top of page

Catagories

Kaimai Ranges (Bushcraft Trip 1/3)

Website Website

Trip Leader: James Judd

Participants: Harry Carstairs, Scott Claessens, Seb Judd, Sach Knight, Caroline Provo, Simon Yu

Location: Kaimai Ranges

Dates: 9th – 11th March 2018


Author: Scott Claessens


Psychoanalysis Diary (9th March 2018)

Having been accepted onto my PhD programme in Psychology at the University of Auckland, I judged that it was time to get my hands dirty and involve myself in some fieldwork. Observations of human behaviour within the constraints of contemporary civilisation, while informative, are often not particularly useful windows into the true underlying nature of the human psyche. To access such crucial glimpses, one must venture out into the wilderness, the ecology within which Homo sapiens is most keenly adapted. Our section of wilderness was the Kamai Ranges, a delightful stretch of “bush” (as the locals here are apt to refer to it) several hours south of Auckland.


We arranged out departure on the evening of the second Friday of the month. In order to ensure that my observations of the humans were truly representative of unobserved behaviour, I introduced myself to the test subjects as simply one of their own, another fellow tramper, eager to explore the beautiful countryside that New Zealand has to offer. This small deception would allow me to discreetly take notes all weekend, being careful not to influence the tests subjects’ behaviour with my presence.


My first interesting glimpse into the minds of this group of humans was their foraging behaviour at a McDonalds (“Maccas”), en-route to the Kaimai Ranges. After several flustered prods of the large computer screen, much like pigeons pecking a light stimulus to receive food, the test subjects devoured their meals, with much excited talk of the adventure ahead.


At the Kiamais, the tramp itself began in the dark, the light of the stars shining down from above us. My initial nervousness about engaging with the test subjects outside the safety of an academic environment escalated. What if the change from civilised man to savage was immediate upon entering the bush? In the dark, I would not know where to run, or how to fend off my attackers. But, luckily, we walked along in pleasant conversation, though the subjects were prone to yelling frankly offensive vulgarities such as “sixty-nine!!” and the like.


After several hours of walking, the alpha-male of the group (JJ) established an easily-defendable location to set up a camp. Despite arriving at almost 3am, the group quickly divided into two sub-units: the gatherers of materials, and the experts of the tarps. This functionally effective division of labour could perhaps be attributed to JJ’s strong leadership style, though it may have arisen simply out of a desperate need for sleep. Regardless, within half an hour, a camp (one would be forgiven for describing it more as a ‘city of tarps’; see Figure 1) was formed, and the subjects and I happily dozed off.


Psychoanalysis Diary (10th March 2018)

A strange phenomenon occurred on the second day of fieldwork, several times, and in varying locations. The function of the behaviour remains unclear. Initially, it would appear to be a form of grooming, but on closer inspection, the behaviour is qualitatively different to that observed in other species of great ape. Brandishing what appears to be an old rusty iron, one subject will gently smooth the clothes of another, while other group members stand by, either applauding and hooting in earnest, or carefully guarding the members of the ritual while their defences are lowered (see Figure 2).


This behaviour is in equal measures fascinating and perplexing. It clearly does not function to remove creases in the clothing of other group members, as the iron is not at all hot, and is never plugged into an actual supply of electricity. This is despite the glee that subjects displayed when pretending the iron was plugged into a tree or, dare I say, a fellow group member’s anus (this variant of the behaviour was only observed once, and fleetingly).

Figure 2. A human female irons a fellow male, with other males standing guard. One guarding male appears to be urinating. The metal helmet on the ironee perhaps serves a defensive function (photo courtesy of Seb Judd).


More rigorous research on this behaviour is needed before drawing solid conclusions, but I believe that the humans are fully aware that the iron is not serving its original purpose, but they have in fact co-opted the ritual as a form of bonding between group members. The physical contact required for such a ritual may encourage emotional closeness, solidifying group membership. However, this hypothesis does not quite fit with other observations of the humans ironing clothes on inanimate objects and surfaces (see Figure 3). More data is required to tease apart these hypotheses.

Figure 3. Here, the alpha male (JJ) irons a hat on a rock. This is evidence that ironing also occurs without physical contact with others, challenging the ‘physical contact bonding’ hypothesis (photo courtesy of Seb Judd).


With regards to the tramp itself, the second day made for fantastic walking. The views from the Kamai Ranges were phenomenal (see Figure 4), and as I walked I began to grow accustomed to this nomadic way of living; never settling, always travelling with one group. Much to my chagrin, the inner pack animal in me was being activated. I found myself laughing and joking with the subjects, shouting “sixty-nine!!” in unabashed frivolity. In hindsight, I had let social pressure tear me away from contemporary values, and had become equal parts man and savage, much like my very own test subjects.


Figure 4. The Kamai Ranges, on our second day of tramping.


Psychoanalysis Diary (11th March 2018)

After setting up camp and watching the stunning sunset the night before, it was time to leave the bush, to allow all the test subjects to return to their lives back in civilisation. As we “bush-bashed” back down towards the road, we contemplated how the weekend had changed us.


Test Subject #6 (Caroline) had discovered, to her utmost surprise, that she was not actually American, and the group had instead concluded that I was an American in disguise (despite my protests). Test Subject #7 (Sach) had discovered that he can throw an axe into wood with fair accuracy, but that he cannot gloat about it to his group members if no one was there to witness it. Furthermore, we had all discovered that Test Subject #8 (Simon) is the go-to guy for Spotify playlists, that Test Subjects #1 and #4 (James and Seb Judd) are the craziest adventure brothers in the world, and that Test Subject #2 (Harry Carstairs) can be a scary Scotsman if you get on the wrong side of him.


Myself? In the bush, I had uncovered much about human nature that had not previous been made clear from simple urban and experimental observation. Humans are pack animals, who thrive off social groups, and who create complex rituals and patterns of behaviour (some of which involve irons) to signal their in-group loyalty. The bush exacerbates this aspect of human nature, but thankfully I never saw the darker side of this nature a la Lord of the Flies: man as “nature, red in tooth and claw”. However, as a human myself, it was unavoidable that I too would be attracted to this way of living. Now, snugly back in civilisation, I am waiting keenly for my next fieldwork stint with this group, to learn more about their way of life, and test further hypotheses about human nature. You will hear from those fieldnotes in due course.


1 Comment


Hello

Like
  • Instagram
  • Facebook

©2025 by the Auckland University Tramping Club

bottom of page