This past week I was walking through the woods in hopes of finding a water spring. As beautiful as the woods can be, it can provide obstacles such as spider webs, briars, saplings, and low lying branches. A walking stick can be helpful as mentioned in a previous article “Walking Sticks And Staffs” but on this particular walk I took a slightly different approach.

I have found it helpful to hold a short stick at an upward angle in front of me similar to a bowsprit on a boat to catch invisible spider webs before they reach my face! In preparation for my walk I picked up a small stick off of the ground that had a “Y” branch at it’s tip and found it very useful for pushing aside various obstacles. This made my traverse through the woods much easier. The nice thing about a “Y” stick is that it can be easily fashioned from found recources on the forest floor. I find that a 2 -3 foot length works very well.

Next time that you take a stroll through the woods, pick up a “Y’ stick and try it out for yourself… I think that you’ll be pleased at the asset of this simple tool that will make your travel much easier for a more enjoyable journey.