the long shadow

As nature pauses briefly,just to rest before the preparation of the winter to come,i too pause and take this time to write a little something..

Ive enjoyed what this summer has given to me so far,ive walked dewy meadows,watched swallows feed over swaying fields of barley,and deer rest in the shade.tWO new faces entered the dance this summer,the goshawk and the buzzard,these two have eluded me,played tit for tat for hours with me,my camera posed ready,just to shoot thin air.But with the patience of an older wolf i sat,walked and scouted until i filmed at the least the buzzards.What creatures of the sky,fearless,proud,bold,screaming out thier meow cry for every one to hear and those that should,... run..Even the crow had little effect mobbing them,when one was mobbed another flew to help,peace and quiet was defenitely not on the menu that day.But amid all this a great connection can be felt,each wave of chaos can be felt within if you listen carefully enough..The birds of prey are truely the warriors bird...
I played and am still playing my usual game with the tree people(squirrels).who gets the hazel nut first...im doing better this year,but not as good as they are..
I sometimes am amazed at the bounty nature gives,the apple tree laden with fruit bowing to passers by to take her gifts,but they blindly ignore her thier apples are selected by the best quality control the supermarket has to offer,(oh what tastes your missing)....
And so as i continue to walk i notice the sun is lower and shining right at eye level,The signs speak of autumn,of preparing for winter...The time of the long shadow will soon be here,and summers seeds will quietly sleep as a baby in the womb of its mother waiting to be born.

grimbo;s cold steel kukri machete throwing..

grimbo;s no eye for deer..

grimbo;s urban Roe buck..

THE KUNAI

If youve watched my video you would have seen me throwing the kunai...Whats a kunai?Well originally it started off as a builders trowel in the old days of japan..
you have all heard of ninjas?Well these ninjas were very secretive,their lives depended on it,so they adapted their own weapons out of things they had around them,hence a simple trowel became a deadly weapon.With modification it became a close combat knife,a spear,it was also used to dig out holes in walls allowing the ninja access to his usually sleeping target,they even hammered them into walls and trees to help them climb,and of course in the right hands it could be thrown if needed.So as you can see it had many uses..
So i thought about it as a survival tool and decided to get some.It has its uses,much as it did centuries ago.I to now have an emergency spear,a skinning blade,a digging tool,a kitchen knife,and of course a throwing knife..These one i have are small and flat making them easy to tuck away in any survival kit etc....
So there you have it,the kunai,a simple trowel or a swiss army bush knife...

grimbo;s pied woodpecker.

grimbo;s quad roe deer.

grimbo;s bull roarer.

on the horizon

whats this another bow in the making?watch this space....

grimbo magic

How many of you have seen films where natives enter a certain woodland or jungle and are terrified,they look around and there are skulls and weird things hanging from the trees?Or they wont go across a stretch of land because its cursed?You know what i mean...Any way id though i would hang a few pieces around my camp area..my own keep out signs to the native vandals, and stray dog walkers whom may happen to get lost off the beaten track..Now i can sit in my shelter listen to the screams of"ah its grimbo magic,this place is cursed"..Of course if that fails zeus will no doubt make them think twice..

trail snares

Often you may hit a part of woodland that is a mini highway,used only for travelling through by game.The use of deadfalls and baited snares here are usually non productive,i find the best traps/snares are ones put along the trails...A natural channeling point is good,or you can channel the animal your self using natural materials..Often there may not be anywhere to secure a good noose,so using the fork stick method is always a good idea...Try to use a natural fallen piece rather than cutting one,one it saves on the enviroment, and animals will smell the fresh sap that has been cut and will aviod the trail...

winter shelter lean too

If you remember my winter lean too,you can see now how much ive added to it..throughout the winter ive gradually brought in more foliage to add to it,its a job that can really be finished..This will be left now until i use it again next winter..

swirls

ive not posted much lately,.....sometimes the river flows smoothly and evenly,this has been the case of my journeys into the woods,now and again ive noticed a little swirl but nothing worth writing about,until now,I decided the best course of action would be to remember the little swirls and write about them in one posting......
Depending on where you are in the world mother nature will be awaking at different stages,for weeks now there has been been little changes(swirls),if you venture out just to quickly give the dog a run before work each day,you will not notice such swirls.One thing everyone notices is daylight increasing,with this many things stir in nature,the longer the light the more happens..The sap is running through the birch now,many people miss this when tapping because they tap early mornings when it is cold,if its there it may not flow,leave it later in the day when its warmer and you then may see it flowing..The woodpecker has started drumming the song of spring,bluebell spikes have already carpeted the woodland ground,the cuckoo pint leaves shine out boldly amoungst them,soon the cow parsley will tower above them all..Ive seen birds checking out potential nesting sites.Soon mother nature will release her spring tonics,usually in the form of wild ramsons,mustard garlic,She gives us these to detox our bodies,toxins that have built up in us throughout winter.This is earth medicine once known by many,now taught by few..
Ive seen buds on trees like sycamore,and hawthorn just waiting to burst open...There is much happening out there some obvious some not...
One thing that is overlooked is the changes in ourselves this time of year,we too want to burst open our buds,we want to feel heat from the sun on our bodies,we stretch more,we are slightly restless.Why is this so?You have to remember that we too are from mother earth,we act as any other living thing when the season changes,we are related to all living things we feel as they feel,wrapping ourselves in concrete doesnt stop this happening,it just prevents us from understanding it,and acting on it.....
My thoughts now turn to warmer days of watching swirls become whirl pools,of deer browsing on the food of summer,the swifts returning,and new life all around.....
I hope many of you can get out from time to time to share the summer ahead with all that you are related to...
The old crone of the woods is leaving,in here place the white fair lady sits,the old crone hates to give way to her,she limps off all bent over and gnarled muttering to herself,suddenly she stops and glances back at the lady,she grins a toothless grin,she knows it will not be that long before she returns with her gnarled walking stick and uses it to summon jack frost once more...

foggy doe deer pics

At this time of year most does are ready to give birth as soon as the weather warms up and there is a bit more selection in their diets...This doe ive tracked and stalked all winter,she has been running with another,maybe her sister,but this is the first time ive seen her alone.Sometimes this means the other doe has gone to find her own territory to have her young,perhaps a Buck may be around the area she chooses,..

grimbo;s foggy doe deer

grimbo;s smokeless scout shelter fire..

shelter pics

My winter shelter has done me proud so far this winter..i hope it is still standing next winter.

grimbo;s smokeless scout shelter fire.

red fox pics

grimbo;s ambush hunting tips

harpoon pics

grimbo;s toggle head harpoon

sinew backed yew ambush bow pics.

grimbos sinew backed yew bow.