The view of the town of Svidnik from my office, although more snow has fallen again since then. This Winter is really dragging on. Freezing temperatures, permanent grey sky. Happy happy joy joy…. I’m supposed to be writing an article for the Spring issue of Bushcraft Magazine but there’s no sign whatsoever of Spring. Then […]

I really thought we’d get away with a mild winter this year and thus didn’t bother switching off my water. After seeing this week’s forecast, with temperatures dropping below minus 20, we headed out to the house to switch everything off and drain the pipes. It never saves everything – there’s always the odd tap […]

Last week a friend of mine was telling me about some ghost footage he’d seen online and asked if, when I was doing my ghost hunting several years back, I had ever seen one. I showed him a copy of Carpathian Ghost Hunter but the photo I’d wanted to use as an example looked terrible […]

I really didn’t think I would paint this year but after seeing a stunning abstract in a restaurant the other day I was inspired to do one. It’s acrylic, rather than my usual oil, and the canvas is 100 by 70cm. It’s entitled “Only Natural”. I hadn’t planned on doing so but maybe I’ll think […]

Today I fulfilled an ambition I’ve had for several years – to get a tattoo of Mr Benn. He has been a great inspiration to how I live my life. Sadly, he is a neglected aspect of my childhood as, compared to modern cartoons, the artists who drew him were graphically challenged (and animatorily challenged). […]

We spent the Christmas/New Year holidays at the house. When we arrived the inside temperature was 3 degrees Centigrade but slowly, and with a great deal of wood burning, we managed to get it up to a livable temperature. Unfortunately, we didn’t have the extreme winter like we did last year- we only had snow […]

This weekend we decided to have a break, leave the kids at home to fend for themselves, and go visit our our old friend Jana at her pension, Tatranska Krcma (formerly Polsky Krcma) in Horny Smokovec in the High Tatra Mountains, Slovakia. We were only there a few months back by motorbike but we just […]

This issue of The Bushcraft Magazine is a particularly special one for me. Not only does it feature my latest true horror story from the woods (The Beast Beyond The Door), but it also has my latest article – Biker Bushcraft (a crossover between two activities I’m very passionate about, both of which go very […]

On Monday 27th November I appeared on Slovak Television’s STV2 Ahoj Slovensko programme. The reportage concerned my Skin on Skin exhibition in Bardejov. The programme may be watched HERE. Just make sure to choose the correct date from the calendar on the left hand side. My bit starts at 16:40 minutes. Many thanks to Peter […]

Last night, my wife and I went to Presov to an informal drinks-and-chat with His Excellency the British Ambassador to Slovakia, Andrew Garth, arranged by the Honorary Consul, Simon Lambourne. The do was held at Double Tiffany’s restaurant (which I would heartily not recommend), and a handful of other ex-pats and their wives attended. The […]