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Richard and Joan Urata are producing this issue of SPALLS with contributions from Jim Keffer. Please contact Richard Urata for questions, comments and future additions to SPALLS. SPALLS Distribution Many of the PSK knappers with only snail-mail address are not receiving SPALLS. For those of you that are receiving SPALLS via e-mail, please notify these snail-mail knappers to send a payment of $5.00 for 2010 to Richard Urata, P. O. Box 1089, Hamilton, Montana 59840. Year 2010 subscription is due at this time THE POLICY IS: If you send your e-mail address, your snail-mail address and phone number to Richard Urata at HYPERLINK mailto:richurata@cybernet1.com richurata@cybernet1.com there is no charge for SPALLS. If you do not have an e-mail address and want SPALLS by snail-mail, you must send $5.00 to cover the cost of printing and postage. If you have an e-mail address and did not receive SPALLS in April, e-mail your address to Richard Urata. I have from 5 to 10 “not deliverable” messages at this time. I need some updates! SPAM PROTECTION: Several of our subscribers have not been getting the SPALLS issue via e-mail. Please check your SPAM protection. I think that some of your SPAM protection is eliminating the SPALLS message. One of the checks for SPAM is the number of multiple issues from the sender. If your protection checks this, the SPALLS message will be tagged as SPAM. In some cases, the message is only tagged. In others, the message is deleted. Subscribers to “hotmail”, some of the hotmail accounts bounce SPALLS because of server space. Be sure to empty your server often. NEXT SPALLS ISSUE: The next SPALLS issue will be in July, 2010. Weather’s great, go to the knap-ins! COMING EVENTS: 9th Annual Goldendale Knap-In, Goldendale, Washington, May 13 thru 16. Ed and Loretta Thomas will again be hosting their ninth Annual Knap-In at "Thomas Hollow", near Goldendale, WA. from Thursday afternoon through Sunday afternoon. Their property lies about 5 miles East of Goldendale. This will be their 8th Annual K/I at this location and 9th overall. There is a "walk-through" Archery Range about their property that contains 15 targets and, possibly, a new moving target. Really great for stretching after sitting and Knapping for awhile, also quite relaxing! The usual fun games will be going on, such as Goat Rock events, etc. There will be a fund raising Auction and a Raffle to help cover expenses, as we did in past years. There will be a hand-washing facility and Sani-Cans available. Those folks wishing to camp can do so on the property, as there is plenty of room Saturday evening will be the Salmon BBQ. The Thomas Family will provide the Salmon and cooking. Everything else will be Potluck! So, bring something along for this meal. Sunday morning will be a Pancake and Egg Fritata breakfast provided by the Thomas Family. Everything else for breakfast is to be Potluck. Due to the possibility of changing our residence in the future, this could likely be our last K/I at this location. Ed and Loretta have moved all of their rock material to an area near the K/I shelters. They need to downsize quite a bit and will have materials to sell in bulk, or by the 5 gallon bucket load. Pricing will be good. DIRECTIONS: Goldendale, WA, is on Hwy 97 in S. Central Washington approximately 70 miles S. of Yakima and 12 miles N. of Biggs, OR (on the Columbia River). Exit Hwy 97 at the N. Exit into Goldendale. Travel S. about 2-1/2 blocks on Broadway to Bickleton Hwy Exit on left (East). There is an AIMEE’S ATTIC store sign at this intersection. Turn East, under Hwy 97 and travel approx. 4-1/2 miles to intersection of Willis Rd (on the Rt.). Across from Willis Rd is Pumphouse Rd (new Pumphouse Road sign on post at corner). Turn N. on to Pumphouse Rd and travel approx. 1/2 mile to intersection of Rocky Ridge Rd on the left. Turn left to Rocky Ridge Rd and go to 2nd driveway on left (about 1/3rd mile). This is the place. Signs will be posted for the K/I at intersections! Please observe 15 MPH speed limit on Pumphouse and Rocky Ridge Roads! Please note; Dealers and Vendors absolutely must contact the hosts for permission to participate. This has to be done by May 1st for authorization to attend! For more information, contact: Ed and Loretta Thomas, 40 Rocky Ridge Road, Goldendale, WA 98620, (509)773-6461, e-mail: feather@gorge.net Sixth Annual Western Oregon Knap-In, Illahee Flats, Oregon, May 29 thru June 6. Jim Hopper and Brad Baughman will be hosting the Sixth Annual Western Oregon Knap-In at Illahee Flats, Oregon from May 29 through June 6. There is no charge for camping and porta potties will be provided. There is plenty of room for any type of vehicle parking and camping. Illahee Flats is a traditional abo gathering area, so bring your tarps so we don’t contaminate the area with modern debitage. Also, bring your knapping chairs. Bring your fishing rods. There are several good lakes close by as well as the river. Dry Creek Store is only 2 miles away and has gas and a deli. Directions: From I-5, take highway 138 east (towards Diamond Lake/Crater Lake ) to mp 47 at Dry Creek Store. Go just past Dry Creek Store (200 feet east of store), and turn left (north) on a gravel forest service road. Go about 2 miles, then turn to the right at the Illahee Flats sign. For more information, contact: Brad Baughman at (541) 705-5034, (541) 296-5845 or e-mail: HYPERLINK "mailto:bbb7707@yahoo.com" bbb7707@yahoo.com Fort Knapadonia Knap-In, Whidbey Island, Washington, (DATE TENTATIVE) August 16 through 22. Joe Higgins will host the Fort Knapadonia Knap-In in August. He promises to have a full schedule of events – archery target shoots, 2-inch Goat, 10-speed, etc, etc, and don’t forget – making arrowheads and blades. There will be water available, electricity, port-a-potty, and lots of room for camping and RVing. Women are welcomed! There are plenty of garage sales and stores for shopping. (DATE TENTATIVE) You are welcomed there as early as Monday, August 16, with most of the activities on 20, 21 and 22. (Last year the salmon run was as expected, super run. The attendees ate BBQ salmon every night. Lots of limit catches. They also had Dungeness crab on Sunday!!!) The salmon run is predicted to be poor this year but the knapping will be fantastic!! Directions: To get to the knap-in - drive north past Seattle about 70 miles on Interstate 5. Take the 230 off-ramp to highway 20 and go west toward Anacortes. Take highway 20 turn off to Deception Pass. Go past Deception Pass about 2 miles and turn right (west) on Banta Road. Follow the signs from Banta Road to the knap-in. There are stores and restaurants/fast foods in the area. Contact Joe Higgins at (360) 720-1076 or (360) 675-4943 for more information on fishing and the knap-in. Moses Lake Knap-In, Moses Lake , Washington, September 3, 4, 5 and 6 The knap-in will be held on Labor Day Weekend at Ken and Adele Calvert’s place in Moses Lake, Washington. Plenty of grass with room for all types of camping – tents, trailers and trucks. Ken’s property is located on the lake front and they say that the lake has all kinds of fish. There will be a potluck on Sunday afternoon so bring some goodies to share. If we are real lucky - and if Adele can get it done - she we will also make homemade ice cream. Lots of activities for the Ladies – garage sales, farmers market, thrift stores, etc.. Directions: To get there, take interstate 90 off ramp 179 and go north on highway 17 toward Soap Lake. Stay on highway 17 until mile post 59. You will see a gravel pit on your left. Turn left after the gravel pit onto McConihe Road. Stay on McConihe Road for several miles and turn left onto “D 5” road. Go to end of the road and turn left. You will see a Knap-in sign about 100 yards down on the right of the road. Turn right onto Ken’s property. If you miss “D 5” road stay on McConihe Road (Stay on the pavement) and it will circle around and will pass Ken’s property. Look for the Knap-in sign on your right. Ken’s address is 4535 Road 6.5 N.E. For more information, call Ken at (509) 762-2454 or his cell at (509) 855-2226. 14th Annual (Pre) Thanksgiving Knap-In, Millersylvania State Park, near Olympia Washington. November 6 and 7, 2010. Always scheduled on the first Saturday and Sunday of November each year. Join Mick and Holly Hill, hosts of the annual November knap-in. This gathering began with the idea of putting closure to the year, reflecting on the fun gatherings and campouts that happened thru the year(s). It is our knappers’ time to give thanks and be grateful, and then look forward to the holidays with our own families. Park opens at 8 a.m. and closes at dusk, 5 p.m. Kitchen #1 is a log cabin that includes an area with fireplace heat and extra lighting set up for flintknapping. There is also a kitchen area with wood stove to plan the potluck. We have electricity but usually no running water. (This means, “Pack it in-Pack it out.” We don’t do dishes….) Part of the cabin is open to the weather elements and can’t be closed off. It can be cold! The park rangers also leave a bathroom unlocked near the cabin for our use and for extra drinking water if needed. The potluck thanksgiving dinner will be served by 1 p.m. on Saturday only. Mick and Holly provide coffee, fresh baked turkey and some traditional thanksgiving dishes. Bring a potluck dish, camp stool or lawn chair, and plan to wear warm clothes and boots for the mud, sometimes rainy weather. Bring a blanket for your chair if you need more warmth. Pack a project to work on or share as show-n-tell if you are not flintknapping. Some may camp and stay thru Sunday. If camping, expect to follow state park rules and provide payment for a camp site. There is a warm bathroom w/plumbing and coin operated hot showers available. You may want to check the website at HYPERLINK "http://www.parks.wa.gov"www.parks.wa.gov, select Millersylvania, to consider reservations. We meet again Sunday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Holly will flip breakfast pancakes and later make grilled cheese for what becomes a reduced number of knappers. This is a good time for learning from others with more experience if you are new to knapping. Directions: From North or South, take I-5 to Exit 95. Follow signs to the park entrance. Look for Kitchen #1. Park in the first parking lot on left, near the entrance of the park. Access to Kitchen #1 is by walking a path thru the woods. We will have 2 wheelbarrows to shuttle your flintknapping supplies from your vehicle to the cabin. Watch for others that may be trying to find our cabin! It gets confusing to new visitors. If necessary, there is a back road access to drive/assist those who don’t hike or to deliver the extra big load. Park rangers want to limit our driving thru their back roads. For more info, contact Mick or Holly Hill, 360-493-8439 or e-mail: HYPERLINK "mailto:hollyhill54@gmail.com"hollyhill54@gmail.com, HYPERLINK "mailto:michaelhill30@gmail.com"michaelhill30@gmail.com. Bakersfield Monthly Knap-In, Bakersfield, California (This is not a PSK Event) A monthly knap-in is held on the first Sunday of every month. The one-day event goes from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm at the Hart Memorial Park. The park is eight miles northeast of Bakersfield on the Alfred Harrell Highway. Knappers meet at the East end of the park. Directions: While on highway 58, east of Bakersfield, take the Comanche exit and turn to the north. Comanche curves around 5 to 6 miles and dead ends into highway 178. Turn north on 178 (right) then a quick left (less then 1/4 mile) onto Alfred Harrell highway. Alfred Harrell 7-8 miles goes into Hart Park. The knap-in is 100 yards or so from the entrance on the right hand side of the park. For more information contact Gary Pickett at: Home: (661) 392-7729, Cell: (661) 444-6163, e-mail: HYPERLINK "mailto:air-o-head@webtv.net"air-o-head@webtv.net. REPORTS: Winter Break/Cabin Fever Knap-In, Seattle, Washington, Saturday, January 30 By Jim Keffer Another fine (although somewhat small) gathering of Flint Knappers at the Cabin Fever Knap-in held in Granite Fall, WA. For pictures, go to this link - depress the control key and click on the link or cut and paste it into your browser – once in the album click on the thumbnails to get larger pictures: HYPERLINK "http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=18117&id=100000039134217&l=acfbc42243" http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=18117&id=100000039134217&l=acfbc42243 Glass Butte Gathering, Glass Butte, Oregon, March 20 through March 28 By Joan and Richard Urata This is one of the first knap-ins in the west and has been on annually for years. However, it was my first trip to the Glass Buttes Knap-In. (I call it the Frozen Knap-In.) Stuart Murdock and I did three separate day-trips to the knap-in. (Poor Stu drove all three days) The temperature was tolerable during the days, low 40’s to low 60’s, but it was pretty cold at night. I guess the ‘regulars’ like it that way. On the first day, a ‘regular’ told me that it was 10 degrees during the night before our first visit – too cold for me. As we drove up to the knapping area the site reminded me of the Alaska gold mining camps that I see in pictures. This is the first time I’ve seen white tents with stove pipes protruding out of the tents – just like the pictures. What a site! There were two main knapping areas, with 5 to 10 knappers at different times in each area. Some knappers also knapped by themselves by their tents. We estimated about 65 knappers. Not all the knappers were at one place at one time. Lots of them were out during all times of the day digging for different varieties of obsidian and dacite. Lots of materials were brought in and used during the knap-in. I was glad to meet a bunch of super knappers, all from the Northwest part of the U.S. Lots of these knappers are equal to or better than the knappers in the mid U.S. Their names are not well known. Maybe we should do a publication of the knappers in the Western States? I was surprised to see a bunch of women having their own get together ‘doing their thing’ such as knitting, felting, etc. They even had their own large tent to gather in. I thought that this knap-in was the ‘real abo-type’ knap-in and very few women attended. I was wrong. Maybe Joan will go to it next year if weather permits. There were a bunch of new knappers from the University that were majoring in archeology. I was glad to see them here, getting some ‘hands on’ information rather than only reading previous books that were sometimes incorrect. There were more teachers than students. There was an archery range set up with lots of use. Archers also went and did some ‘stump shooting’. Our thanks to Steve Allely for taking care of the essentials. He laid out a bunch of money for the porta potties and he did some maintenance like replenishing the paper. I hope the contribution paid for all the porta potties. We were not there at night but I heard that the bag pipes were really playing. For pictures, go to this link - depress the control key and click on the link or cut and paste it into your browser browser – once in the album click on the thumbnails to get larger pictures: HYPERLINK "http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=18115&id=100000039134217&l=2719a2b5d4" http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=18115&id=100000039134217&l=2719a2b5d4 Glass Butte Gathering, Glass Butte, Oregon, March 20 through March 28 By Jim Keffer The weather was typical for the Glass Buttes Knap-in – some nights were fairly cold - 10? - 12? F, and some days fairly warm - 55? - 60? F. It snowed a little one day (same as last year) and was otherwise sunny. Glass Buttes is all about Obsidian, Knapping and having a great time with friends, both old and new. There were at least 150 people that attended the Glass Buttes Knap-in, most staying the majority of the week and many coming early. There were quite a few newbies this year and a number of ‘day-trippers’ - tourists just passing through. Nightly entertainment included Didgeridoo concerts, guitar, flute, accordion and fireworks! Daily entertainment was provided by a reserve F15 Eagle Fighter Squadron from Portland, OR. Almost daily they world fly low down through the valley and over the camp, lighting their afterburners and giving us a heck of a show. Throughout the week trips were made, usually by 4x4, to collect obsidian. Some of the pieces brought in weight in excess of 1000 lbs. Some of the obsidian collected: Midnight Lace Pumpkin/Mahogany Rainbow Silver-sheen Gold-Sheen Lizard Skin Bi-color Black Butter Dacite (gun metal gray) Other rock was also brought in from the surrounding area including: Jasper Burns Green obsidian Damascus Obsidian Oregon agate Oregon jade One of the more educational experiences was watching the spalling of large boulders of obsidian and Dacite. Whenever a rock of over 200# was brought in (and this happens frequently) a large crowd gathers to watch the Master Spaller, Emory Coons, work his magic! Arguably the best spaller of large obsidian, Emory can peel these boulders like a banana – getting the most out of the rock possible without a lapidary saw. This year Emory easily spalled 2-3 tons of obsidian including a 1000+ lb piece of Dacite, a 250 lb boulder of Black Butter, and several very large boulders of ‘Lizard Skin’ obsidian. In addition to his outstanding spalling work – the results of which provides material for anyone that wants to knap – Emory also provides free lessons and assistance to any knappers that ask . From newbies to some of the more experienced, Emory was always available to help. Other tremendous educational experiences were provided by Steve Allely, whose work is legendary. Steve also provided free instruction and help to any and all that wanted it. Steve displayed some truly amazing points, including his scarily remarkable ‘San Andreas’ points, named after the San Andreas Fault. He also display some of his authentic reproduction Native American bows and arrows, real original Ishi points and other Paleo artifacts. There were many other interesting and enjoyable experiences at Glass Buttes, but when all is said and done, if you want to learn to flint knap, find lots of knappable rock and have a great time doing it, then the Glass Buttes Knap-in is definitely the place to come! Take NOTE thought – the nearest facility is one gas station/country store 26 miles a way and the nearest town is Burns, OR, 40+ miles away. With the exception of Rock, Porta-Potties and some knapping tools, you’ll have to bring whatever you need to survive the week. The Glass Buttes area of Eastern Oregon austere to say the least! For pictures/slideshow, go to this link - depress the control key and click on the link or cut and paste it into your browser – you will start with a black screen so wait a few seconds for it to load the slideshow: HYPERLINK "http://s383.photobucket.com/albums/oo276/reefera4m/Glass%20Buttes%202010/?albumview=slideshow" http://s383.photobucket.com/albums/oo276/reefera4m/Glass%20Buttes%202010/?albumview=slideshow MAYBE OF INTEREST: Jim Smith Has Interesting T-Shirt Jim Smith wore an interesting T-shirt to a knap-in and lots of other knappers were interested in obtaining it. It has a saying ‘It was a bad rock I had to punish it’ and has a picture of a point broken in half. Design can be seen here: HYPERLINK "http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=9966&id=100000039134217&l=55e5954baa" http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=9966&id=100000039134217&l=55e5954baa Hit Ctrl and click to access link or cut and paste. Since several knappers wanted to buy it, Jim decided to have some made and has gone throught the process of finding a T-shirt supplier/printer. He has them on sale for $11.00 plus shipping. For more information, contact Jim at: HYPERLINK "mailto:dvsmith39@yahoo.com" dvsmith39@yahoo.com Website for Artifact and Archeological Books This website has Artifact and Archeological Books and Videos for sale. Go to: HYPERLINK http://www.hothemhouse.com/ http://www.hothemhouse.com/ . TARP There is a flint forum where knappers can participate by posting and reading messages and/or going into the chat room. It may be of interest as knapping information is passed back and forth via messages. It is called TARP – you know, the thing you put on the ground to collect the debitage. HYPERLINK http://www.egroups.com/group/thetarp http://www.egroups.com/group/thetarp . Knappers-R-Us Here’s another e-group for knappers: HYPERLINK http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Knappers-R-Us/ http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Knappers-R-Us/ Flintknappers Digest Another Egroup called flintknapper’s Digest: HYPERLINK http://groups.yahoo.com/group/flintknappingdigest/ http://groups.yahoo.com/group/flintknappingdigest/ Lithic Casting Lab For anyone who wants to replicate certain styles of points (Flake patterns, thickness, convexity, length, and width), you can purchase castings of artifacts from Lithic Casting Lab. HYPERLINK http://www.lithiccastinglab.com/ http://www.lithiccastinglab.com/ Paleo Planet Primitive Technology discussions, including flintknapping. HYPERLINK "http://www.PaleoPlanet.net" www.PaleoPlanet.net. SPALLS - Rich Urata Richard and Joan Urata are producing this issue of SPALLS with contributions from Jim Keffer. Please contact Richard Urata for questions, comments and future additions to SPALLS. SPALLS Distribution Many of the PSK knappers with only snail-mail address are not receiving SPALLS. For those of you that are receiving SPALLS via e-mail, please notify these snail-mail knappers to send a payment of $5.00 for 2010 to Richard Urata, P. O. Box 1089, Hamilton, Montana 59840. THE POLICY IS: If you send your e-mail address, your snail-mail address and phone number to Richard Urata. There is no charge for SPALLS. If you do not have an e-mail address and want SPALLS by snail-mail, you must send $5.00 to cover the cost of printing and postage. If you have an e-mail address and did not receive SPALLS in July, e-mail your address to Richard Urata. I have from 5 to 10 “not deliverable” messages at this time. I need some updates! SPAM PROTECTION: Several of our subscribers have not been getting the SPALLS issue via e-mail. Please check your SPAM protection. I think that some of your SPAM protection is eliminating the SPALLS message. One of the checks for SPAM is the number of multiple issues from the sender. If your protection checks this, the SPALLS message will be tagged as SPAM. In some cases, the message is only tagged. In others, the message is deleted. Subscribers to “hotmail”, some of the hotmail accounts bounce SPALLS because of server space. Be sure to empty your server often. NEXT SPALLS ISSUE: The next SPALLS issue will be in December, 2010. Weather’s great, go to the knap-ins! COMING EVENTS: Fort Knapadonia Knap-In, Whidbey Island, Washington, August 16 through 22. Joe Higgins will host the Fort Knapadonia Knap-In in August. He promises to have a full schedule of events – archery target shoots, 2-inch Goat, 10-speed, etc, etc, and don’t forget – making arrowheads and blades. There will be water available, electricity, port-a-potty, and lots of room for camping and RVing. Women are welcomed! There are plenty of garage sales and stores for shopping. You are welcomed there as early as Monday, August 16, with most of the activities on 20, 21 and 22. (Last year the salmon run was as expected, a super run. The attendees ate BBQ salmon every night. Lots of limit catches. They also had Dungeness crab on Sunday!!!) The salmon run is predicted to be poor this year but the knapping will be fantastic!! Directions: To get to the knap-in - drive north past Seattle about 70 miles on Interstate 5. Take the 230 off-ramp to highway 20 and go west toward Anacortes. Take highway 20 turn off to Deception Pass. Go past Deception Pass about 2 miles and turn right (west) on Banta Road. Follow the signs from Banta Road to the knap-in. There are stores and restaurants/fast foods in the area. Contact Joe Higgins for more information on fishing and the knap-in. Moses Lake Knap-In, Moses Lake , Washington, September 3, 4, 5 and 6 The knap-in will be held on Labor Day Weekend at Ken and Adele Calvert’s place in Moses Lake, Washington. Plenty of grass with room for all types of camping – tents, trailers and trucks. Ken’s property is located on the lake front and they say that the lake has all kinds of fish. There will be a potluck on Sunday afternoon so bring some goodies to share. If we are real lucky - and if Adele can get it done - she we will also make homemade ice cream. Lots of activities for the Ladies – garage sales, farmers market, thrift stores, etc.. Directions: To get there, take interstate 90 off ramp 179 and go north on highway 17 toward Soap Lake. Stay on highway 17 until mile post 59. You will see a gravel pit on your left. Turn left after the gravel pit onto McConihe Road. Stay on McConihe Road for several miles and turn left onto “D 5” road. Go to end of the road and turn left. You will see a Knap-in sign about 100 yards down on the right of the road. Turn right onto Ken’s property. If you miss “D 5” road stay on McConihe Road (Stay on the pavement) and it will circle around and will pass Ken’s property. Look for the Knap-in sign on your right. Ken's contact info is: 14th Annual (Pre) Thanksgiving Knap-In, Millersylvania State Park, near Olympia Washington. November 6 and 7, 2010. Always scheduled on the first Saturday and Sunday of November each year. Join Mick and Holly Hill, hosts of the annual November knap-in. This gathering began with the idea of putting closure to the year, reflecting on the fun gatherings and campouts that happened thru the year(s). It is our knappers’ time to give thanks and be grateful, and then look forward to the holidays with our own families. Park opens at 8 a.m. and closes at dusk, 5 p.m. Kitchen #1 is a log cabin that includes an area with fireplace heat and extra lighting set up for flintknapping. There is also a kitchen area with wood stove to plan the potluck. We have electricity but usually no running water. (This means, “Pack it in-Pack it out.” We don’t do dishes….) Part of the cabin is open to the weather elements and can’t be closed off. It can be cold! The park rangers also leave a bathroom unlocked near the cabin for our use and for extra drinking water if needed. The potluck thanksgiving dinner will be served by 1 p.m. on Saturday only. Mick and Holly provide coffee, fresh baked turkey and some traditional thanksgiving dishes. Bring a potluck dish, camp stool or lawn chair, and plan to wear warm clothes and boots for the mud, sometimes rainy weather. Bring a blanket for your chair if you need more warmth. Pack a project to work on or share as show-n-tell if you are not flintknapping. Some may camp and stay thru Sunday. If camping, expect to follow state park rules and provide payment for a camp site. There is a warm bathroom w/plumbing and coin operated hot showers available. You may want to check the website at HYPERLINK "http://www.parks.wa.gov"www.parks.wa.gov, select Millersylvania, to consider reservations. We meet again Sunday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Holly will flip breakfast pancakes and later make grilled cheese for what becomes a reduced number of knappers. This is a good time for learning from others with more experience if you are new to knapping. Directions: From North or South, take I-5 to Exit 95. Follow signs to the park entrance. Look for Kitchen #1. Park in the first parking lot on the left, near the entrance of the park. Access to Kitchen #1 is by walking a path thru the woods. We will have 2 wheelbarrows to shuttle your flintknapping supplies from your vehicle to the cabin. Watch for others that may be trying to find our cabin! It gets confusing to new visitors. If necessary, there is a back road access to drive/assist those who don’t hike or to deliver the extra big load. Park rangers want to limit our driving thru their back roads. For more info, contact Mick or Holly Hill,:
Bakersfield Monthly Knap-In, Bakersfield, California (This is not a PSK Event) A monthly knap-in is held on the first Sunday of every month. The one-day event goes from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm at the Hart Memorial Park. The park is eight miles northeast of Bakersfield on the Alfred Harrell Highway. Knappers meet at the East end of the park. Directions: While on highway 58, east of Bakersfield, take the Comanche exit and turn to the north. Comanche curves around 5 to 6 miles and dead ends into highway 178. Turn north on 178 (right) then a quick left (less then 1/4 mile) onto Alfred Harrell highway. Alfred Harrell 7-8 miles goes into Hart Park. The knap-in is 100 yards or so from the entrance on the right hand side of the park. For more information contact : REPORTS: 9th Annual Goldendale Knap-In, Goldendale, Washington, May 13 thru 16. By Jim Keffer Once again Ed and Loretta Thomas hosted another great Knap-in. And while this, the 9th Annual Thomas Hollow/Goldendale knap-in, will probably be Ed’s last, it was one to remember. Jim Smith and I arrived a day early to help in the set up. Since that didn’t take an entire day we managed to get in a little knapping – just to test out the accommodations. Several other knappers also couldn’t wait and arrived the evening of the 13th. The weather couldn’t have been better – temperatures reaching 75 – 80 degrees in the afternoon and cooling to 50 – 55 degree late at night. In all, twenty-five knappers plus a number of spouses and kids attended this knap-in. There was plenty of free rock to knap, generously donated by the host. Napping usually began around 8:00 am and lasted until well past dark in Ed’s well lighted pavilion. There was even more rock available for sale. Ed’s rock collecting has spanned more than a few years and includes Dolphite (an agate, named in honor of Howard Dolph of Rufus, OR), Biggs Jasper, Davis Creek Rainbow, Petrified wood and several other types of fine knappable rock. In addition to a long weekend of knapping, other activities included archery (20 target course set up in the woods of Ed’ property), bow making instruction by Alan Wattenbarger , and beadworking instruction by Warren ‘Smitty’ Smith. Saturday afternoon/evening feature the famous grilled Salmon potluck dinner – simply to die for! Sunday featured a pancake/egg frittata breakfast – Loretta’s egg frittata is out of this world! The weekend’s festivities wrapped up with the knapping of two ‘community’ points. These points, initially knapped by outstanding knapper Mick Hill, were passed around to each knapper, who in turn removed a flake or two. When finished, each contributor added his or her mark (initials, avatar, etc.) with a diamond scribe. One point went to the host, Ed Thomas, and the other was awarded by drawing number from a hat. Due to advancing age and the health challenges that accompany it, Ed has decided that this will be the last knap-in he can host. We in the Pacific Northwest are blessed with a great community of knappers. Over 300 knappers receive the Spalls, the newsletter of the Puget Sound Knappers Association. Ed Thomas, along with Joe Greenwell and Joe Higgins founded PSK a number of years ago and various members host a total of seven knap-ins throughout the year. It is due to the efforts of these individuals that knapping enjoys such popularity in the PNW. Ed Thomas’ participation and support of our community over the last 10 - 15 years has made a much of it possible. He richly deserves all of our thanks. His annual knap-in, located near the Oregon border in Central Washington, was the most central location to bring together knappers from Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana and occasionally Northern California. It has been one of cornerstones of our knapping activities . Ed and Loretta’s generosity and hard work in support of this knap-in will be difficult, if not impossible, to replace. This is one knap-in I will really miss in the future. And while Ed and Loretta may not host another knap-in, I plan to stay in touch – they are not only respected members of our knapping community but simply great people. Thanks Ed and Loretta. For photos of the knap in, hold down the ‘control key’ and press the link:: HYPERLINK "http://s383.photobucket.com/albums/oo276/reefera4m/Goldendale%20-%20Thomas%20Hollow%20Knap-in%202010/?albumview=slideshow" http://s383.photobucket.com/albums/oo276/reefera4m/Goldendale%20-%20Thomas%20Hollow%20Knap-in%202010/?albumview=slideshow Sixth Annual Western Oregon Knap-In, Illahee Flats, Oregon, May 29 thru June 6. By Jim Keffer and Joan Urata The Illahee Flats Knap-in, hosted by Brad Baughman and Jim Hopper started out with ideal knapping weather - warm, sunny and clear. Located about 48 miles from Roseburg, Oregon, Illahee Flats is a large open meadow surrounded by forest of fir, pine, oak and maple. Every day there were up to 40 elk in the far end of the flat as well as small flocks of wild turkeys. Coyotes could be heard singing at night. Brad Baughman generously provided a trailer load of obsidian including Midnight Lace, Dacite and Black Butter free for anyone/everyone that wanted to knap. A number of outstanding knappers including Brad, Jim Hopper, Emory Coons, Stu Murdock, Jim Smith and Eric Juhola attended and spent much of their time providing free instruction to the ‘newbies’ of which there were quite a few. It was not unusual to see several ‘newbies’ taking lessons from the more experienced knappers at the same time. Since I was usually too busy knapping or enjoying some of the other activities, I didn’t take a lot of photos of knappers in action. When I realized my oversight I thought I’d provide some evidence that knapping actually did occur. Just a look at the flake pile on day five would give one an ideal of the amount of knapping that took place. While the beautiful weather didn’t last past Tuesday, it didn’t dampen the spirits of those attending the knap-in. Folks in the Pacific Northwest are more than accustomed to a little rain and came prepared. There were more than enough tarps, rubber boots, rain gear and covered firewood to stay dry and warm – and to continue knapping. In addition to knapping there were several other activities folks enjoyed. Mariah Lusby, oldest daughter of Dan ‘Rocksinhead’, taught several of us how to make cordage from cedar bark. Richard Urata brought several of his finished didgeridoos as well as a bunch of Yucca and Agave stalks to make more. He explained in some detail the making of a didgeridoo and traded some of the raw stalks for some mountain ash bow wood. Richard also displayed several of his Paleo flutes made from river cane and medicine pipes made from sumac and soapstone. Several people worked on self bows on home-made shaving horses. Since there are abundance of old stumps around the camp, several of us couldn’t help but string our bows and take target practice on them. Patience and stealth are definitely required to get within range of these wily stumps! About a dozen folks took time one afternoon to brush up on their marksmanship skills with firearms ranging from .22 rifle and pistol to .45 pistol and .45-70 rifle. Two things that are a given if you attend a Pacific Northwest Knap-in – GREAT FOOD and Great Entertainment! There were three pot-luck dinners during the week featuring entrees of Chicken ‘n Dumplings, Gumbo and fresh Homemade Spaghetti. Nightly entertainment included drum music by the Lusby family, Didgeridoo by Stu Murdock, Flute by Mariah Lusby and Richard Urata and an outstanding Poetry reading by Brad Baughman! Since this article and the associated slideshow will be published in the Puget sound Knappers newsletter ‘Spalls’, I try to feature one or two notable knappers in each of my write-ups. The Illahee Knap-in features two fine knappers, Jim Hopper and Eric Juhola. For pictures of the knap-in, hold down the ‘control key’ and press the link: HYPERLINK "http://paleoplanet69529.yuku.com/reply/313235/t/Re-Illahee-Flats-Knap-in-Slideshow.html" http://paleoplanet69529.yuku.com/reply/313235/t/Re-Illahee-Flats-Knap-in-Slideshow.html and: HYPERLINK "http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=22573&id=100000039134217&l=b63c05f4ed" http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=22573&id=100000039134217&l=b63c05f4ed Pacific Northwest Knap-ins ROCK! MAYBE OF INTEREST: Website for Artifact and Archeological Books This website has Artifact and Archeological Books and Videos for sale. Go to: HYPERLINK http://www.hothemhouse.com/ http://www.hothemhouse.com/ . TARP There is a flint forum where knappers can participate by posting and reading messages and/or going into the chat room. It may be of interest as knapping information is passed back and forth via messages. It is called TARP – you know, the thing you put on the ground to collect the debitage. HYPERLINK http://www.egroups.com/group/thetarp http://www.egroups.com/group/thetarp . Knappers-R-Us Here’s another e-group for knappers: HYPERLINK http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Knappers-R-Us/ http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Knappers-R-Us/ Flintknappers Digest Another Egroup called flintknapper’s Digest: HYPERLINK http://groups.yahoo.com/group/flintknappingdigest/ http://groups.yahoo.com/group/flintknappingdigest/ Lithic Casting Lab For anyone who wants to replicate certain styles of points (Flake patterns, thickness, convexity, length, and width), you can purchase castings of artifacts from Lithic Casting Lab. HYPERLINK http://www.lithiccastinglab.com/ http://www.lithiccastinglab.com/ Paleo Planet Primitive Technology discussions, including flintknapping. HYPERLINK "http://www.PaleoPlanet.net" www.PaleoPlanet.net. SPALLS - Rich Urata
Richard and Joan Urata are producing this issue of SPALLS with contributions from Jim Keffer. Please contact Richard Urata for questions, comments and future additions to SPALLS. SPALLS Distribution Many of the PSK knappers with only snail-mail address are not receiving SPALLS. For those of you that are receiving SPALLS via e-mail, please notify these snail-mail knappers to send a payment of $5.00 for 2011 to Richard Urata, P. O. Box 1089, Hamilton, Montana 59840. Year 2010 subscription is due at this time THE POLICY IS: If you send your e-mail address, your snail-mail address and phone number to Richard Urata at HYPERLINK mailto:richurata@cybernet1.com richurata@cybernet1.com there is no charge for SPALLS. If you do not have an e-mail address and want SPALLS by snail-mail, you must send $5.00 to cover the cost of printing and postage. If you have an e-mail address and did not receive SPALLS in December, e-mail your address to Richard Urata. I have from 5 to 10 “not deliverable” messages at this time. I need some updates! SPAM PROTECTION: Several of our subscribers have not been getting the SPALLS issue via e-mail. Please check your SPAM protection. I think that some of your SPAM protection is eliminating the SPALLS message. One of the checks for SPAM is the number of multiple issues from the sender. If your protection checks this, the SPALLS message will be tagged as SPAM. In some cases, the message is only tagged. In others, the message is deleted. Subscribers to “hotmail”, some of the hotmail accounts bounce SPALLS because of server space. Be sure to empty your server often. NEXT SPALLS ISSUE: The next SPALLS issue will be in April, 2011. Weather’s great, go to the knap-ins! COMING EVENTS: 14th Annual (Pre) Thanksgiving Knap-In, Millersylvania State Park, near Olympia Washington. November 6 and 7, 2010. Always scheduled on the first Saturday and Sunday of November each year. Join Mick and Holly Hill, hosts of the annual November knap-in. This gathering began with the idea of putting closure to the year, reflecting on the fun gatherings and campouts that happened thru the year(s). It is our knappers’ time to give thanks and be grateful, and then look forward to the holidays with our own families. Park opens at 8 a.m. and closes at dusk, 5 p.m. Kitchen #1 is a log cabin that includes an area with fireplace heat and extra lighting set up for flintknapping. There is also a kitchen area with wood stove to plan the potluck. We have electricity but usually no running water. (This means, “Pack it in-Pack it out.” We don’t do dishes….) Part of the cabin is open to the weather elements and can’t be closed off. It can be cold! The park rangers also leave a bathroom unlocked near the cabin for our use and for extra drinking water if needed. The potluck thanksgiving dinner will be served by 1 p.m. on Saturday only. Mick and Holly provide coffee, fresh baked turkey and some traditional thanksgiving dishes. Bring a potluck dish, camp stool or lawn chair, and plan to wear warm clothes and boots for the mud, sometimes rainy weather. Bring a blanket for your chair if you need more warmth. Pack a project to work on or share as show-n-tell if you are not flintknapping. Some may camp and stay thru Sunday. If camping, expect to follow state park rules and provide payment for a camp site. There is a warm bathroom w/plumbing and coin operated hot showers available. You may want to check the website at HYPERLINK "http://www.parks.wa.gov"www.parks.wa.gov, select Millersylvania, to consider reservations. We meet again Sunday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Holly will flip breakfast pancakes and later make grilled cheese for what becomes a reduced number of knappers. This is a good time for learning from others with more experience if you are new to knapping. Directions: From North or South, take I-5 to Exit 95. Follow signs to the park entrance. Look for Kitchen #1. Park in the first parking lot on the left, near the entrance of the park. Access to Kitchen #1 is by walking a path thru the woods. We will have 2 wheelbarrows to shuttle your flintknapping supplies from your vehicle to the cabin. Watch for others that may be trying to find our cabin! It gets confusing to new visitors. If necessary, there is a back road access to drive/assist those who don’t hike or to deliver the extra big load. Park rangers want to limit our driving thru their back roads. For more info, contact Mick or Holly Hill, 360-493-8439 or e-mail: HYPERLINK "mailto:hollyhill54@gmail.com"hollyhill54@gmail.com, HYPERLINK "mailto:michaelhill30@gmail.com"michaelhill30@gmail.com. Winter Break/Cabin Fever Knap-In, Seattle, Washington, Saturday, January 29 Our traditional one-day Knap-In to initiate the new knapping season will be held on Saturday, January 29, hosted by Dave Pehling and Jim Dennis. The knap-in will run from 10:00 am until dark. It will be at my nephew's house in Granite Falls as he has a large walled-in workshop that we can heat and use as we like. We'll have donuts, coffee, cocoa, etc. as usual. Jim D. usually has a pot of beans or something hot going, too. We'll have the tarp set up and, if anyone wants to work on a bow, I can set up my bow-bench and tools. BYO stave or, if you let me know ahead of time, I can bring a chunk of vine maple. Directions from Everett are as follows... From I-5 at Everett, turn onto US-2 E toward SNOHOMISH.. Stay in the left lane over the trestle and merge onto WA-204 E via the ramp on the LEFT toward LAKE STEVENS. At the top of the long hill and past a couple lights, Turn LEFT onto WA-9 . Go about 1.7 miles and Turn RIGHT onto WA-92 (at the 3rd stop light) Go about 7.8 miles and Turn LEFT at the light onto JORDAN RD, just before you get into Granite Falls. Stay on Jordan, cross the Stilli river bridge, (about a mile) and take the 3rd drive (I think) on the left. I'll have a PSK sign out so you shouldn't miss it. If you go over a mile past the bridge, you've gone too far. If you need directions while driving, I'll have my cell phone on -- 425-327-8034 For more information, you can contact Dave at: djpehling@verizon.net or phone (360) 691-7902. Glass Butte Gathering, Glass Butte, Oregon, March 19 through March 27 (This is not a PSK event) Here in the Northwest it's the largest, longest, oldest, and coldest running knap-in. The term "hardcore" suddenly springs to mind. It's very aboriginal, very warm-hearted abo's in what can be a very COLD setting. I best repeat that in case you missed it - that's C-O-L-D!! (you have been warned....) Even at that I haven't missed one in a dozen + years. It's always been a "high energy / cabin fever breaker / icebreaker / start of the season" event. (couple hundred people or so..) A lot of things are always going on and it's always busy and it's always laid back (?). Also, if you have other interests in all the Seventh Annual Western Oregon Knap-In, Illahee Flats, Oregon, May 28 thru June 5. Jim Hopper and Brad Baughman will be hosting the Sixth Annual Western Oregon Knap-In at Illahee Flats, Oregon from May 29 through June 6. There is no charge for camping and porta potties will be provided. There is plenty of room for any type of vehicle parking and camping. Illahee Flats is a traditional abo gathering area, so bring your tarps so we don’t contaminate the area with modern debitage. Also, bring your knapping chairs. Bring your fishing rods. There are several good lakes close by as well as the river. Dry Creek Store is only 2 miles away and has gas and a deli. Directions: From I-5, take highway 138 east (towards Diamond Lake/Crater Lake ) to mp 47 at Dry Creek Store. Go just past Dry Creek Store (200 feet east of store), and turn left (north) on a gravel forest service road. Go about 2 miles, then turn to the right at the Illahee Flats sign. For more information, contact: Brad Baughman at (541) 459-4313, or e-mail: HYPERLINK "mailto:bbb7707@yahoo.com" bbb7707@yahoo.com Bakersfield Monthly Knap-In, Bakersfield, California (This is not a PSK Event) A monthly knap-in is held on the first Sunday of every month. The one-day event goes from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm at the Hart Memorial Park. The park is eight miles northeast of Bakersfield on the Alfred Harrell Highway. Knappers meet at the East end of the park. Directions: While on highway 58, east of Bakersfield, take the Comanche exit and turn to the north. Comanche curves around 5 to 6 miles and dead ends into highway 178. Turn north on 178 (right) then a quick left (less then 1/4 mile) onto Alfred Harrell highway. Alfred Harrell 7-8 miles goes into Hart Park. The knap-in is 100 yards or so from the entrance on the right hand side of the park. For more information contact Gary Pickett at: Home: (661) 392-7729, Cell: (661) 444-6163, e-mail: HYPERLINK "mailto:air-o-head@webtv.net"air-o-head@webtv.net. REPORTS: Knapadonia Report ?? MAYBE OF INTEREST: Website for Artifact and Archeological Books This website has Artifact and Archeological Books and Videos for sale. Go to: HYPERLINK http://www.hothemhouse.com/ http://www.hothemhouse.com/ . TARP There is a flint forum where knappers can participate by posting and reading messages and/or going into the chat room. It may be of interest as knapping information is passed back and forth via messages. It is called TARP – you know, the thing you put on the ground to collect the debitage. HYPERLINK http://www.egroups.com/group/thetarp http://www.egroups.com/group/thetarp . Knappers-R-Us Here’s another e-group for knappers: HYPERLINK http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Knappers-R-Us/ http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Knappers-R-Us/ Flintknappers Digest Another Egroup called flintknapper’s Digest: HYPERLINK http://groups.yahoo.com/group/flintknappingdigest/ http://groups.yahoo.com/group/flintknappingdigest/ Lithic Casting Lab For anyone who wants to replicate certain styles of points (Flake patterns, thickness, convexity, length, and width), you can purchase castings of artifacts from Lithic Casting Lab. HYPERLINK http://www.lithiccastinglab.com/ http://www.lithiccastinglab.com/ Paleo Planet Primitive Technology discussions, including flintknapping. HYPERLINK "http://www.PaleoPlanet.net" www.PaleoPlanet.net. SPALLS - Rich Urata SPALLS July 2010
Richard and Joan Urata are producing this issue of SPALLS with contributions from Jim Keffer. Please contact Richard Urata for questions, comments and future additions to SPALLS. SPALLS Distribution Many of the PSK knappers with only snail-mail address are not receiving SPALLS. For those of you that are receiving SPALLS via e-mail, please notify these snail-mail knappers to send a payment of $5.00 for 2010 to Richard Urata, P. O. Box 1089, Hamilton, Montana 59840. Year 2010 subscription is due at this time THE POLICY IS: If you send your e-mail address, your snail-mail address and phone number to Richard Urata at HYPERLINK mailto:richurata@cybernet1.com richurata@cybernet1.com there is no charge for SPALLS. If you do not have an e-mail address and want SPALLS by snail-mail, you must send $5.00 to cover the cost of printing and postage. If you have an e-mail address and did not receive SPALLS in July, e-mail your address to Richard Urata. I have from 5 to 10 “not deliverable” messages at this time. I need some updates! SPAM PROTECTION: Several of our subscribers have not been getting the SPALLS issue via e-mail. Please check your SPAM protection. I think that some of your SPAM protection is eliminating the SPALLS message. One of the checks for SPAM is the number of multiple issues from the sender. If your protection checks this, the SPALLS message will be tagged as SPAM. In some cases, the message is only tagged. In others, the message is deleted. Subscribers to “hotmail”, some of the hotmail accounts bounce SPALLS because of server space. Be sure to empty your server often. NEXT SPALLS ISSUE: The next SPALLS issue will be in December, 2010. Weather’s great, go to the knap-ins! COMING EVENTS: Fort Knapadonia Knap-In, Whidbey Island, Washington, August 16 through 22. Joe Higgins will host the Fort Knapadonia Knap-In in August. He promises to have a full schedule of events – archery target shoots, 2-inch Goat, 10-speed, etc, etc, and don’t forget – making arrowheads and blades. There will be water available, electricity, port-a-potty, and lots of room for camping and RVing. Women are welcomed! There are plenty of garage sales and stores for shopping. You are welcomed there as early as Monday, August 16, with most of the activities on 20, 21 and 22. (Last year the salmon run was as expected, a super run. The attendees ate BBQ salmon every night. Lots of limit catches. They also had Dungeness crab on Sunday!!!) The salmon run is predicted to be poor this year but the knapping will be fantastic!! Directions: To get to the knap-in - drive north past Seattle about 70 miles on Interstate 5. Take the 230 off-ramp to highway 20 and go west toward Anacortes. Take highway 20 turn off to Deception Pass. Go past Deception Pass about 2 miles and turn right (west) on Banta Road. Follow the signs from Banta Road to the knap-in. There are stores and restaurants/fast foods in the area. Contact Joe Higgins at (360) 720-1076 or (360) 675-4943 for more information on fishing and the knap-in. Moses Lake Knap-In, Moses Lake , Washington, September 3, 4, 5 and 6 The knap-in will be held on Labor Day Weekend at Ken and Adele Calvert’s place in Moses Lake, Washington. Plenty of grass with room for all types of camping – tents, trailers and trucks. Ken’s property is located on the lake front and they say that the lake has all kinds of fish. There will be a potluck on Sunday afternoon so bring some goodies to share. If we are real lucky - and if Adele can get it done - she we will also make homemade ice cream. Lots of activities for the Ladies – garage sales, farmers market, thrift stores, etc.. Directions: To get there, take interstate 90 off ramp 179 and go north on highway 17 toward Soap Lake. Stay on highway 17 until mile post 59. You will see a gravel pit on your left. Turn left after the gravel pit onto McConihe Road. Stay on McConihe Road for several miles and turn left onto “D 5” road. Go to end of the road and turn left. You will see a Knap-in sign about 100 yards down on the right of the road. Turn right onto Ken’s property. If you miss “D 5” road stay on McConihe Road (Stay on the pavement) and it will circle around and will pass Ken’s property. Look for the Knap-in sign on your right. Ken’s address is 4535 Road 6.5 N.E. For more information, call Ken at (509) 762-2454 or his cell at (509) 855-2226. 14th Annual (Pre) Thanksgiving Knap-In, Millersylvania State Park, near Olympia Washington. November 6 and 7, 2010. Always scheduled on the first Saturday and Sunday of November each year. Join Mick and Holly Hill, hosts of the annual November knap-in. This gathering began with the idea of putting closure to the year, reflecting on the fun gatherings and campouts that happened thru the year(s). It is our knappers’ time to give thanks and be grateful, and then look forward to the holidays with our own families. Park opens at 8 a.m. and closes at dusk, 5 p.m. Kitchen #1 is a log cabin that includes an area with fireplace heat and extra lighting set up for flintknapping. There is also a kitchen area with wood stove to plan the potluck. We have electricity but usually no running water. (This means, “Pack it in-Pack it out.” We don’t do dishes….) Part of the cabin is open to the weather elements and can’t be closed off. It can be cold! The park rangers also leave a bathroom unlocked near the cabin for our use and for extra drinking water if needed. The potluck thanksgiving dinner will be served by 1 p.m. on Saturday only. Mick and Holly provide coffee, fresh baked turkey and some traditional thanksgiving dishes. Bring a potluck dish, camp stool or lawn chair, and plan to wear warm clothes and boots for the mud, sometimes rainy weather. Bring a blanket for your chair if you need more warmth. Pack a project to work on or share as show-n-tell if you are not flintknapping. Some may camp and stay thru Sunday. If camping, expect to follow state park rules and provide payment for a camp site. There is a warm bathroom w/plumbing and coin operated hot showers available. You may want to check the website at HYPERLINK "http://www.parks.wa.gov"www.parks.wa.gov, select Millersylvania, to consider reservations. We meet again Sunday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Holly will flip breakfast pancakes and later make grilled cheese for what becomes a reduced number of knappers. This is a good time for learning from others with more experience if you are new to knapping. Directions: From North or South, take I-5 to Exit 95. Follow signs to the park entrance. Look for Kitchen #1. Park in the first parking lot on the left, near the entrance of the park. Access to Kitchen #1 is by walking a path thru the woods. We will have 2 wheelbarrows to shuttle your flintknapping supplies from your vehicle to the cabin. Watch for others that may be trying to find our cabin! It gets confusing to new visitors. If necessary, there is a back road access to drive/assist those who don’t hike or to deliver the extra big load. Park rangers want to limit our driving thru their back roads. For more info, contact Mick or Holly Hill, 360-493-8439 or e-mail: HYPERLINK "mailto:hollyhill54@gmail.com"hollyhill54@gmail.com, HYPERLINK "mailto:michaelhill30@gmail.com"michaelhill30@gmail.com. Bakersfield Monthly Knap-In, Bakersfield, California (This is not a PSK Event) A monthly knap-in is held on the first Sunday of every month. The one-day event goes from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm at the Hart Memorial Park. The park is eight miles northeast of Bakersfield on the Alfred Harrell Highway. Knappers meet at the East end of the park. Directions: While on highway 58, east of Bakersfield, take the Comanche exit and turn to the north. Comanche curves around 5 to 6 miles and dead ends into highway 178. Turn north on 178 (right) then a quick left (less then 1/4 mile) onto Alfred Harrell highway. Alfred Harrell 7-8 miles goes into Hart Park. The knap-in is 100 yards or so from the entrance on the right hand side of the park. For more information contact Gary Pickett at: Home: (661) 392-7729, Cell: (661) 444-6163, e-mail: HYPERLINK "mailto:air-o-head@webtv.net"air-o-head@webtv.net. REPORTS: 9th Annual Goldendale Knap-In, Goldendale, Washington, May 13 thru 16. By Jim Keffer Once again Ed and Loretta Thomas hosted another great Knap-in. And while this, the 9th Annual Thomas Hollow/Goldendale knap-in, will probably be Ed’s last, it was one to remember. Jim Smith and I arrived a day early to help in the set up. Since that didn’t take an entire day we managed to get in a little knapping – just to test out the accommodations. Several other knappers also couldn’t wait and arrived the evening of the 13th. The weather couldn’t have been better – temperatures reaching 75 – 80 degrees in the afternoon and cooling to 50 – 55 degree late at night. In all, twenty-five knappers plus a number of spouses and kids attended this knap-in. There was plenty of free rock to knap, generously donated by the host. Napping usually began around 8:00 am and lasted until well past dark in Ed’s well lighted pavilion. There was even more rock available for sale. Ed’s rock collecting has spanned more than a few years and includes Dolphite (an agate, named in honor of Howard Dolph of Rufus, OR), Biggs Jasper, Davis Creek Rainbow, Petrified wood and several other types of fine knappable rock. In addition to a long weekend of knapping, other activities included archery (20 target course set up in the woods of Ed’ property), bow making instruction by Alan Wattenbarger , and beadworking instruction by Warren ‘Smitty’ Smith. Saturday afternoon/evening feature the famous grilled Salmon potluck dinner – simply to die for! Sunday featured a pancake/egg frittata breakfast – Loretta’s egg frittata is out of this world! The weekend’s festivities wrapped up with the knapping of two ‘community’ points. These points, initially knapped by outstanding knapper Mick Hill, were passed around to each knapper, who in turn removed a flake or two. When finished, each contributor added his or her mark (initials, avatar, etc.) with a diamond scribe. One point went to the host, Ed Thomas, and the other was awarded by drawing number from a hat. Due to advancing age and the health challenges that accompany it, Ed has decided that this will be the last knap-in he can host. We in the Pacific Northwest are blessed with a great community of knappers. Over 300 knappers receive the Spalls, the newsletter of the Puget Sound Knappers Association. Ed Thomas, along with Joe Greenwell and Joe Higgins founded PSK a number of years ago and various members host a total of seven knap-ins throughout the year. It is due to the efforts of these individuals that knapping enjoys such popularity in the PNW. Ed Thomas’ participation and support of our community over the last 10 - 15 years has made a much of it possible. He richly deserves all of our thanks. His annual knap-in, located near the Oregon border in Central Washington, was the most central location to bring together knappers from Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana and occasionally Northern California. It has been one of cornerstones of our knapping activities . Ed and Loretta’s generosity and hard work in support of this knap-in will be difficult, if not impossible, to replace. This is one knap-in I will really miss in the future. And while Ed and Loretta may not host another knap-in, I plan to stay in touch – they are not only respected members of our knapping community but simply great people. Thanks Ed and Loretta. For photos of the knap in, hold down the ‘control key’ and press the link:: HYPERLINK "http://s383.photobucket.com/albums/oo276/reefera4m/Goldendale%20-%20Thomas%20Hollow%20Knap-in%202010/?albumview=slideshow" http://s383.photobucket.com/albums/oo276/reefera4m/Goldendale%20-%20Thomas%20Hollow%20Knap-in%202010/?albumview=slideshow Sixth Annual Western Oregon Knap-In, Illahee Flats, Oregon, May 29 thru June 6. By Jim Keffer and Joan Urata The Illahee Flats Knap-in, hosted by Brad Baughman and Jim Hopper started out with ideal knapping weather - warm, sunny and clear. Located about 48 miles from Roseburg, Oregon, Illahee Flats is a large open meadow surrounded by forest of fir, pine, oak and maple. Every day there were up to 40 elk in the far end of the flat as well as small flocks of wild turkeys. Coyotes could be heard singing at night. Brad Baughman generously provided a trailer load of obsidian including Midnight Lace, Dacite and Black Butter free for anyone/everyone that wanted to knap. A number of outstanding knappers including Brad, Jim Hopper, Emory Coons, Stu Murdock, Jim Smith and Eric Juhola attended and spent much of their time providing free instruction to the ‘newbies’ of which there were quite a few. It was not unusual to see several ‘newbies’ taking lessons from the more experienced knappers at the same time. Since I was usually too busy knapping or enjoying some of the other activities, I didn’t take a lot of photos of knappers in action. When I realized my oversight I thought I’d provide some evidence that knapping actually did occur. Just a look at the flake pile on day five would give one an ideal of the amount of knapping that took place. While the beautiful weather didn’t last past Tuesday, it didn’t dampen the spirits of those attending the knap-in. Folks in the Pacific Northwest are more than accustomed to a little rain and came prepared. There were more than enough tarps, rubber boots, rain gear and covered firewood to stay dry and warm – and to continue knapping. In addition to knapping there were several other activities folks enjoyed. Mariah Lusby, oldest daughter of Dan ‘Rocksinhead’, taught several of us how to make cordage from cedar bark. Richard Urata brought several of his finished didgeridoos as well as a bunch of Yucca and Agave stalks to make more. He explained in some detail the making of a didgeridoo and traded some of the raw stalks for some mountain ash bow wood. Richard also displayed several of his Paleo flutes made from river cane and medicine pipes made from sumac and soapstone. Several people worked on self bows on home-made shaving horses. Since there are abundance of old stumps around the camp, several of us couldn’t help but string our bows and take target practice on them. Patience and stealth are definitely required to get within range of these wily stumps! About a dozen folks took time one afternoon to brush up on their marksmanship skills with firearms ranging from .22 rifle and pistol to .45 pistol and .45-70 rifle. Two things that are a given if you attend a Pacific Northwest Knap-in – GREAT FOOD and Great Entertainment! There were three pot-luck dinners during the week featuring entrees of Chicken ‘n Dumplings, Gumbo and fresh Homemade Spaghetti. Nightly entertainment included drum music by the Lusby family, Didgeridoo by Stu Murdock, Flute by Mariah Lusby and Richard Urata and an outstanding Poetry reading by Brad Baughman! Since this article and the associated slideshow will be published in the Puget sound Knappers newsletter ‘Spalls’, I try to feature one or two notable knappers in each of my write-ups. The Illahee Knap-in features two fine knappers, Jim Hopper and Eric Juhola. For pictures of the knap-in, hold down the ‘control key’ and press the link: HYPERLINK "http://paleoplanet69529.yuku.com/reply/313235/t/Re-Illahee-Flats-Knap-in-Slideshow.html" http://paleoplanet69529.yuku.com/reply/313235/t/Re-Illahee-Flats-Knap-in-Slideshow.html and: HYPERLINK "http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=22573&id=100000039134217&l=b63c05f4ed" http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=22573&id=100000039134217&l=b63c05f4ed Pacific Northwest Knap-ins ROCK! MAYBE OF INTEREST: Website for Artifact and Archeological Books This website has Artifact and Archeological Books and Videos for sale. Go to: HYPERLINK http://www.hothemhouse.com/ http://www.hothemhouse.com/ . TARP There is a flint forum where knappers can participate by posting and reading messages and/or going into the chat room. It may be of interest as knapping information is passed back and forth via messages. It is called TARP – you know, the thing you put on the ground to collect the debitage. HYPERLINK http://www.egroups.com/group/thetarp http://www.egroups.com/group/thetarp . Knappers-R-Us Here’s another e-group for knappers: HYPERLINK http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Knappers-R-Us/ http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Knappers-R-Us/ Flintknappers Digest Another Egroup called flintknapper’s Digest: HYPERLINK http://groups.yahoo.com/group/flintknappingdigest/ http://groups.yahoo.com/group/flintknappingdigest/ Lithic Casting Lab For anyone who wants to replicate certain styles of points (Flake patterns, thickness, convexity, length, and width), you can purchase castings of artifacts from Lithic Casting Lab. HYPERLINK http://www.lithiccastinglab.com/ http://www.lithiccastinglab.com/ Paleo Planet Primitive Technology discussions, including flintknapping. HYPERLINK "http://www.PaleoPlanet.net" www.PaleoPlanet.net. SPALLS - Rich Urata |
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©2010 J Keffer |