.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUm3gIn8woMjukB2krNFKyWwn7xIjVZE-cqDcBk97OcQdhECTfABY1Vo4DmEQlXPYBLPGfJZGL__TFpH3L47IarDPhQM6m4RrXm-UmElllSNXkef6g3oHzkIhefScJ2Rdp-vcJmA/s320/DSC00030.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5381924677174626674" border="0" /></a><br /><br />The part that took me the most time was the removable droppings boxes. It took some time and money to figure out how to make them work. I'm satisfied with the final product. The benefits of my design are as follows. First, the screens are removable so I can clean the droppings out of the boxes. Second, the boxes are sized so I can remove them from the coop for easier cleaning. The final product is a floor that is easy to clean and prevents the chickens from walking around in their own poop.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:85%;">You can see the box on the left has the removable screen on it and the one on the right doesn't.</span><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8bsGlINFDSAiJ76fBrxLUeULntvqpZc0hqyVouIHg5F1E-W0gav8Mv0fjLFfuMiC6LHcBI1Srmp0SIzS5zSflR0OOZc_QHakfVUOZvZexLq1kQf92Rvth8yam_W5ZzZj85wZ43w/s1600-h/DSC00032.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8bsGlINFDSAiJ76fBrxLUeULntvqpZc0hqyVouIHg5F1E-W0gav8Mv0fjLFfuMiC6LHcBI1Srmp0SIzS5zSflR0OOZc_QHakfVUOZvZexLq1kQf92Rvth8yam_W5ZzZj85wZ43w/s320/DSC00032.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5381918581974953746" border="0" /></a><br /><br />I added a removable piece to make the doorway chicken-sized. It should help retain chicken body heat in the winter, prevent drafts and make the chickens feel more secure. I screwed in a wood block that swivels to lock the piece in place. I then added a ramp to assist the birds in entering the coop. I may need to add some more rungs.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:85%;">Luckily the roof of the doghouse extended many inches to cover the nesting box add-on so I didn't have to waterproof it.</span><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc-PtFTpkEuplKgxftD5Z2oqJ7djBYPKsLKe7tCn5_-mh3F1lBI1ctAr-SBkpQfJnbtOEA8j21yQ0dkr_9IQMKc4xAjrBEndC4xK4ha8IWUA70DsjxSrzO2AJnzX6RAQHDR5FiMg/s1600-h/DSC00035.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc-PtFTpkEuplKgxftD5Z2oqJ7djBYPKsLKe7tCn5_-mh3F1lBI1ctAr-SBkpQfJnbtOEA8j21yQ0dkr_9IQMKc4xAjrBEndC4xK4ha8IWUA70DsjxSrzO2AJnzX6RAQHDR5FiMg/s320/DSC00035.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5381918571937356098" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Inside I added two roosts cut to size from some dead branches I found in the forest. They are mounted using clothes-hanger-rod hardware in case I ever need to remove them or replace them. I also rounded the edges of the 2x4 rafters with a rasp to make them comfortable for roosting. Finally, I found the pretty pink paint that was left in the shed and coated the new parts.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnDoTlLKYHlLZJzRtjhjm9aJp70HHLtoxObuPz5-MT6UR93UcqPlHEXWG8ri-8QqdCsPPe1xKHREEpTNaDcrcwC-l6vZW5W4QHxliBbTbKt13Nmg13chpHpsl7BnxiCuUpEviAnA/s1600-h/DSC00039.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnDoTlLKYHlLZJzRtjhjm9aJp70HHLtoxObuPz5-MT6UR93UcqPlHEXWG8ri-8QqdCsPPe1xKHREEpTNaDcrcwC-l6vZW5W4QHxliBbTbKt13Nmg13chpHpsl7BnxiCuUpEviAnA/s320/DSC00039.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5381918565556349698" border="0" /></a><br /><br />She ain't the prettiest, but I think she'll work great. I'm currently working on the run. At first I thought of letting the chicken roam the whole fenced in yard, but I've seen too many hawks and owls around, not to mention all the predators I haven't seen and my friend's dog who likes to destroy things of mine.Sassmouthhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06118738459126760028noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19805035.post-70786291517965670532009-09-02T16:01:00.007-04:002009-09-02T17:28:55.119-04:00Glass Buttes Trip - Fall 2009Last weekend we made another trip to Glass Buttes. This time we had a bigger crew. In total there were ten of us in three vehicles, but the five crammed into the Honda were off on their own once we got there. We saw them once a few hours before we left to go home on Sunday.<br /><br />The crew I hung with is pictured below: Shawn, Andrew K, Shaun, Andrew P and me. I guess I should have been named "Sean" to keep the pattern going. :) In the background you can see Big Glass Butte.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-YjcJWHLtkH1Jo3eOVv_aJhYQZGHcSIoMLJtS56zLKDv5y8w5PwCGuZBd_nDz-4GM-v0fxMoYVszfOiPDAVqCkfqVfWQ722yl_tKFR-P1NHRWWN9lG8ZNpLghRDekqrZTXiHWlg/s1600-h/DSC00023.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-YjcJWHLtkH1Jo3eOVv_aJhYQZGHcSIoMLJtS56zLKDv5y8w5PwCGuZBd_nDz-4GM-v0fxMoYVszfOiPDAVqCkfqVfWQ722yl_tKFR-P1NHRWWN9lG8ZNpLghRDekqrZTXiHWlg/s320/DSC00023.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5376966374943598178" border="0" /></a><br /><br />When not cooking various non-refrigerated pork products, we spent most of our time on my favourite hilltop gathering and breaking rock.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwqIrKxxOI4N-lGibr_L-vS20tlJtfZuaIgzscL64g25VRZzSw3_9OKUecFNTooMaX5PEfiiLfS_1Dz8wla96sDWDBuu_I_2VfuhY7Nw9KaJO0_Ny6cctBV4P6rPVXHlIvWaaHGA/s1600-h/DSC00022.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwqIrKxxOI4N-lGibr_L-vS20tlJtfZuaIgzscL64g25VRZzSw3_9OKUecFNTooMaX5PEfiiLfS_1Dz8wla96sDWDBuu_I_2VfuhY7Nw9KaJO0_Ny6cctBV4P6rPVXHlIvWaaHGA/s320/DSC00022.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5376966381496021202" border="0" /></a><br /><br />I love this hilltop because it offers modest-sized surface rocks for easy picking or mystery-sized underground rock for some extra effort. It's odd because as you walk around it's mostly grasses, shrubs, and dirt but then every 60 yards there is a stream of rocks running down the hill.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU4YswzXxsj5p9_VmWvnlhwfonFRjh79MBFsvAk5KEJq-sDiOz_2ExrX1W8ffrFoCfOKcc4-1ZkKBzdu_tkpQ0GutIfWsjkndFmEEckTi8vbCM2iCUeb0XjHvZZ_JvuVLNSA-F0Q/s1600-h/DSC00004.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU4YswzXxsj5p9_VmWvnlhwfonFRjh79MBFsvAk5KEJq-sDiOz_2ExrX1W8ffrFoCfOKcc4-1ZkKBzdu_tkpQ0GutIfWsjkndFmEEckTi8vbCM2iCUeb0XjHvZZ_JvuVLNSA-F0Q/s320/DSC00004.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5376966827882315490" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Sometimes when you dig you get a nice reward for not too much work. Shawn found this monolith partially excavated. After some work he pulled out a big'n. Sometimes you dig and hit just the tip of an iceberg and work on it for hours with nothing to show for it.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5aMx9jsyNCTgvQiuiDRQItPSXpuGLiKWegvRsJ2_RAN4X3qQC4T4LzN8TQso1f77fchLAbHKAH7bQwjPMk13elq4sjmcqRysJmMgzVkmM2lkvmEYabA1uYVC0YUiMeRxXGddHeg/s1600-h/DSC00007.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5aMx9jsyNCTgvQiuiDRQItPSXpuGLiKWegvRsJ2_RAN4X3qQC4T4LzN8TQso1f77fchLAbHKAH7bQwjPMk13elq4sjmcqRysJmMgzVkmM2lkvmEYabA1uYVC0YUiMeRxXGddHeg/s320/DSC00007.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5376966820055476562" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsMFJwmLfGUXo0uG0I5N1nJ0yH6Rvj4JkfxS6WjZvAxpblv5fqKjPvCbMklEnlY4btOq6HAXm4vglYMxOSfO6QvpoD4IGAZHBc79kYwaaicpUeU_ZgsxQHL3OAnl2cxTzv7AmL9g/s1600-h/DSC00011.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsMFJwmLfGUXo0uG0I5N1nJ0yH6Rvj4JkfxS6WjZvAxpblv5fqKjPvCbMklEnlY4btOq6HAXm4vglYMxOSfO6QvpoD4IGAZHBc79kYwaaicpUeU_ZgsxQHL3OAnl2cxTzv7AmL9g/s320/DSC00011.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5376966621788825730" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Here Shaun teaches his friend Shawn the principles of flintknapping.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh205o_rUWI79xT4_Vy2aiwbz-cHIoZDa9wYk8mp1cVtnZ4r29aH3dwX_qB_r_3vluNidLx_5_ux9KdcQRrik3Tgi5gxE7Q1SeMTysWaX0JNfT0V7hPznBNYYc83ymwxOKxOlzlbA/s1600-h/DSC00008.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh205o_rUWI79xT4_Vy2aiwbz-cHIoZDa9wYk8mp1cVtnZ4r29aH3dwX_qB_r_3vluNidLx_5_ux9KdcQRrik3Tgi5gxE7Q1SeMTysWaX0JNfT0V7hPznBNYYc83ymwxOKxOlzlbA/s320/DSC00008.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5376966648619866002" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Andrew K studying his rock to decide where to make the first strike.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaSzMN1_UP76TbMMyNDM9bY7Hx8jP7uRVSINNPKHUpBMGpzEhN0YgWvV0_qTEPgJAmcJIJ8toZuiZAJkDLTjNFJiTb-joNqwVb4eBPvsWZIOdMBoEyw25vVJ8eGvFo-2ui8HVIJw/s1600-h/DSC00010.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaSzMN1_UP76TbMMyNDM9bY7Hx8jP7uRVSINNPKHUpBMGpzEhN0YgWvV0_qTEPgJAmcJIJ8toZuiZAJkDLTjNFJiTb-joNqwVb4eBPvsWZIOdMBoEyw25vVJ8eGvFo-2ui8HVIJw/s320/DSC00010.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5376966636804628466" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Saturday afternoon The Andes ("<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0425112/">Hot Fuzz</a>" reference) and I drove to another location where a different type of rock was available. Dacite is like obsidian but a little harder and less brittle. We collected a lot of it. We collected enough to make my car bottom out trying to get from the quarry to the main dirt road. We had to unload the rock to get my car out.<br /><br />In the picture below, Andrew K and I reduce the big rocks down to usable pieces. This reduced the overall weight of the load while, in theory, still allowing enough material for a nice finished product.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtr3fcJ5rBoZ0bymrRJI_EZwAyFcea_AjEAcFpL_V54Wv-4W4UJ2Sp_HcDZ_TYv3d7BxPWYLBBwc9n0-mPjE69hfOXAUPFE62iUKloFjbrTAcgbD2eu0vatM1J2MH4zq2ZVxO8Mw/s1600-h/DSC00013.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtr3fcJ5rBoZ0bymrRJI_EZwAyFcea_AjEAcFpL_V54Wv-4W4UJ2Sp_HcDZ_TYv3d7BxPWYLBBwc9n0-mPjE69hfOXAUPFE62iUKloFjbrTAcgbD2eu0vatM1J2MH4zq2ZVxO8Mw/s320/DSC00013.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5376966389354332962" border="0" /></a><br /><br />In then end we each got enough rock to last for awhile. I'm excited to get to work on the dacite. There is just so much to do at the new place especially since hunting season started last Friday.<br /><br />These pictures are from my new camera. Tonight I should have internet access at home. So now I have no more excuses for not posting more often.Sassmouthhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06118738459126760028noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19805035.post-55692976591484560382009-08-10T16:56:00.009-04:002009-09-16T16:11:24.443-04:00New HouseA week ago I moved from Portland out to the country. I scored a pretty sweet deal. I am living in a 3 bedroom house at the entrance to a 140 acre private forest. In exchange for below average rent, I just have to mow the lawn and keep an eye out for funny business. I always dreamed of living somewhere where I could walk out my door and into the woods and now I can.<br /><br />In this aerial photo courtesy of Google maps, you can see my house and the approximate boundary of the property. It's all available for me to play in! You can learn more about the forest <a href="http://www.forestsforever-or.org/index.html">here</a>. It is open to the public for hiking and learning about nature and forestry.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFSESOiyubVwV_TM90cSYwaYzD9wOUYJaUd8mvLsCk_83Oss89CHCD2G02EkcXALVMVOTn7vmC8mUAkOerIQDiFVLm3MlopeQ4n66MD_UC_PmjCJicB1mH5IzCMfCGQNuMvQ9o6A/s1600-h/snapshot1.png"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 218px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFSESOiyubVwV_TM90cSYwaYzD9wOUYJaUd8mvLsCk_83Oss89CHCD2G02EkcXALVMVOTn7vmC8mUAkOerIQDiFVLm3MlopeQ4n66MD_UC_PmjCJicB1mH5IzCMfCGQNuMvQ9o6A/s320/snapshot1.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5368484654074221938" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Here are some pictures to give you an idea of what the place is like.<br /><br />It's kind of wasteful to have such a big lawn, but I've already started planting crops in the raised beds and hopefully I can add more beds next spring.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLsB8JhGjfpzNb_KheZRtkCswzkwSRsMlKjanbs8GoehWmRi9-4aTLHYyUWL0lGYflg-iQdSE8ltJw_dXYYvY0qI5F7xKaQtxdc5Z65AUTxfQphTke_f1tUIR2iF_8_yBk7FAnHA/s1600-h/100_0570.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLsB8JhGjfpzNb_KheZRtkCswzkwSRsMlKjanbs8GoehWmRi9-4aTLHYyUWL0lGYflg-iQdSE8ltJw_dXYYvY0qI5F7xKaQtxdc5Z65AUTxfQphTke_f1tUIR2iF_8_yBk7FAnHA/s320/100_0570.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5368446857726702050" border="0" /></a><br /><br />This is the view from the front porch. Beyond the tree line is a parking lot and facilities buildings. The raised bed full of weeds in the bottom right corner is going get replanted with veggies.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAjcan3wqoFs2nwBV3yMikpcLOhNbkf509X2qxMbTId0-S4YBIeteUiTxZWJCBYl0Ye5WqxdsvHy9w5TjaHvYLn35XyxHOnMyeNai7O14ZAW4mP26e3ap-QZOnnvXGO-Er7UXeVA/s1600-h/100_0571.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAjcan3wqoFs2nwBV3yMikpcLOhNbkf509X2qxMbTId0-S4YBIeteUiTxZWJCBYl0Ye5WqxdsvHy9w5TjaHvYLn35XyxHOnMyeNai7O14ZAW4mP26e3ap-QZOnnvXGO-Er7UXeVA/s320/100_0571.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5368446670151145746" border="0" /></a><br /><br />The backyard is pretty nice. I'm going to try to convert the doghouse into a chicken coop. When I get chickens they will free range in the ample fenced in area. And yes, that's a horseshoe pitch. Not sure how much use that will get.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNuwYtsNWEpG5MgqO9C3UdDhkXLDneR6exwBohrDu6T7a_ZaiHgLHBzEGi-CgCRKxb2wvPHjBe2Ep3SpdDndh5HHvqQFlpvHuCOQZ_eEffIv-xSN-mr5kj8TAB4sw2JPtiHFgGIA/s1600-h/100_0572.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNuwYtsNWEpG5MgqO9C3UdDhkXLDneR6exwBohrDu6T7a_ZaiHgLHBzEGi-CgCRKxb2wvPHjBe2Ep3SpdDndh5HHvqQFlpvHuCOQZ_eEffIv-xSN-mr5kj8TAB4sw2JPtiHFgGIA/s320/100_0572.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5368446587986026514" border="0" /></a><br /><br />This is the view from the back porch. Last night I sat behind the rail and watched two <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">blacktail</span> deer feed. They made their way from the left side of the field and came all the way to the fence before heading to the blackberry patch out of view on the right side of the picture.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizmCwiwf2-9SbaPKR7Fh24bQJOYyUvagxhq4YrArIGJ-zAKVaQn7C0DRgU1d41jOFeu4SrHFEKRoBAtE8gi4oiAiF2lgVUz1FQX91JVZy0Ii0lfyFXEyq_nJXqW3mcltDzawqXdw/s1600-h/100_0573.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizmCwiwf2-9SbaPKR7Fh24bQJOYyUvagxhq4YrArIGJ-zAKVaQn7C0DRgU1d41jOFeu4SrHFEKRoBAtE8gi4oiAiF2lgVUz1FQX91JVZy0Ii0lfyFXEyq_nJXqW3mcltDzawqXdw/s320/100_0573.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5368445266224107122" border="0" /></a><br /><br />The sky is the limit for this place.<br /><ul><li>Hunting? - Hopefully I will be allowed to hunt there this fall</li><li>Room to practice skills (no more tanning bison hides in an apartment)</li><li>Ample materials - I was told more than once I can cut wood and gather pretty much whatever I want<br /></li><li>Foraging - From the blackberry patch in my backyard to the apple tree in the front, there is so much out there, I just have to find it</li><li>Homesteading - chickens, garden, wood stove, water well, hunting, goat?</li></ul>I've been there a little over a week and I've already seen a lot without exploring very much. It's pretty exciting. I hope to get back to posting about projects I'm working on, but first I need <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">internet</span> access and a camera.Sassmouthhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06118738459126760028noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19805035.post-77902092611427526162009-06-14T18:33:00.004-04:002009-06-14T19:20:35.706-04:00Bison SoapToday I made my first ever batch of soap. My brother took a soapmaking class a number of months ago so he guided me through the process. First I looked for a recipe using bison fat but couldn't find one. I guess not many people get their hands on bison fat these days. Meanwhile my brother and I have 5-gallon buckets full. :)<br /><br />I substituted beef fat when looking up how much lye to use. Hopefully I calculated it correctly. It's something you really don't want to mess around with. If your lye to fat ratio is wrong then you might end up with a chemical burn like Ed Norton in Fight Club. I had the balsamic vinegar standing by just in case.<br /><br />The recipe I created was:<br /><ul><li>1 cup rendered bison fat</li><li>60.8 grams lye</li><li>1/3 cup water</li><li>paprika added generously for color</li><li>~ 1 teaspoon vanilla essential oil for scent</li></ul><span style="font-size:85%;">One cup of rendered bison fat from the <a href="http://dynamiteskills.blogspot.com/2009/03/bison-butchering-class.html">bison we butchered</a>.</span><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj019HauF3ZPBEE6xRFqGdZ-7EzJuMuoblv-fuC8UMR7YvNbMbo89Ne-vjWWhQ-_u6dBw5KDya87AGY69DEskppFTrgRj8nD2jFgK8XMGoPRn3YN4I3M-ns9pBWWvs0O7SgAcz5BA/s1600-h/IMG_4010.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj019HauF3ZPBEE6xRFqGdZ-7EzJuMuoblv-fuC8UMR7YvNbMbo89Ne-vjWWhQ-_u6dBw5KDya87AGY69DEskppFTrgRj8nD2jFgK8XMGoPRn3YN4I3M-ns9pBWWvs0O7SgAcz5BA/s320/IMG_4010.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5347318173497623970" border="0" /></a><br /><br />I weighed the lye crystals on the coffee filter carefully using the electronic scale. Then I mixed them into the bowl with 1/3 cup of water on the right. The water and lye reacted chemically and heated up.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4o49GiudNIqZkHRGdrf3TO4If4V1hGWpY_fhqYj6UErWM3MSiwNJYktgLeqpo3XEPeKuKt20ywGnS-uBEllbhPoOXP5Ih0n-K-Rdy-5-PocdzlBD77WdxDPeEoaz5s8OkzmGflg/s1600-h/IMG_4012.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4o49GiudNIqZkHRGdrf3TO4If4V1hGWpY_fhqYj6UErWM3MSiwNJYktgLeqpo3XEPeKuKt20ywGnS-uBEllbhPoOXP5Ih0n-K-Rdy-5-PocdzlBD77WdxDPeEoaz5s8OkzmGflg/s320/IMG_4012.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5347318171795975074" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Meanwhile I melted the bison fat and started monitoring the temperature of both the fat and the lye mixture.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZHSbuvp5b2C6Xwk5s1kePUoxU_ziZMehL9duLEmVUtFxIiq9yvUyH-MWW8Kkl4Hqils4TTpA5BZtrQ4gsot2jF2Sn9j4IwKlDm8CiiYCFvXE-GpdSB9HMA6AF-31hccTv3yL8dg/s1600-h/IMG_4014.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZHSbuvp5b2C6Xwk5s1kePUoxU_ziZMehL9duLEmVUtFxIiq9yvUyH-MWW8Kkl4Hqils4TTpA5BZtrQ4gsot2jF2Sn9j4IwKlDm8CiiYCFvXE-GpdSB9HMA6AF-31hccTv3yL8dg/s320/IMG_4014.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5347318165842064850" border="0" /></a><br /><br />It took some jockeying to get both temperatures to drop to 98 degrees at the same time. I ended up chilling and reheating the fat, but eventually I zeroed in on the target temperature. Once the temperature of the fat and the lye were both around 98 degrees I poured the lye into the fat and mixed.<br /><br />I stirred for about 10-15 minutes to fully mix the lye with the fat. As it cooled it started to thicken. Once a drip from the spoon lingered on the surface of the mixture I knew it was time to pour.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDDD52p1oEWNpP1IBoJuUaZXFQfvx0n6AoTZ9Op9UnQQodi206QXydTkl7DaWd5O0KH7aZNoy7TaN_bUV6q5pPSlCKZzLrWCdxQ9sTuDKVUv9BTK8P0mW041GqDDeMXiairiGl0A/s1600-h/IMG_4016.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDDD52p1oEWNpP1IBoJuUaZXFQfvx0n6AoTZ9Op9UnQQodi206QXydTkl7DaWd5O0KH7aZNoy7TaN_bUV6q5pPSlCKZzLrWCdxQ9sTuDKVUv9BTK8P0mW041GqDDeMXiairiGl0A/s320/IMG_4016.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5347317156571195314" border="0" /></a><br /><br />I quickly mixed in the paprika and vanilla oil and then poured it into a plastic mold.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIKjJAuHwDB5vAa2tXgosJ8rphWCraVjcNAbXvPWdDh6LxCCm4CYQ_6UZFry7EuP0ybWQNn6kwjICFSb1t-vL18hO6rhGNp8qWJApNsd0Q3IplTjQE-xOLQt0s5tHS_khbPjk75A/s1600-h/IMG_4019.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIKjJAuHwDB5vAa2tXgosJ8rphWCraVjcNAbXvPWdDh6LxCCm4CYQ_6UZFry7EuP0ybWQNn6kwjICFSb1t-vL18hO6rhGNp8qWJApNsd0Q3IplTjQE-xOLQt0s5tHS_khbPjk75A/s320/IMG_4019.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5347317151947399426" border="0" /></a><br /><br />I'm kind of surprised at how much the ingredients made. Now I will let these set up for 3-4 days. Then I will knock them out and let them cure for 3 weeks. Hopefully the final products will not burn me.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3OROGCecapImuDm5sp1FFiyxe9YmAyT2rm-ovI3KePqqs6u2gGZnG5Bumcd9GOFF41hJQax4VSz3CMXFCgazybkRAyfY0_Qfr3ZWLldKoDW2d1277B1cL80__B9SGR33bjCOTig/s1600-h/IMG_4027.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3OROGCecapImuDm5sp1FFiyxe9YmAyT2rm-ovI3KePqqs6u2gGZnG5Bumcd9GOFF41hJQax4VSz3CMXFCgazybkRAyfY0_Qfr3ZWLldKoDW2d1277B1cL80__B9SGR33bjCOTig/s320/IMG_4027.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5347317142954832274" border="0" /></a>Sassmouthhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06118738459126760028noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19805035.post-28669070213361339732009-06-03T00:00:00.004-04:002009-06-03T01:03:05.548-04:00Bison Hide Tanning Part 2Two weeks ago my brother and I made our first attempt at tanning the bison hide. We were given access to the TrackersNW facility so we were able to move the project from our apartment to a more adequate setting. We started Friday evening by cleaning the hair with shampoo and conditioner. As recommended on the bottle, we rinsed and repeated (about 8 times). When we finished we left it to dry overnight.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnEBoL_3QOcARTnGTY-C4cDhiVTY3MFvoodS6Jex4CzfB3z9alWIU_QwRQy-y-DwBP5fk54lMDQp1zjTvjJA0AMxzzOkyQNXQMKsQrCPsfOhsjzFSifQ0MtlLV8os8g8pTDyFthA/s1600-h/IMG_3925.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnEBoL_3QOcARTnGTY-C4cDhiVTY3MFvoodS6Jex4CzfB3z9alWIU_QwRQy-y-DwBP5fk54lMDQp1zjTvjJA0AMxzzOkyQNXQMKsQrCPsfOhsjzFSifQ0MtlLV8os8g8pTDyFthA/s320/IMG_3925.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5342948074825865938" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Saturday afternoon we took a short kayaking trip on which I capsized and got my brother's camera a little wet. As a result I wasn't able to get pictures of the tanning process which is a shame because they would have been good. Luckily, the camera is fine. After the trip we returned to the hide to apply the dressing. We mixed up soap, neat's foot oil and the bison's brain (a traditional tanning dressing) and spread it on the hide to soak in. We used a softening stick we made to push the dressing into the hide. A softening stick has a wide flat end so you can massage the hide with more surface area. We left the dressing on the hide overnight to give it more time to saturate.<br /><br />Sunday morning we started the drying and stretching process. This is usually the most tedious part of the process because you have to continually stretch the hide until it is completely dry lest it become stiff. This can take many hours. The sheer size of the bison hide made this especially difficult. Luckily the weather was warm and we had sunlight to help speed up the process. We started by leaning the frame up against a tree. At this point the hide was still dripping with the dressing. We used the softening sticks we made to stretch the hide.<br /><br />We were happy with how quickly the surface seemed to dry out. The hide got really stretchy and it took a lot of force to give it a full stretch. Eventually we laid the frame on 5 gallon buckets like a trampoline and used our body weight to fully stretch the hide. This is where it would have been nice to have some pictures. :( We took turns walking around on the hide. The hide stretched so much in the middle that it touched the ground and we had to raise the frame higher with some wood risers. We also rubbed it with pumice stones to soften it.<br /><br />As the day wore on we realized that while the middle was fairly soft and stretchy, the sides were rather stiff. We decided to call it a day. We took it off the frame. The next morning the middle was still pretty soft. The rest was pliable, but still pretty stiff. For example, you could wrap it around you if you had to but you couldn't make clothes out of it. So that is the current state. We may try to tan it again, but we are afraid it might start to fall apart. We already lost some hair and put a few more holes in it while stretching it.<br /><br />There are a few reasons why I think the sides may have been stiff. First, we may not have had enough dressing. When we left it overnight it settled in the center of the hide. Second, it was harder to stretch the sides because they are closer to the frame. On a trampoline the middle is where you get the most bounce. Next time I think we need to make sure the sides get saturated with dressing. Maybe we can loosen the hide in the frame so we can stretch the sides more.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5vYKE_pSejM9FBnNW8zsEUWbDADNgOA5ijRl3ciEvETQA7a8sIGH_Czfh0nW96lf0cW3cQOz_GJ1ps-RY3ZHzws9-mzxnsn8p41kZHqYQmeJqlCdBuWzXIp5Kqrw7qjOHzOQLjg/s1600-h/IMG_3930.JPG"><br /></a>Sassmouthhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06118738459126760028noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19805035.post-40935582819525099862009-05-19T00:16:00.006-04:002009-05-19T01:47:44.362-04:00Bison Hide Tanning Part 1My brother and I might be the only people ever to try to tan a bison hide in a two bedroom apartment. It's quite ridiculous if you think about it. It's one of the more messy and stinky projects one can work on indoors. We started with a raw bison hide fresh from <a href="http://dynamiteskills.blogspot.com/2009/03/bison-butchering-class.html">the butchering class</a>. The fur side had a lot of dirt balls, poo and other natural materials matted into it. The flesh side had meat, fat and membrane to remove. All together it produced quite an aroma.<br /><br />Our first goal was to clean the fur so we wouldn't get mud and poo everywhere. It was not an easy task because we didn't have a convenient way to clean it outdoors. The bathtub was the option we choose. It took many, many <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">rinsings</span> before the water was not black with filth.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjAvQaxTB1EZ_L9OnGsDhe_-HwZUNjAlirNZA8Q8fWj28DxPC-zPaZLou__7NXJro0kxKh0_qE39CiP3GhBDVQjtqlErzm6NeV3ofj4zUZHt5TbVARRkpjXVzp3YiDWq-zxzm8jA/s1600-h/IMG_3550.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjAvQaxTB1EZ_L9OnGsDhe_-HwZUNjAlirNZA8Q8fWj28DxPC-zPaZLou__7NXJro0kxKh0_qE39CiP3GhBDVQjtqlErzm6NeV3ofj4zUZHt5TbVARRkpjXVzp3YiDWq-zxzm8jA/s320/IMG_3550.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5337390254490323314" border="0" /></a><br /><br />We soaked it in the tub for a couple days and started to become concerned that it would start rotting. My brother actually managed to take a shower with the thing. We got the fur about 80% clean and then propped it up to dry it. It was a heavy son of a gun with the fur saturated in water.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinuT9roFL1k8n_L8tgAjKmiPr10Q9UexRIYqTNYZoFLtC0wkrzreYhbqDu-IjzH2OYIBaaey5xpcoYzRxnf0CJicFa1zm8aSJeJcyYfU12R0h0VhHDW-rvzQnmqQkmI-zeB1gkaQ/s1600-h/IMG_3557.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinuT9roFL1k8n_L8tgAjKmiPr10Q9UexRIYqTNYZoFLtC0wkrzreYhbqDu-IjzH2OYIBaaey5xpcoYzRxnf0CJicFa1zm8aSJeJcyYfU12R0h0VhHDW-rvzQnmqQkmI-zeB1gkaQ/s320/IMG_3557.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5337390250332977762" border="0" /></a><br /><br />After wringing out the hair, we laid it out in the living room inside a frame. Andrew made the frame with some 2 by 6s about 8ft by 8ft. We laid out a bunch of blankets and plastic wrap underneath to not destroy the carpet.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:85%;">Notice how dirty the flesh side is at this point. The white sections are places where we cut off meat and fat.</span><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVJU2lOdQ8cikmepxJ88Lh0X8Gv4cz5BJXea1tY40HgkDTv6a-3SJ8La8MhNlgsOc-xD1TDA2YDRUvkbLatl7adaXc6OzvdPLzwsnay1MZ9ELz3jaoYkI8paYd1D4sq-oe99EGuA/s1600-h/IMG_3563.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVJU2lOdQ8cikmepxJ88Lh0X8Gv4cz5BJXea1tY40HgkDTv6a-3SJ8La8MhNlgsOc-xD1TDA2YDRUvkbLatl7adaXc6OzvdPLzwsnay1MZ9ELz3jaoYkI8paYd1D4sq-oe99EGuA/s320/IMG_3563.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5337389188761890242" border="0" /></a><br /><br />We used a heavy duty hole punch to make holes around the perimeter of the hide. Then we used little S hooks for stringing it up. These really made it easy. Without them we would have had to run the rope through each hole which is a pain. Also with the hooks it was a lot easier to adjust the set up which we did a few times.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvM9bzjgGUc2QTx0v6UlqUjPGqOAmFSMokKpnZIwuWWmpCpLW67BYSgY-VbxFIMh1PbmSPjjnnjCCOekWKTj59en39u7scKakrJvn0o07aJHJ4Xss4FTj9NqkCiSKM9W_hQddZJw/s1600-h/IMG_3592.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvM9bzjgGUc2QTx0v6UlqUjPGqOAmFSMokKpnZIwuWWmpCpLW67BYSgY-VbxFIMh1PbmSPjjnnjCCOekWKTj59en39u7scKakrJvn0o07aJHJ4Xss4FTj9NqkCiSKM9W_hQddZJw/s320/IMG_3592.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5337389186029898354" border="0" /></a><br /><br />After framing it we set it up against the wall. You may notice that the hide is really bigger than the frame. After a couple days we ended up cutting a few square feet of the hide off and restringing the whole thing. Otherwise the saggy parts like the top would have taken a long time to dry out.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjtIvEnL7y7kdDzKbxhV9RD7gGy-W7kV_xJSiQlkMpM-mxekJ0N06YedetaCxrHhNeNMhCWj8xCKDB1pP-sdDIgvaPUHoE3zdzXR3Yg8qNVAOQRinQtzNlojppXjzJHDL2t-T9dw/s1600-h/IMG_3570.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjtIvEnL7y7kdDzKbxhV9RD7gGy-W7kV_xJSiQlkMpM-mxekJ0N06YedetaCxrHhNeNMhCWj8xCKDB1pP-sdDIgvaPUHoE3zdzXR3Yg8qNVAOQRinQtzNlojppXjzJHDL2t-T9dw/s320/IMG_3570.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5337389179748386610" border="0" /></a><br /><br />For a few days the hide was still wet enough to use a wet scraping tool. In the picture, Andrew is using a sharpened bone.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7icC-32LZm8KJsdTer2TBeGSywFfvAaUYEyEBkq6nZ0bJN6uLqneIM3Ib_yLCinfElJgrtH9omYYWOtP_irr3XibsIqMgYPTaouJOSiqTXNs-u0K8tIJUWmDPX9I5BqYfTEVCiQ/s1600-h/IMG_3571.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7icC-32LZm8KJsdTer2TBeGSywFfvAaUYEyEBkq6nZ0bJN6uLqneIM3Ib_yLCinfElJgrtH9omYYWOtP_irr3XibsIqMgYPTaouJOSiqTXNs-u0K8tIJUWmDPX9I5BqYfTEVCiQ/s320/IMG_3571.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5337386681254505458" border="0" /></a><br /><br />As the hide dried out, we used a sharper metal scraping tool. We had to resharpen it many times to complete the scraping.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:85%;">The red bowl is filled with hide scraping that we used to make hide glue.</span><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiY1XCbnqOVobv4Z8ZW1NbdptqPRgm5KC3yavvIlITutDXdbpzkNqVlKzoZUCAk4aY_T0j7DKjlkpD44TeI6MCS4L1u-PcX61tgQTE7cvi-6LJoxebMUBYtCkTwvPjYGJk4oXnqA/s1600-h/IMG_3588.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiY1XCbnqOVobv4Z8ZW1NbdptqPRgm5KC3yavvIlITutDXdbpzkNqVlKzoZUCAk4aY_T0j7DKjlkpD44TeI6MCS4L1u-PcX61tgQTE7cvi-6LJoxebMUBYtCkTwvPjYGJk4oXnqA/s320/IMG_3588.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5337386672191084386" border="0" /></a><br /><br />To completely dry out the hide it took about two weeks. We had a couple fans running 24/7. In this final picture you can see how the hide was trimmed down in size. At this point most of the scraping was finished.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjVMo-jYBq850NNDLAzzfI0VYyfhtn9By6e_-uVnDg4GptwfL8ScOB_gi88e7p8fGhK7ddg86UB_55t9LXXWJILGdOlU0weHb40WW-qtmcmXdlbHxV9kt-xvMva_HjPbxWMN5sYQ/s1600-h/IMG_3623.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjVMo-jYBq850NNDLAzzfI0VYyfhtn9By6e_-uVnDg4GptwfL8ScOB_gi88e7p8fGhK7ddg86UB_55t9LXXWJILGdOlU0weHb40WW-qtmcmXdlbHxV9kt-xvMva_HjPbxWMN5sYQ/s320/IMG_3623.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5337386668643602802" border="0" /></a><br /><br />So far it's been an interesting project. Its progress could best be measured by the smell. The farther along we got, the less stinky it became. It was definitely pretty awful for the first week. At this point we have completed the scraping and thinning. While this was a lot of work, the hard parts still remain. Next we will finish washing the hair. Then we'll soak it, soften it and smoke it. I'll post the results of those steps in Part 2.Sassmouthhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06118738459126760028noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19805035.post-19332211052251209632009-03-30T23:41:00.014-04:002009-03-31T01:45:33.044-04:00More Than MeatThere was plenty of work to do following the butchering class discussed in <a href="http://dynamiteskills.blogspot.com/2009/03/bison-butchering-class.html">my last entry</a>. Steaks and roasts were only one of the products harvested from the animal. My brother and I spent most of Sunday working on sinew, fat, bones and hide.<br /><br />I cleaned up the sinew separating meat and fat from the tendons and ligaments as my brother scraped the remaining meat from the bones.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgysEzXjN7RamtSSvPKnkSTJSsJ3WVXzbtRdqo2JViszcJ4pRBCzb2aGlhQW88kmFU9VL3QF3mU1ulBdECfTZXKC7-HnxTg6Ts1OtDtA2_mtgc4wAyrm3uFy1xA90w5_7cVG_TtnQ/s1600-h/IMG_3533.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgysEzXjN7RamtSSvPKnkSTJSsJ3WVXzbtRdqo2JViszcJ4pRBCzb2aGlhQW88kmFU9VL3QF3mU1ulBdECfTZXKC7-HnxTg6Ts1OtDtA2_mtgc4wAyrm3uFy1xA90w5_7cVG_TtnQ/s320/IMG_3533.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5319193664573336434" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Cleaning the sinew<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-v1h65jvTWf14Mx5b7V5gY3hfouDsbBbkdo644GUO2uM1_LycZ2Lk0UphZSyAPmT3XInnefJ5u0eD7S8h121QtEYJItUrwXIPhcOf9TkB19Hubg_6sJ9dXMVlg6Br1oEAw1A-qQ/s1600-h/IMG_3544.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-v1h65jvTWf14Mx5b7V5gY3hfouDsbBbkdo644GUO2uM1_LycZ2Lk0UphZSyAPmT3XInnefJ5u0eD7S8h121QtEYJItUrwXIPhcOf9TkB19Hubg_6sJ9dXMVlg6Br1oEAw1A-qQ/s320/IMG_3544.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5319193665757301858" border="0" /></a><br /><br />There was quite a lot of sinew. The leg tendons were very long. After cleaning it, I hung it up to dry.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJLkyCVDTYUbzhoR585vM7qbm0CVIS0GYX1LD1QpxlLUAkFl8lMhR-aoiCH_uIt-uaMhZ4THyGsC14dRo101Ak8lfKtCaNSAI2orvSL3OQs1YljZ5NEMntcskgmfcS1dQPPmpxcg/s1600-h/IMG_3556.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJLkyCVDTYUbzhoR585vM7qbm0CVIS0GYX1LD1QpxlLUAkFl8lMhR-aoiCH_uIt-uaMhZ4THyGsC14dRo101Ak8lfKtCaNSAI2orvSL3OQs1YljZ5NEMntcskgmfcS1dQPPmpxcg/s320/IMG_3556.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5319194561206244514" border="0" /></a><br /><br />After about a week it was fully dry.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE4LTCe_L_X20IKwH2OCnBE2znsY5butmJzloxmllopZoZzRRRCOcjiVCBNMcH5ied4dDXSyRF_dJkZU9e6CwNXYClC7ng5JFY2nZB3BzdyXlQKwZUZtJCQNhkcJRqNFnljyb5Bw/s1600-h/IMG_3642.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE4LTCe_L_X20IKwH2OCnBE2znsY5butmJzloxmllopZoZzRRRCOcjiVCBNMcH5ied4dDXSyRF_dJkZU9e6CwNXYClC7ng5JFY2nZB3BzdyXlQKwZUZtJCQNhkcJRqNFnljyb5Bw/s320/IMG_3642.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5319200869033148962" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Breaking up one small piece gave many strands to work with. The amount pictured below is enough for many small projects.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0bfUGjyehNBOIePRO8JIiM43MzsCNxJRA-DeiIfsj9Ugd5b8H7Ml4N36b42NhsYPHILFOtLe6m9HdcBhna624LqRNROGgHYxDxL5w_jxBpGN4FTeLF5ybQPLU9EJpKx_wCrspwg/s1600-h/IMG_3663.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0bfUGjyehNBOIePRO8JIiM43MzsCNxJRA-DeiIfsj9Ugd5b8H7Ml4N36b42NhsYPHILFOtLe6m9HdcBhna624LqRNROGgHYxDxL5w_jxBpGN4FTeLF5ybQPLU9EJpKx_wCrspwg/s320/IMG_3663.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5319202281591072754" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Our class collected a lot of fat. Besides this pile we have a five gallon bucket full. We have been rendering it for the last week. There is just so much of it. It's pretty silly. Stay tuned for a forthcoming blog entry with details on rendering fat.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTKS0oa5x6H17yGLdjgf9exsBQyeHw69onb5e17k1QjyoWoALUiitJwU3huBbnsU0g8Lp5vR_IE1VRIl3RC2suQthdQl6w4blzFPQeryDyzIlA18UAtEMyyhyphenhyphen1Z8ZKlwk67d4Twg/s1600-h/IMG_3526.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTKS0oa5x6H17yGLdjgf9exsBQyeHw69onb5e17k1QjyoWoALUiitJwU3huBbnsU0g8Lp5vR_IE1VRIl3RC2suQthdQl6w4blzFPQeryDyzIlA18UAtEMyyhyphenhyphen1Z8ZKlwk67d4Twg/s320/IMG_3526.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5319195984625391474" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Here my brother boils the meat off some of the bigger bones. Barely visible in the background is a pot of fat being rendered.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguwCuT2qMxA3Wt7eiXVrjW37yVaihR3NXXVS-tJLdal_LZrojxNnob30QafUrbCHruB2Xq0MZyvkxh3Po6UlLfD7sE86a-sBOgckPqeaZcxOnUEZ73Jo1Vqn74lIDaxc0gQhVcgQ/s1600-h/IMG_3545.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguwCuT2qMxA3Wt7eiXVrjW37yVaihR3NXXVS-tJLdal_LZrojxNnob30QafUrbCHruB2Xq0MZyvkxh3Po6UlLfD7sE86a-sBOgckPqeaZcxOnUEZ73Jo1Vqn74lIDaxc0gQhVcgQ/s320/IMG_3545.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5319195977234834882" border="0" /></a><br /><br />We also started to work on the hide, but I'm going to save that for another blog entry. If we do another butchering class we are thinking about having a second day where we teach what to do with the non-meat parts: bones, hide, sinew, fat, organs and more.Sassmouthhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06118738459126760028noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19805035.post-40431282764187567152009-03-25T22:44:00.013-04:002009-03-27T00:06:08.790-04:00Bison Butchering Class<span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Warning</span>: </span></span>This blog entry contains vivid pictures and descriptions of a real bison being butchered. If the sight or thought of blood and guts makes you squeamish, skip to the last two pictures which show what a human carnivore is comfortable with seeing these days. If you want to see the whole story of where the bison meat came from, continue on.<br /><br />On Saturday March 21st, my brother and I taught our first class for <a href="http://www.trackersnw.com/portland-wilderness-skills.php"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">TrackersNW</span></a>. We had 17 students participate in our Bison Butchering class. We started the day at 9am at the <a href="http://www.lbartbison.com/">L-Bar-T Bison Ranch</a>. My brother opened by reading the following quote from Steven <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Rinella's</span> "American Buffalo - In Search of a Lost Icon".<br /><br /><blockquote><div style="text-align: left;">How can someone suggest that paying for the slaughter of animals is more justifiable than taking the responsibility for one's food into one's own hands? At moments like this, though, I understand their perspective much better. It takes a strong stomach and a lot of dedication to do this job properly. You need to be able to visualize the end result - high-quality food - at a time when your sensory perceptions are seeing everything but that. Civilization is a mechanism that allows us to avoid the necessary but ugly aspects of life; most of us do not euthanize our own pets, we don't unplug the life support on our own ailing grandparents, we don't repair our own cars, and we don't process our own raw sewage. Instead, the delegation of our less-pleasant responsibilities is so widespread that taking these things on is almost like trying to swim upriver. It's easier <span style="font-style: italic;">not</span> to do them, and those who insist on doing so are bound to look a little odd.</div></blockquote><br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;">Each student had their own reasons for taking the class but I imagine that taking responsibility for one's food was a reason for many. For this reason and other personal ones, I volunteered to kill the bison as opposed to having the ranch owner do it. Bison are wild animals so the traditional bolt gun used for domestic cattle was not an option. I used a handgun as the ranch owner typically does. It was an emotional experience for sure.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:85%;">The 1050 lb. bison bull before slaughter.</span><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_NQ-TdqjGoscwuHAH7zI-uIqP2u_O3_I5K0LlhNcAvdbSHujURAonUXFOz2JEuP83XrGEPCtTUY1LVjzGyaBF2S3ymlJhiquwOqvEnzs6bxp5D9EvufhK7lPbcKdpAnFq5gIMZw/s1600-h/IMG_3492.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_NQ-TdqjGoscwuHAH7zI-uIqP2u_O3_I5K0LlhNcAvdbSHujURAonUXFOz2JEuP83XrGEPCtTUY1LVjzGyaBF2S3ymlJhiquwOqvEnzs6bxp5D9EvufhK7lPbcKdpAnFq5gIMZw/s320/IMG_3492.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5317323050372889010" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Once the bison was dead, his throat was cut for bleeding. The ranch owner and his son took care of hanging him using their front loader. This made the job of bleeding and skinning a lot easier because we had gravity to help.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:85%;">The blood was collected by some students for fertilizer and other projects.</span><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghtALKwahu4IdVKaX8gqA3418XMFZVR2PbkS5WuDfknaEADnpFHhtR038kWcRIAUmqIt3dAaMuZsg1Yp99d0WsPlqkgzBd_iM3SzxJi2wX2KmXl2hwW_soXE8D7OEWToUIEuMR1Q/s1600-h/IMG_3497.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghtALKwahu4IdVKaX8gqA3418XMFZVR2PbkS5WuDfknaEADnpFHhtR038kWcRIAUmqIt3dAaMuZsg1Yp99d0WsPlqkgzBd_iM3SzxJi2wX2KmXl2hwW_soXE8D7OEWToUIEuMR1Q/s320/IMG_3497.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5317323055901526994" border="0" /></a><br /><br />After bleeding the animal, the next step was to remove the head. Up until this point there hadn't been any student participation, but several volunteers eagerly stepped in to work on the head.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:85%;">The removed head was then skinned while others worked on the body.</span><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWigMqauQzClewLMmD-FWGs37-89EtXttp8ZyY8ZJOuROFoO_Zr9n14z1apazAG-q99SL1hm44Zb-NKqbEDwDWwssLe7ELOsmFWwigxKS3G90zKzzIxHxLDNyU322gJFxham4r5A/s1600-h/IMG_3503.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWigMqauQzClewLMmD-FWGs37-89EtXttp8ZyY8ZJOuROFoO_Zr9n14z1apazAG-q99SL1hm44Zb-NKqbEDwDWwssLe7ELOsmFWwigxKS3G90zKzzIxHxLDNyU322gJFxham4r5A/s320/IMG_3503.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5317371410724937778" border="0" /></a><br /><br />We did almost all the skinning using stone flakes and stone knives. The stone knives were very good at removing the skin.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:85%;">Several students working on different parts of the hide.</span><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixEwXZTSACQyb2FEMC1bKpTbaiPd8_YkuksagM5M4ZqomdtwcFo3-IYizy3t9Rnyq8269c74sg62QYuO0lhss0mYdJ_c87On-mOybtJEzJ0uG0AhSyFjkllECuaC7QL42dCE3u_Q/s1600-h/IMG_3507.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixEwXZTSACQyb2FEMC1bKpTbaiPd8_YkuksagM5M4ZqomdtwcFo3-IYizy3t9Rnyq8269c74sg62QYuO0lhss0mYdJ_c87On-mOybtJEzJ0uG0AhSyFjkllECuaC7QL42dCE3u_Q/s320/IMG_3507.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5317371419725646690" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Once we had the hide peeled back from the belly, we opened it up to remove the organs. This was one of the more challenging parts do to the amount of connective tissue that had to be broken up without sharp tools for fear of piercing organs. The last thing we wanted was digestive materials on the meat. It was quite an experience being shoulder deep inside feeling around for connective tissue. The body was still hot inside after an hour.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:85%;">After removing the guts. The heart and lungs are still inside at this point.</span><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUXY7yssDSYUpVLsa51WM5dyg16TyYzEOcq3WyTLqJW95yLQyiIIkNrJ-uuHCxxGrrGu_-LCPhnZeL1vszn1-M2YBEgJVh4Z9FXl2zKfri4_SuhA49DLcuK8paTqHg6WbcQAfUXQ/s1600-h/IMG_3514.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUXY7yssDSYUpVLsa51WM5dyg16TyYzEOcq3WyTLqJW95yLQyiIIkNrJ-uuHCxxGrrGu_-LCPhnZeL1vszn1-M2YBEgJVh4Z9FXl2zKfri4_SuhA49DLcuK8paTqHg6WbcQAfUXQ/s320/IMG_3514.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5317372444923419554" border="0" /></a><br /><br />We caught the guts in a plastic bin and took them aside to sort through. Clumps of fat were gathered for various projects. The liver and other organs were kept for a meat processing and preserving class the following day.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:85%;">One of our instructors Shaun (bottom left), leads students in sorting through the gut pile.</span><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn94ao6s4_pFnf2hvWC23tumHH35ET0kVjqkJIwu97izquaPpJdAILThIuBmJjn5Gprs7dphQ6B5yieKQPYLJ-0rXr5FFT-pQFVc73dgetZFGkLMgQoK-ye5N-YD2fdf9d7CTWFQ/s1600-h/IMG_3516.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn94ao6s4_pFnf2hvWC23tumHH35ET0kVjqkJIwu97izquaPpJdAILThIuBmJjn5Gprs7dphQ6B5yieKQPYLJ-0rXr5FFT-pQFVc73dgetZFGkLMgQoK-ye5N-YD2fdf9d7CTWFQ/s320/IMG_3516.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5317372449377923090" border="0" /></a><br /><br />The scene at the ranch.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeRC2rgPb7y5EDMna-feWnPpr9NEtXX5aL80KA1sWFhhQM6i1hTqnT857R5biAm75XCWSSf_nMsnfJRyQ-0CS_bp7dQkjxcmUDA3ATpuOwdsc-vfLDaHPv3rCqhAr0M3nI3Xfquw/s1600-h/IMG_3515.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeRC2rgPb7y5EDMna-feWnPpr9NEtXX5aL80KA1sWFhhQM6i1hTqnT857R5biAm75XCWSSf_nMsnfJRyQ-0CS_bp7dQkjxcmUDA3ATpuOwdsc-vfLDaHPv3rCqhAr0M3nI3Xfquw/s320/IMG_3515.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5317377855568613554" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><span style="font-size:85%;">The students finishing up the skinning.</span><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNvW4N5wlIZl1pBGA9fKIYjm4-6u3P5rttUfeudCuht75rwgM1Ioho31O1OuxzuKzStbedRPjYba5PVH56w9MHwyenM-3JP9OlJmbPN_Yp7n3YqmDyEuj0gYLuLik70hyy8a4gkQ/s1600-h/IMG_3518.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNvW4N5wlIZl1pBGA9fKIYjm4-6u3P5rttUfeudCuht75rwgM1Ioho31O1OuxzuKzStbedRPjYba5PVH56w9MHwyenM-3JP9OlJmbPN_Yp7n3YqmDyEuj0gYLuLik70hyy8a4gkQ/s320/IMG_3518.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5317376695317027186" border="0" /></a><br /><br />The animal was split into six pieces plus the head. Four legs and the torso cut in two. We did the whole thing while keeping all the bones intact. I write this tonight after dropping the bone collection off at the Portland State University science lab where we will have the opportunity to assemble it into a museum style articulation. The professor we gave the bones to said that it would be put on display somewhere so hopefully that happens down the road.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:85%;">Two front legs packaged up for transportation back to Portland.</span><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX1BdrC4E9V3rk65QFL83LePB5GlfWESv6mGGZMOQjxKtm-IjZ260qOhYwiTmbAlwiicbq0gGhOdi8e5ieyqf9Hr1OIYPA6ekHGZWgV6GgSUI8gtmtcHPt09Ri84bV9Bhm5tWTng/s1600-h/IMG_3521.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX1BdrC4E9V3rk65QFL83LePB5GlfWESv6mGGZMOQjxKtm-IjZ260qOhYwiTmbAlwiicbq0gGhOdi8e5ieyqf9Hr1OIYPA6ekHGZWgV6GgSUI8gtmtcHPt09Ri84bV9Bhm5tWTng/s320/IMG_3521.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5317376710120027618" border="0" /></a><br /><br />At 3pm we all met back at the Scout Pit in Portland to cut up and package the meat. Fat and sinew were collected for future projects. Once the major hunks of meat were removed they were sliced up, packaged and labeled.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:85%;">Students working on the six sections.</span><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgRMj_okVlTziD9KKG_Q0NOb_idsKwNgMVkDsJRVeeH6IMDbOy8gr54ruxj76iRs4JTvTEH49GM26BhwPthYqZ6H2UVbGuoirKhlkA95Jtm_hItmmlvQU7HUcLemlmNoNnM_2Fmw/s1600-h/IMG_3522.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgRMj_okVlTziD9KKG_Q0NOb_idsKwNgMVkDsJRVeeH6IMDbOy8gr54ruxj76iRs4JTvTEH49GM26BhwPthYqZ6H2UVbGuoirKhlkA95Jtm_hItmmlvQU7HUcLemlmNoNnM_2Fmw/s320/IMG_3522.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5317379141695831266" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><span style="font-size:85%;">Here is but a small sample of the meat harvested.</span><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVy7lHUYjftgw9xkx2iomA1vvds0rU3NUua3DxLFm_dUIQUh3cSieQ442N0KX_xYuENf3ieOgQvF-uxmwE-_rvhowVxUQRQ3RpYsBsHVlz7kMPrPCYOuRDqTA-WD0X7L8d2grlXw/s1600-h/IMG_3525.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVy7lHUYjftgw9xkx2iomA1vvds0rU3NUua3DxLFm_dUIQUh3cSieQ442N0KX_xYuENf3ieOgQvF-uxmwE-_rvhowVxUQRQ3RpYsBsHVlz7kMPrPCYOuRDqTA-WD0X7L8d2grlXw/s320/IMG_3525.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5317379153588430370" border="0" /></a><br /><br />After all the meat was packaged up, the students divided up all the meat that they worked so hard for.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:85%;">At the end of the day we enjoyed the fruits ...err, meats of our labor.</span><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7_3PmKShpTkDdpSiFMdaoQqhZvS7NkH-ZYW2AYF_ny4NyzjKxUBgvWr17Qv-1cWnXroBAIa4mXK4ReBglucXiG0dH_NzPtqKMnbvTQlMdNjKd3d9e1r0A9y8nGnFQZSPMtBcdxg/s1600-h/IMG_3531.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7_3PmKShpTkDdpSiFMdaoQqhZvS7NkH-ZYW2AYF_ny4NyzjKxUBgvWr17Qv-1cWnXroBAIa4mXK4ReBglucXiG0dH_NzPtqKMnbvTQlMdNjKd3d9e1r0A9y8nGnFQZSPMtBcdxg/s320/IMG_3531.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5317380266095560818" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Overall it was a great experience on many levels. I learned and experienced so much. The work didn't stop that day though. My next blog will explain some of what my brother and I did the following day.<br /><br />We are tentatively planning to teach this class again in May.Sassmouthhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06118738459126760028noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19805035.post-86507143430373665242009-02-23T22:52:00.003-05:002009-02-24T00:37:02.724-05:00Forest Park OvernightIt's been a busy few weeks at work. My team released our new website and it took a lot of work to get it done on schedule. I was in the mode where if I wasn't working, I was thinking about work. The launch was very successful. During the final stretch, I promised myself I would spend at least one day by myself in the woods.<br /><br />Saturday I had my brother drop me off on the SW side of Forest Park around 2:30pm. I had a school sized back pack with my sleeping bag, my medium sized (camera case) <a href="http://dynamiteskills.blogspot.com/search/label/survival">survival kit</a>, rain jacket, <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgt2qHppX1zuSKwmg0HXMuT_yw282Tt4zA7jsWHUJi4e432orj5k70_por8oxQgs66q36blfixK2LSI2hMSjb7-3ek69d0ztzJ4F6visWXSh8l7_otP1UpDWMK69hjX9UlH4reg6w/s320/IMG_3163.jpg">felt hat</a>, a <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">nalgene</span> and a <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">snapple</span> bottle of water, my knife, a headlamp and a relatively small amount of food. The food consisted of a bagel (no cream cheese), about three dehydrated apples in chip form, about 12 ounces of beef jerky and a Hershey's bar. I also had other non-survival stuff including my phone, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">iPod</span>, keys, wallet and a book. I didn't have a tent, cooking gear, change of clothes, tooth brush, etc..<br /><br />The place I was dropped off was not an entrance to the park. It was just the side of a road. Luckily it was on the uphill side of the park so my journey was mostly downhill. I bushwhacked through the forest for about two hours. Along the way I came close to a few houses and tried to stay out of sight. I'm not entirely sure I was inside the park the whole time. I tried to follow deer trails as much as possible to make the hike easier. Finally as I made my way down a ridge I spotted the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Wildwood</span> Trail, a 30 mile trail spanning the length of Forest Park and into Washington Park.<br /><br />At this point it was about an hour and half till dark so I prepared a shelter a ways back up the hill out of site from the trail. I found two Douglas Fir trees that were about my <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">arm span</span> apart. I was a little concerned about rain, so I decided to sleep between the trees so I had some canopy cover. I cleared the brush away and gathered fir balms that had fallen for insulation and cushioning. While gathering I realized that there wasn't enough <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">insulating</span> material around to construct any kind of debris shelter in a reasonable amount of time. Survival there without a sleeping bag would've been a challenge. I took the poncho and part of the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">para cord</span> strap from my survival kit and tied it to the trees above my sleeping bag. The poncho was the thinnest plastic you could imagine. You could easily see through it. I was able to rig up a shelter with it but I won't be putting it back in my survival kit. I'd rather have a sturdy trash bag. Luckily it didn't more than drizzle and there was little wind to worry about.<br /><br />I gathered several <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">fists full</span> of twigs no more than <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">pinky</span> thick to make a small fire. The fire was mainly just for fun and to test my kit. I was able to start the fire with one match from my survival kit. The fire was small enough that I could huddle with my legs on either side. The challenge was to keep the fire small while at the same time providing it enough fuel and oxygen so it didn't smoke me out. Using such small sized fuel allowed me to completely burn up the fuel leaving only white ash.<br /><br />I went to bed early. The temperature probably got to the low 40s which wasn't a problem for my 20 degree bag. I did close up the hole to my sleeping bag as much as I could. I never really got cold though. The fir balms didn't end up being as much cushion as I hoped and woke up often.<br /><br />The next morning I broke camp at about 7am and headed for the trail. I started off with the bagel and ate apple chips and beef jerky as I hiked. Overall I covered about 11 miles in about 4 and 1/2 hours. The best part was when I remembered I had a Hershey's bar. Everything tastes so much better when you are hungry.<br /><br />When I reached <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">Pittock</span> Mansion less than 4 miles from the end of the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">Wildwood</span> Trail, I called my brother to come pick me up. I was out of food, water and my ankle was starting to hurt. Before he arrived I took a quick look at Portland from the back of the mansion. It was cool to see the city with Mt. Hood in the distance.<br /><br />It was a fun little overnight. I got to somewhat rough it and test a few things in my survival kit. I also got to explore Forest Park and enjoy the nice weather.Sassmouthhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06118738459126760028noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19805035.post-90129339174193886602009-01-26T01:11:00.006-05:002009-01-27T01:06:51.878-05:00Obsidian Spear<a href="http://dynamiteskills.blogspot.com/2009/01/new-knives.html">A couple posts ago</a>, I showed the spear point I finished and talked about the spear shaft I harvested. Over the past weekend I finally put it all together. The shaft dried out nicely with no cracks and the bottom end straightened out like I planned. Pictured below is the finished product.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZyjknnOiB5m_mXEk2JAzliQragD2goFE0obj_KrSobySjFjDwWI-ZU2gweAstPmO4yPOBbA8ZEJSubCcQ3mT8ylvj-EadQe_8ukNEBClP6paSgcrSPrzqMCbP7XPibfz1fG41ww/s1600-h/IMG_3408.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZyjknnOiB5m_mXEk2JAzliQragD2goFE0obj_KrSobySjFjDwWI-ZU2gweAstPmO4yPOBbA8ZEJSubCcQ3mT8ylvj-EadQe_8ukNEBClP6paSgcrSPrzqMCbP7XPibfz1fG41ww/s320/IMG_3408.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5295482190215152978" border="0" /></a><br /><br />To prepare the shaft I removed the bark and smoothed the whole thing with a draw knife. I removed wood to make the diameter comfortable for my hand and shaved down knots till they were smooth. I then sanded the whole thing. After cutting out a deep notch I stained the wood with black walnut dye. To add some style I scorched in some black bands using a heat gun. This could have been done with open flame as well but a heat gun makes it easier. I used a piece of soda can to cover the places I didn't want to scorch which gave me pretty nice straight lines. Finally, I rubbed in some rendered fat to moisturize the wood.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhywt9ddkQwh1n8oUBMxAqImKQ1s-J_hSGMJIyinXZbTm4g40iZkbjOkk3fl79Fr_s3FIHD0Qu13EpiNZ7Ee6Y8Jf3I-M-B5NZ3nm6IkJH10pdgnlG8oJ_ok4wsQb_6tCkeivqlPA/s1600-h/IMG_3389.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhywt9ddkQwh1n8oUBMxAqImKQ1s-J_hSGMJIyinXZbTm4g40iZkbjOkk3fl79Fr_s3FIHD0Qu13EpiNZ7Ee6Y8Jf3I-M-B5NZ3nm6IkJH10pdgnlG8oJ_ok4wsQb_6tCkeivqlPA/s320/IMG_3389.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5295483077959101890" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Hafting in the point was pretty easy. I used my trusty pitch mixture of 50% pine sap and 50% ground up charcoal to seat the point in firmly. To secure it more I then wrapped it with sinew. Finally, I coated the sinew with hide glue to make it water resistant.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2L4yaBSuyhKJ_usmHEgwsYme08PHYCWinaE0U2n5R3AuPs82eNeQ8I0byF273Eli4tsTZ4FuU_agsNvdHMavKJDraXcX075zN-8jelxNAtwlo4rQPxgEiHcEHfnJg5g_Ta0jDYA/s1600-h/IMG_3409.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2L4yaBSuyhKJ_usmHEgwsYme08PHYCWinaE0U2n5R3AuPs82eNeQ8I0byF273Eli4tsTZ4FuU_agsNvdHMavKJDraXcX075zN-8jelxNAtwlo4rQPxgEiHcEHfnJg5g_Ta0jDYA/s320/IMG_3409.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5295483077263292434" border="0" /></a><br /><br />What will I use this for you might ask. Probably nothing. Some day maybe I'll hunt with it. It's also handy in case of a home invasion.<br /><br />How'd you like that comin atcha!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhW_G-Lx7mujYgoZ3x6JQKV6E5OSpS8MZdZLSeGHEuClXTmY6O3_uH8HIUvYfhVZEqAWVkbbt3FwDUnYtZkTdTmC-6kRvgeNlWgI4pdNZwITKR4x2ftjOmlyw95hMOq57cPg4Ty1Q/s1600-h/IMG_3403.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhW_G-Lx7mujYgoZ3x6JQKV6E5OSpS8MZdZLSeGHEuClXTmY6O3_uH8HIUvYfhVZEqAWVkbbt3FwDUnYtZkTdTmC-6kRvgeNlWgI4pdNZwITKR4x2ftjOmlyw95hMOq57cPg4Ty1Q/s320/IMG_3403.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5295482182717184578" border="0" /></a>Sassmouthhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06118738459126760028noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19805035.post-34462664867407980942009-01-19T00:39:00.003-05:002009-01-19T00:56:57.610-05:00Buffalo Harvesting WorkshopMy brother and I are teaching our first official class with Trackers Northwest on March 21st. We are going to buy a live 1000 lb. Buffalo at a ranch outside of town. For safety and out of respect for the animal we will have the owner dispatch it humanely. After we gut it, we will transport it to The Scout Pit where we will completely process the animal.<br /><br />In addition to the meat (each student will take home 20 lbs.) we will attempt to make use of as many parts of the animal as possible. The hide will be racked for tanning. We will render fat for future projects. The sinew and bones will also be saved. We are planning to do much of the work using stone flakes and knives like those from my last post.<br /><br />I believe this will be an amazing experience and am really looking forward to it.<br /><br />To see the full class description <a href="http://trackersnw.com/portland-adult/buffalo-butchering.php">check it out</a> on the website.Sassmouthhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06118738459126760028noreply@blogger.com6