Archive for April 2012

A “Bug Mac”

A "Bug Mac"

For anyone that has taken any of my courses, it comes as no surprise when I now write that I always refrain from teaching about edible plants and, instead, proclaim the merits of insects as a primary food source.  When I do, most often, the look on a student’s face is confusion … Did I mishear?  Is he kidding? Well, for those who are skeptical, or think that I must be crazy (perhaps both), please consider checking out the audio link to a recent National Public Radio story: Time for a “Bug Mac”? There you will learn about an extremely popular restaurant in the Netherlands whose “bug buffets” have been selling out. And if you want to learn more about potential food sources in an emergency situation, consider registering for one of True North’s wilderness survival courses.

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Congratulations to a New Crop of Navigators!

Congratulations to a New Crop of Navigators!

Congratulations to the students from Venture Outdoors who just completed Basic Wilderness Navigation.  Eleven adventurous members – two of whom traveled from as far away as Cleveland – participated in the two session course.  And lest anyone think that just because the word “basic” is in the title that it must have been easy, let’s just say that it wasn’t your average walk in the park! During the initial classroom session, which was graciously hosted by Exkursion, an independent outfitter in Monroeville, we started by learning the fundamentals of a topographic map and the various types of compasses.  Certainly, there was quite a bit of initial head scratching since few of the students had ever done anything like it, but by the end of the evening they were confidently plotting bearings on a map, and they could easily explain the difference between Magnetic North, Grid North, and True North. Now, […]

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