Possible Guidelines for a Primitive Hunt

1.  Select a place that is easily accessible, yet private, and forces all those involved to leave their motorized vehicles for the duration of the hunt.

2.  Move away from the starting point as far as possible in order to cut the ties with the present that are so easily associated with the presence of a vehicle, a building or a busy highway.

3.  Don’t just settle on a pre-1840 camp, but be specific about the time and the characters all those invited will have to emulate.

4.  Choose your partner or partners well.  A primitive camp and hunt is not the place to be nice.  A lazy or complaining partner can be a damper to the whole hunt.

5.  No matter what the method of traveling, whether by foot, by horse or by canoe, pack your gear in the same manner.  That means pack as lightly as possible and as efficiently as possible.  Don’t think that a horse allows more baggage or that a canoe offers a chance for extra niceties.  Keep it all the same because the more you are forced to rely on simple accoutrements and supplies, the better your woods skill will get.

6.  Pack your shooting gear as simply as possible and be authentic.  That is also a test and a reward of hunting with a muzzleloading firearm.

7.  Your bedroll should be light and not remind you of all the comforts of home.  It should work in the most severe weather.

8.  Everything that you carry, whether in your bedroll, haversack, shooting bag or belt bag, should be all that you need to hunt, survive and entertain yourself during the hunt.

9.  Don’t walk, canoe or ride farther than your physical build or stamina will allow you to enjoy.  Pushing yourself does not accomplish anything.  But knowing when to stop, when to go home and, most of all, where and when to make camp are true signs of progress in your primitive skills.

10.  Take food that you like, but don’t take much of it.  If your belly is full, you will be reluctant to hunt in the cold and in the quiet during the best hunting hours.

11.  Don’t take a pack basket.  They offer too much room to pack extras, and they bind, pull and put stress on your shoulders.  Besides, they will make you clumsy.

12.  Last, and the greatest challenge, refine your clothing, your accoutrements and your choice of food to the point that, if you were suddenly transported back into your period of study, you would blend right in and not even be noticed.

“A Pilgrim’s Journey” by Mark A. Baker       Scurlock Publishing Co.          Pg. 117