WILDERNESS & BUSHCRAFT

Let’s start with the woods! For over 25 years our group has been organizing hardcore wilderness expeditions with a focus on primitive wood craft skills. Whether it’s with modern gear or historical period kit, we love heading out and trekking the forests, mountains, mires or paddling with canoes.

Our members have trekked all over. From Iceland, to Spain, but our primary stomping grounds are either the Adirondacks of New York State USA, or the unceded territory of Central and Northern Ontario and Quebec, Canada.

LIVING HISTORY

Many of our members have a strong connection with living history and historical reenactment going back for a few generations at this point. Some were even born into the hobby! Our very first historical trek nearly three decades ago was entirely with 18th century gear in an attempt to recreate the arduous trek that Loyalist Refugees made from the Mohawk Valley in NY to Quebec.

Through the years, we’ve touched on a number of different historical time periods, always focused on testing kit and trying to experience conditions and challenges that people throughout history might have endured.

LIVING TOLKIEN

As the name states, one of our primary inspirations for this group was to have some fun and break away from the historical living history elements of our practice and try something unique. Lifting a page from the material culture of historical reenacting, we also try to apply a realistic approach to a “fantasy’ pursuit.

Namely, we reenact Tolkien inspired “rangers” of the North Downs using all the experience, kit and fandom we can muster. We’ve since learned that this is a world wide phenomena among wilderness enthusiasts. In association with the western martial arts organization Hopologia, not only do we bushcraft in “ranger” kit, but we also train with live steel and authentic longbow archery! Just like Strider’s people!