Finally some good news and we have a lot to share!

April – All our April courses will be run in Murthly, Perthshire. We have the following courses (also pictured below) available to book on:

For those wanting to focus more on survival skills we have full day survival courses available for Under 18s only and Over 18s, you can book your place following this link https://www.backcountrysurvival.co.uk/…/survival-courses/

May onwards:

1) May will see us back up at our Alvie Estate so all 2-3 Day courses will be back up and running open to everyone from all areas. You can book your place following this link https://www.backcountrysurvival.co.uk/cou…/summer-courses/

2) May will also see our Woodland Skills Leader course going ahead over the 21st – 24th May with Andy Lewis Bushcraft. If you are interested in delivering woodland & bushcraft skills or are a teacher, scout leader, outdoor instructor or youth worker who wishes to deliver woodland skills, such as Bushcraft & Survival activities then this course is for you. Anyone interested will have to email info@backcountrysurvival.co.uk showing leadership experience and other NGBs or teaching/coaching qualifications as well as any Bushcraft/Survival experience. https://www.backcountrysurvival.co.uk/…/training-courses/

Last but no means least, it’s Andy Lewis. He owns Andy Lewis Bushcraft and works with us to offer many of our courses, including the Woodland Skills Leader:

Meet Andy, an adventurer and passionate Survival Skills expert. As a hugely experienced Bushcraft and Survival Instructor Andy has spent time in some of the most remote and extreme environments in the world; including the Nepalese Himalayas and Norway’s Mountainous Hardangervidda wilderness. Andy is a qualified Mountain Leader and a former expedition co-ordinator, he is a full-time professional instructor of the highest calibre, delivering IOL accredited instructor training, regular courses, one-to-one skills training and bespoke, with us but mainly with his own company ‘Andy Lewis Training’ based on the Cheshire border.

“Be prepared and learn skills for life” is the ethos he lives, works and inspires others by

Up next on our “Meet the Team” segment is instructor Neil Foote. From mountaineering routes and North faces in the Alps to extreme endurance races in the most inhospitable places in the world, Including having competed ultra-marathons at a distance of 95 miles non stop. You can be sure that Neil (or any of our other instructors) will not ask you to do anything he hasn’t had to do himself. Originally from Fife Neil’s formative years were spent camping and exploring the local woods and countryside where he lived, learning the skills that would hold him in good stead for the future. Neil has a background in outdoor education and holds his SIA (Survival instructor award) and is one of the founding members of the Survival Training Award Scheme. Neil is also a qualified SPA, Mountain leader, winter mountain leader and UKCC paddlesport coach.

‘Meet the Team’ segment continued with the final member of the Robertson instructor trio; Michael Robertson.Michael has been an instructor at BCS for 3 years, he is a qualified Woodland Skills Leader and a Land-Based Survival Instructor.

Michael grew up as a military child, this saw most of his childhood in the woods or up a mountain. Michael’s teenage years saw him in the Army Cadets which provided him with navigational skills, instructional and leadership skills and helped him pursue his career in the Army. He is now serving as a Royal Engineer, spending his free time rock climbing, mountain biking or instructing survival.

Up next on the “Meet the Team” segment is Instructor and our Social Media Guru, Abigail Robertson. Abi has been an instructor at BCS for 3 years, she is a qualified Woodland Skills Leader and a Land-Based Survival Instructor. Abi grew up as a military child, this saw most of her childhood in the woods or up a mountain. She has been an Army Cadet Instructor for the Black Watch Battalion for 5 years which has allowed for her Adventure Training, Instructional and Navigational skills and experience to be expanded. With a love of mountain biking, rock climbing, hiking mountains and skiing, Abi has a lot of experience in the outdoors.

Next up on our ‘Meet the Team’ segment is Director and Instructor Derek Robertson.

Derek grew up in Northern Perthshire along with Graham Melloy the Chief Instructor and Graeme Stuart and spent his younger days in the woods and hills around Tayside fishing, hunting and shooting as well as learning the outdoor ways from farmers, gamekeepers and woodsmen and did his first survival course with the Army Cadets in 1986. His love of survival continued with a full career in the Army serving in all corners of the world. He holds the Woodland Skills Leader (WSL) and Land-Based Survival Instructor (LSI) awards as well as mountaineering, skiing and teaching qualifications.

One of Derek’s favourite survival quotes is “Learning is not compulsory…neither is survival” – W. Edwards Deming

It’s always good to know who you’re booking onto a course with, so we are going to do a ‘Meet the BCS Ltd Team’ segment starting off with Director and Chief Instructor Graham Melloy.

Graham grew up in Northern Perthshire and spent a lot of his formative years fishing, hunting and shooting as well as learning the outdoor ways in the woods and hills along the River Tay from farmers, gamekeepers and woodsmen and did his first survival course with the Army Cadets in 1986. His love of survival continued with a full career in the Army where he completed several SERE courses including the Land Survival Instructor Course and the Unit SERE Instructor Course. He has been a navigation instructor for over 20 years and has navigated in all corners of the world. He holds the NCFE Defence SERE Advanced Survival Instructor Award, the NCFE SIA Level 4 award as well as winter mountaineering and teaching qualifications.Graham has conducted survival training in various corners of the globe including the South Atlantic, Europe, Mediterranean, Middle East & Asia and Africa.

Due to the current situation, all courses in March have been cancelled. We will are waiting until the next announcement from the First Minister which will give us confirmation over whether our April courses will be going ahead.

Dates are now up for our 2 Day Winter Skills and 2 Day Winter Survival Courses.

Winter Survival Course: The aim of this course is to learn the skills and knowledge to survive in colder winter conditions whilst using the PLAN-M format (Protection, Location, Acquisition, Navigation – Medical). This will all be done whilst experiencing Scottish Winter conditions which will make everything more challenging than our 2 Day Summer Survival Courses.

Winter Skills Course: Interested in winter mountaineering? This course is for you. The aim of the course is to provide participants with the confidence to effectively plan days out in the mountains during winter conditions whilst wearing the correct clothing and using the appropriate equipment. The course will also cover various techniques in ice axe use, self arrests, emergency shelters and more. 

To find out more information and to book yourself onto a course head to https://www.backcountrysurvival.co.uk/courses/winter-courses/

It’s November, that means we can start talking Christmas

Want to gift somebody a unique experience? Is a family member/friend keen on the outdoors? Or maybe, someone is just looking for something fun to do?

Our Gift Vouchers are also a great gift for young people and can put towards a course with us. We will have kid only and parent and kids courses in 2021. Keep your eyes peeled for dates

“Teaching children about the natural world should be treated as one of the most important events in their lives.” – Thomas Berry

The BCS Ltd Team have been busy in the last couple of weeks, we have moved next door and have a new Bothy now!

As well as this, the weekend of the 11-13th August saw us start running courses again. We hit the ground running by running a 3 Day, 2 Day and 1 Day courses over the weekend.

A successful weekend for all, check out our calendar for the rest of our upcoming courses.

Last month when we announced we were going to be back up and running in August, we sent everyone who was planned to be on a course with us during Lockdown an email announcing all our new course dates to rebook on to.

If this includes you and you didn’t receive an email from us, get in touch with us at info@backcountrysurvival.co.uk

Great news, following Government Guidance and ensuring the safety of our customers and instructors we plan to start running courses from August onwards.

Planning your staycation? Head to https://www.backcountrysurvival.co.uk/courses/ we currently have dates for Survival Courses going up to the end of 2020.

We have been getting a lot of enquiries recently about our courses. As all our courses are based in Scotland we have to follow the latest Scottish Government COVID-19 Guidance. We are currently in Phase 1 of the lockdown relaxation measures and we are hoping that by Phase 3 we will be able to get up and running which we are hoping will be by the end of July/beginning of August time. This also all depends on agreement with the Landowners and everyone following Government Guidance. So, keep safe and follow all the latest guidance so we can fill our calendars with courses in the near future.

BCS Ltd Team

Whilst many were celebrating VE day in 1945 there was still a considerable force fighting in the Far East.  What does this have to do with survival YOU MAY ASK?

Well then Jungle warfare is not easy, and the Jungle is a difficult environment, but it can also be your friend as much as being your enemy. From a survival point of view, it is rich in resources to make shelter, fire, provide food and water. You just need to know what you are doing!!

The ribbon in the picture is for the Burma Star that everyone who served there received along with other campaign medals. More commonly known as the Chindits.

Now water would have been an abundant source in the jungle due to the rains and vast water courses running through it. Would the water have been safe to just drink? Well as with anything you must weigh up the risks and make the decision, but in all circumstances, they would have had to filter it and then treat it.

A mug or mess tin would have been what they would have carried in the later stages of the war. The one in the picture is a 44-pattern water bottle mug and the date on it is 1945 and I have been using it for years. This can be used to boil the water after filtration which will

remove all the nasties, but a section of bamboo could also have been used. The following item was developed during WW2 and was primarily designed for the jungle environment.

It is of course the Millbank Bag and is still in service with the military today and still used by special forces in the jungle (as well as others). The bag is small and can be carried on the person with ease. Although they are slower than modern conventional items there are less bits to break!

How do you use one properly? Well that is the best bit it is simple to use. The drill is:

• Soak the bag;
• Fill the bag with water to the top (above the black line);
• Hang up the bag;
• Allow the water to run down to the black line;
• Filter the water through the bag into a water bottle or receptacle (44-Pattern mug). This removes most of the suspended matter and makes the water clear. It does not kill germs.
• If the bag is working properly it should take approximately 20 mins to fill a 1 litre water bottle;
• Add a purifying table to the bottle and follow the instructions on the packaging or;
• Boil the water

So, the fact that such an item is still in use to this day after 75 years and still producing the goods is a good thing. Plenty of companies have come up with their own version of this but the one in the picture I have had for years and has been used extensively in Africa with results being tested by Environmental Health Technicians and coming up as the same as UK tap water standard. My point? Don’t always buy the latest bit of kit as it may not always be that great and sometimes tried and tested items often provide better results.

Winter brings a number of challenges with it; more specialised equipment, shorter days, extreme conditions and less margin for error in navigation. The rule of 3’s state that without adequate protection, on average, the human body will cease to function after 3 hours.

As well as taking the usual precautions when venturing outdoors, we should always be equipped with spare clothes, group shelters, survival bags and foil blankets should the worst happen and we end up benighted on the hill/forest. Getting to grips with improvising a shelter will mitigate the panic that sets in should the scenario happen for real.

Every environment has a solution to the protection issue, BCS are leading experts in cold environment survival. We offer the unique experience to our clients of spending overnight trips in by far the most inhospitable environment in the UK and perhaps the whole of Europe.

If you are looking at expanding your knowledge into a winter environment then please take a look at our winter courses here: https://www.backcountrysurvival.co.uk/courses/winter-courses/

natural cordage. One of the most underrated skills you can possess! On any camping trip or time spent outdoors, how much para chord do you use? It’s usually quite a lot. Learn which trees and plants work best, how to process them down and finally how to spin it up.

Our personal favourite mediums to use are;

nettles, #bullrush, #Lime tree bark, #Willow bark.

In the picture a single strand of bullrush is being added to a 2 ply strand to make a #rope strong enough to pull a 4×4.

We’re supporting regular client Mike Elm on this epic adventure, if you can do anything to help him out then get in contact with either us or him direct.

THE NEW STORY RIDE

We live by the stories we tell and now the world needs a new story. I want your help to tell it.
I believe that all across the world there are pieces of a new story, a story of the compassion, generosity and cooperation we need in the face of the ecological and climate crisis. 
On 21st November 2019 I’m setting off on the New Story Ride, to meet the people creating that new story of how we can prosper into the 21st century. I will be finding and telling this story through a low budget, low (environmental) impact, ‘climate adventurism’ journey, travelling solo and unsupported* across Europe and Asia by bike and wild camping, starting in the winter.

The New Story Ride, starting from Austria on the Climate Reality Project’s worldwide ‘Truth in Action’ day, will add a storyline to Rosie Watson’s incredible New Story Run (newstoryrun.wordpress.com) which set off from the Lake District, UK on 17th August 2019 and has already been telling inspiring stories from England, Netherlands and Germany. The two routes will evolve as they go heading roughly through the Balkans, Bulgaria across the Black Sea, Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Caspian Sea, Kazakhstan and towards Mongolia. This may take two years, and mean some extreme environments, as far as possible the journey continues through rain, shine, snow, wind.
These twinned solo adventures will be separate but intertwining to allow us to meet and tell more stories of the diverse people creating the new ways of life and new systems we need to make a better world and combat or face up to the climate and ecological crisis. And just occasionally to spend some time together.
I will be documenting the stories I encounter through interviews and images and sharing them through my social media channels and the New Story Ride website (NewStoryRide.WordPress.com). I will go public with the website and sharing the project on social media from Tuesday 29th October, to start gathering contacts along the route, raising awareness and support – including but not limited to a bike, tent and sleeping bag! 
*solo and unsupported – all planning, coordination, writing and communications done by me. Hopefully there’ll be plenty of emotional, physical and other kinds of support though. And if anyone wants to come along for chunks of the ride, they’re welcome if they come low carbon!
THE NEW STORY RIDER 
I have a strong background in being part of the movements making the world a better place, I’m a founder of the 2050 Climate Group, one of Al Gore’s Climate Reality Leaders and was shortlisted for WWF’s Earth Hour Heroes and most recently working with Creative Carbon Scotland to bring arts and creative skills to the climate emergency. 
Currently I’m in China having travelled by the Trans-Siberian express, thinking and asking what ‘the good new days’ mean, or look like here – I’m slowly sharing my thoughts through ‘Postcards from the Good New Days’ (postcardsfromthegoodnewdays.wordpress.com). I will be returning for the start of the Ride by train.
Although I’m a fan of cycling trips, and that’s how I spend most of my holidays, this is something far outside my comfort zone. And expect it to be a far greater mental and physical challenge than anything I’ve faced before. For instance cycling and camping in ‘proper winter’ will be a first for me. Yes, I choose this. There are millions who do not choose the conditions they face because of the unravelling climate crisis. To me this project feels like the way, more so than anything I’ve been involved with so far, where I can fully apply myself to helping bring about the new story.
+ YOGA
Having worked and volunteered for many years with people working to make the world a better place, I’m all too aware they are the type of committed people who work themselves to exhaustion. I recently qualified as a teacher in the classical Sivananda Yoga system and will bring this experience to help those people I meet to develop skills for mental and physical self-care to continue their valuable work.

HOW LONG, HOW I’LL LIVE
The expedition will be at least a year long, if I find the financial support (currently I am self-funded). I will be living the values of the New Story whilst existing on a very tight budget (target 60euro / week):

– Using pre-loved or borrowed kit as far as possible (items needed listed below!) to show you don’t always need new stuff, you need well made stuff well maintained and, well…mended! And where necessary sourcing new kit from companies with strong environmental credentials.

– I will be wild camping as much as possible as a low impact way of travel, and taking environmental credentials into account when choosing places to stay for rest days.

– Eating a simple and environmentally responsible vegetarian diet (in so far as language and availability allow).

HOW YOU CAN HELP
TELLING THE NEW STORY! Through your mouth, in your email, on your social media, on your website, to that journalist you know etc. etc. 

KIT I am looking for loans/gifts/sponsors/support to fit me (I’m 165cm and give or take a ’Small‘ in European sizes).
FUNDING Funding to support the day to day and month to month of the trip (Initial goal is to secure first 6 months budget – 1560 Euro) and to purchase kit that isn’t sourced through this search
REST Places to rest and recuperate at regular intervals to make the journey physically sustainable! (Homes, Hostels, Campsites, Hotels etc.).
I want the adventure side of the story to help highlight organisations and companies that are making a positive impact, through making things well and making sure they last. For those that I work with I will be sharing info about their kit on my website and social media channels (Twitter/Instagram/Facebook) and can also create bespoke content for their use.
If you’re interested in helping, or have any other ideas I would love to have a chat by email or I’m available talk on Skype / WhatsApp (depending on Wi-Fi) if a call is better for you.
Where the story we live takes us we cannot ever truly know, but we can know that we either approach it with fear or optimism. How we approach it, how we tell the story, determines what our story will be. 
Huge thanks and I looking forward to telling a new story with you,

scots pine (Pinus Sylvestris).

1. Pines spread across #british isles after the last #glacial retreat 9000 years ago.
2. They originally made up over 3,700,000 of the caledonian forest….only 1% now remains.
3. in #Scotland and #Scandanavia Scots #Pines were used for making #Tar, Rosin and #turpentine.
4. The pines fibres can be turned into #vegetable flannel, similar to the material #hemp
5. The pine #needles contain more #vitaminC pond for pound than citrus fruits.
6. The Scots pine needles have a slight curve to them, which is unique to P. Sylvestris.
7. The #timber from P. Sylvestris was traditionally called #red #deal. A “deal” is an old word for plank.
8. The Kernels from the pine #cone can be collected and turned into #flour
9. The inner #bark is technically edible.
10. #Resin collected from the Scots pine can be used as a #anti-microbial, #fire excellerent, survival #food, and even tooth #filling.

A week of filming with the BBC is finally over. The 6 part series will be called “digital detox”. During the week we’ve had 7 young folk and a presenter have their phones taken off them and been given a number of Outdoor and Survival tasks.

The series itself will be out in March, on BBC 3 and IPlayer and anyone who’s been on our courses should tune in to see some of the sites we use on our courses.