Building a cabin in the wilderness

[Downwindtracker2]

The one thing I'll take a bit of issue with TGW comments , the chinkless (sp) construction. When I was kid in the middle of the last century, the richer kids had these little logbuilding kit/toys. His logs aren't much bigger. So he mentions using chinks to gain height. It's not that uncommon, you still see it in the old pioneer buildings in the Cariboo.

[Alan S]

What he did is pretty cool and interesting, though it has little resemblance to what he implies he did.

[Derek Cohen]

What he did is pretty cool and interesting, though it has little resemblance to what he implies he did.

Alan, that sums it up pretty well. 

I was grabbed by the title, intrigued by my own fantasy of survival in the wilderness, then increasingly disappointed when it became apparent that he was not alone, not in the wilderness and certainly not relying on his skills or nature. What became indignation and then annoyance was the many, many comments on the video of those who (did not know any better) and praised his independence and fortitude. It was evident that he was the front, the face, and he has a team working behind him. And this is a product, like other products - a way to create a viewership to earn money - which is not much different from many “survival” shows on Tv. It is entertainment.

Regards from Perth

Derek

[Downwindtracker2]

On YouTube content. I've been rehabbing some axes, there is scant information out there, certainly compared to the thoughtful expertise found with woodworking tools. . I click on a vid claiming rehab and modification. When he tested the axe, the guy was cutting down a tree like a beaver, with the same size chips.

[hbmcc]

My summation: The guy has my disease, Redheads.

[David Katz]

That is very, very different from this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jG3fUIoXQ5A

Dick Proenneke's "Alone in the Wilderness" was real, with evidence that he filmed his own work, and shots of his building everything. The featured video looks like a YouTube extravaganza and con. He rarely builds anything. You only see the start and end of a project - pieces placed in position - and the filming is clearly using a cameraman (since there are zooms and closeups). Much of the woodwork (e.g. floors) is thicknessed and jointed by machines. It is all too perfect. His handling of tools is simply too clumsy to achieve the quality of finish. Where did the cast iron stove come from, the fibreglass sled, etc, etc ... ?   One give away is the store-made lock on the front door (why do you need a lock?) ... and then he adds a wooden handle (this you see him doing!) that is so clumsily made compared with everything else.

I'd like to see some evidence that this is not a grand hoax.

Regards from Perth

Derek

I don't know the definition of a "grand hoax" (it sounds scary), but Shawn isn't trying to fool anyone. Even a cursory examination of his various social media content will demonstrate this. Perhaps his choice of a "headline" for one of his videos was unfortunate, but it isn't evidence he's some kind of liar or charlatan. Get real here.

[Timberwolf]

I don't know the definition of a "grand hoax" (it sounds scary), but Shawn isn't trying to fool anyone. Even a cursory examination of his various social media content will demonstrate this. Perhaps his choice of a "headline" for one of his videos was unfortunate, but it isn't evidence he's some kind of liar or charlatan. Get real here.

......................
I am surprised the video got as much attention it did...some of it very critical...I just took it as something that many of us would have loved to do...He didn't pretend to be in any way like Dick Proenneke, IMO.....His "mistake" was his reference to being "alone" and "Wilderness"..and some folks would define "wilderness" as 300 niles from another human being or gravel road...I don't know if there was another person with him or not but I don't recall seeing anyone except near the end...Whoever did it sure knew how to use a camera. The scenery is beautiful...I say just enjoy it and don't make it out to be more than it is...

[AHill]

......................
I am surprised the video got as much attention it did...some of it very critical...I just took it as something that many of us would have loved to do...He didn't pretend to be in any way like Dick Proenneke, IMO.....His "mistake" was his reference to being "alone" and "Wilderness"..and some folks would define "wilderness" as 300 niles from another human being or gravel road...I don't know if there was another person with him or not but I don't recall seeing anyone except near the end...Whoever did it sure knew how to use a camera. The scenery is beautiful...I say just enjoy it and don't make it out to be more than it is...

It's more than the title.  The video has no voiceover and no text except at the beginning.  The abstract on the video when you link to it says this:

"Two Years Alone in the Wilderness | Escape the City to Build Off Grid Log Cabin"

"One man leaves the city life behind to build a cheap off grid log cabin and homestead in the Canadian wilderness, including a log home, an outdoor kitchen, an outhouse, a woodshed and a sauna bathhouse. Building mostly with hand tools, Shawn James harvests building materials from the forests north of Toronto, Canada and crafts them into functional tools and shelters using traditional woodworking tools and methods. He practices bushcraft and survival skills every day, including fire starting, tree identification and harvesting, wild edible foraging, fishing, hunting, camping in the summer and winter, travelling by canoe and snowshoe, navigation and water collection and purification.
Continue watching in 2019 as Shawn finishes the sauna, plants a forest garden for fruit and vegetables, builds an underground root cellar, ice house and cheese cave, a timber frame workshop and a remote hunt camp closer to fish and game."

I'll pick on one thing in the above quote.  "Harvesting building materials from the forests north of Toronto..." is misleading, since we see mill-sawn lumber, a myriad of new tools which progressively find their way into the process, and purchased items e.g. tar paper for the roof, cast iron stove, nails, etc.  The text I quoted clearly is meant to give the impression he's all by himself and spent the entire 2 years alone living off the land.  Most of us don't have the time nor inclination to follow other videos on his YouTube channel to provide additional context, so we're left with the abstract and the video itself by which to judge him.  Does the guy have energy?  Yep.  Is he persistent?  Yep.  Did he accomplish the feat of making the cabin and other buildings himself?  Maybe.  Was he alone in the wilderness, surviving off the land for the entire 2 years?  I think not.

If you want to learn how to build a cabin in the wilderness, there are many other better resources with narration of books that show how it's done.

My opinion, FWIW.

[bandit571]

Maybe have Mueller (sp) do a report for Congress on Shawn?  




  Wonder who will fight over such a "report"?

[Admiral]

Honestly, I dont' get all the hate here. The guy is pretty transparent if you take the time to view his video feeds.