When i was a kid my uncle and i would hitch the trailer to the farmall H and go hunting dead yellow pine trees to get the knots that had been laying on the ground for at least 100 years, just waiting for us to harvest it. If we spent the better part of the day we usually could fill the trailer. Nowadays it's getting really hard to even find one. I hunt the rocks at the foot of the mountains, and on up thru the steep to the top.they seemed to prefer rocky marginal soil. At the heads of hollows always seems to hold a few also. There hasn't been any live yellow pines around here for many,many years, I'm 53 and never saw a live one on our ground, my uncle would've been 96 this year and he said he never saw any alive either. I just found my last one about 2 months ago, all that is left is football sized knots laying in a straight line along where the trunk once lay. Grey in appearance and very heavy for their size. When struck with an axe they shed a few small pieces of highly aromatic wood that is a deep yellow in color, a very very hard wood to split, really you just break it apart into smaller pieces. It starts burning with just a touch of spark or flame. I never heard it called fatwood before, we always just knew it as yellow pine. I would give anything to be able to go with my uncle for one more day of hunting yellow pine knots, it was such a thrill when you found one, like treasure hunting to a young kid i suppose.
In my younger (ignorant) days I moved into a house in the woods with a fireplace. Previous owners left a basket of tinder which I though was nice of them. I through the entire basket in the fireplace and added wood on top graduating in size. Then I lit it and that was when the trouble started. You see, that basket of tinder (I learned later) was what we called lighter-knot which I guess is the same as fatwood. The roar was deafining, the chimney began to glow and flames were shooting out the top. Worst of all, no amount of all, no amount of water would put it out - even a little. That is where the fire department came in. All in all, it was a life lesson I will NEVER forget. Love everything about your videos - from start to finish. Thank you.
I was recently introduced to fatwood in Florida. It is fantastic stuff. I brought some home to Michigan with me. I didn’t know it could be found in the north. Awesome potentially life saving knowledge. Thanks again Lonnie.
I am mesmerized at how good a teacher this guy is. Is it just me or are these the greatest outdoor classes ever produced from mankind or peoplekind to date? Thankyou FNB&S for another soul saturating episode!!
I often have a hard time finding fatwood/pitchwood here in Nova Scotia. I'm actually heading out tomorrow to have a look for some. The idea of looking for trees with cracks in the trunk should help. Thanks for sharing Lonnie
I have found good fatwood in living pine trees where a 1-2" thick branch has broken off away from the trunk, if you hit the branch and it doesn't break, its loaded with sap to protect the tree from rot.
Lonny, I would like to say that viewing and listening to your videos is very informative and interesting. I very much enjoy them. Other guys make videos but they mostly add silly crap and foolishness in them. And take forever to get to the point. When I am interested in information on a subjuct, I seek out your videos to learn from. Keep up the good work! Dave
Old fractured stumps are my best source of fire starting material here in the Olympic mountains.I have been known to camp just because there is a good one near buy.It is a real pleasure watching your videos Sir.
You are a wealth of knowledge and I really appreciate your low-key approach to imparting your wisdom. Too many of these outdoor channels are put out by ego-driven people who act like they invented this stuff. A lot of this was common knowledge when people were more connected to the land.
I had to cut a southern longleaf pine down in my front yard that was growing where it would take out my power lines. I cut it well above the ground so the stump will fill with resin and turn into fatwood. It has only been a week and it is clearly filling with resin already. The crosscut of the top of the stump has some pretty awesome color to it.
I live in Northern West Virginia, the mountain state. I find 90% of my fatwood in the lower limbs on our pine trees. Better than they sell in stores. I've never had much luck with the trunks in my area... Thanks for sharing your thoughts and experiences about fatwood with us, I appreciate it sir.
+Brad Barber It really sounds to me like each species of tree and even perhaps different regions can have totally different areas of fatwood concentration.
Good to see another video from you! My Granny told me to look-out for Pine Trees that had been struck by lightning. She said that they make the best "lighter knot" wood because the tree died with all of the sap still in the tree. Thanks Lonnie! You and Connie Be Well and Stay Warm!
Thanks for the video, Waking up there and seeing such a beautiful landscape every day would be awesome. My kid and grandkids they hope I never go to Alaska because I wouldn't come back.
We find fatwood in our firewood but never thought where one could find it when needed, aaaaand that's why I enjoy your channel. You answer questions that should be answered but aren't for some reason or other, thanks Lonnie!
"Fatwood" I had images in my head of pots of lard boiling with wood shards jammed inside haha. thanks for the tutorial video, I've learned a good lesson today, nice visiting with you again Lonnie, you both take care coz we care
Your videos feel like home. I enjoy watching them. A calm voice teaching you stuff for survival. Greetings from Europe, I will tell my friends about your channel!
Just recently found my first fatwood on a shattered stump on Skyline trail west of Cooper Landing. Did a video with a burn test on site and I am officially hooked! One of my subs joked that I will be looking all the time now and he really hit the nail on the head! Was some super rich wood and takes a spark from a ferro rod right away, It's kinda addicting!
Lonnie, I wish one day my son and I would enjoy being into the woods with you, teaching us all this knowledge, building shelters, making fire, preparing a nice tea, getting some fat from dead trees, extracting birch oil. Man, you are just amazing. My son doesn't even blink when we are watching your videos. Million times thank you. Btw, you should write a book.
Greetings Lonnie. Here in Colorado you tend to find the resin rich trees on the edge of wet meadows, sometimes in the wet ground itself, and with noticeably less resin in the trees farther back from the edge, up on dry ridges, etc. I am talking about the whole tree being fatwood in some cases, but certainly more resin rich streaks and fatwood lower branches and stumps. I have seen giant deadwood from old growth trees still standing 60 years after the area was logged--that such valuable wood was still standing testifies they were standing deadwood when the loggers went through (my grandfather was one of them). The trees are preserved almost intact by the rich pitch inside. I notices you found fatwood in the stumps on what looked like what may be a wetter piece of ground in the summer time. Perhaps the "wet feet" causes them to hold more sap and do more popping in the January cold, I don't know, but if you want a really hot campfire those edge of wet ground trees are the trees to fell--and, conversely, those are the wood sources that might get a bit dodgy in a stove inside a tent, maybe burning too hot if you aren't careful. The old "bull pine" was southern long leaf yellow pine, a wet ground and swamp variety that was a dense as oak due to all the rosin inside. The old stumps are still around and folks are splitting them up and selling the fatwood to dudes to start their fireplaces with. My two bits, your luck may differ.
Nothing to add here Lonnie. Thank you my friend. Again enjoying these vids. God Bless you two for the useful information and the relaxing and entertaining way you give us your knowledge. I pray for your continued health and success. God be with you.
The trees pump resin into damaged areas to seal off the entry to bugs etc. Therefore the more damage,the more resin. When a tree topples,the resin seals off the roots. Thank you for this.New channel for me.
+Virginia Bradley That being "observant" is key to so much enjoyment when in the woods. I often go to the woods with no reason in mind other than to see what I can see and learn what I can learn.
I agree I will never see another dead tree the same way!Greeting from you friend in Germany!we have no snow here in the south cold but no snow oh I forgot super windy 100 km/hr sometimes.
Another great video. I have a cheesy video on where to find fatwood here in Ohio. The white pines we have are absolutely loaded with it. Easiest places are the dead branches on live trees or the branches/tap root on dead ones. Got myself a nice chunk of it a couple weeks ago while messing in the woods.
Thanks for this vid Lon! I didn't know the spruce made fat wood up here. I've seen lots of pitch on damaged trees, especially logging/milling, but never investigated old stumps. I've wondered about it often enough, now I know!
+Deepwood Handcraft I lately have also gathered some fatwood from old dead rotten large mature spruce that have fallen years ago. Often the bottom few branches will have an increase of pitch impregnation in the portions of the branch that are internal in the tree. We don't seem to have the large rich concentrations of fatwood that is found in the pines of lower latitudes but we do nevertheless have fatwood in our spruce.
Hi Lonnie, great advise and good demonstration, hope many people go out and get there own experience because that's the main key, thanks for sharing my friend, take care, Taro
Always a joy watching your videos. Stay Warm. We've been steadily above freezing here on the coast. I would love to see some below freezing temps, but alas, the climate is changing. I'm starting to wonder if we'll ever have snow here on the coast again.
Some people may call me crazy, but I miss the snow. I currently live in Florida. I use to live in Indiana. I have become interested in camping in/after/during a snow. Thanks for your video about fixing fat wood.
cr500mike. I hope we get an actual winter. The kind where the temperature gets down in the low 40's at least. Then a fire can be so much more enjoyable.
I live in SoCal and there are a great many Pondorosa Pines. I live in a large metropolitan city, and you would think that there'd be no manner of pine to be found anywhere, but there is a very old standing dead pine that I've been harvesting from; most of the would is impregnated with pine sap. The wood looks like maple bacon!
Hey Lonnie. I discovered fat wood quite by accident on a camping trip some years back. The are had lots of fallen dead trees from the bark beetle infestation and fire wood was lying all over the place for the taking. That's when I noticed that some of the wood we collected burned much hotter and longer and even crackled and gave off a mini light show of sorts. I noticed that the particular wood that displayed these qualities had those lines of sap in them. Also noticed that big chunks of fat wood are found just below knots in many cases. Anyhow thanks for the tips on fat wood.
thanks for the tips my friend, i have found some fatwood here and there but would love to stike gold and find a 1' square chunk of the stuff. fatwood has saved my ass a few times when firelighting. take care lonnie
+Tom M It was actually quite warm (maybe about 20 degrees F). The "crunching" noise was coming from my tradition style hardwood and rawhide snow shoes. You can catch a brief glimpse of the extreme tip of one of the shoes in one of the stump shots I believe.
I never get tired of the scenery on your intro - just wondering what types of trees other than pine are good for finding pitch? Thanks for another great video.
+GoFeesh 85 What you see here in this video and in all my videos where evergreens appear, are spruce. We don't have pine here. I believe that all evergreens will have pitch though I do not know if fatwood will be found on all evergreen species. My knowledge is limited since we only have the spruce here for me to work with and learn from. Maybe other commenters will chime in and help you out on this one
thank you very much for this information. I'm not real sure of so called similarities in trees, but one things fur sure, gravity works. so you handed me another adventure for my boys and I. spending a day hunting stumps for fat wood. our landscaping business we remove lots of dead trees. lately that has been our resources of fat wood. thank you for a very very important lesson. God's speed.
I have found good fatwood in living pine trees where a 1-2" thick branch has broken off away from the trunk, if you hit the branch and it doesn't break, its loaded with sap to protect the tree from rot.
I was taught that those cracks that go all the way to the ground, are lightening strikes. Not 100% sure if that is right, but take it for what it's worth. Thanks Lonnie, great video
+Ferdinand The Bull That is probably the case in some localities but here in our area lightning is quite rare though it does happen. It does not happen often enough though to account for the volume of stumps that display splits that occurred while the tree was still standing as well as trees that are still standing that have splits. There are a lot of Birches still alive in the vicinity of our cabin where this video was recorded, that display quite large cracks.
+Far North Bushcraft And Survival I wonder if it is the moisture in the trees expanding when they freeze hard. Oh you just said that as I was typing. lol
+les sharratt I was thinking that was possibly the most common reason for it and one that I have heard and believed for many years. Now as I reason through this I believe I have figured out the real cause. I typed a long explanation to another commenter and I will copy and paste that explanation here. It sounds more likely that what is happening is that after there has been warm air temperatures long enough for the core of the trees to have partially or completely warmed up to the ambient temperature, and then a sudden and considerable drop in the ambient temperature occurs, The tree's wood will begin to contract. It stands to reason that the outer surface will contract further than the core. When a disparity occurs between the inner and outer portions then something has to give way at some point to relieve the built up tension. It has been so long since we have had intense cold here that I'm not for sure but it seems to me that I remember that the wood framing in a house will make "popping" noises from expansion or contraction in extreme cold outside temps. So I now believe that it is probably contraction of the wood due to a rapid drop in ambient temperatures that are below freezing. Of course I could be wrong.........again lol :o)
+Far North Bushcraft And Survival Water expands when it gets cold. Is it the water in the wood cells expanding? In heavy timber in a warm home the popping is from contraction as the members dry out due to lower moisture in colder temps, albeit in a warm home, the general moisture of winter air is drier. It is peculiar, the checks on trees, I find similar large cracks on old spruce around here, too. I often overlook fatwood on spruce, I will pay more attention now. Can also find some on pine branches close to the trunk. The fatwood built at the cracks is the tree's natural wound care, it seals the fresh wound/crack against fungal attack. On rubs from other trees or where porcupine have chewed you can shave off some thin sliver of fat wood, I've seen this on white pine and a little on spruce. Tamarack, is an odd one, high resin content in the wood but not a big fat wood producer.
+downeast primitive skills I am assumming you read my complete reply to les sharrat directly above. I believe now that what causes the crack is not moisture in the wood but rather the alreadt dry winter wood splitting from rapid cooling and contraction of the outer area of the tree while the inner core is cooling at a slower rate. Finally something often has to give way to ease the bound up tension so the tree suddenly splits.
It seems like nobody knows about this anymore, that makes me sad. Great video Lonnie, do this for as long as you can, everyone appreciates it.
When i was a kid my uncle and i would hitch the trailer to the farmall H and go hunting dead yellow pine trees to get the knots that had been laying on the ground for at least 100 years, just waiting for us to harvest it. If we spent the better part of the day we usually could fill the trailer. Nowadays it's getting really hard to even find one. I hunt the rocks at the foot of the mountains, and on up thru the steep to the top.they seemed to prefer rocky marginal soil. At the heads of hollows always seems to hold a few also. There hasn't been any live yellow pines around here for many,many years, I'm 53 and never saw a live one on our ground, my uncle would've been 96 this year and he said he never saw any alive either. I just found my last one about 2 months ago, all that is left is football sized knots laying in a straight line along where the trunk once lay. Grey in appearance and very heavy for their size. When struck with an axe they shed a few small pieces of highly aromatic wood that is a deep yellow in color, a very very hard wood to split, really you just break it apart into smaller pieces. It starts burning with just a touch of spark or flame. I never heard it called fatwood before, we always just knew it as yellow pine. I would give anything to be able to go with my uncle for one more day of hunting yellow pine knots, it was such a thrill when you found one, like treasure hunting to a young kid i suppose.
In my younger (ignorant) days I moved into a house in the woods with a fireplace. Previous owners left a basket of tinder which I though was nice of them. I through the entire basket in the fireplace and added wood on top graduating in size. Then I lit it and that was when the trouble started. You see, that basket of tinder (I learned later) was what we called lighter-knot which I guess is the same as fatwood. The roar was deafining, the chimney began to glow and flames were shooting out the top. Worst of all, no amount of all, no amount of water would put it out - even a little. That is where the fire department came in. All in all, it was a life lesson I will NEVER forget. Love everything about your videos - from start to finish. Thank you.
I'll bet that was kind of exciting for a while. Glad it ended well.
oh, me too!! LOL
I was recently introduced to fatwood in Florida. It is fantastic stuff. I brought some home to Michigan with me. I didn’t know it could be found in the north. Awesome potentially life saving knowledge. Thanks again Lonnie.
I am mesmerized at how good a teacher this guy is. Is it just me or are these the greatest outdoor classes ever produced from mankind or peoplekind to date? Thankyou FNB&S for another soul saturating episode!!
I often have a hard time finding fatwood/pitchwood here in Nova Scotia. I'm actually heading out tomorrow to have a look for some. The idea of looking for trees with cracks in the trunk should help. Thanks for sharing Lonnie
I have found good fatwood in living pine trees where a 1-2" thick branch has broken off away from the trunk, if you hit the branch and it doesn't break, its loaded with sap to protect the tree from rot.
Lonny, I would like to say that viewing and listening to your videos is very informative and interesting. I very much enjoy them. Other guys make videos but they mostly add silly crap and foolishness in them. And take forever to get to the point. When I am interested in information on a subjuct, I seek out your videos to learn from. Keep up the good work! Dave
Old fractured stumps are my best source of fire starting material here in the Olympic mountains.I have been known to camp just because there is a good one near buy.It is a real pleasure watching your videos Sir.
You are a wealth of knowledge and I really appreciate your low-key approach to imparting your wisdom. Too many of these outdoor channels are put out by ego-driven people who act like they invented this stuff. A lot of this was common knowledge when people were more connected to the land.
I had to cut a southern longleaf pine down in my front yard that was growing where it would take out my power lines. I cut it well above the ground so the stump will fill with resin and turn into fatwood. It has only been a week and it is clearly filling with resin already. The crosscut of the top of the stump has some pretty awesome color to it.
I live in Northern West Virginia, the mountain state. I find 90% of my fatwood in the lower limbs on our pine trees. Better than they sell in stores. I've never had much luck with the trunks in my area... Thanks for sharing your thoughts and experiences about fatwood with us, I appreciate it sir.
+Brad Barber It really sounds to me like each species of tree and even perhaps different regions can have totally different areas of fatwood concentration.
Good to see another video from you! My Granny told me to look-out for Pine Trees that had been struck by lightning. She said that they make the best "lighter knot" wood because the tree died with all of the sap still in the tree.
Thanks Lonnie! You and Connie Be Well and Stay Warm!
Thanks for the video, Waking up there and seeing such a beautiful landscape every day would be awesome. My kid and grandkids they hope I never go to Alaska because I wouldn't come back.
Man, I could spend a lot of time talking with you. you're a wealth of knowledge. Thank you for sharing.
For those of us who live here in the far north this is a must see video Lonnie, very well done. Thanks for sharing this information with us.
Larry
We find fatwood in our firewood but never thought where one could find it when needed, aaaaand that's why I enjoy your channel. You answer questions that should be answered but aren't for some reason or other, thanks Lonnie!
Great video as always .I often take my grandchildren collecting so they learn what it is and where and how to find it . Glad you all are safe
Great video Lonnie! Can't thank you enough for sharing all your wood craft knowledge!
Great tip about looking for splits in the stumps. I find most of my fatwood at the base of dead branches on living trees but only in small quantities
"Fatwood" I had images in my head of pots of lard boiling with wood shards jammed inside haha. thanks for the tutorial video, I've learned a good lesson today, nice visiting with you again Lonnie, you both take care coz we care
You are a natural teacher. Every video I learn something new.
Wow the scenery in this video is beautiful. Thanks for the video. Blessings and Happy Easter!
Nice video Lonnie!
Good solid information and, as always, without any self-engrandising BS! Thanks for another informative video, Lonnie!
Your videos feel like home. I enjoy watching them. A calm voice teaching you stuff for survival. Greetings from Europe, I will tell my friends about your channel!
Just recently found my first fatwood on a shattered stump on Skyline trail west of Cooper Landing. Did a video with a burn test on site and I am officially hooked! One of my subs joked that I will be looking all the time now and he really hit the nail on the head! Was some super rich wood and takes a spark from a ferro rod right away, It's kinda addicting!
It IS quite addicting. Such a great resource to be aware of.
Funny I made it this far in years and had never even heard of it. Will be a part of my kit from here on!
Thanks for the lesson on Fatwood, Lonnie. I like your unique mountain scene shots too. Amazing country - Alaska.
Thanks Lonnie. I have been getting better at finding fatwood in my neck of the woods--the northeast.
Thanks for sharing you wisdom Lonnie. I learn something everytime I watch one of your videos.
Lots of great tips there, I use fat wood often as it is very easy to find in a lot of the areas I frequent.
Jason
Lonnie, I wish one day my son and I would enjoy being into the woods with you, teaching us all this knowledge, building shelters, making fire, preparing a nice tea, getting some fat from dead trees, extracting birch oil. Man, you are just amazing. My son doesn't even blink when we are watching your videos. Million times thank you. Btw, you should write a book.
Greetings Lonnie. Here in Colorado you tend to find the resin rich trees on the edge of wet meadows, sometimes in the wet ground itself, and with noticeably less resin in the trees farther back from the edge, up on dry ridges, etc. I am talking about the whole tree being fatwood in some cases, but certainly more resin rich streaks and fatwood lower branches and stumps. I have seen giant deadwood from old growth trees still standing 60 years after the area was logged--that such valuable wood was still standing testifies they were standing deadwood when the loggers went through (my grandfather was one of them). The trees are preserved almost intact by the rich pitch inside. I notices you found fatwood in the stumps on what looked like what may be a wetter piece of ground in the summer time. Perhaps the "wet feet" causes them to hold more sap and do more popping in the January cold, I don't know, but if you want a really hot campfire those edge of wet ground trees are the trees to fell--and, conversely, those are the wood sources that might get a bit dodgy in a stove inside a tent, maybe burning too hot if you aren't careful. The old "bull pine" was southern long leaf yellow pine, a wet ground and swamp variety that was a dense as oak due to all the rosin inside. The old stumps are still around and folks are splitting them up and selling the fatwood to dudes to start their fireplaces with. My two bits, your luck may differ.
Thanks again Lonnie for sharing your knowledge with all of us. I always come away from your videos learning something new and useful.
Nothing to add here Lonnie. Thank you my friend. Again enjoying these vids. God Bless you two for the useful information and the relaxing and entertaining way you give us your knowledge. I pray for your continued health and success. God be with you.
Lonnie, Thank you all for this video. I always learn something and I value your teachings and willingness to share.
The trees pump resin into damaged areas to seal off the entry to bugs etc.
Therefore the more damage,the more resin.
When a tree topples,the resin seals off the roots.
Thank you for this.New channel for me.
Welcome to the channel.
I heard some recordings of trees popping in the cold winter, sounds really neat, I bet it sounds better in person. Thanks!!
Shows all of us how to find the elusive fatwood and be observant when wandering in the forest!
Thanks, Lonnie
Clark
+Virginia Bradley That being "observant" is key to so much enjoyment when in the woods. I often go to the woods with no reason in mind other than to see what I can see and learn what I can learn.
Your videos are some of the best on RUclips sir. I always learn so much. I appreciate your time and I look forward to your future videos.
I agree I will never see another dead tree the same way!Greeting from you friend in Germany!we have no snow here in the south cold but no snow oh I forgot super windy 100 km/hr sometimes.
Thanks Lonnie for the tips on finding fatwood. I love all of your videos, thanks for making them.
Another great video. I have a cheesy video on where to find fatwood here in Ohio. The white pines we have are absolutely loaded with it. Easiest places are the dead branches on live trees or the branches/tap root on dead ones. Got myself a nice chunk of it a couple weeks ago while messing in the woods.
Thanks for this vid Lon! I didn't know the spruce made fat wood up here. I've seen lots of pitch on damaged trees, especially logging/milling, but never investigated old stumps. I've wondered about it often enough, now I know!
+Deepwood Handcraft I lately have also gathered some fatwood from old dead rotten large mature spruce that have fallen years ago. Often the bottom few branches will have an increase of pitch impregnation in the portions of the branch that are internal in the tree. We don't seem to have the large rich concentrations of fatwood that is found in the pines of lower latitudes but we do nevertheless have fatwood in our spruce.
Hello to Lonnie and Connie.Thumbs up. Blessings to yall.ENJOY....THE SIMPLE LIFE
Ur like the Bob Ross of the woods I love it !
Hi Lonnie, great advise and good demonstration, hope many people go out and get there own experience because that's the main key, thanks for sharing my friend, take care, Taro
+Taromovies Swiss Bushcraft & Survival I agree my friend. There is no better way to learn than "hands on" or in other words, actually doing it.
You found real little treasures. Now I have my answers. Thank much. Merci
Great info, thanks, I surely did learn a lot. And what an awesome backdrop for this video, beautiful.
Thanks for the video.
Always a joy watching your videos. Stay Warm. We've been steadily above freezing here on the coast. I would love to see some below freezing temps, but alas, the climate is changing. I'm starting to wonder if we'll ever have snow here on the coast again.
great topic lonnie fat wood is one of my favorite materials for fire starting hands down
Beautiful country Lonnie, I'm envious. Good educational video. Take care (y)
Thanks for this video Lonnie. Clears up that question of where to find or how to find fatwood. Thank you.
very good video Lonnie and i want to thank you for taking your time for us
atb
steve
yeah, great camerawork, information, and demonstrations. your honest and practical presentation style is admirable.
These videos are calming and informative. You always have stunning landscape shots as well.
Always enjoy my time in the Alaska wilderness with you Lonnie!!! But its much warmer here in my house!!! LOL
Lonnie thanks for the video. You have an abundance of resources.
Some people may call me crazy, but I miss the snow. I currently live in Florida. I use to live in Indiana. I have become interested in camping in/after/during a snow. Thanks for your video about fixing fat wood.
Same here , sick of the florida heat/crowds , from S.W. ohio .
cr500mike. I hope we get an actual winter. The kind where the temperature gets down in the low 40's at least. Then a fire can be so much more enjoyable.
I live in SoCal and there are a great many Pondorosa Pines. I live in a large metropolitan city, and you would think that there'd be no manner of pine to be found anywhere, but there is a very old standing dead pine that I've been harvesting from; most of the would is impregnated with pine sap. The wood looks like maple bacon!
+The Bare-Footed Cambodian Sounds like a rich find
Hey Lonnie. I discovered fat wood quite by accident on a camping trip some years back. The are had lots of fallen dead trees from the bark beetle infestation and fire wood was lying all over the place for the taking. That's when I noticed that some of the wood we collected burned much hotter and longer and even crackled and gave off a mini light show of sorts. I noticed that the particular wood that displayed these qualities had those lines of sap in them. Also noticed that big chunks of fat wood are found just below knots in many cases. Anyhow thanks for the tips on fat wood.
Very nice and inspiering video! Thanks for making it! Best wishes from Norway, above the arctic cirkle.
As always, very informative and lovely to watch. Thank you Lonnie!
thanks for the tips my friend, i have found some fatwood here and there but would love to stike gold and find a 1' square chunk of the stuff.
fatwood has saved my ass a few times when firelighting.
take care lonnie
Good video Lonnie. That snow sounds crunchy cold underfoot. Glad you made it through the shaker alright. Best
+Tom M It was actually quite warm (maybe about 20 degrees F). The "crunching" noise was coming from my tradition style hardwood and rawhide snow shoes. You can catch a brief glimpse of the extreme tip of one of the shoes in one of the stump shots I believe.
Great observations Lonnie. You not only live in the woods but you try to understand the woods.
I never get tired of the scenery on your intro - just wondering what types of trees other than pine are good for finding pitch? Thanks for another great video.
+GoFeesh 85 What you see here in this video and in all my videos where evergreens appear, are spruce. We don't have pine here. I believe that all evergreens will have pitch though I do not know if fatwood will be found on all evergreen species. My knowledge is limited since we only have the spruce here for me to work with and learn from. Maybe other commenters will chime in and help you out on this one
Very interesting.... I will have to start looking for trees with splinters like that, and check for fat wood.
I have better start listening to the news, I miss all this stuff. Great video, thanks.
Awesome explanation of what to look for exactly to find the fatwood. I look forward to finding, harvesting and using some now.
As always I learned something Lonnie ;) Many thanks my friend!
thank you very much for this information. I'm not real sure of so called similarities in trees, but one things fur sure, gravity works. so you handed me another adventure for my boys and I. spending a day hunting stumps for fat wood. our landscaping business we remove lots of dead trees. lately that has been our resources of fat wood. thank you for a very very important lesson. God's speed.
Great info as always, I said it before & I'll say it again, your a wealth of knowledge Lonnie :) Take care my friend........
Loved this Vid!! Thanks Lonnie, these are the kind of Golden Tid bits that I just love to learn and test out for myself!!
So glad to learn more about this, thanks Lonnie!
I have found good fatwood in living pine trees where a 1-2" thick branch has broken off away from the trunk, if you hit the branch and it doesn't break, its loaded with sap to protect the tree from rot.
Learn something every video you post! Awesome job sir.
I was taught that those cracks that go all the way to the ground, are lightening strikes. Not 100% sure if that is right, but take it for what it's worth.
Thanks Lonnie, great video
+Ferdinand The Bull That is probably the case in some localities but here in our area lightning is quite rare though it does happen. It does not happen often enough though to account for the volume of stumps that display splits that occurred while the tree was still standing as well as trees that are still standing that have splits. There are a lot of Birches still alive in the vicinity of our cabin where this video was recorded, that display quite large cracks.
+Far North Bushcraft And Survival I wonder if it is the moisture in the trees expanding when they freeze hard. Oh you just said that as I was typing. lol
+les sharratt I was thinking that was possibly the most common reason for it and one that I have heard and believed for many years. Now as I reason through this I believe I have figured out the real cause. I typed a long explanation to another commenter and I will copy and paste that explanation here.
It sounds more likely that what is happening is that after there has
been warm air temperatures long enough for the core of the trees to have
partially or completely warmed up to the ambient temperature, and then a
sudden and considerable drop in the ambient temperature occurs, The
tree's wood will begin to contract. It stands to reason that the
outer surface will contract further than the core. When a disparity
occurs between the inner and outer portions then something has to give
way at some point to relieve the built up tension. It has been so
long since we have had intense cold here that I'm not for sure but it
seems to me that I remember that the wood framing in a house will make
"popping" noises from expansion or contraction in extreme cold outside
temps. So I now believe that it is probably contraction of the wood
due to a rapid drop in ambient temperatures that are below freezing.
Of course I could be wrong.........again lol :o)
+Far North Bushcraft And Survival Water expands when it gets cold. Is it the water in the wood cells expanding? In heavy timber in a warm home the popping is from contraction as the members dry out due to lower moisture in colder temps, albeit in a warm home, the general moisture of winter air is drier.
It is peculiar, the checks on trees, I find similar large cracks on old spruce around here, too. I often overlook fatwood on spruce, I will pay more attention now. Can also find some on pine branches close to the trunk.
The fatwood built at the cracks is the tree's natural wound care, it seals the fresh wound/crack against fungal attack. On rubs from other trees or where porcupine have chewed you can shave off some thin sliver of fat wood, I've seen this on white pine and a little on spruce.
Tamarack, is an odd one, high resin content in the wood but not a big fat wood producer.
+downeast primitive skills I am assumming you read my complete reply to les sharrat directly above. I believe now that what causes the crack is not moisture in the wood but rather the alreadt dry winter wood splitting from rapid cooling and contraction of the outer area of the tree while the inner core is cooling at a slower rate. Finally something often has to give way to ease the bound up tension so the tree suddenly splits.
👍's up and enjoyed May the blessings of the Lord be upon you all.
Very good brother. Congratulations on video.
Your channel is excellent.
Big hug from southern Brazil.
Dambros!
+grupogatodomato Thank you.
Fatwood is invaluable, thanks Lonnie!
You always have the best videos. I learn so much!
Thank you👏
Very awesome sir thanks for the tutorial
Very helpful, thanks for sharing
You give great information Lonnie. Very much appreciated. Thank you. :)
Thanks for sharing. My next trip to the woods will be for lichen and fat wood.
+Gramme Brooks One of my next few videos will be using a local variety of lichen in a demo. Good luck in your search.
Excellent video, Lonnie! Down in Mississippi we don’t call it fatwood we call it lightered.
Great video. I look for it the same way around here. Love the info and video. Best wishes to you and your family
Thanks for sharing Lonnie, another nice bit of good information.
Well done video Lonnie. Useful and important information.
Hi Lonnie. Thanks for extending my knowledge of finding fatwood. This is excellent additional information.
Lonnie always to watch your videos. thanks for sharing.
Some good tips Lonnie, fatwood is an invaluable natural resource, atb, Paul.
Stump autopsy. I like it. I'll never look at a dead tree the same. :)
Thank you lonnie and Connie for all the info you have shared, and merry Christmas!
Thanks Lonnie - I'm going on a "fatwood hunt" this weekend :-)
Love God Love your channel Thank you brother for sharing your thoughts and knowledge with us. Blessings
Yea for fat wood, nice video Lonnie as always something to learn and try!!
Great video Lonnie!
good to hear from you I was beginning to think that 7.1 earthquake got you
+Ibpn Lol. No the earth quake did not get us but it sure took us on a wild ride for a while. Thanks
Fantastic video. Very helpful. Thank you!
Thank you very much for the excellent video! I have a better idea of what to look for when searching for fatwood!!