American Hunting: Starting with Solitary Life in the Wilderness

Chapter 38 Upgrading the Shelter
On the shores of Lake Chirko, autumn is in full swing. Although the sun still has a hint of warmth, the temperature has dropped significantly.

The temperature hovers between 5°C and 12°C. It's fine to stand in the sun, but once you enter the shade of the forest or feel a mountain breeze, you can clearly feel the coolness.

The once lush and green reed beds along the lake and streams have mostly lost their verdant color, turning into a continuous expanse of withered yellow.

The reed flowers at the top of the reeds have become exceptionally fluffy, and some have already eagerly scattered their mature seeds with the wind, foreshadowing another cycle of life.

Lin Yu'an stood outside the stone shelter, feeling the slightly chilly air. He needed to improve the shelter's cold resistance in advance.

"Hey, good morning. It's getting colder and colder. The temperature at night has already dropped below freezing."

"Although my shelter is sturdy, there is still a lot of room for improvement in terms of insulation."

He walked to the lakeside, his gaze falling on the withered reeds not far away. He broke off a dry reed stalk and examined it carefully.

"These reeds may look like ordinary weeds in the summer, but they are treasures now."

He pointed to the reeds and said, "These reeds are excellent materials for upgrading my shelter! I've decided to use them to upgrade my shelter."

But whatever you're making, you'll definitely need a lot of rope for binding and weaving.

"Although paracord is useful, the amount I brought is limited, so I must use it sparingly in the most critical places."

"Fortunately, nature is never stingy with its gifts. It provides us with many natural materials that can replace modern tools."

"For example, the inner bark fibers of these willow trees behind me are an excellent choice for making ropes."

“It’s mid to late September now, so the bark is tighter and harder to peel, but if you use the right methods, you can still get high-quality bast fibers.”

Lin Yu'an used the blade of a multi-functional knife to make two circular cuts at each end of the selected willow trunk.

"The two ring cuts should be made deep enough to cut through the bark. Then, between the two ring cuts, make a straight line vertically. This way, the bark can be peeled off relatively completely."

"Although the bark of willow trees is not as easy to peel in autumn as it is in spring, it is still possible to peel it off with a little effort."

Soon after, a large piece of willow bark with a light green inner layer peeled off the trunk, emitting the distinctive slightly astringent aroma of willow.

After collecting a sufficient amount of willow bark, Lin Yu'an returned to the camp and began to process it meticulously.

"The dark, rough bark you see now is the outer bark of the willow tree. Its fibers are relatively short and not very tough, so it is not what we are looking for to make ropes."

"What we need is the soft yet tough inner layer beneath it, also called the phloem; that's where the essence lies."

After scraping off the outer skin, he put these pliable inner strips into a clay pot, placed it on a stove, added enough stream water, and kept the water warm.

"Soaking in warm water helps soften the fibers, making them easier to separate, and also removes some impurities and natural gums from the bark."

“In traditional rope-making processes, this soaking and fermentation process can take many days,”

"Given the limited resources, we boil the water in hot water and soak it for several hours, then physically beat it to speed up the process."

Once the inner skin has fully absorbed water and softened, I take it out and place it on a flat stone slab, then pick up a short, thick wooden stick.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!" The wooden stick struck the damp bark with a dull thud.

"The purpose of this hammering is to make those tough fiber bundles easier to separate."

He pounded the bark strips while rotating them to ensure that every inch was pounded evenly.

After being pounded for a long time, the originally intact inner strip became loose, revealing strands of light white, coarse hemp fibers inside.

He squeezed a handful of damp fiber in his hand and showed it to the camera.

"Look, these are the raw materials we use to make ropes; they are very strong."

"Just separate these fiber bundles into small strands and let them dry slowly by the campfire."

During this time, I will collect the reeds.

Lin Yu'an did not bring a camera. After cutting down the reeds where they were growing, he used his spatial ability to transport them back to the shelter and began to tidy them up carefully.

Remove excess leaves from the reed stalks, leaving only smooth stems.

He carefully collected the reeds as a reserve for tinder.

When the willow fiber bundles are mostly dry but still retain just the right amount of flexibility, the work of collecting and processing the reeds is almost complete.

Lin Yu'an began his core rope-making work. He sat cross-legged, with a pile of pale yellow fiber bundles in front of him.

He took a small strand of willow fiber, moistened the end, and said to the camera, "Moisture increases friction, making it easier to knead."

Place the fiber bundle on your thigh, press your right palm flat on the middle section, and push forward while rubbing.

Each push carries a rotating force, forcing the fibers to entangle with each other.

"The key to this technique is to continuously rub in one direction while maintaining pressure."

"As you rub your hands together, the fibers become firmer and gradually form a spiral single-strand rope."

"This single-strand rope, as long as it is twisted tightly enough, is perfectly adequate for everyday binding."

When the fiber bundle is almost exhausted, he will take new fibers and overlap them with the end of the old rope by several centimeters.

"When connecting, overlap the joint more and rub it with more force to ensure a tight bond."

This process took a long time, but Lin Yu'an finally accumulated a sufficient number of willow bark ropes.

He picked up the sorted and processed reed stalks and laid them out parallel to each other on the ground.

Two slightly thicker reed stalks are used as "warp" with a distance of about one meter between them, and another reed stalk is used as "weft" with them placed horizontally on top of each other.

Use willow bark rope to secure the connection points at both ends of the warp and weft threads.

"After securing each reed, push the one in front of you tightly to ensure the reed mat is dense enough for good insulation."

He wove two reed mats of the same size and carefully sealed the edges with willow bark rope.

"The reed mattress layer is complete! Laying it on the bed frame will effectively insulate against the cold and prevent moisture."

"Next, the largest part of the project is the 'reed insulation lining' for these stone walls."

Lin Yu'an picked up a bundle of thick reeds and started weaving again. This time, the "reed board" was larger and thicker.

Before long, two thick reed boards were formed.

He first spread a reed board on the ground, then sprinkled a layer of dry moss and fine pine needles, about two or three centimeters thick.

"These are natural insulation materials that can form an air gap to prevent heat loss."

After laying the filling material, he covered it with another layer of reed boards, pressing the two layers together tightly with the filling material in the middle.

Next, he used willow bark rope to tie several layers of the reed board in a crisscrossing manner.

Each layer is stretched very tightly, firmly pressing and fixing the two layers together to form a thick and elastic sandwich reed insulation board.

He wove sturdy rope loops with thick willow bark rope at the four corners and the middle of the edges of each panel for later wall fixing.

"Alright, the insulation lining is finished. Next is the installation."

Lin Yu'an picked up the dozens of sharp wooden wedges that he had previously carved with a hard wooden stick.

"Although this stone wall is sturdy, there are still gaps between the stones that can be exploited."

He walked to a stone wall, found a suitable gap, aligned the tip of the wooden wedge with it, and used the thick back of the axe as a hammer to drive the wooden wedge firmly into the wall.

"Thump! Thump!" The dull thumping echoed inside the stone house. The wooden wedges were driven deep into the cracks in the stone, firmly wedged into the wall.

Once enough wooden wedges were laid on the wall, Lin Yu'an moved the prepared reed insulation board to the front of the wall, lifted it with great effort, and made it flat and adhere it to the cold stone surface.

Then, thread the thick willow bark rope through the rope loops along the edge of the lining board, repeatedly wrap it around the protruding wooden wedges on the wall, and finally tie an anti-slip knot.

Based on the experience he gained that day, he made more reed boards.

After two days of hard work, the interior of the stone house shelter has been completely transformed.

The bed was covered with a thick, flat reed mattress, and a tightly fitted curtain covered the wooden door. The originally cold and rough interior walls were now covered with a thick layer of reeds.

"Alright, guys, the shelter has undergone a complete insulation upgrade, and there are no problems with it now."

"Now we can focus all our efforts on stockpiling food and fuel for the coming harsh winter!"

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(End of this chapter)