MAKING TRADITIONAL ARROWS

A collection of vintage sticks on a black cloths

Past cultures and their means of making bows and arrows have always been an interest of mine. As a young boy, I remember visiting museums throughout the West with my Grandmother. I had a deep fascination towards the Native American way of life. I always asked my Grandmother where the arrowheads and archery equipment was…

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HOHOKAM SNAKETOWN POINTS

Small pieces of pointed tips on the arrow

All archaeologists agree, the prehistoric Hohokam of the Phoenix Valley were an amazing people whom forced us to reexamine the way we view agriculture in the early Americas. Ancestral to O’odham people, the Hohokam were an early culture living in Southern Arizona from AD.1-1450. Indeed, one of the most widely debated topics in archaeology circulates…

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HOW TO MAKE A RABBITSTICK

Two painted rabbitsticks lying on the ground

The rabbitstick was used for thousands of years by Native people who once occupied the lands. In most cases using the rabbitstick was part of a daily routine; the young boy would learn how to make one, and would throw it well into his adult years, and by the time he became of age, he…

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HOW TO MAKE AN ATLATL AND DART

Atlatl and Dart set made using modern, and traditional tools

In spring of 2015 we decided to make an Atlatl and Dart set using modern, and traditional tools. The end result was a very deadly, yet functional prehistoric hunting tool. For additional videos and content subscribe to Primitive Lifeways on YouTube.

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WATER IN THE DESERT

A beautiful view of the river and green trees

We all know the desert is a land of extremes. High temperature by day, frigid low temperature by night, dust storms, lack of vegetation, plants that poke, insects that sting. There is one more threat that is by far one of the greatest. That is the lack of water; if there was a steady amount…

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PLANTS OF THE MORONGO BASIN

A close up view of the green shrubs

When it comes to Wilderness Living and Bushcraft plant knowledge is very important. Plants can offer food, medicine, water, building materials, fire, tools and so much more! With that being said some plants can kill. A few years ago when I was taking my ethnobotany classes with Daniel McCarthy he brought up something I will…

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