Woodlore Blog

The following article was kindly written by Woodlore customer Martin Dryden. Not only is it a great review of the Hand Forged Knife Blade, it also serves well as a guide for those thinking of having a go at making their own knife handle:

Martin's finished knife

I’ve looked at the Woodlore knife for many years and loved the craftsmanship that’s gone into it. I also saw the episode of Ray in Julius Pettersson‘s forge, while he was making a knife. When I saw the Hand Forged Knife Blade listed on Woodlore’s shop I wanted the chance to make my own knife to try out some skills and hopefully do justice to it. I’d had a go with a knife kit before and this was very rewarding but I knew I could do better.

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Zoe Ginster, a long-time customer of Woodlore’s and a familiar face on many of our courses and expeditions over the years, kindly sent in the following article with some great photos:

Hi Woodlore,

I recently spent a wonderful morning handling and flying birds of prey in North Cornwall with my mum Lyndon as her birthday treat!

Zoe with Twilight, the Kestrel

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The below picture, taken by Woodlore office member Steve on a trip to East Africa earlier this year, shows an animal print found in the dirt. The first person to find and correctly identify it wins, as always, a £10.00 Woodlore Voucher:

The animal print found in Eastern Africa, correctly identified as that of a hyena

Due to the angle at which the photograph was taken, this wasn’t the easiest print to identify. However, some of you got it right – it is in fact a hyena print; Steve and the group were even lucky enough to see one that day sprinting past them. Of all the comments, Zoe was the first to answer correctly, winning a £10.00 Woodlore Voucher.

If you’d like to brush up on your skills at tracking and identifying wildlife, we’d recommend taking a look at the Animal Tracks & Signs book or, even better, taking part in our Woodlore Tracking course.

Ray Mears tracking leopards in Namibia while filming for Survival

This past Sunday, Ray Mears offered up a once-in-a-lifetime trip tracking leopards in Namibia, which was auctioned off on BBC Radio 2 for Children in Need. The 5-day trip will be hosted by Ray next year, along with members of the Global Leopard Project, and will offer an amazing chance to see these big cats along with other game, such as lions, cheetahs and rhinos.

At the end of Sunday’s auction, the winning bid raised a fantastic £17,000 for the charity.

During an interview with Richard Madeley last week, Ray explained just what the expedition would involve:

Interview with Ray Mears on BBC Radio 2

Woodlore customer and Camp Craft course attendee Andy Vaughan kindly sent us the following article:

Hi Woodloreans,

Just thought I would send you a campcrafty picture – it’s been a rather long time in the making, but I finally finished my shave horse. It seems like forever since I did the Campcraft course back in April!

Andy and Susan’s shave horse (click for full size)

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