Michael Ridge

My #hairbrush is a #porcupine #tail the underside of the porcupine tail is bristle and has been traditionally used as a hairbrush for a very long time. Next winter i should pull out some horsehair and beads to make this fancier. For now i just wanted to increase the function. This style handle is much easier to work with because the bristles lay in veritcle direction so this brush cannot be used like a conventional hairbrush. #hairbrush #relic

Holy hides are the LEAST sacred. Neck shots and hand peeling is the best way to not only take the skill to the next level but provide increased value down the line. Majority of my skins are donated with no garuntee theyre worth the effort. Reminds me of the orcs of middle earth. #hidetanning #animalskinning #buckskin #deerskin

Replying to @James Jampot Potter buckskin hoodie is fully painted with natual pigments and im loving it. The recipe of authentic autonomy is food, clothing, shelter and travel. Im proud to say ive learned those things well enough to share both with function and beauty. #buckskinhoodie #hidetanning #buckskin #horseprints #horsenomad

Replying to @Mike too far? Not far enough? Today I performed surgery on my pants and turned the toughest piece of crotch leather into a coin purse. I Can make anything out of a good piece of the leather lol.. #coinpurse #leather #leathercraft #buckskin

Wintercamping is always successful when frostbite took no limbs and you still have all your belongings! I dont own much but what little i do have facilitates my comfort living outside year round. I guess im a lil “outdoorsy” my whole wintercamp fints in totes and barrels and will sit cached while i saddle up and chase the horizon on my ponies #spring2024 #camping #tipicamp #wintercamping #horsenomad #livingnomadic #travel

My blanket forte. Forevercamping with horses moving round the mountains. Im moving out today and breaking down my tipi tomorrow. Still fixing saddles and have yet to weld borium to my horseshoes. Will be out of here as soon as those are done. Epic country this season. #camping #horsecamp #nomadlife #blanketfort #livingoutside

Discussing traditional food systems. This is just the tip of the iceberg of what i can tell you about the traditional food systems of original creation. Maintaining habitat in the ecosystems is our lifeline of prosperity that all life depends on which does not exclude human habitat. Human beings are a keystone species afterall. #wildfood #plantingseason #nativeplants #enviornmentalist

The garden of eatin used to be everywhere until this country was established in the name of god. Think about that! Sometimes remnants exist on private lands and the native habitat is what maintains a functional existence on the planet. Time for some give after many generations of take. #wildlands #privatelands #gardenofeden #habitat

Get your sleep right! I always sleep deep and wake feeling rested. I use a self inflating thermarest and my wool sleeve LIVES on my matress unless im washing it. You always carry a patch kit. I take every precaution to care for my bed. And can usually sqeeze a few years out of them through everyday use. My last one got a hole I couldn’t find and the military wool blanket ive used as a sleeve was literally deteriorating. Every year is some sort of repair or replacement. #bed #thermarest #campbed #sleepingcomfortably

Introductions. Mustang horses and mules really are best equipped for constant work. Not every horse can do it. For years i rode a rough string and somehow made it through nighmares and day terrors to finally have a crew of solid critters. I cannot express enough how much safety and security comes from solid horses. #horsenomad #introductions #myhorses #packmule

Semi nomadic lifestyle. My truck will sit parked in a safe place with my wintercamp items while the horses and i clip clop to someplace new. We kinda move like an inch worm like if horses and me are the head that find a place for the wintercamp to catch up.. just inching all over the map 😂 #springrideout #wintercamping #nomadic #travelers

Replying to @o try your best to not need a vet. Never leave loose ends, always double check your knots and never pretend everything is alright when you hear a bump in the night. My horses are my litteral world. They carry me into the world and keep me comfortable in the middle of nowhere all the time year after year. They come first. #horseback #horsevet #horsebacknomad #endurancehorse

Horseshoes with borium hardfacing takes your horses hooves from dangerous to lethal. My knee carries a scar from such an occasion. No doubt about the worth of adding grip to horseshoes though. Pavement is slick and invites a loaded horse to pull a muscle or worse. Every tiny detail makes a world of difference in sustainability and longevity for LIVING on horseback. Id rather claim more risk and danger than put that risk and danger on my horses. Danger is always pearched and ready so it best to give yourself every advantage. Ive found minimizing human error will in turn minimize horse injuries. #horseshoe #farrier #boriumhorseshoes #horses #shod

Today i had to cut more firewood while the weather is somewhat cooperative. Ponderosa is not my preferred firewood because it does not put off much heat. However sap filled limbs make up for the lack of BTU’s. Sometime this month i anticpate tearing down my tipi and erecting a small canvas shelter with an open fire as i prepare to ride out into another season of horseback travels. #wintercamping #firewood #fatwood #horsecamping #Outdoors

Camping through the winter is not joke. Its very important to think ahead when setting up because once winter sets in you can’t change your mind. Ive dealt with worse in past winters. One of the worst floods I’ve endured was in 2020 and fortunately i had a raised floor on pallets which saved my butt. I try to strike a balance between effort and energy expenditure and saftey and comfort.. i like dialing my movements to a fine point and sometimes do more work than necessary snd other times not enough. Im stubborn and like to ride that fine line. Ive never had to abandon ship #wintercamping #tipi #wintercamp #nomad

How to make a pair of buckskin moccasins. This is plains style. Maybe a slight variation of plains style moccasins. I double layered my souls for extra life. Moccasins do not last me very long.. its kinda the nature of footware. Between weight compression and foot dragging they waste away. So it best to wear them in the dry summer on non compacted ground. Thats my plan for these because i dont plan to make snother pair. Ive gone through as much as 5 pairs of moccasins in one seasons lol. #howto #moccasins #buckskin #smoketan #deerleather #makingmoccasins

All the best foods from meat, greens, roots, berries, nuts and fruit. Each season provides but everywhere is different. Different ecosystems will have you follow different patterns to stay in food. The traditional food systems play a great importance in the function of healthy ecosystems. Some places sre incredibly in-tact and others in remnants. As i travel, im keeping track of these things while expanding my education. All while maintaining a relatively comfortable life full time on horses. Pretty fun! My personal consumption and storage of wild food fluctuates because everywhere is different in season and abundance while i have to keep moving to obey the laws. Year to year, month to month, week to week and day to day i have to be flexible to the circumstances. #wildfood #nativefood #eatwild #godscreation #godscountry

#greenscreenvideo turns out IM THE STUBBORN MULE. Horses/mules communicate in the only way they know how. Through body laguage and action. I had alot to reflect on watching this piece of travel footage from last season in the strawberry wilderness. #stubbornmule #packmule #horsenomad #ponderings

Life’s a garden. My nomadic horseback travels are exclusive to the west where the wild foods are most in tact. My journey is centered around living and moving in reciprocity with the world we live in by aknowledging, participating and reciprocating what the orginal lanscape was. Human habitat still exists and its pretty cool to know stuff about the lands we live in. #horsebacknomad #wildfood #feraldiet #ferallife #nativefood #wildroots