Tomahawk in the Amazon - Letecia, Tabatinga, Santa rosa and Iquitos

Vanessa and Tomahawk on the mekong in Cambodia

it was a good day. We took the ferry across the Mekong from Phnom Penh, Had some lunch and a few drinks. I knida miss SE Asia now....................

Tomahawk

Fishing in Thailand

Here are a few pics from fishing expeditions in Thailand and laos

See you on the trail!

Tomahawk

The Apache poison arrow

 
A small number of  American Indian tribes made use of the Poisoned Arrow in hunting and war, notably the Apache, Navajo, Paiute and the Diegueno Indians of California. But this was not a common practice. American Indians were very skilled with the bow and arrow which made any enhancement unnecessary.

The poisoned arrow would have been used on a special enemy or perhaps on a great bear like the Grizzly. In my research, I have found that  the San bushman of the Kalahari desert used poison arrows daily. I believe they are the only native peoples in the world to use this technique consistently and as part of their way of life.


Making a Poisoned Arrow:

The poison used by the Apaches for their arrows was obtained from rattle snakes and extracts from various poisonous plants, deer gall bladder bile was another component used in poison arrow making. To obtain venom from a rattlesnake, the reptile was irritated until it repeatedly struck a piece spoiled meat or liver held on a stick, impregnating it with its toxin. The tips of arrows or blowgun darts were then dipped into the poisoned meat.

Making a Poisoned Arrow - Poison from Plants:
 
Extracts from poisonous plants were also used to make poison arrows. Different plants included extracts from yew bark or needles, dog bane, hemlock,Golden Poppy, Bloodroot and nightshade. The Apache applied a poison mix of deer gall, snake venom, and plant extracts to their arrow heads and allowed them to dry before use. The more applications the stronger the poison. Some Native Americans also used the juice from the roots of false hellebore and corn lily. This liquid would be applied to arrow tips before heading out on the war trail.

The Poisoned Arrow - Storing the Poison:
 
If additional poison was carried on the war trail it was stored in clay containers that were carried in the bottom of the warriors quiver. If  more poison arrows were needed the poison could be added at the time the arrow would be used. Apache warriors were able to make one shot with an arrow every 3-4 seconds to an effective range of about 200 yards.

Cameraman John Mans

Cameramen impress me. The guy who filmed my in Chile` during the DYS shoot  is John Mans based out of Colorado. John is an Emmy award winning cameraman and has a lot of TV shows to his credit.

When the chopper  dropped us off on Corcovado, and we began up and out of the cordillera, all I was carrying was a golf bag, John - who isnt much younger than me, was humping a pack that would have made a pack mules asshole cut washers. And, all the while operating 3 cameras and a go pro for stills. He is an impressive guy.

You can read more about John on his website at - http://www.johnmans.com/ . I can say with 100% certainty and honesty that if I would ever do a TV show again, I would like to have John mans as the dude doing the filming.

See you on the trail!

Tomahawk

The "Jing Hawk" in Cebu

Several years ago my jungle "survival buddy" Jing in Cebu, stumbled across this cool little tomahawk made by a local blacksmith in Cebu, Philippines.  I dig it, this little hawk can pack a wallop and is light weight, easily concealable, and has a super cool factor. Jing has lovingly carried it and cared for it for many years and Im not sure but I think he might even sleep with it in town......

Tomahawk

Carabao (water buffalo) jaw bone Tomahawk

Last fall when I was in Cebu, Philippines, killing time and hanging out with my Bushcraft friends at Camp red, I stumbled onto a shop on Mango street that had some cool old historic items in it. One of which was a carabao (water buffalo) jaw bone "tomahawk". I have seen similar ones made in the USA from a donkey or horse jaw bone.

I suppose tribal warriors all over the world can see the value of a weapon weapon like this. It would definitely cleave a skull if needed.

See you on the trail!

Tomahawk

The Tomahawk - by Snake Blocker

The TOMAHAWK
By Snake Blocker
Lipan Apache Tribe of Texas

Any serious martial artist, survivalists, fighter, law enforcer, security officer, or self defense practitioner must add a level of knowledge of the tomahawk along their journey in life.  Many versions of the tomahawk have been around since the first people in ‘time-in-memorial.’  The tomahawk (hawk) is merely a tool.  Its use is determined by the hand, or hands that wield it.  For a survivalist, it can cut timber to feed a fire.  It can chop a tree to build shelter.  It can cut the limbs of a trophy Elk to transport section by section back to base camp.  For a martial artist, it can defeat a larger opponent, or several larger opponents. 

 

For Ted Bundy, it aided in providing more than one human meal.  The tomahawk is neither savvy, nor cunning.  It is neither righteous, nor wrong.  Its fate is in the use, or misuse of its holder.  Its fear-factor is in the eye of its beholder or receiver.  I can write a volume of books on the many uses of the mighty tomahawk, but no need to state the obvious applications.  If you aim to learn self defense, you must learn the tomahawk, because violence has been around since Cain killed Able.  You can learn the way of the tomahawk from thousands of teachers (some self proclaimed) around the world… but why travel, when you can flip the pages of a tomahawk book (or watch a video), and get an idea of the variations that surround this tool.  No one teacher has all the answers, nor all the drills, exercises, forms, or tactics that encapsulate the hawk, therefore, learn from the respected instructors, then battle-test what works for you.

What worked for Goyathlay (Geronimo) may not work for you, my warrior friend.  What works for you, may not work for Justin Beaver.  Everyone must take a drill and make adaptations to meet their own individual skill set and limitations.  Everyone has a different range of motion; a different arm length; different wrist strength; a different walking/running gait; different mobility, and a different speed.  Add a variety of tomahawk books and videos to your library of weapons and you will be leaps ahead of the average Joe.  The hawk, like the knife, has always been around, and it is not going away.  Most assaults around the world are not the result of firearms, but rather a result of hand held weapons, which include: knives, sticks, clubs, bats, and tomahawks.  No great library is complete without including some material to cover this topic.

I lived in the Middle East for over 3 years and I saw tomahawks in Kuwait, Iraq, and Afghanistan.  I lived in Los Angeles for over 30 years and the tomahawk was among the street gangs as well.  My friend Shark was with a group of new friends that invited him to a restaurant club on the weekend.  This group was what many would consider the ‘nerdy’ group.   Shortly after they arrived, there was a confrontation with these ‘nerds’ and some slightly intoxicated ‘cool’ guys over something meaningless, so one of the ‘nerds’ pulled out two compact tomahawks from of his back (under his jacket) and he was ‘ready to rumble.’  The ‘cool’ guys didn’t feel so ‘cool’ anymore and ran outside to ‘cool off.’ 

 

At the Apache reservations I visited, most household had tomahawks in their living space. I spent a couple weeks at Firebase Chamkani when I lived in Afghanistan.  A few weeks after I left this base, the local village across the street from the base brought in two family members that had just been attacked by the Taliban.  The Taliban had taken a tomahawk and chopped the two men up and down, then left for dead because they had good relations with the US Army base.  One man still had the tomahawk lodged into his spine which got stuck.  He was pronounced dead on arrival (DOA).  The second man was still breathing.  My buddy was there at the time.  While the US Army medics were trying to save the 2nd guy, the DOA guy with the tomahawk in his back came back to life.  They tried to keep him alive but he had lost too much blood and died a second time after a few minutes.  I have heard many more tomahawk stories over the years and it does not surprise me to hear about them.  Military troops in almost every country around the world still carry tomahawks or other wielding weapons in similar size.

Learn what you can of the hawk.  Learn its ways--for its ways are many.  The tomahawk can be made from stone,bone, metal, plastic, wood, or composite.  Regardless of the material it is forged from or assembled from, you must always respect the hawk!  I carry one in my car, in my house, and in my studio.  The hooking power and blunt force produced from a hawk can be fatal.  Use only the force necessary in any situation. 

 

Avoid conflict as much as humanly possible but when no other options are available, you must use the hawk my friend—to serve and protect.    I started researching Apache Knife Fighting & Battle Tactics from various Apache tribal members around 1993.  I taught my first of many seminars on the topic in 1995 and I've been teaching since then.  A few years after I began teaching, there have been many others that came around and began to teach. 

 

They teach what they know (or think they know) on such topics.  I learn more every year and continue to add to the Apache History books.  Like the cunning Apache Raven, continue to learn from both the past and the present.  Enjoy your journey!

 

Snake Blocker