Backyard Bushcraft

By Mike Lummio, Bushcraft Northwest

One of my favorite things about bushcraft is that it encompasses so much more than emergency survival skills. This means that the skills and perspectives we learn do not have to be reserved for the backcountry but can be employed in our everyday lives. It’s amazing what can be accomplished by combining this wealth of knowledge with a little imagination. Here’s a simple project to illustrate what I’m talking about. With some sticks, natural twine, and a knife, I’m going to make a sturdy, decorative fence for the herb garden using a very useful lashing system. This same system can be used in hundreds of ways in the bush (from shelter building to crayfish traps) and provides a stronger arrangement than binding two round sticks together.

First, collect some straight sticks of the desired diameter. Point the ends of some to make the posts (vertical pieces) and cut to the desired length.	Next, baton an X into the posts at a consistent distance from the top.

Instead of removing three sections of the X as you would to create a pot hook, only cut out the sides to form an hourglass or butterfly shape.	For the horizontal pieces, measure where they will intersect the posts and give every other piece the same hourglass treatment.

When the two pieces are placed perpendicular to each other, they lock together to prevent slippage in any direction.	Place the unnotched horizontal on top of the one that is locked into the post and lash it all together with a transom hitch.

The finished fence. If you’d like to employ another bushcraft skill, you can lash it all together with your own handmade cordage.