Due to part of my Zander Camp being discovered and having half my fishing stuff and machete being stolen I decided it was time to make a new camp somewhere away from the Joe public. Zander camp was on the edge of a park where many people Walked their dogs and the youth of today mountain biked in the woods near my camp.
Above: Short video of original Zander fishing camp deep in thicket of Elm suckers.
The site of my first camp was in the woods amongst two fallen trunks covered in ivy. I erected a very small cheap tent between the two fallen trees and put a camo tarpaulin over the tent. I soon decided that I didn't like this camp it was too shady and dark. However i used this camp as a base from which to find a more suitable area.
Across the road was a larger area of woodland approx 2 acres . I worked out that the trees averaged 48 years old as they would have been planted the around the same time as that section of motorway was opened ,1971. I found this info online. Also this is the same age as me so it's interesting seeing how big trees get over the span of my own life. They're certainly a lot bigger than me and already looking mature.
The mix of trees are Ash, Oaks, Scots pine, field maple . There's also a shrubby understory of hawthorn , some black thorn
and some small Elm any larger elms have succumbed to Dutch elm disease and there are a few skeletons of larger elm here and there.
I set about finding a good spot to erect my cheap fishing bivvy shelter. I bought this from sports direct for about £14 and by itself it's fine for light rain. I tended to use in conjunction with a 2m x3m camo tarp of polythene which is completely water proof.
I settled on a spot amongst some Scots pine trees as the ground was slightly raised and drier here. It was right in the centre of the woodland area. A slip road completely encircles this wood but the tent cannot be seen from any direction here being near the centre. At night I have to be a bit more careful as a torch light can be spotted through the trees but most people in cars are driving quite fast and probably wouldn't pay much attention to lights.. it could be a house light or motorway light for all they know.
The Camp which I have named Rondoval camp has developed over the several years since I started it.
Using the fishing bivvy as a frame the first thing I did was use two camo tarps .One tarp over the bivvy making it more waterproof and one overlapping tarp coming from above the entrance of the bivvy at a diagonal down like a long sloping porch that eventually meets the ground. I then slept under this porch on my camp bed with the bivvy acting more for storage. I keep candles,books mainly on nature and some clothes in waterproof plastic storage boxes .
The next major project was to completely surround my extended bivvy with a series of lean to debris shelters in a circle. This almost has a mini fortress like effect. it's main function being to protect from wind and make the whole place more camouflage. Also can use a torch etc within the circular debris walls and it is less easy to see the light from the road.
Above: early days at the Rondoval about 2016 when I had just finished surrounding the bivvy with a lean to ready to add leaf debris.
Above: digging a Dacota fire Pit and a quick tour of the Rondaval camp in
its early days .
Next I set about creating a lounge area where I could stand up and walk around under cover if it was raining. I could also build a Dakota fire pit to cook on . There is no shortage of fire wood covering the floor of these woods as the trees are constantly shedding lower branches especially the large Ash trees.
The lounge was made by creating a square framework of straight Ash poles . These were mainly made from the many ash saplings that grow in the glades of the wood. Mature Ash trees let in a lot of light compared to other trees and under them many ashy saplings grow, seedlings of the parent trees.
Once the large square framework was built I installed a slightly higher long horizontal pole as the main roof beam or midrib. A large tarpaulin was draped over the beam and had a shallow slope down in both directions from the beam. I was able to stand up under this and walk around a little.
Using a garden trowel I next dug a Dacota 🔥 fire pit in the lounge area. This , as you will see in the video above, comprises of two holes dug into the ground next to each other with a connecting tunnel under ground. The connecting tunnel is the hardest part to do. The fire is created in one of the holes and draws air from the other hole using the connecting tunnel. The Dacota fire pit is useful in several ways ... It attracts less attention at night as some of the flame is hidden underground or depending on the depth of the pit or size of the fire you may not see any flame. Also it keeps out the wind when starting the fire and also it's very easy to balance saucepans over the flame you can rest it over the four sides of the hole and is especially easy in conjunction with some kind of metal grid .
Creating the Debris Lean-to's mentioned before.
As previously mentioned i completely encircled the sleeping quarters of the Woodland camp with several joined up lean tos. I used the existing trees as the uprights these were Scots pines and field maples about six or seven trees that immediatly surrounded the sleeping quarters .
I attached several horizontals about three feet high from tree to tree . These were held in place by forked upright posts wedging the horizontals againist the trees . No nails or ropes were used thus keepin the trees healthy and unrestricted. I will need to do a diagram explaining the technique i used .
Next i leant diagonally against the horizontals many ash poles averaging the thickness of two fingers. These were lined up like diagonal bars the entire length of each horizontal and some were secured to the horizontal by cable ties or cordage.
Next I put green tarps over the diagonals to make lean to space undewaterproof and the space under each lean-to dry . I now mainly store firewood under these lean-tos. Also a wren has made its nest under one for the last two years. Over the tarp I piled up debris ... autumn leaves, pine needles, pine cones , wood mulch, humus and sticks. This helps camouflage the whole camp and keeps wind out.
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