A Debris Shelter

After his guest had left and his belly was full, Gonyaul set about collecting some materials to bring with him to his campsite. From the farm he took a hatchet, small saw and pick axe; tools which weren't really in need at the moment due to winter. He didn't need them to build his new winter shelter; however, they would make things go so much faster.

He packed a small dinner, changed out of his nice clothes and put on his now "work clothes", and then packed those new clothes just in case he wanted to change later. He made sure everything was settled at his place and double checked if any responsibilities on the farm were still in need of attention. Satisfied with the state of things, he took off towards the forest.

Upon arriving he set to work with precision and focus. He had the entire walk there to come up with a master plan that he was now swiftly implementing. He would leave his treetop shelter in place; however, he thought it best to make a Debris Shelter on the forest floor with a 90 degree orientation to the prevailing wind flow. He deemed this shelter very appropriate for the materials he had at his disposal.

Gonyaul was fortunate that the tree directly under his treetop hammock was also going to be suitable for his needs for this winter shelter. He used the saw and hatchet to begin collecting and preparing branches into poles. He set up the ridge pole, making sure to "dress it" (removing any protruding limbs). Next, he placed one end of the ridge pole on the notched insertion point he carved out tree's trunk and rested the other end on the ground. The insertion point on the ground was made sturdy using rocks and earth to act like an interlocking puzzle piece.

Then, Gonyaul gathered any debris in the immediate vicinity, ranging from small limbs to small logs which he then leaned against the ridge pole in order to create a hollow cavity beneath it. The thin layer of debris served to block some wind and some rain; however, he would continue to add subsequent thicker layers on top in order to make the shelter warm and dry. He also made sure to utilize any dry leaves from the ground and incorporated them into the shelter to provide additional insulation.

Due to the river bed being nearby, there was also a plethora of rocks at hand. He also used these materials in the fabrication of the shelter. The rocks were stacked on the inside to create "walls" using a technique called free stacking without the use of mortar. The wall was low and would help to protect from any wind that was able to slip by the outer layers. To take it one step further, in case the weather turned very cold, Gonyaul compressed grass and mud into small balls and stuffed them into the spaces between the rocks.

With the structure complete, Gonyaul took the pickaxe and cleared the interior floor. He dug down just a few inches and leveled it out. He also dug a Gonyaul-sized tunnel from the interior to the east facing exterior; one of the more time consuming tasks. He buttressed it with stone and sticks, effectively making an escape route in case he needed to get out without using the front door. He made sure to conceal the exit point.

Next, he covered the floor with more debris, grass, or any moss like material that he could find to make a suitable bedding of insultation beneath him, because a lot of heat can be siphoned off through the ground. He then took the hatchet one last time and spliced branches into very thin strips. These strips were then used in the construction of a very slightly raised bed frame. This way he wouldn't be actually on the ground, but about half an inch above it. He also kept the smaller pieces, because he could use then later for the door and door interior locking latch.

At this point he took a break and quickly ate his dinner. Then got back to work creating a door. When all was said and done, from a distance it looked like a hill of earth and debris. Not till you got closer at any angle facing towards the front entrance, which was next to the tree trunk and only really visible from the northwest, would you begin to recognize it was a shelter.

It was getting late, so he cleaned up everything he could. Then crawled inside and placed the hatchet, saw, and pickaxe off to the side; tomorrow after he made a stone firepit he would head back to the farm to return them. But because it wasn't ready yet, it was going to be a colder night for now and his cloak would have to be enough.

As the sun was beginning to set, he practiced his martial arts which transitioned into meditation. He reflected particularly on the day's events prior to coming to his camp. It was dark by the time he crawled into his debris shelter, closed the front door, secured the little latch so someone couldn't just open it with a normal pull and ventured off into dreams.