At Home in the Wilderness

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The sides of the mountain man but can be built up (that is, filled in) with either rocks or logs—and here's where the going gets muddy. Start by preparing a muck pit: I find that two parts thick mud to one part dried grass provides a good general-purpose mortar. When the mud is ready, mound up a row of it on the ground where the first sidewall is to go, then press the first log (or the first row of large rocks) firmly into the mortar. Now spread another layer of mortar along the top of the log (or rocks) you just put in place, and lay on the second log (or the second layer of rocks) . . . and so on until both sides of the but are enclosed all the way to the roof. Because of the triangular shape of the sides, the logs (or rows of rock) will get shorter as the walls rise.

If you're siding with rock, the walls will be stronger if they're made thickest at their bases, narrowing as they rise. If you're siding with logs, stack them up and mortar them in place snugly against the outsides of the upright support poles—then pound a second row of uprights into the ground just outside the horizontal logs so that each wall is sandwiched between two rows of uprights.

Finally, coat the exterior and interior walls with a heavy layer of mud to seal any cracks . . . and pack it at least six inches thick on top of the roof to provide weatherproofing and insulation. (If you build your but in the spring or early summer and cover its mud top with a few inches of loose soil, the roof will probably grow a matting of grass and weeds, increasing its durability significantly.)

A mud shelter will require several days to dry thoroughly, depending on the weather. Surprisingly, though, rain doesn't seem to slow the drying process to any extent or to wash away much of the mud.

HUT HEAT

A covering for the open front of the mountain man but can be fashioned by suspending animal hides from the top of the opening—or you can enclose most of the front with mud and logs or rock, then make a sturdy door for the remaining opening by lashing together several large saplings or small logs cut to length. (If you have no tools, you can "cut" logs by burning them in a campfire at the desired point of separation, then hacking at the charred wood with a large, sharp-edged rock.)

To take care of your heating and cooking needs, you can use rocks and mortar to construct a fireplace and chimney—which can be built on either the outside or the inside of the structure. An external fireplace necessitates cutting a hole through one wall at floor level, while an internal fireplace takes up living space and requires cutting a hole in the roof for the chimney.

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