Skip to main content

Bush Smarts: Gear for the modern outdoorsman

Camping gear maker Bush Smarts is bringing back the art of bushcraft. We’re talking carving spoons out of wood and starting fires without matches. “We want to reconnect people to the ancient heritage of connecting with nature,” says Kevin Sterling, co-founder of the New York-based company. “We want them to enjoy their precious time in the woods, learn how to identify birds, cook some good food and sit around the fire with a nip of whiskey—in our flask.”

After working for Eastern Mountain Sports, Sterling and John Davison launched Bush Smarts in November 2012. Along with their very first product, a titanium line thrower called the Bear Star, they now offer more than 70 handmade goods for camping. Sterling talked to The Manual about putting a modern spin on bushcraft and offered tips for newbie campers.

Have you been camping for a long time?

Recommended Videos

About 25 years. I was a cub scout since six or seven years old so I would camp once a month, and also go on a week-long trip with my dad every year. John’s been camping for at least 20 years–he has a standing record of camping once a month for the last three years.

How would you describe Bush Smarts?

Well, our mascot is the jackalope because it’s a mixture of two animals. And that’s how we see our company–we’re kind of a hybrid.  We’re a mixture of urban living and the outdoors. And we like to take an age-old material, like leather, and mix it with something cutting-edge like titanium or carbon fiber fabric.

What’s the story on the company’s name?

We decided on Bush Smarts because it’s reminiscent of bushcraft, which goes beyond wilderness survival. It’s not just about learning the skills and tools to get by in the woods. It’s about learning how to engage with the outdoors, to observe and then to thrive. Education is an important part of what we do. So in addition to making and selling gear, we’re interested in teaching the skills that are lost in modern times.

So how do you go about teaching those skills?

Right now, we make illustrations showing basic camp skills. On our Tumblr blog, there’s a simple black and white illustration that boils down the ingredients and process for making simple camp bread. Eventually, we’d like to make video tutorials.

Where are your products made and how involved are you with the creation process? 

Our flask, knives and axes are made in Finland, and a lot of our titanium components are cut in Ohio. Then they are all shipped to New York. A lot of our textiles and leather goods can’t simply be made with machines. We put  them together and paint them in John’s studio, where we work.  John and I pack every item and every box we send out. So we’re very hands-on. We also camp with everything we make–we don’t sell things we don’t personally use.

What kind of people buy Bush Smarts gear?

We sell to a lot of hardcore campers who are gear junkies and just want whatever’s new and exciting in the camping world. We also sell to people who are design-savvy but have never set foot off of land that isn’t pavement. Either way, it’s people who appreciate aesthetics and handcrafted good.

And which items usually catch their interest? 

People are very fond of the knife, which is made in Finland–we design and make the sheath here in New York. Also, our hand-cut suspenders definitely register with somebody who’s a conscious urbanite.

Do you have a few quick tips for first-time campers?

A pocketknife is absolutely essential. And always have some kind of illumination at night, like a headlamp. Also, invest in either lightweight wool or synthetic socks and clothing. A lot of new campers go to the woods in jeans and cotton shirts, and the headaches they can get comes from being cold and wet. So good clothing alone will give you a positive attitude.

*Bush Smarts is currently offering a 15% discount coupon for a limited time–enter MAN15 at the checkout page.

Kathleen Kim
Former Digital Trends Contributor
7 incredible shows like Black Mirror to stream next
Watch these science fiction series next
Paul Giamatti in Black Mirror

Black Mirror started its life as a niche science fiction anthology show on Netflix, but the British series expanded its reach and popularity as the episodes started to blend into contemporary world issues more and more. It's no secret that the world we live in keeps getting scarier, whether that be due to the upheaval in politics or the uncertainty of artificial intelligence and climate change altering our world forever. Good TV's ability to mirror real life makes it culturally relevant, and it leaves fans craving even more of it.

With fans waiting patiently to find out if Black Mirror season 8 will be greenlit at Netflix, there are several alternatives that you can check out after finishing season 7. Not all of these series are as daring about social issues or crafted in the same way as Black Mirror, but all of them have the same sci-fi principles that make the storytelling unique. These are the best shows like Black Mirror to stream next.

Read more
One of the newest movies on Netflix is from an action movie master
Havoc is the ideal movie for anyone hankering for more John Wick.
Tom Hardy in Havoc

Not every movie on Netflix is worth your time, but the streaming service definitely makes plenty of movies that are worth seeking out. Havoc, which hit the streamer on Friday, is one such movie, and part of the reason it's worth seeking out is the extraordinary talent both in front of and behind the camera.

Directed by Gareth Edwards, the movie follows a detective who must track down a politician's son in the aftermath of a drug deal gone wrong. As he climbs deeper and deeper into the criminal underworld, he begins to appreciate just how much corruption he's facing and kills a lot of people along the way.

Read more
A Miami Vice remake is coming from the director of Top Gun: Maverick
Kosinski will next direct F1 with Brad Pitt
Don Johnson and Philip Michael Thomas in Miami Vice.

Miami Vice is coming back to the big screen. Almost 20 years after Michael Mann adapted the '80s series to the big screen, Joseph Kosinski is set to direct a new adaptation of the film. Universal Pictures will produce the film, which is being adapted by Dan Gilroy.

Plot details for the movie are not yet available, but the original series follows a pair of detectives who work undercover in South Florida. Mann was involved in both the original series and the first theatrical adaptation, which starred Colin Farrell and Jamie Foxx. That movie was a box office bomb and received mixed reviews at the time, but has since become something of a cult film in certain circles.

Read more