UpNorthica

From the Land of 10,000 Lochs, I give you The Bushcraft Boyz. Equipped with minimal gear, mad skills (and the occasional shot of malt,) these young Scots exemplify a simple message: Bushcrafting is Fun. And they do so, sans the “expert outdoorsman” egotism that one often tires of seeing. City slickers, take heed! Watching the [...]

It’s impressive to see him assemble this tool with the ease of preparing a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Despite all the din of ’survival’ shows and celebs nowadays, Kochanski has quietly remained one of the true masters of bushcraft over the years. Watch and learn.

My buddy Chris passed this along to me… Now, I don’t care if this article is set a little further afield than Northern Minnesota. Or if there are no useful recipes for your Eelpout Festival catch. You’ll still read it at least twice, and marvel at the netloads of great photos, won’tcha? That’s what I [...]

Here are the best of mine…sadly, the best I could get were these stills from my camcorder. How’d yours turn out? Post your links in the comments.

Props to Sue at Voyageur Canoe Outfitters, for pointing out this Wednesday night’s full lunar eclipse. From about 9:00 to 9:52pm, clear skies allowing, you’ll be able to enjoy the sight, but you won’t get another chance until the year 2010. Whether you ski, snowshoe, hike or other things of that nature, come on out. [...]

I’ve posted before about Minnesota’s vibrant ski culture, but this was completely new to me…
In 2005, a film crew journeyed into China’s mountainous Altai region, to document a people whose history with skis dates back thousands of years. The clip here is an excerpt from that project, “Skiiing in the Shadow of Ghengis Khan: Timeless [...]

Here’s something to heighten your enjoyment of a winter campout — tracking animals in the snow. In anticipation of last weekend’s snowfall, I picked up this pocket guide to identifying tracks. And as Providence would have it, my first walk was right after said snowfall and well after dark. These conditions must be the ideal, [...]

A rather spirited rant from Outside Magazine attempts to resolve a conundrum all too common nowadays: When to bring your techno-toys on the trail… and when to leave ‘em home.

This one’s for Crow, who blogs from her lone cabin in an undisclosed location out west.
This weekend I’ll be enjoying the inconveniences of a rustic cabin (no, there’s no punch line coming.) No running water, limited electric, none of the standard resort getaway pampering. I say “enjoying the inconveniences” because not only do trips like [...]

This week, Good Morning America has shot footage for an upcoming piece on some attractions along the Gunflint. Hey, that’s pretty cool. Oh wait…when the piece airs, one of the North Shore’s best-kept secrets will also be shared with millions of viewers. That’s not so pretty cool.

Brought to you by your friends here in UpNorthica, in honor of Valentine’s Day:
#10) So…your quinzee or mine?
#9) Y’know, my place is just a few rods away…
#8) You snowmobile to here often?
#7) Let’s go outside so we have to cuddle for survival.
#6) I love your fragrance…lemme guess: 30% Deet?
#5) Can I paddle you [...]

As reported from the MN-DNR’s site:
CO Dustie Heaton (Willow River) reported an angler caught a northern on one of his tip-ups. As he laid the fish on the ice, his other tip-up went up. While he was tending to that fish, a bald eagle swooped down and grabbed the first northern off the ice and [...]

Results from a recent study from the National Academy of Sciences are showing that “all major lines of evidence point to an ongoing and fundamental shift away from nature-based recreation.” And what is inciting this wave of laziness? Things like Xbox 360, YouTube and blogs.
Furthermore,
“The replacement of vigorous outdoor activities by sedentary, indoor videophilia has [...]

Mountain Hardwear interviews Martin Zemitis, one of the most prolific tent designers in the field. In addition to having innumerable, top-notch outdoor experiences under his belt, this guy owns enough gear to fully equip the A-Team on a mission to the moon. But he owns no tents, as, “Mountain Hardwear keeps me stocked with tents; [...]

A North Carolina man (that is to say, not a Minnesotan) hones his survival skills by attempting a friction fire with various conifer woods. In the dead of winter, while neglecting to bring gloves. You know, fer fun!
Jabs aside, it is interesting and well-documented. It’s a blessing that our modern times have allowed ’survival skills’ [...]