Alone in the Wilderness

[BadMouth]

Anyone catch this on PBS recently?

The guy packed in hand tools without handles, made handles, then used them to build a cabin, furniture, etc.
(He did have another cabin accross the lake to stay in while building his own)
The only store bought things he used to build the cabin were tar paper and plastic sheeting under the moss on the roof.
Even the door hinges were carved out of wood.

He took a wind-up film camera with him to document everything.
It reminded me of modern blogging or posting in the project forum.
http://www.aloneinthewilderness.com/building_the_cabin.html

Someone has since paired the video with someone reading his journal.
(I think the sound is added also)

Jump to 4:10 to get to the making of stuff.
(The narration and sequence of this video is mixed up from the one I saw and gets a bit confusing toward the end.
He's talking about finishing the stone chimney on his cabin while it shows the other cabin that he stayed in while building his)


I find it a bit mesmerizing.

[ChadTower]

Yep, seen that a bunch of times, read his memoirs, it's all awesome stuff.  That dude had balls and grit.

[Turvey]

That dude had balls and grit.

But not at the same time hopefully 

[EightBySix]

Mmmmm, haaaand tooools....

Still, I guess electricity was hard to come by.

[ChadTower]

Yeah, he brought good steel tools with him, along with a very good set of sharpening stones.  He made his own tool handles, though, because it was easier to pack the tools in without that weight.

[SavannahLion]

Yeah, he brought good steel tools with him, along with a very good set of sharpening stones.  He made his own tool handles, though, because it was easier to pack the tools in without that weight.

Mass, not weight. I haven't specifically weighed the two components but wooden handles typically don't weigh as much as the steel. but the handles are often bulky, so removing them can easily cut down on the bulk one has to carry.

Anyways, if you look back on some of those mountaineering stories of yore, you'll find those men and women tougher than the nails they chewed on.  My dad was a lot like that. Used to do really tough ---steaming pile of meadow muffin--- before he got older than dirt.

[ChadTower]

Every ounce counts on a long hiker's pack.  It does make a difference.  The handles don't make a saw all that much bigger but if the hardwood handle is a pound that adds up.

[whammoed]

Cool, but having steel tools was 99% of the challenge.

Real men use stone tools.

Hell, I built my log cabin with trained beavers.

[shmokes]

You are, by your own standards, not a real man.   

[Mysterioii]

Man there's nothing like a well-trained beaver... 

[whammoed]

You are, by your own standards, not a real man.   

Pffft, how do you think I trained the beavers?  Nothing keeps a beaver in line like whack with my stone mallet.

[Gray_Area]

Man there's nothing like a well-trained beaver...  

Yeah. The only thing they won't do is trim themselves.

[SavannahLion]

You guys are completely mad training your beavers. Dive into your local archives, those beavers did it standing up.

I wouldn't touch those beavers myself.

[SavannahLion]

Every ounce counts on a long hiker's pack.  It does make a difference.  The handles don't make a saw all that much bigger but if the hardwood handle is a pound that adds up.

That's not the only reason though, if you look at how one might pack handle-less tools in a pack, you can cram quite a bit more in the space taken up with the wood handles. In other words, he was probably able to carry more tools even though that would've added pounds. He shed a couple of pounds losing the wood, but he gained it all back, and then some, by carrying more tools. The extra weight gain from the extra tools gave him a bigger advantage in the long run.

[ChadTower]

He said himself it was for weight.  In the documentary and in his journals. 

Of course we both know that both answers are correct.  I'm just going with what Dick Proenneke said.

[SavannahLion]

I can't view the video for some reason and I haven't been home yet. I've just been going off of what I can read and I clearly missed that bit.

I would have to point out he probably wussed out though.  I have an old newspaper article about my father, and long ass story short, it tells of how my father carried a claw-foot bathtub into the mountains so he could enjoy a nice relaxing hot bath at camp. I've gone on that hike (traveling light) and to the campsite and I can't quite fathom the logistics behind hauling a steel tub on a days hike with all the required necessities, such as tools,food, and shelter, up, around, and down a freaking mountain.

If I wasn't such an ---uvula--- in my youth I probably would've had the forethought to ask him how he pulled it off before his passing.

[SavannahLion]

And, there's the ---uvula--- of youth.

[ChadTower]

I can't view the video for some reason and I haven't been home yet. I've just been going off of what I can read and I clearly missed that bit.

The video is only like 10% of the documentary anyway.  It's worth getting and watching the whole thing.  That dude must have had some longass cold winters but stayed there for decades until his body finally would no longer allow it in his old age. 

[BadMouth]

I can't view the video for some reason and I haven't been home yet. I've just been going off of what I can read and I clearly missed that bit.

The video is only like 10% of the documentary anyway.  It's worth getting and watching the whole thing.  That dude must have had some longass cold winters but stayed there for decades until his body finally would no longer allow it in his old age. 

This video kinda sucks compared the the original.  It's very condensed and sometimes the narration isn't paired correctly.
I only posted it to give an idea of what the documentary is like.

He lived in the cabin for 30 years, until he was 82.

[Mysterioii]

There are introverts and there are extroverts.  If he lived there for 30 years then regretted it, that's one thing... and sad.  But if he enjoyed himself, then it's awesome.

I couldn't do it for 30 years but I could easily say FTW for a few months...   

[daywane]

He lived in the cabin for 30 years, until he was 82.

What a waste.  Life's too short to be a recluse.

 
now that's is living if you ask me!
It is my wife's health that keeps me anchored to society.  And undying LOVE 
  peace man!