The Art Of Improvisation, Yet Again!

By Sean Fagan

Like an old, broken (but lovable!) record player - I'm going to repeat an oft-spoken mantra of mine: Improvisation is an important part of bushcraft and survival.

By its very nature, bushcraft is often about venturing into wild places with minimal kit.

And placing our bodies and minds at the tender (and not-so-tender) vagaries of wild places requires a flexible, mental attitude - along with a willingness to adapt and improvise.

Why? because nature is often unpredictable and challenging.

Sleeping on a discarded duvet blanket - and why not? (Photo: Sean Fagan, Southwest Ireland).

An Example...

Above, is a contentious photo for many bushcraft purists and campers...

It's a photo from last May when I camped in southwest Ireland and slept on a discarded, duvet blanket.

While searching for a good campsite I came across this duvet (most likely left behind a previous camper - I was camping near a rural town).

I placed the duvet on a tree branch to air-dry and began to set up camp.

After thoroughly smoking the duvet over my campfire (to mask any bad odours and remove any pests, such as ticks) - I then placed the folded duvet under my sleeping mat.

I slept warmer and considerably more comfortably because of the duvet.

I've made plenty of bush beds from natural materials in the wild.

And I've slept many a time on the ground with just a sleeping mat underneath me.

But that's besides the point.

The point of this post is to highlight that improvisation is a key part of bushcraft and survival.

An often common and sad reality is that man-made materials are found in many remote and not-so-remote wild places.

With the right mindset they can be put to good use.

Wherever you wander - don't be shy about using whatever resources that are locally available - whether they are natural or man-made.

Look around, use the head and have fun (creating something useful from stuff that is overlooked can be fun).

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