
This article is part of Willderness Way VOLUME
5, ISSUE 1. You may view more articles here or order this
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Elk Dog slowed his pace as he noticed
the long shadows that crossed his path. A small grove of cedars was
growing along the side of the trail. This would make a good place to camp
for the night with shelter from the wind and fuel for a small fire. Elk
Dog stopped and pulled clumps of cedar bark until he had a large handful.
Then he rolled the bark between his two hands until he was left with a
bird nest of tinder. Next, he broke off the lower dead branches of some
cedars close by until he had his arms full.
Now he was
ready to build his fire. Elk Dog knelt down and placed his bird nest of
tinder on the ground and his dead cedar limbs close by. What he did next
was very strange. Elk Dog reached into his hunting pouch and pulled out a
very small bow drill. Before long, he had smoke pouring from his yucca
fireboard, piling up glowing coals on his tinder nest. Soon Elk Dog would
rest by a blazing fire.
Making a Mini Bow Drill All you need to make
yourself a mini bow drill is two small tree limbs 3/8” in diameter, twelve
inches long. One straight and one curved. Lash these two pieces together
until you have something that looks like the picture. A little glue on the
lashing helps hold everything together. Once your glue sets up you are
ready to string your bow. If you are careful, you can drill small holes in
the bow limbs to run your cordage through. Keep the cordage from coming
out by tying knots in it. Now your bow is ready!
For a spindle you can use any medium or soft wood 3/8” in
diameter and 8-10 inches long. A yucca stalk works really well for a
fireboard. At first the bow drill might seem slow producing hot coals, but
practice makes perfect. This bow will help perfect your skills and takes
less effort once you get the knack of it. I hope you have lots of fun
building your camp fires.

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