Keith
City-dweller
Bushfire close but safe now. Getting some good rain.
Posts: 990 
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Post by Keith on Apr 11, 2019 19:11:05 GMT -7
I had got to the stage where my left hip was giving out on me which made it difficult to journey with a pack on my back, so I thought this was a good time to try something different. Making this drag cart was fun, & using it was actually a lot easier than carrying the pack on my back. I have never ever camped out in winter with more than one blanket, but I did try carrying an extra blanket on this journey just to add a bit more bulk & weight to the load. I reasoned that people travelling to the New World from Ireland & Wales were very likely to construct these Carrs/Carts if they had a need, & my Mother being born in Cymru made this likely that I could have made one myself. Keith.     |
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Post by brokennock on Apr 17, 2019 22:30:06 GMT -7
Interesting. Old world travois(?spelling)?
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Post by Richard on Jun 12, 2019 8:38:13 GMT -7
My immediate thought, too. The travois was modified after the introduction of the horse, allowing for consolidation of larger loads, and were also harnessed to dogs. I expect that the slide cart was in use long before the Native Americans journeyed here from the Old World.
Keith, was a harness ever used for the human bearer, to free up his or her hands to e.g. grab a weapon in a hurry? On the one hand, just dropping the frame poles would seem the quickest response, freeing the bearer from the entire rig, but...do your hands get stiff after a long drag (in which case a harness would allow you to relax your hands while continuing the drag)?
Also, you have some deadly vipers, and other nasties Down Under, do you have encounters with them.
As always, your videos are delightful, a valuable source of knowledge. Thank you.
Richard/Grumpa
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Keith
City-dweller
Bushfire close but safe now. Getting some good rain.
Posts: 990
|
Post by Keith on Jun 12, 2019 20:14:37 GMT -7
My immediate thought, too. The travois was modified after the introduction of the horse, allowing for consolidation of larger loads, and were also harnessed to dogs. I expect that the slide cart was in use long before the Native Americans journeyed here from the Old World. Keith, was a harness ever used for the human bearer, to free up his or her hands to e.g. grab a weapon in a hurry? On the one hand, just dropping the frame poles would seem the quickest response, freeing the bearer from the entire rig, but...do your hands get stiff after a long drag (in which case a harness would allow you to relax your hands while continuing the drag)? Also, you have some deadly vipers, and other nasties Down Under, do you have encounters with them. As always, your videos are delightful, a valuable source of knowledge. Thank you. Richard/Grumpa This carr or cart could also be used with horses Richard. I can not find any info on the use of a harness for pulling on foot, but that does not mean that individuals did not rig something with ropes or leather. I did not have any problems with my hands, principally I think because it was so easy to pull without having to grip too hard. Snakes tend to shy away from humans, in the spring you have to be careful because they are slow to move away. I have never had any trouble with spiders, but I try to check my campsite out thoroughly. One of my sons was struck at by a Red Belly Black snake when he was young, but it was just trying to warn him off I think. Anyway I threw a stick & knocked it aside & it left. I had my other son on my back so I could not move fast to cover the ground between me & the snake, so grabbing up a stick seemed my best option. My aim was true thanks to tomahawk throwing practice. I did wake up one time early morning, still dark. I was just lying on the ground under a blanket. This was when I was in the Territory. I felt a weight on my chest. My first thought was a snake, so I threw the blanket off to my right & rolled to my left. I never did find out what it was. Keith. |
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Post by Richard on Jun 15, 2019 20:00:32 GMT -7
I've encountered a few rattlers while hiking out West and in New England (US), but never here in Pennsylvania. The only other poisonous snake here in PA is the copperhead, and I have never seen one. Probably have walked by scores of vipers here, but never saw them. That's OK. I only had one rattler buzz on me, and that was because I stepped into a dry streambed where he was up against the near bank, out of sight. I stepped in and out the other side, then heard the rattle - I am hard of hearing, and thought it was a bird "whirring" in takeoff. I turned around, and my Wife had jumped about 5 feet down the streambed and was pointing to the snake. I got a good picture, and we continued on our way. That was in the Badlands of South Dakota.
Richard/Grumpa
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