Pinelands woodland survival seminar on June 18

[Pinetones]

From the June 2 Asbury Park Press:

http://www.app.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2009906020347

Also:

http://www.nj.gov/pinelands/images/pdf files/press/PR_PinelandsSpeakerSeries2009.pdf

I know the event organizers would love a good turnout.

 

[PINEY MIKE]

Hey, wonder how much we can learn here without paying the $900 for one of Brown's week long classes. Always wished I could afford to take one, but just can't swing it anytime soon. Love his books and for anyone on this site who doesn't know of Tom Brown Jr, his knowledge of nature, survival, and wisdom of the pines is unyielding. You should really pick up some of his work if you haven't read any. I've heard his Survival School is awesome. Thanks for the info, as I'll definately try to attend. Will Tom be at the event?

 

[46er]

I was out near the old home place near Wells Mills on Saturday and one of Brown's vans full of folks and towing a trailer passed by. He used to take up all the parking spots in Wells Mills, I guess somebody said something. Its a very popular program he runs, but personally, I think a person is a bit off to pay that kind of money.

 

[46er]

Hey, wonder how much we can learn here without paying the $900 for one of Brown's week long classes. Always wished I could afford to take one, but just can't swing it anytime soon. Love his books and for anyone on this site who doesn't know of Tom Brown Jr, his knowledge of nature, survival, and wisdom of the pines is unyielding. You should really pick up some of his work if you haven't read any. I've heard his Survival School is awesome. Thanks for the info, as I'll definately try to attend. Will Tom be at the event?

When I was a Scout troop leader, we had him give the kids a presentation. I wasn't that impressed. I think Les Stroud has it all over Brown.

 

[Boyd]

I'm sure that you could learn a lot from a course like that, but how many "survival skills" do you really need in the pines today in 2009?

1. turn on cell phone
2. call 911?



Seriously, aside from that, if you can just manage to move in more-or-less a straight line you will cross a road within a mile or so from anyplace I can think of. I had to chuckle a little about "the remote Forked River Mountains area" mention in that article. Sure, I love FRM too and it does feel "remote". But it really isn't, and I have gotten a strong 3g internet connection on my iPhone just about everywhere I've wandered in that area.

 

[PINEY MIKE]

Hey, you never know when catastrophe will strike and skills like this will payoff. Besides, I think its pretty damn interesting learning how to live off the land. Tom can also look at a track, tell you the animal, gender, weight and height, the direction it was looking, whether or not its stomach was full, and get the time the track was made to within 15 minutes. Thats pretty f-ing amazing in my book. He can also look at a human track and get details down to whether a person was chewing on something like gum. I doubt anyone else in our parts is that good. He was taught by an old Apache (if im correct) Indian.

 

[46er]

Mike, I have this aging bridge I can give you a good price on Do some checking around and you will find no proof of Brown's claims, both Rick and his grandfather have passed on. Even his brother does not confirm the stories, other than he knew Rick and his grandfather. Save your money, IMO that's all he's interested in.

 

[PINEY MIKE]

Mike, I have this aging bridge I can give you a good price on Do some checking around and you will find no proof of Brown's claims, both Rick and his grandfather have passed on. Even his brother does not confirm the stories, other than he knew Rick and his grandfather. Save your money, IMO that's all he's interested in.

I've always wanted to ask Tom where his money goes if I ever met him. He always looks like he's homeless, but is bringing in a bankload. I hear where you're coming from, but still think he's untouchable in the field. Have you read his work? You can't just fabricate the fieldwork this guy does. He's also a personal friend of someone I know so I've heard a lot of interesting things on him.

 

[46er]

He used to do work for the police until someone he 'tracked' for them turned out to be the wrong person. Both he and the police dept he was working for were sued for $15 million.

You should stop by their NJ office, its in Waretown in Waretown Plaza next to the tatoo shop. The van I saw last Saturday was apparently headed out to their primitive camp. They also teach at the Lighthouse Center, Citta Scout reservation and out rt 70 near Olga's.

I'll try and dig up a link about his credentials.

 

[PINEY MIKE]

He used to do work for the police until someone he 'tracked' for them turned out to be the wrong person. Both he and the police dept he was working for were sued for $15 million.

You should stop by their NJ office, its in Waretown in Waretown Plaza next to the tatoo shop. The van I saw last Saturday was apparently headed out to their primitive camp. They also teach at the Lighthouse Center, Citta Scout reservation and out rt 70 near Olga's.

I'll try and dig up a link about his credentials.

Yah. They have that little place on 9. They go into the woods to the camp for about a week at a time to learn various skills depending on the class being taken. I'd be interested if you can dig some more info up on Brown. The prices are definatley way up there, but I always thought it'd be cool. He used to do a camp up in Asbury, NJ too (not Asbury Park). Thanks.

 

[BlueMoonMuskrat]

$900? that is insane. you can learn plenty of survival skills and whatnot for FREE right here on the good old internets.

 

[46er]

I'd be interested if you can dig some more info up on Brown. He used to do a camp up in Asbury, NJ too (not Asbury Park). Thanks.

Here is a link to a site that looks into fraud regarding native American activites.

http://www.newagefraud.org/smf/index.php?topic=390.0

Brown was born in Toms River, grew up in Beachwood and lived in Asbury Hunterdon County. I heard he is now a private investigator

Save your money, if you were a scout you already know what you need.

 

[PINEY MIKE]

.

 

[PINEY MIKE]

Thanks for the link 46er, but those guys are just bs-ing on a forum like ours. It does make me wonder a little and sets up some good questions. Thanks again. Id like to read some of that book mentioned in the post where they said Tom got his knowledge from.

 

[46er]

You should try and get to hear Brown speak and ask some questions to decide for yourself.

A friend of mine from Jackson WY spends each warm season in the Thorofare region of Yellowstone, one of the, if not the, remotest places in the lower 48, coming out only to resupply. She does not go by horseback, but hikes in. Why she does this I don't fathom, perhaps some personal reasons or ancestral beliefs, but in no way is she a kook. She is not a survivalist, uses modern camping gear, and works in Jackson during the winter to fund her summers. She is descended from Cherokee and looked into Brown and came to the same conclusion others have.

Brown has written quite a few articles on what his school teaches for Mother Earth News that were posted on the web, might be able to Google them.

 

[manumuskin]

I took Tom's standard course back in 86 when it was 400 bucks.I was not impressed.He is quite the civilized chain smoker and I don't mean out of a clay pipe.he puffs marlboro all day long.He was in quite good shape them,he lifted out by the barn off and on all day.steel york weights of course.by the way he has had at least one student thrown out of class for questioning him too closely about who Rick was like what was his last name.I used to worship the guy in my younger days but have come to the conclusion his story is BS with a capital B.His bow drill technique sucks and I could not get fire with it the way he taught it.Theirs a much better design put out by rob chatburn that works wonderfully,the chatburn notch it's called.thinner drill,more squared off and a different shaped notch.I've run into Tom in the Barrens at oyster creek,a place he calls the maze.he was chain smoking there too giving the dirt bikes dirty looks.can't blame him there.He does teach some decnet skills but where he got them from I could only guess.I'd check larry Dean Olson before I'd go looking for some apache.By the way when I was at his class on the way back from a tracking session i climbed into an oak tree ahead of everyone else.tom and everyone else walked under me in the fading twilight and no one looked up,not even Tom.i later got poison ivy for my pains.in the daylight later i seen the vines all up the tree i didn't see in the dark.maybe he knew i was there and laughed inside knowing what i was in for but something tells me his inner vision failed him that night and if i was a cougar he'd of been supper.
Also the day i seen him at oyster creek me and a friend were earlier snoopin around his camp on forked river.where was his vision to tell him there were a couple of tresspassers in the swamp only a couple miles from him?I think the spirits were asleep that day.
now some of his skills are great.the body camo he uses is awesome and he is pretty good at tracking and stalking or was before he contracted lyme's,(shoulda felt the evil juju in that tick) but his shamanism has got to go.running through a bed of dry scrub oak leaves without making a sound?come on!tracking an ant across leaves?the BS is coming thicker and faster all the time.
just an ex brownie turned realist.
Al

 

[46er]

His bow drill technique sucks and I could not get fire with it the way he taught it.Theirs a much better design put out by rob chatburn that works wonderfully,the chatburn notch it's called.thinner drill,more squared off and a different shaped notch.
Al

Ever try a 'fire piston'. Saw it used once and bought one, the clear variety. Amazing. I use it at times just to entertain myself.

 

[PINEY MIKE]

OK.. maybe now Im a little skeptical, but I've also heard stories from many pleased students and trained professionals. From what I've gathered, there is no third party to get info on his claims because Rick and "Grandfather" are both dead (or ceased to exist from what some will tell you). Either way, there doesn't seem to be many facts from either side on Tom's past so I just gotta take the guy for who he is, regardless of where he learned his stuff.. I think he's a great tracker and woodsman. He never really claimed to live off the land all the time, so smoking butts and stuff doesn't really have much to do with anything here. I've read on another website that he learned his skills from the Society of Primitive Technology. If you go to their website they actually promote his school and courses under their name. Interesting stuff.

 

[woodjin]

He has been discussed here before, in some detail. I have read his books, and found his claims way beyond that of belief. After having spent so much time in the pines, his claims and experience are brought much further into question. I would consider his books fiction- based on (maybe) some fact of real life experience. It is entertaining once you accept he is an egomaniac and can look past it.

Jeff

 

[PINEY MIKE]

Thanks Jeff, but I cant find the previous thread where he was dicussed. I tried a search and got only this thread.