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The TEAM
The Bearclaw Bushcraft instructional team is a highly trained and experienced group of individuals from all over the world with far ranging skills - skills which encompass survival and bushcraft as well as natural history in its many forms. As such all the instructions, lectures and demo's given by them are second to none and of the highest standards available today.
The LOCATIONS
We currently run courses in three highly distinctive and unique locations.
Our primary site in the United Kingdom is a fantastic piece of un-spoilt ancient woodland where deer and squirrels abound among the bracken undergrowth and sun bathed clearings of the Essex countryside. Being located conveniently close to all major forms of transportation feeding London our site is ideal for all our bush crafting needs as well as offering easy access and safe parking to our guests and visitors and as such is an ideal place for you to begin to hone your own newly acquired wilderness living skills to perfection.
Our second site is located in the exquisitely beautiful Swedish wilderness county of Värmland, a county and a country famous for its mighty lakes and majestic forests of birch, pine and spruce in whose shaded glades wolf, bear, lynx, and wolverine can still be found as well as the magnificent and noble king of the forest, the mighty Elk.
And thirdly we have access to our own uninhabited Scottish island, a place of rugged beauty. One of the last truly wild places left in the UK. Here you can be surrounded by wildlife, sea life and the bounty of a clean coastal environment that's perfect for the forager.
The Instructors
Gary Wale,
Born in Essex Gary spent much of his formative years exploring the verdant nooks and crannies of Epping Forest (a place where he can often be found today) during which time his love for the outdoors was born. Wanting to broaden his horizons and experience, his wanderlust quickly lead him into HM forces where he served with distinction for 15 years, a time in which he was able to explore and train in some of the worlds most remote and wild regions. Highly trained in military survival skills Gary once lead a six man team which was involved in a 'real' survival episode where, cut off from re-supply in the storm and snow swept mountains of eastern Europe, they were forced to hunt and forage for food and water to sustain themselves and their comrades until help finally arrived and they were then happily able to extract themselves, none the worse for wear, having survived for over two weeks alone in subzero temperatures without any casualties.
Upon leaving the army Gary, went on to study under and then assist in the instruction of Bushcraft with Ray Mears and the Woodlore team here in the UK. A exciting period in which he had the pleasure of working with some of Britain's most noted figures before finally evolving the unique skills and philosophies that have grown to become Bearclaw Bushcraft.
Since those early days Gary has gone on to study and learn new bushcraft skills and attitudes from all over the world while constantly reviewing and renewing the core values of Bearclaw Bushcraft and its exciting curriculum, this is a life times journey which means the skills taught by Bearclaw aren't just rehashed skills learnt on someone else's course but are skills which have been lived and put into practice for real.
Through these adventures Gary now proudly has friends among the first nation people of North America and the Lappish Sámi in Northern Finland not to mention noted Scandinavian outdoorsmen and some of bushcrafts most noted figures such as Australia's foremost outdoors man Bob Cooper and Sweden's granddaddy of all things bushcraft and survival Preben Mortensen.
 Jon-Paul
(JP) Lamoureux.
JP also
hails from Essex where he spent his childhood exploring the
counties many and varied fields and woodlands. His love of
the outdoors first blossomed upon joining the cubs and then
scouts followed by the army cadet force. JP was lucky enough
to be, at this time, taken under the wing of a local game
keeper who passed on many nuggets of lore as well as teaching
him traditional skills such as how to ferret, shoot and trap
– skills he still practises to this day. His broad knowledge
of bushcraft and wilderness living techniques and has travelled
extensively across the hotter climes of the planet, spending
time in the rainforests of Borneo, Sarawak and Sri Lanka studying
both native Bushcraft skills and collecting data for the Natural
History museum, national geographic and arachnological books
and videos. JP is also one of the uk's leading Tarantula experts.
With a passion for green wood working he is a confirmed spoon
carving addict with a passion for teaching and talking to
others about the wonders of bushcraft, wilderness living and
the natural world.
 Johan Forsberg.
Johan is the founder of Nordic Bushcraft one of Bearclaws sister companies. He started Nordic Bushcraft with Bearclaw Bushcraft, his aim to make Access to the nature of Sweden more easily available to the British bushcrafter, thus was started the Vildmark course. A course that now has an international student base.
Johan is one of the main instructors on all the Bearclaw Swedish courses as well as being a keen member of the Swedish National guard, his most recently adventure being a rigorous Arctic survival course putting him in good stead to teach on the challenging Winter WEISS course.
Johan grew up in the Swedish countryside and has since childhood been out discovering Sweden's wonderful nature. As a child he found nature his home; but the nature was only a playground for him in those days, since then it has slowly become more and more valuable to him.
Despite all the knowledge he now has about nature he says he often still feels like a student in Mother Nature's arms and is always looking for new knowledge and skills to learn particularly from the Sami people.
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