In this workshop you will learn how to create a functional Bow Drill Set from natural materials native to New England, and how to use that set to make fire by friction.
“The fire is the main comfort of the camp, whether in summer or winter, and is about as ample at one season as at another. It is as well for cheerfulness as for warmth and dryness.
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The ability to make fire is such an essential skill for anyone who spends time in the outdoors. Whether you are a camper, an adventurer, a hiker, or philosopher, a campfire is your friend. Fire helps us to thermoregulate, to purify water, to cook food, and to keep our spirits up. It sits at the intersection of science and spirituality and contributes as much to our emotional well-being as it does to our physical. Making fire from modern tools like lighters or matches can be challenging in its own right, and creating it from a spark from a flint and steel or any other less traditional means can seem almost impossible...and making it from nothing but friction between found, natural materials seems like magic. Learning this skill could save your life, that’s true, but it’s more than that. Making fire by friction requires a deep knowledge of your surroundings and the available materials, and it consequently connects you to a place like few other skills can. Learning this skill can fill you with confidence one moment, and humility the next. It’s rooted in science, in physicality, and in spirituality simultaneously, and it’s deeply rooted in our human history.