Saijung Kiapo - Master Knife maker

Here is a longish video of my good friend Saijung kaipo, banging out some blades. I hope you like it and please feel free to comment.

thanks!

Tomahawk - scouts out!

Lee Marvin - Wandering Star

Thia song is dedicated to all wandering spirits,wilderness bums,vagabons,hitch hikers,drifters,grizzly miners,mountainmen,adventure travelers and all of those special people who dont fit in.

Tomahawk - scouts out!

More "Foods" in Thailand

I went to the local market again this afternoon with my friend Mam to see what was available.

It never surprises me to see the wide variety of strange foods available. Personally, I have eaten most of the wild foods available at the market but it is still kinda cool to me. This afternoon there were 2 squirrel species that i had never seen before - these two make 3 different species that i have seen in thailand.

There was also Porqupine - I have eaten porkies on two occasions - once in sri Lanka and another time in Minnesota, both times it was tasty and reminded me of pork.

One guy at the market today had a fairly large Cobra in a sack for sale, i was tempted to buy it so I could set it free, if it there tomorrow I may just do that. I hate to see them killed .

anyhoo, here are a couple of pics for you to enjoy!

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Tomahawk and the big assed spider in Thailand

Tomahawk was wandering around looking for a place to have an emergency crap, when i saw this big spider. It kinda reminds me of the garden spiders in the USA.

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More tomahawk in thailand

Tomahawk out wandering around thailand, exploring a country lane.

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Tomahawk in the woods

I had a few rascals out there is cyber space ask me about my gear. Here is a short video explaining some of it. sorry about the audio, all i have to work with is my little hand held camera.

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Tomahawk and a local favorite - Buffao skin

I was invited over to some friends house last night to try out a local favorite - dried buffalo skin.

These guys broke out this stuff that looked like rolled strips of rawhide with the hair still on it. As it turned out - that is exactly what it was....

My friends proceeded to chuck a few rolls into the coals of the fire to burn off the hair , after it was good and scorched, they pounded it with a rock on a board to soften it a bit.

One of my new friends broke off a chunk for me to chew on, it tasted like I would imagine a rawhide chew toy would taste like. I didnt care for this "Treat" but the locals love it and Im surm my Little dog Lilly would enjoy it also.

Tomahawk - scouts out!

Rat – it’s what’s for dinner

My good friend Mam, AKA Jungle girl, swung by my camp on her way to the local market. She asked if I wanted to come along to buy some supplies.

As Luck would have it I was out of Whisky, rice, and salt. I hopped on the back of her motor bike and headed with mam to town.

Once at the market, I bought my needed supplies then walked around taking in the sites. I noticed crickets, Ant eggs, Toads, and both Skinned and unskinned Rats for sale.

I was told that they are tasty when cooked correctly with chillies and thai spices – I cant wait to try them as soon as possible. My good buddy Saijung Kaipo invited me to go on a Rat hunt with his son in a few days. Im looking forward to going out into the woods at night and see how the locals trap these rats.

These pictures were taken last evening at the local market.

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Mam and Tomahawk at the buffalo auction

Here is a short but entertaining video of the Tomhawk and his friend Mam at the buffalo auction in Thailand.

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Tomahawk and the buffalo auction

Today is Wednesday, that means that the local cattle and buffalo sellers and buyers are holding the weekly auction. I walked over to Mams house to roust her out and bum a ride down the road to the auction.

We hopped on her motor bike and headed to get some breakfast, then on to the auction. It was a pretty cool scene. I saw around 2 hundred head of Kwai(buffalo) and around 50 head or so of Brahma cattle. The Kwai sell for around 15 to 20 thousand Baht or 500 to 700 bucks - usually a mother and baby sold together.

I was invited to eat some fish and veggies with an old gentleman and his helpers, tasty stuff. I watched this old guy eat several of those firey thai chilies in a row. His mouth must be totally immune to the heat!

Anyhoo, Here are a few pics for you to enjoy.

Tomahawk – Scouts out!

Tomahawks new Tomahawk – compliments of saijung Kaipo

I just wanted to show off my new Tomahawk made for me by my good friend and fellow woodsman Saijung Kaipo.

We were sitting around his house sipping a little thai whisky and discussing blades and axes from the USA and other places in the world. I was telling Him about Tomahawks when He decided to make one.

Saijung Had never seen a Tomahawk before, so I drew one in the dirt with my finger. Using my “drawing” as a schematic Saijung found a suitable looking piece of scrap metal and banged out a tomahawk, complete with handle in less than 2 hours.

Using only a jungle knife, hammer and a grinder Saijung made the handle in a short time out of some type of thailand hardwood. It is a beautiful thing to see. This “Hawk” has a good heft and the thai style handle not only looks cool but is very functional and practical.

Once again if anyone is interested in getting one of these tomahawks or jungle knives feel free to drop me a line and ill get you hooked up!

Saijng and his son invited me along on a Rat Hunt tonight so i need to go get me gear.

Tomahawk – scouts out!

Mam and the BBQ Talapia

My friend Mam and I headed out early this morning to the Local open air market. She needed to buy some foods to cook for the monk at the temple in her home town. We ended up buy ing several types of mushrooms, pork, ,fish and some other things - Im not really sure what.

I was standing there sipping the last of my folgers coffee from my trusty travel mug when I smelled the scent of grilled Talapia fish and lemon grass.

Looking across the street, I noticed a Hamong Chinese man selling Grilled fish of several different types. Mam and I ambled over there and bought a large grilled Talapia and some green papaya salad for breakfast.

I couldnt eat too much of the salad though due to the amount of chillies the Thais tend to use. The last time I ate this type of salad my asshole burned for 3 days. anyhoo, the fish and rice was a tasty breakfast.

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Tomahawk, Mam, and Loakaoa whisky

Folks, the Tomahawk was in the mood for some good old Mekong whisky so I went in search of a liquor store. I was shocked to discover that my old standard whisky "Mekong" is no longer being sold in Thailand!

In times past the choice has been clear - Mekong.

My lady friend Mam suggested Loakaoa brand Thai whiskey as an alternative to Mekong. I bought a bottle of Loakaoa and some seltzer water, then went back to the house. Mam and I sat on the balcony of her house Near Loapaksai, Thailand and watched some shooting stars, talked about the ghost spirits we have both encountered in our travels, and sipped the Loakaoa and soda mix. - pretty good stuff.

It was a good way to spend an evening. I believe Ill buy a large bottle of Loakaoa whisky to stick in m pack for "Medicinals"

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More Tomahawk in Thailand

Folks, I have just been wandering around North East thailand now for about 2 weeks. All of the gear i have with me can fit into one timbuk2 messenger bag.

I kinda like it that way, you dont need t worry about your gear being stolen, it is light weight,easily carried, and i can fit it all into my hennessey hammock when im sleeping. And, aside from starving half of the time Im enjoying myself very much!

This type of travel is a good way to go. Ill head to Laos in a few days to check out the border town and renew my visa. I remember the days when I had a lot of money - before the Green card whore! - i wasted a lot of $$ on things I didnt really need or even want when traveling.

When I take off for Laos, ill post a gear list for you gear heads out there!

Tomahawk - scouts out!

Tomahawk and the King fisher

I was squatting on the bank of a small lake today when I spied a flash of color in my periferal vison. I turned to see a small King Fisher Bird. I did not know there were King Fishers in Thailand,but after doing a little research on them I found out that there are 15 species native to Thailand. Interesting. The one I saw today looks like the common King Fisher. Nothing rare , but still cool to see.

I was foraging and fishing again Today with my friend Mam. We pilfered some sugar cane from one of the many fields in the area, I chawed on a bunch of it for an energy boost. Mam and I went around on her motor bike looking for some other goodies to score, we saw some wild pigs along the road which was pretty cool, and I watched a farmer herd his Kwai(water buffalo) down the road.

We ended up fishing this evening then coming back to her place to cook some fish and rice. As always here are a few pics for you to enjoy.

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Saijung Kaipo, Master Knife maker

Folks, the other day, I went to see my good friend and master knife maker Saijung Kaipo, in the small town of Loaksai,Thailand. I wanted to get a video of him banging out a blade or two. It seems people are more and more video oriented now of days. I managed to get a 15 minute vid of my friend at work.

Due to the bad connection here in the area I am not able to load this vid right now tho. Ill keep trying to load the video and will post it ASAP. in the mean time Here are a few pics fr you to enjoy.

Saijung banged me out a blade as a gift in about an hour and a half and he did not hurry. As he worked, We were sipping coffee and shooting the shit about hunting squirrels, and fishing along the river near his house.

Saijung has a primitive forge which he operates with the assistance of his charming wife. together they can bang out around 10 different styles of knives a day. Saijung can also make axes and hatchets of different sizes and shapes.

he is currently making me a tomahawk head,a Green river style Knife,and a "Bushman" style blade with a tubular handle. Ill go back there in a few days and pick them up.

My personal jungle knife made by Saijung kaipo has a hard wood handle which was custom fitted and glued into place with tree resin gathered in the forest.

These axes and knives have a good heft, cut very well, hold an edge, and throw a shower of sparks with quartz or flint. If there is anyone out there in cyber space looking for a multi purpose, functional as well as pretty blade.

feel free to drop me a line at; pathfindertom@gmail and ill get back to you. cost fro the knife and 1st class shipping to the USA will be around 40 bucks.

You can use the paypal button on my blog if interested. Be advised tho, im leaving here in a few days for Laos. I wont be back to this area for a while so if you want one of Saijung Kaipos quality hand made blades, youd better shit or get off the pot!

Tomahawk - Scouts Out!s

Tomahawk and Mam diggin' taters

Folks, I had a pretty good day today and evening/night last night. I spent the night of the new moon at the local buddist temple with my new friend and high monk Bu-mai.It was a little chiily last night and Bu-mai thought i was cold so he gave me one of his monk shalls as a gift to keep me warm. I wrapped myself in it and my wiggy poncho liner, I slept like the baby Budda in my Hennessey Hammock.

Early this morning i met up with my friend Mam and headed out to the market to buy a few food items ,then we went to the farm of a lady she knows in the area and we dug the matsatparrang(spelling)potatoes.

After that we wandered around looking at various things like buffalo, huts and scouted out places to fish and forage for edibles. I ended up hiking around a lake and looking for a new place to hang my hammock. I might head out in a few days.

As always, here are a couple of pics for you to enjoy!

Tomahawk - scouts out!

Tomahawk and the Pakpao puffer fish

Yesterday when I was out foraging and fishing with my friends,Joy caught a small fresh water puffer fish known locally as a Pakpao.

I didnt know there was a species of fresh water puffer fish anywhere in the world, just goes to show you that you can learn something new everyday!

This personal discovery prompted me to do a little research on this species to find out as much as i could on them.

Wikipedia has some really good info on this fish, I have included it below.

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Tetraodontidae is a family of primarily marine and estuarine fish of the Tetraodontiformes order. The family includes many familiar species which are variously called pufferfish, balloonfish, blowfish, bubblefish, globefish, swellfish, toadfish, toadies, honey toads, and sea squab. They are morphologically similar to the closely related porcupinefish, which have large external spines (unlike the thinner, hidden spines of Tetraodontidae, which are only visible when the fish has puffed up). The scientific name refers to the four large teeth, fused into an upper and lower plate, which are used for crushing the shells of crustaceans and mollusks, their natural prey.

Puffer fish are generally believed to be the second–most poisonous vertebrate in the world, after the Golden Poison Frog. Certain internal organs, such as liver, and sometimes their skin are highly toxic to most animals when eaten, but nevertheless the meat of some species is considered a delicacy in Japan (as 河豚, pronounced as fugu), Korea (as bok), and China when prepared by chefs who know which part is safe to eat and in what quantity.

The tetraodontidae contains at least 121 species of puffers in 20 genera. They are most diverse in the tropics and relatively uncommon in the temperate zone and completely absent from cold waters. They are typically small to medium in size, although a few species can reach lengths of greater than 100 centimetres (39 in).

Tomahawk and the THAI STYLE JUNGLE KNIVES

Folks, I have been off the net for the past few days exploring the area with my Lady friend Mam and her friend Joy. Yesterday we spent most of the day fishing and foraging for snails and wild edibles in the woods. These two ladies know quite a bit about the local edibles so, I had my listening ears tuned to what they were saying and showing me.

Last evening we cooked the fish ,snails and mushrooms that we collected in the woods ,we feasted on those goodies ,along with the ever present sticky rice.

Today we headed out to the small town of Laopaksai, where Joy has her family home that she shares with her mom and two beautiful young daughters. In Laopaksai, there is a knife maker named, Saijung Kaipo who has his forge next to his house. I really dig the simple forge, and the old tractor tire he uses for a water trough. I noticed that Saijung Kaipo, uses a lot of scrap metal, leaf springs etc. for his knives.

Saijung Kaipo can make several different sizes and styles and knives but ,what I like the most are his hand forged Axe and Hatched heads. These heads remind me of some of the hand forged tomahawk heads I have seen in the USA.

These Knives and Axe/hatchet heads have a nice heft , some of the knives come with tubular handles and others with wood. One thing that I have noticed in Thailand (at least in this area) is that they don't seem to use a sheath for their jungle knives like you see in the Philippines or Malaysia. I have seen some knife sheaths here made from a heated and flattened piece of PVC pipe tho.

Take a look at the pictures and if there is anyone interested in buying one or more of these knives and or Axe/hatchet heads, drop me a line and Ill quote you a price to include shipping to the USA or elsewhere in the world. I wanted to get a video of Saijung Kaipo working his forge but he wasnt around today, I think the old rascal may have been sleeping off a bottle of thai whiskey – not sure tho...

I have to tell you tho, these blades are made one at a time by a skilled knife maker ,on a primitive forge, using simple tools, so It might take a few days for him to get all of the orders filled.

My contact info is pathfindertom@gmail.com and my phone here in Thailand is +66807705329

And Finally, My friend Joy wanted me to say that she is available, and looking for a guy from the USA or Europe who likes the outdoors ,camping and living in the country. If anyone is interested, please feel free to drop me a line and Ill get back to you with Phone number email contact info.

Tomahawk – scouts out!

Tomahawks GCW calendar for sale on lulu.com

For anyone interested, I have posted on lulu.com my current 2011 Green card Whore(GCW) calendar. if you want to check it out simply follow the link, to purchase the calendar you can follow th lulu.com button found in the right hand column of my blog.

http://www.lulu.com/product/calendar/tomahawks-green-card-whore-calendar/14409895?showPreview

see you on the trail!

Tomahawk - scouts out!

Tomahawks "Hobo" fishing rig

Ok, the other day I went on a quick scout with my friend to look for a decent place to hang my hammock. We took a hike along a dike which separated some small ponds from a rubber tree grove.

These little ponds are full of snake head fish and Talapia. Being one to never pass up an opportunity to score a meal,I looked around a bit and scrounged up some line, a hook and a bottle to bang out a "Hobo" fishing rig. Using a snail for bait I caught one decent sized talapia for dinner.The weather here continues to be cool and very comfortable for me. I'm not looking forward to the hot and humid weather to follow soon.

As always, here are a few pictures for you to enjoy.

Tomahawk - Scouts Out!

Fishing and foraging in Thailand

Folks, the Tomahawk has been out exploring over the past couple of days.Sorry but I have been a bit lazy about posting.

Anyhow, yesterday my friends Mam and Joy went with me to do a little bit of foraging and fishing, we managed to catch a few snakehead fish and one medium sized talapia. The Ladies made the decision to forage for snails in the lake and managed to bag quite a few of them. We also foraged some small apple like fruits, some "rat ear" mushrooms, some local bitter herbs, bananna leaves and some type of long beans. All in all a pretty good haul for a casual day of hanging out in the outdoors.

Today we did some more exploring in the area and my friends showed me some good places to fish and pick banannas and some other edibles when they are in season. I also learned to make Thai style papaya salad today. This skill will come in handy some time.

Here are a few pics of today and yesterday for you to enjoy.

Tomahawk - Scouts Out!