Tom hiking in the Huachucas

Just a short vid of my recent weekend hike in the Huachuca mountains. Also, here is a picture of a giant Burl on an oak tree along the trail. mt Swiss army knife is on top for reference.

Tomahawk - scouts out!

TOMAHAWK AND THE EMBERLIT STOVE

Tomahawk on a hike 2

Cool burl on a tree in the mountains

Tomahawk on a hike in the hills day 1

tom in sierra vista

Weekend hike pics

Just a few pics from my weekend Hike in the HUachucas. The temps were perfect , the leaves were beautiful, I didnt see any Illegals but i did find a painted gallon water jug which indicates drug runners.

It was a good hike over all.

Tomahawk - scouts out!

LEGEND OF THE LOST TRAILER 1957 JOHN WAYNE

my favorite "Duke" movie! mainly because of the Heenies/mules and Sofias great titties.

Tomahawk - Scouts out!

Parachute Riggers - "I will be sure Always"

"I will be sure Always"

Back in the early 90s I attended the U.S. Army Parachute Riggers course at Fort Lee,Virginia. It was a 16 week long course which was divided into phases, the first phase was packing Personnel rigs (MC1-1B&C), reserves, and this phase covered the fundamental knowledge of parachutes and the types of materials used in making them etc. We next woved into the Heavy drop rigger shop and learned to rig chutes and heavy drop pallets for supplies of food , water and ammo.
But, my favorite phase was the AER shop where we leaned to use all of the sewing machines used in repairing Air Items and parachutes.

It was a good course but I wouldn't want to do it over.

Tomahawk - Scouts (and riggers) Out!

U.S. Military:
Riggers have played an important role in the American military since the advent of the use of the parachute for aerial insertion of troops, supplies, and equipment into combat zones. In addition to the maroon beret worn by paratroopers in airborne units, riggers are authorized the wear of a distinctive red baseball cap as their military headgear when on rigger duties.

U.S. Army. When the Army formed its first paratrooper unit in 1940, a parachute test platoon, the paratroopers themselves prepared and took care of their own parachutes. The test platoon had only 3 men, two enlisted soldiers and one warrant officer, from the Army Air Corps serving as the precursors of the Army's parachute riggers.

When the Army created five Airborne divisions for World War II, the Army stopped training each paratrooper how to pack his own chute and started support organizations for parachute packing and rigging. The first riggers received their training at Fort Benning, GA.

After 1950, the Army assigned the Quartermaster Corps with the mission of aerial delivery, including parachute rigging. A parachute rigger course was established at the U.S. Army Quartermaster School at Fort Lee, VA in 1951, and has continued since then.

Airborne Orientation Course. For students completing basic training at Fort Jackson, S.C., preparation for Airborne and rigger training begins before even departing for Fort Lee with attendance at the post's Airborne Orientation Course. According to an Army News Service story, "while most of the course involves physical training, soldiers are also familiarized with such Airborne operations as parachute landing falls, rigging equipment and actions in the aircraft." The AOC has raised the success rate for soldiers subsequently attending Airborne training from 60 percent to 89 percent.

From AOC, rigger recruits go to Airborne School at Fort Benning, GA. If a rigger recruit does not pass Airborne School, that soldier is reclassified.

The Army MOS (Military Occupational Specialty) designation for parachute riggers (prior to fiscal year 2003: 43E2P) is graded in 5 skill levels, from 92R1P to 92R5P. Recruits are designated 92R0P.

After Airborne School, the 92R0P recruits head to Fort Lee to attend the 13 week Parachute Rigger Course. The course provides training on inspecting, packing, rigging, recovering, storing, and maintaining air item equipment. It is divided into three phases. Air Drop Phase - Includes instruction in cargo parachute packing, rigging supplies and equipment for airdrop, types and limitations of aircraft. Students become proficient in the use of the various technical manuals for rigging airdrop loads. At the conclusion of the instruction, the students participate in an airdrop exercise. They pack the cargo parachutes, rig the loads to be dropped and place the loads in the aircraft. After the airdrop, the students recover the loads and equipment. Aerial Equipment Repair Phase - Trains fundamentals and procedures of inspection, classification, and repair of maintenance of personnel, cargo, extraction parachutes and airdrop equipment to include the service of High Altitude Low Opening (HALO) Automatic Ripcord Release (ARR). Parachute Pack Phase - Is designed to equip students with the working knowledge of inspection and packing procedures relative to personnel, light cargo and extraction parachutes. The student receives concentrated instruction on the troop back parachute. The student is required to jump the parachute he/she packed during the examination. Throughout the course, the student is constantly reminded of the fact that all parachutes must be packed with meticulous care to insure proper functioning. Any malfunction could result in death or in equipment loss.

All U.S. Army parachute riggers are required to be Airborne qualified, and by tradition are required to be prepared to jump any parachute packed by any U.S. Army parachute rigger, without checking the log book for the name of the rigger who last prepared it. The official motto of the U.S. Army parachute rigger is: "I will be sure always."

Service members from other branches of the U.S. Armed Forces also attend parachute rigger courses at Fort Lee.

Smoke Jumpers

I love this old smoke jumper stuff.

Tomahawk - Scouts Out!

Lure of the Wilderness (1952) 1/6

This is a pretty good movie with Jeff Hunter. But, I like the original better.

Tomahawk - Scouts Out!

The Rolling Stones - Sympathy For The Devil

Im dedicating this song to my good friend Joe Garza.

Tomahawk - scouts out!

"Hoe Tater" Walking stick

Yesterday when I was hiking out of the mountains back to town I stopped along the creek for a short break. As I was sitting there I noticed a perfect walking stick in the branches of a Maple tree. I decided to climb up in the tree and harvest the branch with my Swiss Army knife saw.My friend Matt was wanting one of these type sticks so I decided to make this one for him. Easy Peasy.

My father AKA "Hoe Tater" had a type of walking stick he always made, it has a hook on the top of the stick and a fork on the bottom. This makes this stick a lot more versitile and functional. As a kid I can remember Ol' "Hoe Tater" walking the woods with this type of stick and using it for getting persimmons out of a tree or to move plants out of the way in search of morel mushrooms. Hy would use the fork for catching snakes and harvesting grass for making beds or use it as a rake for scraping up leaves for a shelter.

I always make this type of stick in the woods , not because it was "Hoe Taters" favroite type and that I have fond memories etc. but rather because it is very useful in the wild.

Tomahawk - scouts out!

G.I. Spoon

Back about a million years ago when I first joined the U.S. Army, I volunteered for Airborne Training and ended up in the 2/505th Infantry, Scout Platoon , with the 82nd Airborne Division.

One of my fondest memories of that tour was going to the Central Issue Facility (CIF) to get my TA-50 Issue of gear from Uncle sam.

As a 19year old kid, I was amazed at all of the cool gear the Army was giving me. But most of it went unused due to weight and bulk etc. One of the items I did use a lot of was my G.I mess kit spoon.I have used this spoon for digging holes, making fish hooks from wire, fixing my weapons, to make jewelry ,and even to eat with.

Before I enlisted in the Army, I would listen to the stories of the old WW2 vets, one fella told me that besides his weapon and ammo he valued his canteen and cup, Mess kit spoon, Zippo lighter and pocket knife.

So keeping this in mind I bought my first multi bladed Swiss Army knife at the PX along with my 1st Zippo Lighter, and my first watch with a luminous dial....but for some reason what clinched it for me about keeping and using this spoon, was when I saw and old E6 in the motor pool with a G.I. spoon clipped on his key chain.

anyhoo, long story short,in 1978, when the time came for me to out process from the 82ns Abn Div for an assignment over seas, I kept my Canteen cup and G.I. Mess kit spoon. I still have both of those items today. The spoon in the picture is my original 1976 issue spoon and it has been around the world and will continue to travel with me from now on.

Tomahawk - scouts out!

3 stoves in the woods

Last week when I was out in the hills for a few days I tried out 3 different stoves People have given me over the past year.

My friend Matt gave me a "Hobo" stove and some sterno to try out which works but takes a lot of time. I was also trying out a alcohol stove made from a Pepsi can , my good friend Jeff gave me this one last year and I put it away and simply forgot about it. The other day when I was rooting through some extra gear I uncovered it then threw it in my pack with a bottle of "Heet" fuel.

I cant remember who makes this stove but it is stamped on the bottom of the Pepsi can/stove - I filled it with "Heet" fuel and it burned long enough to boil about 2 liters of water. The only draw back to this recycled can stove is hat it is a little flimsy and tends to bend up pretty quick.

The 3rd stove I tried out was an Emberlit(emberlit.com)given to me by a friend and blog follower Mikail. I like this stove, it is made of stainless steel and breaks down to a small flat package that can easily be packed away in the top pocket of my back pack.

I didnt burn any wood in the Emberlit but was able to burn paper in it to boil a can of creek water for tea.

After using these 3 types of stoves in the outdoors in real wilderness conditions, If forced to choose between the 3 , I would have to take the Emberlit. The reasons being,is that this stove is easy to pack, its light weight and can/will burn any type of organic fuel from wood to pete, to paper, pine cones etc.

But ultimatly, so will a "Hobo" stove, and you can make one of those from just about any can you find anywhere in the world.

Anyhoo, just my thoughts,

Tomahawk - Scouts Out!

Pathfinder by Richard R. Burns

Ok,this is my last post for a while on military/history subjects. Having been a pathfinder I very much enjoyed this book.

If you get a chance give it a read, if you like military history/action adventure stories this book will not disappoint you.

here is a short synopsis of the book. Im sure you can find it on evilbay or amazon.

Tomahawk - "1st in Last out"

December 1967: Richard Burns had just arrived in Vietnam as part of the fourteen-man 101st Pathfinder Detachment. Within just one month, during a holiday called Tet, the Communists would launch the largest single attack of the war--and he would be right in the thick of it. . . .

In Vietnam, Richard Burns operated in live-or-die situations, risking his life so that other men could keep theirs. As a Pathfinder--all too often alone in the middle of a hot LZ--he guided in helicopters disembarking troops, directed medevacs to retrieve the wounded, and organized extractions. As well as parachuting into areas and supervising the clearing of landing zones, Pathfinders acted as air-traffic controllers, keeping call signs, frequencies, and aircraft locations in their heads as they orchestrated takeoffs and landings, often under heavy enemy fire.

From Bien Hoa to Song Be to the deadly A Shau Valley, Burns recounts the battles that won him the Silver Star, Bronze Star, Purple Heart, and numerous other decorations. This is the first and only book by a Pathfinder in Vietnam . . . or anywhere else.

Richard R. Burns

Richard C. Burns retired from the army as a master sergeant, E-8. He completed two combat tours in Vietnam, serving as a Pathfinder with the 101st Airborne Division and the 1st Air Cavalry Division. He conducted Pathfinder operations for infantry and recon units, supported an element of Special Forces, and was attached to the 1st Vietnamese Airborne Division. After a stint as a recruiter in his native New England, he spent the bulk of his twenty-year military career in Special Forces. His training includes Pathfinder Course, Jumpmaster Course, Vietnam (MACV) Recondo School, and Special Forces Qualification Course (SFQC): Light and Heavy Weapons. He has received numerous decorations, including the Silver Star, Bronze Star, two Air Medals, and the Purple Heart.

Richard Burns has two children and lives with his wife in Gainesville, Florida. He has written many articles on elite military units and is a columnist and staff writer for Behind the Lines magazine.

11th Airborne Division WW2

The 11th Airborne Division or "The flying asshole" as an Old trooper from this Division told me they called it, it yet another unsung unit from WW2. Being a former member of the 11th Aviation Group Pathfinder Platoon, which supposedly traced its lineage from the "Flying asshole" I have always been interested in this Unit. Especially its involvement in the Raid on Los Banos POW camp in the Philippines.

Below is some info about these cats during the 2nd world war and a bit beyond.

Tomahawk - Scouts Out!


11th Airborne Division (United States):

The 11th Airborne Division ("Angels") was a United States Army airborne formation, first activated on 25 February 1943, during World War II. Consisting of one parachute and two glider infantry regiments, with supporting troops, the division underwent rigorous training throughout 1943. It played a vital role in the successful Knollwood Maneuver, which was organised to determine the viability of large-scale American airborne formations after their utility had been called into question following a disappointing performance during the Allied invasion of Sicily.

Held in reserve in the United States for the first half of 1944, in June the division was transferred to the Pacific Theater of Operations. Upon arrival it entered a period of intense training and acclimatization, and by November was judged combat-ready. The 11th Airborne saw its first action on the island of Leyte in the Philippines, but in a traditional infantry role. In January 1945 the division took part in the invasion of Luzon. The two glider infantry regiments again operated as conventional infantry, securing a beachhead before fighting their way inland. The parachute infantry regiment was held in reserve for several days before conducting the division's first airborne operation, a combat drop on the Tagatay Ridge. Reunited, the division participated in the Liberation of Manila, and two companies of divisional paratroopers conducted an audacious raid on the Los Baños internment camp, liberating two thousand civilians. The 11th Airborne's last combat operation of World War II was in the north of Luzon around Aparri, in aid of combined American and Philippine forces who were battling to subdue the remaining Japanese resistance on the island.

On 30 August 1945 the division was sent to southern Japan as part of the occupation force. Four years later it was recalled to the United States, where it became a training formation. One parachute infantry regiment was detached for service in the Korean War, but on 30 June 1958 the division was inactivated. It was briefly reactivated on 1 February 1963 under the new name of the 11th Air Assault Division (Test), to explore the theory and practicality of helicopter assault tactics, before being finally inactivated on 29 June 1965. The division's personnel and equipment were transferred to the newly-raised 1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile).

Formation:
Inspired by the pioneering German use of large-scale airborne formations during the Battle of France in 1940 and later the Invasion of Crete in 1941, the various Allied powers decided to raise airborne units of their own. One of the resultant five American and two British airborne divisions, the 11th Airborne Division was officially activated on 25 February 1943 at Camp Mackall in North Carolina, under the command of Maj. Gen. Joseph M. Swing. As formed the division consisted of the 511th Parachute Infantry Regiment, the 187th Glider Infantry Regiment and the 188th Glider Infantry Regiment, and with a complement of 8,321 men was around half the strength of a regular American World War II infantry division.

The division initially remained in the United States for training, which in common with all airborne units was extremely arduous to befit their elite status. Training included lengthy forced marches, simulated parachute landings from 34-foot (10 m) and 250-foot (76 m) towers, and practice jumps from transport aircraft; hesitancy in the doorway of an aircraft resulted in an automatic failure for the candidate. The washout rate was high, but there was never a shortage of candidates; especially in American airborne units the rate of pay was much higher than that of an ordinary infantryman.

Before training was complete a debate developed in the United States Army over whether the best use of airborne forces was en masse or as small, compact units. On 9 July 1943, the first large-scale Allied airborne operation was carried out by elements of the United States 82nd Airborne Division and the British 1st Airborne Division in support of the Allied invasion of Sicily, codenamed Operation Husky. The 11th's commanding officer, Maj. Gen. Swing, was temporarily transferred to act as airborne advisor to General Dwight D. Eisenhower for the operation, and observed the airborne assault which went badly. The 82nd Airborne Division had been inserted by parachute and glider and had suffered high casualties, leading to a perception that it had failed to achieve many of its objectives.

Raid at Los Baños:
Paratroopers of the 511th Parachute Infantry Regiment prepare to board transport aircraft for their raid on the Los Baños internment camp, 22 February 1945.
Main article: Raid at Los Banos

A large number of civilian prisoners had been detained by the Japanese on Luzon, mostly in internment camps scattered throughout the island. The largest of these was located on the campus of the Agricultural College of the Philippines at Los Baños, some forty miles (64 km) south-east of Manila.

General Douglas MacArthur had tasked the 11th Airborne Division with rescuing the Los Baños internees on 3 February, but the division's ongoing combat operations around the Genko Line left it unable to divert any resources at that time.All that could be accomplished during February was to gather information, primarily through liaison with the guerilla groups operating in Southern Luzon and around Los Baños. Maj. Gen. Swing and his command staff were briefed daily by the officer working with the guerilla groups, Major Vanderpool.

From the guerillas and a few civilians that had escaped the camp, Vanderpool established that it was surrounded by two barbed-wire fences approximately six feet tall. Several guard towers and bunkers dotted its perimeter, each containing at least two guards. Prisoners left each morning under armed guard to gather food supplies and firewood from a nearby town.

Vanderpool was informed that the camp's population consisted of American civilians in three distinct groups: Protestant missionaries and their families; Roman Catholic nuns and priests; and professional workers such as doctors and engineers, and their families. The latter group included several hundred women and children. While all the inmates appeared to be in good health, many had become weak from food rationing.

On 20 February, Maj. Gen. Swing was finally able to release sufficient troops for a raid on the Los Baños camp, and a four-phase plan was devised by Major Vanderpool and the divisional staff officers.The divisional reconnaissance platoon would travel across a nearby lake and move to the outskirts of the camp, securing a large adjacent field as the drop zone for a company of paratroopers. Having landed, the paratroopers would eliminate Japanese resistance in the area, secure the camp, and prepare for its evacuation.

Fifty-four amphibious Amtracs would transport two additional companies of paratroopers to the lake shore, where a beachhead would be established while the Amtracs continued to the camp to evacuate its occupants. Simultaneously, a task force consisting of a reinforced infantry battalion, two battalions of heavy artillery and a tank destroyer battalion would advance down Highway 1 towards Los Baños to interdict any Japanese attempts to interfere.
Los Baños internees after the raid, 23 February

Assisted by a group of guerrillas, on the night of 21 February the divisional reconnaissance platoon made their way to the lake and collected ten canoes. Despite navigational difficulties, the platoon came ashore near Los Baños at 02:00 the following morning, and after securing the paratroopers' drop zone, concealed themselves in the jungle near the camp.

During the afternoon B Company of the 1st Battalion, 511th PIR was transferred to the airfield from which they would be deployed, while the rest of the battalion rendezvoused with the Amtrac convoy.At 07:00 on the morning of 23 February, B Company took off in ten C-47 Skytrain transport aircraft, arriving over their drop zone shortly afterwards.

As the first paratroopers landed, the reconnaissance platoon and the supporting guerilla fighters opened fire on the camp's defences, using Bazooka rounds to penetrate the concrete pillboxes, and then entered the camp to engage its garrison. The paratroopers soon joined the battle, and by 07:30 the Japanese guards had been overcome and the internees were being rounded up and readied for evacuation.

At the lakeshore the 511th's other two companies had secured their beachhead, and the convoy of Amtracs reached the camp without incident. Priority during loading was given to the women, children and wounded; some of the able-bodied men walked alongside the Amtracs as they returned to the beach. The first evacuation convoy left the camp at approximately 10:00, with B Company, the reconnaissance platoon and the guerrillas remaining behind to provide a rearguard.

By 11:30 all of the civilians had been evacuated, and at 13:00 the Amtrac convoy returned for the rearguard, with the last paratroopers leaving the beach at approximately 15:00.[55] Meanwhile on Highway 1, the taskforce that had been deployed to protect the operation met heavy Japanese resistance and suffered several casualties, but was able to block Japanese forces that advanced on the camp, before retreating back to American lines. The raid had been a complete success, liberating 2,147 civilians.

Colonel Aaron Bank

Im not a big fan of the current crop of Army Green Berets. All of the Individuals I have met "Down range" during my time as a contractor were a bunch of condescending smart asses and braggarts.

Conversely all of the Vietnam era SF vets are all down to earth guys and are a pleasure to associate with.I have been meaning to do a Post about Colonel Bank. This will more than likely be the only mention of Current Army Special forces on this blog.

Anyway, Aaron Bank is the Father of The green berets. Im not really impressed by that, what impressed me about this man is that during WW2, he served in the Jedburgs, then , later in the was the Office of Strategic Services.More over, he was among the first Americans to earn Parachute wings at the British Jump school. He was also trilingual and could converse equally well in English, French or German.

Here is what wikipedia has to say about the man/legend. I hope you like it, if not - I really dont care!

Tomahawk - scouts Out!

World War II career

As a young man, Bank worked as chief life guard at an upscale resort in Biarritz. His widowed mother taught language (French and German) lessons to earn a living, this explains his unusual fluency in French and German, a skill which had much to do with his later activities as a special operations commander.

He enlisted in the Army in August 1942, then volunteered for special operations work. He was in his late thirties, and thought "too old" for combat, but he was an unusually athletic man and so was accepted into the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) during World War II.

The OSS conducted both espionage operations (SI Branch) and special operations (SO Branch), for sabotage and guerrilla warfare. Bank was assigned to SO Branch, and on July 31, 1944 led the Jedburgh Team PACKARD, parachuting into Lozère Department of France and linking up with French Resistance.

At the time of "Operation Anvil", also known as "Operation Dragoon" (the Allied invasion of Southern France approximately six weeks after the D-Day invasion at Normandy), Bank and his French partisans drove the German forces away from the beachhead ahead of the Allied troops, liberating a number of French towns before the regular forces arrived.

In late 1944 and early 1945, Bank led "Operation Iron Cross," which evolved into a plan to capture or kill Adolf Hitler. The OSS actively recruited German POWs who were opposed to Hitler to form a special forces unit, outfitted with SS uniforms and highly trained in "raid and snatch" techniques. (The OSS found many willing volunteers amongst former German soldiers, primarily former German Communists, who vigorously opposed Hitler, and German Jews who had taken refuge in the Wehrmacht, posing as Gentiles.) This unit was trained as parachute infantry and was intended for insertion into the expected "Alpine Redoubt" on the Austrian/German border, where senior Nazi officials were planning to make their last stand against the advancing Allied armies.

Hitler was expected to flee from Berlin and retire to the Alpine Redoubt before the Soviets could enter the capital city, so General William Joseph Donovan, head of the OSS, issued this order: "Tell Bank to get Hitler."

"Iron Cross" was canceled almost on the eve of execution because intelligence showed that Hitler had remained in Berlin. (He committed suicide in his Berlin bunker on April 30, 1945.) Additionally, the 101st Airborne and 7th Army divisions were advancing so rapidly they were expected to capture the non-existent Alpine Redoubt before "Iron Cross" could be executed. (Bank's enemy-uniformed volunteers would also be prime targets for allied forces.)

With the capitulation of Germany in May, 1945, Bank was reassigned to the Pacific theater, where he was inserted into Indochina and linked up with Ho Chi Minh, then leading the resistance to the Japanese. Bank spent considerable time traveling through Vietnam with Ho and was impressed with Ho's manifest popularity among the Vietnamese population. Bank advised the OSS of Ho's great popularity, recommended that Ho be allowed to form a coalition government, and predicted that Ho would win a popular election overwhelmingly if one was conducted.

It is not known whether Bank's recommendations reached President Harry S. Truman, but American policy was contrary: Ho was a long-time Communist, having joined the party in the 1920s in Paris, and therefore was considered unacceptable as leader of a coalition government. Some French "Vichy" military forces remained in Indochina, and the United States now consented to the use of these residual forces to block Ho and reinstate Indochina as a French colony. President Truman and later President Dwight D. Eisenhower provided financial support to the French, thus leading to the Indochina War and ultimately the Vietnam War.

Post-war activities and the founding of the Special Forces

After the war Bank remained in the Army and became a leading advocate for the formation of a professional special forces (unconventional warfare (UW)) division, equivalent to the SO branch of OSS. Colonel Russell W. Volckmann (who had been a guerrilla in the Philippines) and Bank were instrumental in convincing the Army it needed such a force. The primary place such elements would be deployed, they thought, was behind the "Iron Curtain," in the Eastern European nations dominated by the Soviet Union, where there was a real possibility of a local resistance movement arising.

In 1952, Colonel Bank became the first commander of the Army's first Special Forces unit, called the 10th Special Forces Group. (This number was selected to confound the Russians with suspicions of nine more such units.) In establishing the 10th, he was as flexible as he had been with "Iron Cross", drawing upon former members of the "1st Special Service Force" known as the Devil's Brigade, as well as veterans of the OSS, the Parachute Infantry units, and guerrilla elements in the Pacific.

Using the training and strategies and the lessons learned during World War II, Bank created an elite unit of men skilled in foreign languages (to interface with foreign insurgents), the arts of sabotage and stealth tactics, the use of explosives for demolition, amphibious warfare, rock climbing, jungle warfare, mountain fighting and as ski troops.

Special Forces today are still all volunteer and organized into "A teams," as Aaron Bank organized his men in the 10th Special Forces group in 1952, with two experts in every specialty. They still undergo an arduous training process in which large numbers of men fail or quit, as Aaron Bank required of the men of "Operation Iron Cross". Special Forces today acknowledge the paternity of Colonel Bank with great pride.

Colonel Bank was commended by President George W. Bush in 2002, the year he celebrated his hundredth birthday, for developing the unconventional warfare programs and techniques that were used in toppling the Taliban.

Later years

Aaron Bank retired from the Army in 1958, and remained a vigorous man well into his eighties, swimming several miles a day in the Pacific Ocean near his home in San Clemente, California.

In the early 1970s, Colonel Bank began a personal investigation of the lack of security at the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station, which is a few miles south of San Clemente. Bank determined that the San Onofre plant was protected by one private security guard with a sidearm, as if the only concern was civilian theft. Bank concluded that a single special forces soldier could overcome this guard, seize the plant and destroy it with a small quantity of explosives. The consequence could be a Chernobyl-type accident, whereby the damaged plant would spew radioactivity into the atmosphere and contaminate thousands of square miles, including the nearby Los Angeles basin.

Colonel Bank became alarmed at the recklessness of the civilian operators of San Onofre, and actively lobbied, then testified before a closed session of the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission, warning of the dangers of terrorist sabotage at San Onofre. As one of the world's leading experts on the sabotage of electric generating facilities, Bank spoke with great authority—but the AEC ignored him and did nothing.

Bank then shared his concerns with an investigative journalist, who wrote an exposé of poor security at San Onofre for the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists in 1974. This led to a Congressional investigation and further secret testimony by Colonel Bank before a Congressional committee. This time, Bank's testimony was heeded, and Congressional pressure forced the AEC and its successor, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, to act. The U.S. nuclear power industry was ordered to spend billions of dollars implementing anti-terrorist security measures at commercial nuclear reactors nationwide, including on-site security squads with automatic weapons, remote scram capabilities (to take control of the plant from a distance and shut it down in the event of an attack) and the use of "red teams" to probe defenses and thereby eliminate vulnerabilities.

http://www.c312.com/honorary_members.htm

Coues Deer antler shed

Last evening as I hiking down from Huachuca peak I spotted a Coues deer antler shed laying off the trail. A cool score, Ill give it to a friend who makes ferro rod handles with antler and buttons etc.

The Sonoran Coues Deer is one of the Smallest of the white tail sub species found in the USA and Mexico. I think the Florida Keys Deer is the smallest. I also think this sub species is named for Elliot Coues. His work was instrumental in establishing the currently accepted standards of trinomial nomenclature - the taxonomic classification of subspecies - in ornithology, and ultimately the whole of zoology.

so there you go, check it out for yourselves if you like.

Tomahawk - Scouts Out!

Fall Morning in the Mountains

JUst posting a short video on my early morning sojourn in the Huachucas.

Tomahawk - Scouts Out!

Big cats in the woods

While exploring a side canyon in the Huachucas last week, I cought a glimpse of a fawn colored wraith slipping away into the forest. There was an unmistakable feline smell in the air. This glimpse of a Mountain Lion reminded me of a conversation I had recently with a Biologist on Fort Huachuca about the Big cat sightings on post in recent years. There Have been Jag sightings in the Pelloncillos, Chiricahuas and the Huachucas, 5 Oscelot sightings in the Huachucas, and Jagarundi sightings in SW Arizona. Then in turn, This conversation reminded me of an experience I had with a Big Cat in Thailand. It could only be one of 2 types of big cat – a Leopard or a Tiger.

Back in March one of my lady friends in Thailand invited me to go with her to Kaijang krachang National park. This park is about 3 hours south west of Bangkok. We hopped into a van taxi and cruised down to the park and set up camp.

The next morning I suggested that we hitch hike up to the top of the road where the real jungle in the park is and is very close to the border with Burma.

We packed our gear and headed out. It was my friends first time hitch hiking and she got a real kick out of it and was amazed that you could get so far in one day by thumbing a ride.

Anyhoo, we got to the appointed place in the park and located camp spot for the next couple of nights. That afternoon we were looking around for something to do before dark so we just wandered the trails near the camp ground and were later invited to some peoples camp for dinner that evening.

While eating dinner with our new friends one of them suggested that we hike down to some popular water falls and get some pictures of the fall and local plant life and perhaps see some horn bills.

It sounded great to me but my friend decided that she didn't want to walk that far just to see some flowers and water falls. So, early the next morning, I packed my Hennessey hammock, silk sheet, a gallon of water, some munchies, my head lamp, camera,binoculars,jungle knife and a few other things then hit the trail. And Im sure a few things I have forgotten.

Anyhoo, early the next AM, I hit the trail and began the steep decent toward the falls. It was nice and cool in the mist of the early morning jungle. I got to see 3 hornbills and numerous snakes and small birds along the trail. The leeches were out in force and I had to stop from time to time during my hike to scrape them off.

It soon became hot and humid and the decent was very steep so I took a break and polished off the coffee in my Nalgene bottle , burned off a few leeches then hit the trail again.

The falls were pretty but not what I expected from the way folks talked about them, the forest though was REAL jungle , similar to the types I have seen in the PI and south America. This woods had a shit load more leeches and skeeters than I had experienced before.

Anyhoo, I farted around, tried to take some pictures but my camera batteries were dead and the old girl didn't seem to want to function in the humidity. I got my camera at a pawn shop on Mindenao in the PI about 4 years ago so Im surprised it worked up to that time.

Being in the jungle I have always been surprised as to how fast it gets dark under the canopy . My Atea Negrito friends at Subic always wear their head lamps so they will be ready for darkness. A good Idea. I realized that I wouldn't be able to hike the 4K up hill before full dark so I began to look for a place to set up my hammock.

I slung the Hennessey hammock between some hardwoods on the edge of a fairly large bamboo grove, cut some dry bamboo and collected what “Squaw wood” I could find for making a fire later.

Basically Im pretty Lazy , Fire = fuel = effort = burning up calories and energy. But I did collect some wood, and about dark , kindled a flame, heated some water for tea, ate some of my munchies, farted around trying to get my camera to work, swatted Mosquitos, burned leeches and generally had a good time in my remote solitude.

Long story short – I crawled into my soogans, and tried to sleep. I did drift in and out by Jungle sounds kept waking me up. I head what sounded like Deer snorting in the forest, things crashing into the trees, bugs,the creek and squeaking of the bamboo etc.

Sometime during the night I awoke to what smelled like a cat, it was a very distinct smell, soon after that I heard a low deep low rumbling growl which made me shit my pants(literally) , followed immediately by a Hiss or a breathy Haaaaaaaa, similar to what a house cat makes when cornered by the family dog. I was afraid and didn't know what to do, I had my jungle knife hanging from the guy line inside of my hammock and grabbed that. Funny – it was in a metal scabbard which rattled and was a bit annoying but I never bothered to fix it – Lazy again!, perhaps it was a good thing I never did fix it.

Anyway, this rattling noise combined with my yelling was enough to chase off this critter. My idea is that this big cat smelled a human, maybe never smelled an American before, Saw me in my hammock but had never seen this form before and didn't know how to attack or react other then flee.

I thank God for that or for what ever reason ol Cat lit a shuck. I lay in the hammock for a few moments to listen, I scrambled out with my head lamp on, and rebuilt my fire. I wished that my laziness had not got the best of me earlier and that I would have collected more wood.

I was Making as much noise as possible singing songs , army cadences, and chopping on the bamboo to find fuel. Also I had read that most big cats attack from the rear so I kept my Back to the Bamboo thicket and kept up my vigil until dawn.

In the earliest AM, I packed my gear, and hit the trail. The trail head was a welcome site but I still had a bit of a hike back to the National park campground. As luck would Have it my lady friend had shanghaied a dude to drive to the trail head to look for me.

After chucking my pack into the back of his pick up truck, I climbed in to the cab with my friends and had a leisurely ride back to the camp grounds where I had a decent meal and a shower then slept like Rumple Stiltskin for most of the day.

This experience was just one of many on my sojourn into the unknown, I hope to experience many more things on the trail but I doubt that Ill ever go alone into the Jungles of South East Asia.

Tomahawk – Scouts Out!

The 161 Special Operations Squadron in WW2

The 161st SOS in WW2 is a pretty cool and yet Unsung unit in WW2. this unit was used to drop SOE , Jedburgs and later OSS agents into France and elsewhere.

I read someplace that the Lysander aircraft used could hold 4 fully equipped agents in their parachutes.

Check out this Wikipedia info and links below if interested.

Tomahawk - Scouts Out!

http://www.aviationartprints.com/lysander.htm

http://www.ipmsstockholm.org/magazine/1997/08/stuff_eng_detail_lysander.htm

http://www.warbirdalley.com/lysander.htm

No. 161 Squadron RAF
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
No. 161 (Special) Squadron RAF
Active 9 May 1918 - 17 August 1918
15 February 1942 - 2 June 1945
Country United Kingdom
Branch Royal Air Force
Role Special Duties
Part of No. 3 Group
Base RAF Newmarket Feb 1942-March 1942
RAF Graveley March 1942-April 1942
RAF Tempsford April 1942-June 1945
Motto Liberate
Equipment Lockheed Hudson, Westland Lysander, Handley Page Halifax, Douglas Havoc, Shorts Stirling, Armstrong Whitworth Whitley
Insignia
Identification
symbol MA / JR

No. 161 (Special) Squadron was a highly secretive unit of the Royal Air Force tasked with missions of the Special Operations Executive during the Second World War. Their primary role was to drop and collect secret agents and equipment into and from Nazi-occupied Europe. The squadron had a secondary role in acting as the King's Flight.


History

A proposal was made on 9 May 1918 to create a Squadron flying the Airco DH.9A in a daylight bombing role. The scheduled formation date was postponed several times before the plans were entirely cancelled. The squadron was reformed at RAF Newmarket on 15 February 1942 when the King's Flight was combined with elements of 138 Squadron. In April, 161 Squadron moved to RAF Tempsford in Bedfordshire where it would remain until disbandment on 2 June 1945.
Aircraft

Several types of aircraft were used by the squadron in the course of their duties.

Westland Lysander February 1942 - November 1944
Armstrong Whitworth Whitley V February 1942 - December 1942
Havoc I February 1942 - December 1943
Handley Page Halifax B.Mk II September 1942 - December 1942
Handley Page Halifax B.Mk V November 1942 to November 1944
Lockheed Hudson III / V October 1943-June 1945
Short Stirling III and IV September 1944 - June 1945

The Lysanders, Hudsons and Havocs were used for parachuting/landing and collection of agents whilst the Whitworths, Halifaxes and Stirlings were used for supply-dropping missions.

The PBY Catalina flying Boat in WW2

I have always had an interest in flying boats of all types but especially the PBY Catalinas in WW2.

Here in Arizona you can still find the hulks of these venerable aircraft in the desert junk yards around Tucson - or at least you could. I have not been to Tucson in years other than going to the Airport.

These planes were used for all manner of missions in WW2 and were actually used initially by the Alamo scouts for insertion into their respective mission AOs.


I like the fact that these planes had a galley and crew quarters , had long range capabilities and could touch down on land or water.

If you are interested in further information about this cool old plane please take the time to check out the link below for War bird alley. Or you can read the info from wikipedia I have provided. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PBY_Catalina

See you on the Trail!

http://warbirdalley.com/cat.htm

Tomahawk - Scouts Out!

The Consolidated PBY Catalina was an American flying boat of the 1930s and 1940s produced by Consolidated Aircraft. It was one of the most widely used multi-role aircraft of World War II. PBYs served with every branch of the United States Armed Forces and in the air forces and navies of many other nations. In the United States Army Air Forces and later in the United States Air Force their designation was OA-10. A Canadian-built PBY would be familiarly called a Canso.

During World War II, PBYs were used in anti-submarine warfare, patrol bombing, convoy escorts, search and rescue missions (especially air-sea rescue), and cargo transport. The PBY was the most successful aircraft of its kind; no other flying boat was produced in greater numbers. The last active military PBYs were not retired from service until the 1980s. Even today, over 70 years after its first flight, the aircraft continues to fly as an airtanker in aerial firefighting operations all over the world.

The initialism of "P.B.Y." was determined in accordance with the U.S. Navy aircraft designation system of 1922; PB representing "Patrol Bomber" and Y being the code used for the aircraft's manufacturer, Consolidated Aircraft.

Background

The PBY was originally designed to be a patrol bomber, an aircraft with a long operational range intended to locate and attack enemy transport ships at sea in order to compromise enemy supply lines. With a mind to a potential conflict in the Pacific Ocean, where troops would require resupply over great distances, the U.S. Navy in the 1930s invested millions of dollars in developing long-range flying boats for this purpose. Flying boats had the advantage of not requiring runways, in effect having the entire ocean available. Several different flying boats were adopted by the Navy, but the PBY was the most widely used and produced.
PBY riding at sea anchor.

Although slow and ungainly, PBYs distinguished themselves in World War II as exceptionally reliable. Allied armed forces used them successfully in a wide variety of roles that the aircraft was never intended for. They are remembered by many veterans of the war for their role in rescuing downed airmen, in which they saved the lives of thousands of aircrew downed over water. PBY airmen called their aircraft the "cat" on combat missions and "Dumbo" in air-sea rescue service.[1]
[edit] Development

As American dominance in the Pacific Ocean began to face competition from Japan in the 1930s, the U.S. Navy contracted Consolidated Aircraft and Douglas Aircraft Corporation in October 1933 to build competing prototypes for a patrol flying boat.[2] Naval doctrine of the 1930s and 1940s used flying boats in a wide variety of roles that today are handled by multiple special-purpose aircraft. The U.S. Navy had adopted the Consolidated P2Y and Martin P3M models for this role in 1931, but both aircraft proved to be underpowered and hampered by short ranges and low maximum payloads.

Consolidated and Douglas both delivered single prototypes of their designs, the XP3Y-1 and XP3D-1, respectively. Consolidated's XP3Y-1 was an evolution of the XPY-1 design that had originally competed unsuccessfully for the P3M contract two years earlier and of the XP2Y design that the Navy had authorized for a limited production run. Although the Douglas aircraft was a good design, the Navy opted for Consolidated's because the projected cost was only $90,000 per aircraft.
PBY waist gunner mounting port side gun blister.

Consolidated's XP3Y-1 design (company Model 28) was revolutionary in a number of ways. The aircraft had a parasol wing with internal bracing that allowed the wing to be a virtual cantilever, except for two small streamlined struts on each side. Stabilizing floats, retractable in flight to form streamlined wingtips, were another aerodynamic innovation, a feature licensed from the Saunders-Roe company. The two-step hull design was similar to that of the P2Y, but the Model 28 had a cantilever cruciform tail unit instead of a strut-braced twin tail. Cleaner aerodynamics gave the Model 28 better performance than earlier designs.

The prototype was powered by two 825 hp (615 kW) Pratt & Whitney R-1830-54 Twin Wasp engines mounted on the wing’s leading edges. Armament comprised four 0.30 in (7.62 mm) Browning machine guns and up to 2,000 lb (907 kg) of bombs.

The XP3Y-1 had its maiden flight on 28 March 1935, after which it was transferred to the US Navy for service trials. The XP3Y-1 soon proved to have significant performance improvements over current patrol flying boats. The Navy requested further development in order to bring the aircraft into the category of patrol bomber, and in October 1935, the prototype was returned to Consolidated for further work, including installation of 900 hp (671 kW) R-1830-64 engines. For the redesignated XPBY-1, Consolidated introduced redesigned vertical tail surfaces. The XPBY-1 had its maiden flight on 19 May 1936, during which a record non-stop distance flight of 3,443 miles (5,541 km) was achieved.

The XPBY-1 was delivered to VP-11F in October 1936. The second squadron to be equipped was VP-12, which received the first of its aircraft in early 1937. The second production order was placed on 25 July 1936. Over the next three years, the PBY design was gradually developed further and successive models introduced.

Myke Hawke - Army Veteran and Survival expert

As you all may know, I don't watch much TV, I'm usually bumming around in the woods someplace and if I'm not, Ill usually be in the company of an attractive lady and the afore said company negates the need for TV entertainment.

Recently though, I was surfing the net and found some videos of a guy named Myke Hawke doing jungle survival skills. Pretty cool stuff, I liked his hammock set up and gear display etc. I was informed by my friend Matt that Myke has 2 shows on TV - "Man/woman wild" and "One man army". I didn't watch them on TV but was able to download a couple episodes of each to my laptop for casual enjoyment.

I actually like both shows - especially "Man / woman wild" Myke and his wife Ruth make a great team. This "Survival" show is far better than the other ones I have seen on YT except maybe good ol' Les Strouds "Survivorman" series.

"One Man Army" is a good show too and I got a kick out of seeing the smart ass, pretentious Navy SEAL get booted out in the first round.

Mykes method of presentation is the type I like, not annoying and hyper acting. He presents the information in a military style that I grew accustomed too while I was a member of the Army. And Myke does it wearing shoes and not sporting a gotee or a rag tied to his head or calling everyone "Brother".

Below I have attached the links to Mykes website and both discovery channel shows, you can click on them and open in a new tab. Im sure you will like what you see and enjoy the shows. Im looking forward to buying Mykes book on Languages to add to my travel library.

See you on the trail.

Tomahawk - Scouts Out!

http://mykelhawke.com/

http://dsc.discovery.com/tv/man-woman-wild/mykel-hawke.html

http://dsc.discovery.com/videos/one-man-army-videos/

Tomahawks New Knives

My Good friend T. j. Learnihan was kind enough to gift me 2 beautiful knives from his collection. I am proud to own these two blades and will put them to good use in the field. I might even retire Ol' Butch for a few weeks to let these new knives do their job.

I hope you like the picture of these blades.

Tomahawk - Scouts Out!

Tomahawks Home made knife case

I was out in the woods and realized that I needed a new belt case for my Swiss army Knife. The case my good friend Mountain Mel made for me was just a bit small for this SAK.

Taking a look through my plunder , I decided to use a piece from the Hennessey hammock strap as the main part of the case. Next I cut a strip of webbing off of my camera case to use as fill for the sides of the case. The Hennessey strap came with a ready sewn belt loop so it was a simple matter of sewing all of the pieces together.

Easy Peasy, I used my sewing kit and artificial sinew thread , sewing the entire case with double stitches. The resulting knife case came out a little crooked but is functional and should take me and my Swiss Army Knife(SAK) down the trail a mile or two.

Tomahawk - Scouts Out!

Dumpster Dived Solar Oven

I just wanted to share a short video on my Dumpster Dived Solar oven. Last week when Matt and me were doing a bit of DD behind a circle K store, we uncovered a roll of clear packing tape, some Mylar wrapping and later on a postal service flat rate shipping box. I was able to bang out a solar cooker in a few minutes using these materials. In this video I am cooking brown rice and lentils with dried onions. It took about 2 hours to cook these ingredients until done. I added Kosher salt, A salsa verde packet from MREs, a dash of Olive Oil and some Vienna sausages I scored compliments of an Illegal alien "Lay up site". All in all it was a tasty meal.

Tomahawk - Scouts Out!

Tomahawk on the trail

On the trail in the Huachucas last week.

Tomahawk - scouts out!

Tomahawk and his new Hennessey

Just showing off my new Hennessey expedition Hammock given to me by my good friend "Old Pappy" and the under quilt gifted to me by Jeff Ramey.

Thanks again Fellas!! Im in need of a day pack if anyone out there has one to sell or trade lemme know please!

Tomahawk - scouts out!

Alpen glow in the Huachucas

Alpen glow on cerro Tomahawk in the Huachucas. Just thought you might like to see it.

Tomahawk - Scouts Out!

Large Larva

This Larva was crawling across the trail on a cool Huachuca morning. I dont know what kind it is but it is colored like a Sacropia moth. If anyone knows what type is is lemme know please.

Thanks,

Tomahawk - Scouts Out!

P.S. my friend John says they taste like chicken..........

Small Lizard on the trail

I saw this Lizard on the trail the other day. I have since learned that it is a Pine Lizard. Thanks John Simmons for the info!!

See you on the trail!

Tomahawk - Scouts Out!

Book Rewiew - "At play in the fields of the Lord"

"At play in the fields of the Lord" by Peter Matthiessen is a pretty good book and I would recommend it as a take along book for an adventurer. I read this book the other day when I was out on the Mountain. I really like the characters in this story especially "Wolfie" and "Lewis Moon". They are a couple of American adventurers stranded in south America because their American passports have been revoked in abstentia for joining foreign armies etc.

Both are raging alcoholics, womanizers and yarn spinners - kinda reminds me of me. There are some excellent descriptions by "Wolfie" about his friend "Lewis Moon".

From page 63 in the book; "I dont know why I even tollerate this mad man, you know it?" " There is this kind of very way out cat - like you run into him all over the world, and each time he dissapears, but always I know Im going to run into him again, because the guy is on the road, he's always on the road, and hes got nine lives and nine names and nine faces."


From page 65 in the book; "He got up in them rivers and got hold of a big haul of them river diamonds some way, and that was all the stake he needed. He bummed around this continent on foot - like one little knap sack. Even the handle of his razor is sawed off; it fits inta a match box, for Christs sake!" "He learned long ago to travel light and he never gave up the habit; he don't own nothin' he don't want to."

From page 66 in the book; "He don't belong nowhere,hes like a house cat somebody runs out on, you know, like turns out at the edge of some woods: He don't belong where he comes from and he don't belong where he is, so he keeps moving, and soon hes a wild animal that you don't never tame again."

These descriptions of Lewis bear a startling verisimilitude to my own life thus far, on my trail into the unknown.

I was able to download this movie last night also and watched it. About half way through the film I started packing my bag for a trip to Amazonia but remembered that like "Lewis" and "Wolfie" my passport has also been revoked by the state department. Damn! I should have never taken that repatriation loan in Bangkok!

Rest assured, that once my Passport has been restored, Im hitting the trail for parts unknown.

If you find the time to read this book and/Or watch this movie, Im sure you will enjoy it as much as I did.

See you on the trail.

Tomahawk - Scouts Out!

Movie Info:

At Play in the Fields of the Lord (1991) is a drama film directed by Héctor Babenco adapted from the 1965 novel of the same name by American author Peter Matthiessen. The screenplay was written by Babenco and Jean-Claude Carrière. The 3-hour, 9-minute story stars Kathy Bates, Daryl Hannah, Tom Berenger, Aidan Quinn, John Lithgow and Tom Waits.

Plot:

A pair of Americans, Lewis Moon and Wolf, become stranded in Mãe de Deus (Portuguese: Mother of God), an outpost in the deep Brazilian Amazon River basin, after their plane runs out of fuel.

The local police comandante wants the Niaruna tribe, living upriver, to move their village so they won't be killed by gold miners moving into the area and cause trouble for him with the provincial government. The commandante cuts a deal with Moon: if he and his fellow mercenary would bomb the Niaruna village from the air and drive them away, they will be given enough gasoline for their airplane to be allowed to leave.

Born-again Christian evangelist (and missionary) Martin Quarrier and his wife Hazel arrive with their son Billy, here to spread the Christian gospel to the primitive Niaruna indigenous natives. They arrive in Mãe de Deus to meet fellow missionaries Leslie and Andy Huben, who live with a civilized Niaruna helper. In town, they meet a Catholic priest who wants to re-establish a mission to the Niarunas, as the former missionary was killed by them.

Moon and Wolf leave in their plane to attack the Niaruna. But upon seeing the community with his own eyes as well as an Indian firing an arrow at the plane, Moon has second thoughts. The plane returns to Mãe de Deus.

That night, after a discussion with Wolf, Quarrier and the priest, Moon takes an Indian drug and becomes hallucinatory. He takes off alone in his plane and parachutes into the Niaruna village. Moon, a half-Native American Cheyenne, aligns himself with the Niarunas. He is accepted as "Kisu-Mu", one of the Niaruna gods, and begins to adapt to Niaruna life and culture.

The four evangelicals travel upriver to establish their mission. Indians originally converted by the Catholics turn up, awaiting the arrival of the Niaruna. Eventually they do come and accept the gifts that the Quarriers offer, not staying long.

Young Billy dies of blackwater fever, causing Hazel to lose her sanity. She is returned to Mãe de Deus. Martin becomes despondent, arguing with Leslie and gradually losing his faith.

Moon encounters Andy swimming nude. After they kiss, Moon catches her cold. He returns to the Niaruna camp and inadvertently infects everyone there. Much of the tribe becomes sick. Moon and the tribe's leaders go to the missionary Leslie to beg for drugs.

Leslie refuses, but Martin agrees to provide the drugs. He travels to the Niaruna village with the missionaries' young helper. In the village, after Martin speaks with Moon, helicopters arrive to begin bombing. Martin is killed by his civilized helper. Moon is exposed not as a god but as a man. He runs, ending up alone.

Tomahawks dumpster dived/home made knife sheath

I just wanted to show you all the sheath I made for my Bubba Pharris "Mad Trapper" Knife. I dug a leather purse out of the dumpster behind the good will store and salvaged a piece of leather suitable for this sheath.

Using the Sharpie brand marker I usually carry in my pack, I drew out the basic shape that I wanted for this sheath and then cut it out along with a welt with the scissors from my sewing kit.

Next I chewed a crease in the leather to make it lie better when I punched the holes in the leather. Using my swiss army knife awl, I punched out all of the holes in both the welt and main sheath piece.

Taking one of the smaller needles from my sewing kit and some artificial sinew thread I sewed it up using a double stitch then a wrap stitch. Next I used the knife to cut out the belt loop .

The entire process took less than an hour. I purposely left a hole in the tip end of the sheath for a tie down thong. I will also add a braided brain tanned buck skin lanyard as soon as I can find it in my junk cached at my friend Matts house.

I hope you like the simplicity of this type of sheath as much as I do.

Tomahawk - Scouts Out!