Bushcraft Projects: Master 14 Skills Of Wilderness Survival

Looking to learn about some of the best bushcraft projects that you can recreate? Well, I will get you covered! Ever since the crazy pandemic, many people have grown to become passionate about wilderness self-reliance, and I am sure you are no exception.

This list includes 14 of the most useful bushcraft projects that you can do from home or in the wild. All of the projects are fairly simple and have a great reward when you finally succeed.

Let’s dive into the best (basic and advanced) bushcraft projects that you can start practicing today, to ensure that you are prepared for tomorrow!

If you have questions or comments about any of these bushcraft projects, feel free to reach me at tanner@tannerstrails.com or on Instagram.

Best Bushcraft Projects To Re-Create

Here are the 14 best bushcraft projects that you can re-create with some basic tools and materials.

1. Primitive Buck Saw

Probably one of the first bushcraft skills that I learned, was how to build a primitive buck saw using nothing but a little rope, sticks, and a 20-inch (dry wood) bucksaw blade. All it takes is about an hour of your time and you will have a great saw that can cut down small trees to help to build shelter.

This skill requires you to know simple wilderness skills like a cabin notch (or v-notch), rope whippings, and basic knots.

2. Mallet

Through survival training, we are typically told to create a Mallot first, as it is useful for practically everything in the wilderness. A mallet is a great tool to have in your bushcraft kit, as it allows you to hammer, chop, and split wood in a far safer way than swinging an axe or hatchet.

To make this simple item – all you will need is a fore-arm thick piece of hardwood. You will score the sides with a saw blade and will process down a handle. Eventually, you will end with a beautiful mallot that will help you with many other tasks.

3. Primitive Traps

I have to admit, learning primitive trapping is one of my favorite bushcraft skills to master. This skill can be used to trap small animals or even wild birds for easy dinner.

The first primitive trap I recommend you learn is the “Figure Four” deadfall. With this type of trap, all you need is a few sticks and some cordage to make it work.

Once set up correctly, a figure four deadfall trap will take down small animals or birds.

Another simple first trap to practice would be a simple spring snare using a green sapling. Many youtube videos will show you how to utilize a small tree for a trap.

4. Bow Drill Fire Kit

I have to admit, practicing a Bow Drill (or any friction fire technique) looks way easier on the internet. When I first started practicing this skill, it took me a few tries to get it right.

Eventually, with the right materials and patience, you can make your own bow drill fire kit and start making fires from scratch.

Using nothing but wood and some cordage, you can create your own primitive fire starter tool.

Here are the 5 components that go into a bow drill fire:

• Hearth Board
• Spindle
• Bow
• Friction Block
• Ember Catch

If you are looking at practicing primitive fire techniques, I would recommend you reference bushcraft books as they have excellent details and recommendations for creating a Bow Drill fire.

5. Feather Sticks

Many people fantasize about a good-looking feather stick, although I don’t find it to be that important of a bushcraft skill but rather a basic camp project.

6. Practice Bushcraft Knots

Now this bushcraft skill is very underrated by many people because knowing certain knots can be life-saving when you are in the wild.

There are many good camping knots that are worth practicing, but the obvious ones that come to mind are the Bowline Knot, Alpine Butterfly, Girth Hitch, etc.

7. Carve A Wooden Bowl

You could carve a wooden bowl using different methods. You could either use a spoon knife (hook knife) or you could basically burn a bowl using hot coals from a fire. This process takes a long time but it allows you to create a bowl without any knife which is an essential skill IMO.

Many people get fancy with this bushcraft project, but I have yet to create a bowl that actually looks good – so I stick to the basics.

8. Make Rope

This bushcraft project can be done with a variety of natural fibers depending on where you are in the world. I normally use Tulip Poplar inner bark for this skill (common in my area), but other people use grass, vines, and other plants to make cordage work.

Making rope is an excellent and fun skill to know, but you will quickly realize that nature doesn’t make it easy. It’s super simple, and you can learn how to do it quickly. However….

Rope making is a very time-consuming process from start to finish, and it is often hard to get a really strong rope without any weak spots.

9. Tent Stakes

Making tent stakes is a great bushcraft project to make camp life more enjoyable. Either green or dry wood will do, and there are many ways to carve out the wood.

To make this skill easier, I recommend using a pocket knife with a thinner blade, because it is easier for fine carving. You can take a few pieces of wood and whittle them down into triangular shapes, which will make great tent stakes for your next camping trip.

10. DIY Cooking Tripod

For proper camp cooking, a tripod actually makes camp life enjoyable. Plus, if you were in a survival situation, you might be stuck with a plastic or glass bottle (and not have a metal pot to cook in) – so you would need to improvise a tripod in order to make boiling water.

For this bushcraft project, all you will need are 3 long pieces of wood and some cordage (for a tripod lashing). Once you lash the three sticks together, you have a tripod.

Another method that is just as easy, is to improvise with three long sticks that have v-shaped branches. You can put the v-shaped branches together to create a different type of tripod.

11. Build A Natural Bushcraft Shelter

This is a basic bushcraft project but can actually become very advanced. There are many different bushcraft shelters that you could create for fun, and some of them require absolutely no man-made materials.

One example would be a debris shelter.

12. Sharpen A Bushcraft Knife With A Strop Or Ceramic Rod

A dull knife is a dangerous knife.

Learning how to sharpen a bushcraft knife with a strop is an essential skill that will keep your blade sharp for the long run.

Using a leather strop, and some honing compound, you can hone in your edge quickly and easily.

This is one of those skills that takes a little time to master but it will pay off when your blade is razor sharp. Plus, it is easy to judge someone else’s dirt time based on their knife skills and tools condition.

13. Water Purifying Techniques

Water is very essential for survival. Knowing how to get clean drinking water from an uncertain source is a must in any bushcraft situation.

There are many techniques to filter and purify water in the wild, but they rely on the materials you have available. For instance, a charcoal filter can be made with some natural materials that will strain out any unwanted particles.

In a survival situation, boiling water is the only true way to purify water – although it can take some time (and a fire).

14. Pack Frame

One of the coolest, and most basic bushcraft projects that you can create with tree branches or saplings is a pack frame.

And, if you want to feel like you are a pioneer in your day-to-day life, all you have to do is walk in the woods with a DIY pack frame, and you will feel like one of the original wild men.

Making a pack frame is actually quite simple, but it requires some basic knot-tying skills (lashings) and some knife skills (cabin notch).

Once you have your frame, you will have to lash your gear onto it, and I personally use a diamond lash to do this.

15. Practice Tanning A Hide

Depending on where you live and your lifestyle, you can utilize not only the meat of animals you hunt but also the hide. Tanning animal furs is a simple but time consuming process, yet the results make it all worth while!

If you’re just starting out, you can practice on something as small as a squirrel and work your way up to say.. a deer or equivalent!

This has become one of my favorite bushcraft skills and self reliance trick in general due to the fact that hides can provide you with truly an unlimited number of resources from bowstring to shelter. Use your imagination too, as you can tan anything from squirrels, rabbits, coyote, etc. I just wrote an article on How To Tan A Snakeskin from a rescent catch.

If you take an animals life, it’s best to use every part of that animal as possible!

What’s Needed In A Bushcraft Kit?

Bushcraft is generally about using as few camp tools as possible, however, in the bushcraft world, there are many tools we consider to be okay.

I can’t name everything here, but I have written a complete bushcraft gear list guide.

Basically, you will want to carry the 10 C’s of survival, plus anything else that makes it fun for you.

Know Which Type of Wood to Use For Bushcraft Projects

One other important skill is to understand that different projects require different types of wood.

If you are going to be doing some carving, using softwoods such as cedar or pine is generally better than hardwoods like oak and ash.

On the other hand, for making tools like a pack frame or tent stakes, using hardwoods is usually preferred.

And always make sure you use dead wood if you are in a public land area, unless of course, you are in a survival situation. Deadwood is typically legal to work with and won’t damage any living trees.

Knowing which type of wood to use for bushcraft projects will save you time and frustration when doing your next bushcraft project. And it will also help ensure that you create something that is safe and lasts a long time.

Summary: Practice A New Bushcraft Skill

These are just a few of the bushcraft projects you can do with natural materials found in the wild. There are literally dozens more that could make it onto this list, but these should get you going on your bushcraft adventure.

Thanks for checking out my article on some bushcraft projects that you can do anywhere. Camping can truly be a luxurious experience if you know how to be handy and create some tools off the land.

Now go get some dirt time! And if you’re curious and looking for outdoor hobbies, check out my article I wrote on the best outdoor hobbies to try in 2024!

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