Woodsmoke's A-Z of bushcraft books about wilderness living skills.

Bushcraft: An Inspirational Guide to Surviving in the Wilderness - Survival expert Ray Mears presents a richly illustrated compendium of practical skills and wisdom. The book contains step-by-step guides to a wide range of survival techniques, as well as accounts of Ray's own experiences and his bushcraft philosophy. Superbly illustrated throughout – Even if I do say so myself!

BushCraft: Outdoor Skills and Wilderness Survival - Canadian master of Bushcraft, Mors Kochanski, presents many wilderness skills, such as Axemanship, Sawcraft and Knife work. The skills are aimed at life in the North woods, but are equally transferable to Britain’s more temperate environment.

Camping and Woodcraft - One of the original founders of the woodcraft movement, Horace Kephart provides the outdoorsman with a comprehensive manual covering every aspect of camping and the art of surviving in the wilderness, every bit as relevant today, as it was all those years ago

Essential Bushcraft - A condensed version of Ray Mear’s best selling book ‘Bushcraft’, illustrated by Ben McNutt. Essential Bushcraft is packed full of vital survival skills and wisdom from around the world, this portable compendium should be useful for anyone planning an expedition into the wildernes

Wildwood Wisdom - This historical guide, originally written in 1945, includes information on making fires, canoeing, using axes and knives, and crafting shelters from hand-gathered materials. Readers also learn about clothing, gear, and useful plants.

Outdoor Survival Handbook: The Classic Indispensable Guide to Surviving the Outdoors - This Classic, Indispensable Guide to Surviving the Outdoors explains the everyday skills required to live in and enjoy the natural world without violating it. Topics range from constructing a natural shelter, building a fire and orienteering, to identifying medicinal herbs.

burn-a-book.com - "No Water No Food" is an excellent and knowledgeable survival reference written for everyone. It tells you how to stock pile water and food in case a short-term disaster affects the home and how to find water, food and how to survive if long-term disaster affects a region or country. You learn how to survive by finding water and food in any country and in any terrain in the world, even in seemingly hopeless areas like the desert and the arctic. This book is available by download and on CD ROM.

Food for Free - A guide to over 300 types of food that can be gathered from the wild in Britain, Food for Free explores the history and folklore of the foods as well as explaining how to identify them and the best ways to cook and eat them. Organized by season rather than food type Food for Free takes us through the year. Stunning photographs, new recipes and a wealth of practical information will accompany Richard Mabey’s fully revised text on collecting, cooking and preparing

Wild Food - Roger Phillips, creator of many best selling plant identification volumes, turns his attention and his camera to the wide range of good things to eat from the countryside and seashore. From the multitude of species that are safely edible, he has selected those that are actually attractive and appetizing as food. Beautiful colour photography shows each species growing in the wild – for accurate identification – and prepared as an appealing dish

Fruits of the Forest - Each chapter of this book is devoted to a different food; instructions are given as to where it might be found and details of the folklore, which is so often connected with foods found in the wild. Photographs help identify each ingredient and, where appropriate, health hazards or possible confusions with other similar dangerous specimens are mentioned.

River Cottage Cookbook - With over one hundred recipes, and Simon Wheeler's acclaimed photography, The River Cottage Cookbook is a very original book that will appeal to all down shifters and to all those who prefer their food to be full-blooded and wholesome. With tips on how best to buy organic produce and, for the more adventurous, advice on rearing your own meat, growing your own vegetables, and tapping into the free wild harvest.

Tracking and the Art of Seeing - A comprehensive guide to animal tracking covers rodents, rabbits, weasels, foxes, coyotes, deer, elk, moose, and bears, in which Rezendes takes readers on a hauntingly beautiful journey into the woods of the American Northeast.

Animal Tracks and Signs - Another bible - Animal Tracks and Signs is the only book in print that allows the reader to identify over 200 Northwest European animals that have passed by from the evidence they have left behind. Whether one finds footprints, feeding damage, a skull or a hole in the ground, this book will describe how it was made and who by.

Tracks and Trailcraft: A Fully Illustrated Guide to the Identification of Animal Tracks - Ellsworth Jaeger, author of Wildwood Wisdom, provides the reader with a feast of information about trailcraft, natural history and tracking.

Natural Baskets - Offers step-by-step instructions for weaving baskets with willow, dogwood, pine needles, cattails, bulrushes, cornhusks, and honeysuckle vines.

Mountainman Crafts and Skills: A Fully Illustrated Guide to Wilderness Living and Survival - This title covers the skills and wisdom of the pioneers, trailblazers and trappers. Covering many skills, the book is illustrated throughout – explaining how to make your own Mountainman’s outfit.

The Forgotten Arts & Crafts - The grandfather of self-sufficiency, John Seymour, explains the lost arts of the British country craftsman.

Native American Crafts and Skills: A Fully Illustrated Guide to Wilderness Living and Survival - By the same author as ‘Mountainman’, this guide describes how to create all kinds of Native American crafts. The book also includes clothing and footwear, weapons, cookery and utensils, games, musical instruments, jewellery and beadwork.

The Poacher's Handbook - The Poacher’s handbook gives all the ways known to the author of getting a rabbit, a hare, a partridge, a pheasant, and a brown trout or a salmon.
All of Ian Niall’s techniques are described in the various chapters, where as a youth he describes his lessons in this ancient art, taught to him by ubiquitous characters, such as Little Hugh and Black Bill.

Open Canoe Techniques - The book is written by canoe "guru" Nigel Foster. The books covers manoeuvres, rescues, rivercraft and canoe camping. It is full of extensive photo sequences and is endorsed by the British Canoe Union.

Path of the Paddle: An Illustrated Guide to the Art of Canoeing - Bill Mason’s all time classic. The Path of the Paddle is undoubtedly the definitive book on open canoe techniques.
Not only highly valued for it’s instructional value, this book is a joy to read, and is suitable to canoeists of all levels.

Song of the Paddle - The sequel to the above, by a man who was once one of Canada’s leading canoeists and conservationists, an artist, and an award-winning filmmaker.

Royal Geographic Society Expedition Handbook - The Royal Geographical Society has been giving help and advice to the scientific and adventurous since 1830. This book is the distillation of many years of experience and expertise. It is packed full of practical information and advice from planning, fundraising and insurance to cures for tapeworms and Rocky Mountain spotted fever. It explains why divers shouldn't wear gloves, and why sharpening machetes can affect navigation in the rainforest. It covers every part of the world, from mountains and glaciers to savannah and jungle.

The Ultimate Desert Handbook - The Ultimate Desert Handbook is packed with information and expert advice, including the latest technical developments in desert hiking, camping, equipment, footwear, and clothing. Also included are chapters on desert mountain biking, first aid, wildlife observation and photograph, indigenous peoples, plants, and wildlife desert hazards and survival, Last but not least is the most thorough section on desert navigation ever published - from using the stars to map, compass, and the Global Positioning System

The Mountain Traveller's Handbook: Your Companion from City to Summit - Your Companion from City to Summit.
A comprehensive guide to Mountain travel and expeditions, including advice from over sixty top mountaineers.

Jungle Travel and Survival - A welcome addition to the bookshelf for anyone planning a jungle expedition. John Walden explains how to travel and maintain good health in all types of jungle, from rain forest to swamps, what equipment you’ll need and how to cope with every type of hazard, both physical and psychological.

Desert Survival Skills - David Alloway's goal in this book is to help show survival techniques to the reader in circumstances beyond their control when stranded in a desert environment. The author offers practical, comprehensive information for both short-term and long-term survival in North American deserts

Winter Wilderness Companion: Traditional and Native American Skills for the Undiscovered Season - This book teaches you how to live and travel in the North American winter wilderness using Native American nomadic skills. This guide includes plans and detailed building instructions for making and using snowshoes and moccasins, toboggans, tents and clothing.

Vehicle-dependent Expedition Guide - Tom Sheppard’s very detailed and exceptionally thorough in its approach to all aspects of vehicle-based expeditions, signposting within the book yet assures easy access to just the information required. Headings, tables, line drawings and page side-note summaries together with copious full colour photography give the overview when needed. Clothing, equipment, vehicles, choice of shipping is covered plus water filtration, fuels and oils, communications and comprehensive notes on navigation and drivin

Off-Roader Driving - Also by Off-Road guru Tom Sheppard –
‘A treasure-trove of off-road driving techniques. Superbly illustrated in colour ... a great present for anyone who owns or drives a four-wheel drive, or those who regularly venture off the beaten track in search of driving challenges and excitement.' - Land Rover World book club, Dec 99

The Off-road 4-wheel Drive Book: Choosing, Using and Maintaining Go-anywhere Vehicles - The book features driving in, and recovering from hostile environments including sand, mud, water, snow and ice. It also gives advice on planning expeditions, with survival techniques, common problems and emergency field repairs; useful equipment, and information on engines, brakes, tyres and suspension

Navigation for Walkers - The chapters build up logically from “What is a map?” through visualising the countryside, and reading the route, to navigating a walk. We look at using a compass to set the map and to point the way. There are chapters too on planning a walk, the extra techniques of hill and moorland navigation, and strategies to use if lost. The extracts come from Ordnance Survey maps at the two main scales for walkers. I wanted the book not only to do a thorough job but also to look good with profuse colour illustrations – The Author.

Mountaincraft and Leadership - Recognised as the official handbook of the Mountain Leader Training Boards of the United Kingdom, this volume is an invaluable reference tool for everyone, whether novice walker or experienced mountain leader, who wishes to venture into and enjoy the British hills in safety.

How to Identify Weather - In How to Identify… The weather is broken down into easy-to-follow sections. Once the basic forms and mechanisms are understood it is then possible to forecast the weather, particularly in your locality. The following topics will be included: how to identify cloud types and other atmospheric phenomena; how clouds are formed and how rain is produced; weather systems and how they move and develop; how weather differs in different regions; how to interpret satellite images; and how to forecast weather

The Starlore Handbook: The Starwatcher's Essential Guide to the 88 Constellations, Their Myths and Symbols - The Starlore Handbook is a handy introduction to the science of astronomy. Anyone wanting to look knowledgeably skyward and to know more about when, why and how humankind imposed patterns, names and legends on the stars above, could usefully start here. Provides descriptions and star tables for eighty-eight constellations, explains how to locate each constellation, and includes the mythology and celestial symbolism for each constellation.

Pocket Guide to Wilderness Medicine and First Aid - Snake bites . . .lightening strikes . . .heat exhaustion . . .frostbite . . .sprains, strains, cuts, and fractures . . .the Ragged Mountain Press Pocket Guide to Wilderness Medicine and First-Aid covers them all. Compact enough to carry easily on a wilderness trip, this all-terrain, all-season guide gives readers instant access to appropriate measures when time is of the essence. There are explanations and advice for all types of Wilderness emergencies

Wilderness 911: A Step-by-step Guide for Medical Emergencies and Improvised Care in the Backcountry - Eric Weiss is one of America’s leading experts on Wilderness First aid. He is an emergency physician at Stanford University Medical Centre and on the Board of Directors of the Wilderness Medical Society. Look out for the ‘Weiss advice’ tips on how to improvise, when faced with limited first aid supplie

Wilderness Medicine: Management of Wilderness and Environment Emergencies - This guide is the bible of Wilderness Medicine; it shows how to manage medical emergencies caused by environmental encounters. It stresses injury prevention and respect for natural environments. With how-to explanations and practical, direct advice, it covers emergencies such as envenomations, altitude illness, burns, motion sickness, and problems caused by cold, heat, snakes, sharks, and marine microbes. The text emphasizes improvisation, so that the reader may efficiently use whatever materials exist in the environment to aid treatment.

The No-Nonsense Guide to Indigenous Peoples - Indigenous peoples have long suffered from exoticization. Outsiders elevate their beauty and difference but do not see beyond this to the problems they face. This title looks beyond the exotic images, tracing stories of indigenous peoples from their first contact with explorers and colonizers

Sinews of Survival: The Living Legacy of Inuit Clothing - A thorough examination of the fur and skin clothing of people who have lived for thousands of years in Kalaallit Nunaat (Greenland), northern Canada, Alaska, and north-eastern Siberia. Explores how they are designed to protect against the elements, but also how they provide a sense of identit

Wild People: Travels with Borneo's Head-hunters - The author describes his experiences living among the Iban, and recounts his attempts to understand their culture

The Bushmen - The creators of this book searched the Kalahari thirst lands to find the few remaining Bushmen who still lived as their forefathers had done for the past 20,000 years. Their quest led them to a people who had never tried to conquer their environment, but had instead remained an integral part of it

The Healing Land: The Bushmen and the Kalahari Desert - Part travel writing, part history of the Bushmen, part personal quest, The Healing Land records what Isaacson finds in these silent, empty spaces, the trance dances he attends, the wildlife he hunts, the wild plants he helps gather, the characters, corruption, kindness and confusion of a people who have wrenched themselves from the Stone Age into the new millennium.

Ray Mears' World of Survival - In this fully illustrated book, originally published to tie in with his BBC TV series, Ray Mears brings to life the survival skills used by native peoples in the most inhospitable, yet most incredible, environments on Earth. With photographs taken from the Arctic to the Kalahari and the Australian outback, this is both a practical guide to survival and an extensive journey around the world in a study of different cultures and lands.

Trees of Britain and Northern Europe - This work illustrates in colour every tree regularly found in Britain and northern Europe. The text complements the paintings, stressing the important identification features of each tree. The keys are easy-to-use, designed to help even the beginner identify any tree they see in any season. A special section gives the locations in Britain of the finest specimens of each species.

How to Identify Trees - Divided by leaf type, this guide features illustrations of the trees commonly found in parks, gardens and woodland, together with the "look-alike" species with which they are often confused. A comprehensive introduction features information on how trees are classified, the anatomy of trees, reproduction and hybridisation, the use of different timbers, trees in folklore, literature and medicine and woodland ecology.

Trees of Britain and Northern Europe - A pictorial guide to the different kinds of trees found in Britain and Northern Europe. This Field guide is a legacy to Alan Mitchell, who passed away in 1995, leaving behind a number of authoritative guides to the trees of Britain – this is one of them

Trees in Britain, Europe and North America - A unique encyclopaedia of trees, with well over 500 trees illustrated in full colour, accompanied by comprehensive descriptions set out according to botanical classification, and a unique leaf index. The trees are identified for the reader by leaf, flower, fruit, silhouette and bark.

The Encyclopedia of Wild Flowers - A highly informative, highly illustrated guide to the world of wild flowers. Text and illustrations combine to provide a comprehensive look at wild flowers in all their glory. A reference guide to more than 350 flowers in Britain and illustrated with 1,000 photographs and line drawings.

Wild Flowers of Britain - Over 1,000 wild flowers are illustrated in full colour photographs, accompanied by comprehensive descriptions and set out in the sequence of the seasons. Each photograph is dated and meticulously described to make this book a new and original departure in accurate flower identification.

How to Identify Wild Flowers - How to Identify Flowers includes 100 of the most common species of wild flower found in Britain and Northern Europe. Commonly confusable species are illustrated alongside to enable fast and accurate identification. Packed with information that is both fascinating and practical, together with highly detailed original colour illustrations, How to Identify Flowers is the essential identification handbook for all those who are just starting ou

Flora Britannica - Richard Mabey’s in-depth guide covers the native and naturalized wild plants of England, Scotland and Wales; this reference guide to plants and flowers contains over 500 colour images.

Wild Flowers of Britain and Northern Europe - Richard Mabey’s in-depth guide covers the native and naturalized wild plants of England, Scotland and Wales; this reference guide to plants and flowers contains over 500 colour images.

The Complete Illustrated Holistic Herbal: A Safe and Practical Guide to Making and Using Herbal Remedies - This guide to herbal remedies covers how to gather herbs and prepare remedies, with an explanation of the body's systems and a repertory of herbal remedies for specific diseases. There is an A-Z herbal, covering over 200 herbs.

A Modern Herbal: the Medicinal, Culinary, Cosmetic and Economic Properties, Cultivation and Folk Lore of Herbs, Grasses, Fungi, Shrubs and Trees - When it was published in 1931, this book was the first comprehensive encyclopaedia of herbs to appear since the days of Culpeper. Reissued, this book retains the teaching of the older herbalists and incorporates the discoveries of modern times

Poisonous Plants and Fungi: An Illustrated Guide: an Illustrated Guide - This is a version of "Poisonous Plants in Britain and their Effects on Animals and Man" by Marion C.Cooper and Anthony W.Johnson, with a text written more for the layman. It gives a description of the plant, the poisonous substances it contains, symptoms of animal and human poisoning and recommendations for treatment

Mushrooms and Other Fungi of Great Britain and Europe - For many, this is the Mushroom hunter’s bible. Full colour photographs illustrate and identify more than 900 species, generally showing several specimens to indicate the various stages of growth. Many of the species included have been photographed for the first time and make the cost comprehensively illustrated book on the subject published in Britain this century.

How to Identify Edible Mushrooms - One in a series of guides, each arranged so that all the similar-looking species are illustrated together, with tips on how to tell them apart. Added information on behaviour or habitat reinforces the identification points to ensure the user is on the right track to full identification. This book describes all the edible species of mushrooms and the species they may be confused with.

Fauna Britannica - In Fauna Britannica, Duff Hart-Davis manages to pull off a very difficult task admirably well, which attempts to describe the island's animals or at least some of them. Fauna Britannica is more your feet-up-in-front-of-a-good-fire kind of guide but nevertheless is also practical in the sense that it is a very useful reference for anyone interested in our sadly depleted wildlife.

Mammals of Britain and Europe - This book covers every species of mammal that occur in Europe and in the seas around it, over 230 species, in detail. The text not only covers the vital information for identifying the differences between a rabbit and a hare, a red deer and a roe deer, or a killer whale and a long-finned pilot whale, or how to tell a red fox print from a dog, but also provides all the biological and taxonomic information you need to positively identify mammal

Bird Songs and Calls of Britain and Northern Europe (Contains 2 accompanying CDs) - The guide is organised by habitat, with atmospheric backgrounds and voice-overs discussing how to tell the difference between each species. Over 158 species are covered, the focus being on common birds and birds that are difficult to separate visually, but easy when the calls are heard. The accompanying booklet gives background information on each species, plus an introductory section on bird song, where and when it can be heard, and how to make your own recordings. Comes complete with two CDs of birdcalls.