Better and Better Part Two: WildRoots

http://www.wildroots.org/

The most amazing thing.

I'm still sore from using the two-man saw at Wildroots yesterday. :-)

So the site's been around for 7 years, and the folks who've been there the longest are a lovely pair who've been there for 4 years. I've got two friends that've spent months there-- one my dear friend J, who lived with us in New Orleans- and who hung out with my parents and I on the near Bellingham, WA last summer !

( I didn't ask the folks at WR if i could include them in the blog, so i'm not going to use their names)

WildRoots is a primitivist camp that i read about years ago when i was really into Zerzan and DerrickJensen's writings.
When I arrived, I was greeted by a huge blue dodge dinosaur of a vehicle that runs on Bio-grease (something like this below--- except more beautiful, scrappy...and blue)
http://www.trucktrend.com/features/consumer/163_0904_diesel_1942_dodge_power_wagon_wc53/photo_01.html
...as well as a red headed-lady and a shaven-head man with a nice full brown beard , barefoot- wearing what looked like homemade leather shorts, and the fellow: shirtless with a nice tanned build. As loaded down as my car is at present, it wasn't making it up the rocky gravel driveway--- so they pleasantly helped me work on that, which ended up in their neighbor kindly letting me park in hers.
Now, of course-- as picturesque, dirty and in-the-present as they were, i wouldn't have been surprised had any variety of dialect or language come out of their mouths, except for what did: neutral and positive california english such that an elec. engineer and ex-armed forces folks might speak!

Another fellow was loading up some nice red clay for a building project, but he offered that I have a walk around to see the buildings.
As everyone was barefoot (my favorite Nike [joke])--- I joined and took a nice long walk through the woods-- encountering wonderful surprises all the way through!

(Please check out my facebook pics for evidence -- under: "Carolina del Norte")

Abundance of Rhododendrons
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhododendron_catawbiense
, sycamores along the lively creek, some maples, locusts, scattered pines and hemlocks, and probably some black walnuts -- plenty of moss and underbrush.
The trail curved along the sides of the hills/mountains a few times-- with trails going off to the sides, largely vertically to some "campsites" structures.

The first building i came across-- and where i slept that night, was a lovely red clay building with a solid roof incorporating plenty of Large bark pieces. Into the walls were sculpted out nicely done leaf/branch patterns on the west and north sides. Inside was a bed with plenty of blankets and some skins, a "one dog" wood oven, huge windows facing down the slope, and some nice shelf work and some books. The inside of the door also had some very nice carved leaf-patterns.

Later on the trail was a more primitive bark lodge made of very large pieces of bark (hardwood of some sort (poplar?)), also incorporating saplings for the skeleton.
This included the kitchen area-- mostly outdoor.

When i got back, I joined a few folks working on sawing down some locust (and another species?) that had been cut down within the last week. Using both "antique" big toothed one-man and two-man saws we took turns cutting through various pieces, and lowering them from higher up the hillside with ropes--- then with wheelbarrows, bringing them back to be cut for firewood. This was the base of a large (60 , 70? ft) tree, maybe two-plus feet in diameter.

This took most of the day. Including lots of good and friendly conversation. Another fellow was visiting from north of Asheville-- much talk revolved around comparisons Primitive Skills shares that are held in various places each year (often in Arizona and Georgia), "politics"/economics, and comparisons of methods with Earthaven.

Then in different turns we headed down to the creek for a little dip in the cool refreshing water! This fast moving creek is where they (and I for this day) got all the water. They said no one had ever gotten sick from it! Wow! It was delicious, and i didn't get sick either.

Then we slowly accumulated around the kitchen circle. This was a mishmash of different items, utensils, shelves, and deer skins (with pelt/hair), centered around a couple cement blocks with a grill. We chopped cabbage, onion, carrots, garlic, and local (Old Man of the Woods) mushrooms for different dishes-- and once the fire was started (manually, using the

....to be continued...coffee shop is closing..and i'm exhausted.. maybe some busking downtown???