Mock Venom Extraction Study

As a follow-on to yesterday's day hike Rattlesnake encounter: Had some discussion with friends today about the worth of those pocket Snake Bite kits sold by COGHLAN'S and other outdoor gear companies. Lots of opinions out there.

One friend, a former Medical student, sent me a link to the following article:

CLICK HERE >>>PubMed: "Suction for venomous snakebite: a study of "mock venom" extraction in a human model", 

The article describes a scientific test to determine how much venom one might be able to extract.

In the testing, a SAWYER'S extractor was used. It's an easy read and may shed some light on these devices which, may have more psychological value to a patient than actual medical value. At the same time, it is not accurate to say the device does not work. Anyway, you can read it for yourself and draw your own conclusions.
 

Froom Creek Trail Hike - Irish Hills Open Space, San Luis Obispo

Today was a beautiful day here in San Luis Obispo. It was Spring-like, sunny, warm and temperatures probably in the mid to upper 70's...good snake weather. My friend Tom, a member of the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff's Search & Rescue unit suggested we go for a hike on the Froom Ranch Trail in the Irish Hills Open Space. We parked in the southwest corner of the COSTCO shopping center from where we would enter the trail from an opening in the corner of the parking lot:

"Unofficial" Trailhead

 

View from the trail above entry point

 

This is an unofficial trailhead, and a quick and easy way to tie into the Froom Ranch Trail, which otherwise would have to be accessed at Madonna Road or from the Johnson Ranch Trail connector [a 5 mile hike]. Our plan was to hike Froom Ranch to the King Trail, up to the Canyon View Trail, down to the Froom Ranch and back around to the COSTCO entry for a round trip of 2.9 miles:

 

CCCMB.ORG map

 

Trail highlighted

 

Prior to starting, I checked my gear over and clipped the zippers on my pack closed using little carabiner snaps. If you've done any hiking with a pack, you may've experienced having the zipper work their way open, or worse, losing gear along the trail. This will help prevent that from occurring:

 

Clip your zipper pulls shut

 

Tom likes to make hikes into a training and conditioning opportunity, so he wore his snake gaiters. Don't laugh! A Ventura SAR member was snake bit a few years ago and the medical care cost 1 million dollars and 70 vials of anti-venin!

 

Mike leads the way.

Please notice the snakebite gaiters

 

As we ascended the Froom Ranch Trail to the King Trail, a gentle, cool breeze stirred occasionally, cooling us off. There were also shady groves of oaks of cool greenery to rest in:

 

Crazy Cool

 

As we passed over a footbridge into the oak woodland I heard Tom call out, "Snake" and saw him come to a stop. I came forward and saw a large adult rattlesnake resting on the hillside next to the trail, beneath an oak:

 

 

Pacific Rattlesnake

 

Pit Viper with heat-sensory head organs

 

Rattles. They get a new bead every time

They shed their skin. 

 

The Rattlesnake was very content to lie there and didn't even bother to rattle. We wished him well and passed on and continued our hike, warning to City Rangers we encountered. just up the trail.  The wildflowers were blooming and were gorgeous:

 

Nature's beauty

 

On top of the King Trail atop the ridge, we were treated to a nice view of San Luis Obispo's trademark peaks, the Morro's:

 

[L-R] Cerro Romauldo, Chumash, Bishop, and

Cerro San Luis [Madonna Mountain]

 

As we enjoyed the view, Tom took the opportunity to check his GPS device and benchmark our location as he mapped the route. The route we followed is one of 3 stepped fitness and conditioning courses [the other 2 are on Cerro Alta Trail near Atascadero] and requires team members to carry a #25 pack load:

 

Checking GPS

 

We moved on, dropping down the Canyon View Trail and tying back into the Froom Canyon Trail. The hike down the canyon was rocky and sun exposed. At this point we were both starting to hit our canteens often:

 

Froom Trail, looking back up the canyon

 

There were some unique gnarled dried, wood pieces along the trail:

 

Desert Wood

 

Tom called out that he could hear water running, and presently, he pointed out two streams trickling down the canyon wall opposite of us. I wondered if they might be supplied by a spring on top of the ridge?

 

Water!

 

The water reaches the stream bed in the

Canyon bottom

 

The hike was done at a leisurely pace with plenty of stops to observe nature and listen. It took us about 2:20:00 to cover the nearly three mile course [Sheriff's Search & rescue allows 3 hours to complete the course], and would be a great short hike for anyone. Of course, always carry water, wear sunscreen and a hat, and keep your cellphone handy. If you are visiting the San Luis Obispo are and want to hike our local trails, drop me a message and I will connect you with some links for download trail maps.  Also, check out my FACEBOOK page [Bushcraft Woods devil] for interesting hiking & camping tips and links.

 

Goblin Ranger

[AKA "Bushcraft Woods Devil"]

 

Happy Hiking!

 

GOBLIN RANGER

 

 

 

 

 

 











First Hike of 2016 - A Rainy Day Hike on the Coon Creek Trail

So today, I had the day off. I decided to go out and do my first hike of this New Year 2016. I decided to hike the Coon Creek Trail, which is a favorite of mine. It is not too far from home, but is also a trail I spent a good part of Summer 1976 on as a member of the United States Youth Conservation Corps [Y.C.C., forerunner of the California Conservation Corps]. We maintained the trail and built several foot bridges over the creek before they were washed away by an El Nino' in 1995.

It was raining on and off during today's hike, and at one point I had to shelter up under some Oaks when a big squall passed over. Once I reached the end of the trail I used a 5X7 tarp to set up a hasty shelter and make something hot to eat. It was a great outing!





Mykel Hawke's "Hawkechete"...a unique and rugged woods tool.

About a year ago, I received a Mykel Hawke designed "Hawkechete" [hawkebrand.com] as a gift. Mykel Hawke is a former Captain in the U.S. Army's Special Forces, a survival skills instructor, author, and host of television programs such as DISCOVERY CHANNEL's "Man-Woman-Wild". He has brought his experience and outdoors knowledge to the table and designed some unique and unconventional woods tools, the Hawkchete being one.

"Hawkechete" processing kindling



The Hawkchete is, as it's name implies, a machete. It is constructed of carbon steel and weighs a little under 2 lbs. The blade has a black epoxy coating and is about 18" in length, with an overall length of about 23.5" including handle. the handle is a black rubber material and is "Universal" in shape, meaning it is the same shape in the hand regardless how it is held. It incorporates a lanyard hole and a short double guard to prevent the hand from sliding forward onto the blade.

The blade stock is 5/64" thick by my measure and is somewhat flexible, like any machete. The Hawkebrand.com website states the machete is built by CONDOR, a very reputable tool and knife company located in El Salvador.

The most unique feature of the machete is it's unusual shape and cutting angles. It offers the user two choices...held in one way it presents as a Khukuri stye blade. Reverse it and it presents as a Parang style machete blade. The cutting edge of the Khukuri measures at  about 17" while the Parang measures 13" of cutting edge.

All edges are razor-sharp. No, I don't mean very sharp; I mean RAZOR-BE-EXTREMELY-CAREFUL-SHARP! The Hawkechete has cutting edges both top and bottom and if you are using one you must be aware that it will cut in two directions, forward and backswing, so extreme care must be used when working with it.  This is especially true if the blade becomes stuck in wood; if you try to free it forcefully, it can suddenly come free and a sharp edge come at you or someone beside you. This is not a criticism of the design! Just an advisement to slow down and plan cuts and think your actions through, just as we should with any edged tool....the last thing one needs is a serious laceration when one is far afield and immediate medical care is not an option.

Since I was planning a camping trip for next week, I decided to get a jump on it and use the Hawkechete to make kindling for starting my campfires. Since the Hawkechete is double-edged, batoning isn't an option, so I used it like a small splitting camp axe, biting into the wooden log and then pounding the log on a stump and driving it up through the blade. Oak, Eucalyptus, it didn't matter....the Hawkechete split them all and maintained it's edge throughout. I managed to fill a 5 gallon bucket with split kindling.

After an hour of banging away with the blade and annoying the neighborhood mutts, I found no loosening in the handle. For the most part the blade was unharmed except for two very small dents which may've been inadvertent contact with the concrete pad below my stump anvil. 

I then decided to try making some curled shavings. Near the handle the blade becomes narrow-waisted and slightly curved with a straight 3" section. It is only sharpened on the inside and is ideal for use as a draw knife or for carving. Using this section I was able to produce curls for a tinder nest. Unfortunately, I was unable to ignite the curls using my ferro rod, buts was able to do so after adding some shredded jute to the nest. One could easily craft a feather stick using this feature.  

In conclusion, I would opine that the Hawkchete is a unique, unconventional, and useful woods tool, but that it must be used with the caution due any double-edged blade. I would recommend that anyone considering purchase of a machete try as many different patterns and sizes as they can access and find that which best suits their purposes.

Below, I have placed two videos made today using the Hawkechete and discussing it's features, and making fire with wood shavings processed using the Hawkechete. I hope you find them useful and informative. 

 

 

Happy Hiking!

GOBLIN RANGER / BUSHCRAFT WOODS DEVIL

Coon Creek Trail day hike with KILIMANJARO GEAR

Had the day off so I took a dayhike on the Coon Creek Trail in Montana de Oro State Park. Carried gear in my Kilimanjaro Gear deployment bag and used the Kiligear BALLAST multi-tool on the outing.  Trailhead coordinates: N 35 15' 2 8.41" W 120 53' 12.44"  .  A great outing, beautiful day, sunny and 79 degrees Fahrenheit. Best of all, no snakes!

Make your own walking stick...it's easy!

A few days ago I was working at one of the park's I maintain, when I noticed a sapling laying on the ground.  Upon closer inspection I discovered it was a Sycamore and had been snapped off near the base. The sapling had stood in a shelter location, and it has dropped it's leaves, so I am pretty sure it was a deliberate act of vandalism and not an action of wind.   I notified my supervisor and then set about cutting up and removing the tree.

Vandalized sapling

 

Removing the branches, I got down to the trunk and it occurred to me that the tree might be useful for a walking stick. I thought I could make it into something equally beautiful and useful, and in that way, it would have a small victory over the vandals that snapped it off. Having policed up all the branches, I put the trunk aside in the bed of my truck and went back to other duties.

Having a hiking stick on trails is very wise. It can be used to balance oneself on loose or steep terrain. You can use it to drag dropped articles back to you, rather than reaching into brush and getting snakebit or stung by nettle. Finally, it can be used as a means of defense against predators. Even the aboriginal peoples here in California understood their usefulness and made walking sticks for their elders. I have made several and been talked out of a couple by friends, so I am always looking to make extras. 

Trunk before being roughed-out

 

Today I decided to set about making the walking stick. I began by removing the bark and roughing out the shape using a Bolo knife. This is a very useful blade. The heavy belly of the blade is an excellent chopper and it was easy to remove large, tough knots along the trunk. The narrow recurved waist makes an excellent drawknife blade for carving and shaping. The holes in the Bolo blade allow a grip for use as a scraper and removing the remaining inner bark.

Roughed out shaping complete

 

Having shaped it out in the rough, I set to work with a 4-in-Hand wood rasp refining shape and then smoothing the roughness out.

 

Having completed that I used sandpaper to smooth the stick. I like my trail stuff a little rustic, and so I do not go overboard and sand until a glass polish is achieved. After all, it's going to get dropped, nicked, scratched, and dented with use. I just want it functionally attractive.

 

Having sanded it to my satisfaction, I used a pencil to draw a creeping vine pattern on the stick, which I then woodburned over.

 

Penciling a vine pattern

 

The final step was to apply a coat of OLD ENGLISH wood oil, and that really brought out the glow.

 

The finished stick!

 

I am very pleased with this finished stick. It measures about 48" overall and I would place the weight at around a pound or a little over. It has a nice rounded heavy end near the top, which will serve nicely as a cudgel were I attacked by a dog or other animal on the trail.



 

Close up detail

 

Tomorrow I will seek a rubber chair tip for the end and it will be ready for the trail or street!

 

 

Happy hiking!

 

GOBLIN RANGER/BUSHCRAFT WOODS DEVIL

 

 

 

9/11 Hike `n Bike Outing at Cerro Cabrillo

PART I:

 

PART II: