What is it?

The Riddle of Steel is an adventure into the wildernesses of Hells Canyon on the Snake River in Idaho. You leave Clarkston, Washington by jet boat that takes fellow Riddlers as yourself up the Snake River in Idaho some 80 miles where you arrive at what will be become your home for four days. Cabins have between 2 and 4 bunk beds, which for the most part do not have heat, that are slightly elevated off the ground. The camp and cabins have electrical power supplied by generators. The batteries are recharged by solar panels for the camp. There is hot running water and showers provided in a separate bathhouse, two sides supporting women and men’s accommodations. No need to go without some amenities 80 miles from nowhere is there?

People make the Riddle of Steel adventure every year to train with one of the best instructors in the world in defensive knife tactics. That instructor is James A. Keating of Combat Technologies located in Walla Walla, Washington. Known throughout the world as a man who can impart practical knowledge and techniques in the use of a knife and how to defend yourself with one, as well as empty hand skills against an aggressor with a knife.

Jim Keating brings 30 years of experience in the martial arts and blade craft to the table for you to dine on. He specializes in bowie knife/long blades instruction and his Bowie Certification program is the only place you can learn the special skills needed to use a long knife, and particularly the bowie knife to realistically meet you defensive needs through his knowledge and studies in the way long knife fighting was taught in the early part of this countries history in the area of New Orleans around the 1830-1850 era of the deep south.

Every year he holds the event, people come from all across the US as well as from abroad to attend this four day adventure up into Hells Canyon and beyond on the Snake River, to train with Jim in the ways of the warrior concentrating on the knife as a defensive weapon.

One never knows what Jim will have in store for them that particular year. He imparts so much knowledge it becomes overload for about everyone who makes the journey up the river for the first time. He has guest instructors, who are students themselves on that trip, demonstrate their expertise in such things as flexible weapons like the bullwhip, and perhaps one will meet another who demonstrates and imparts their knowledge in the correct way of cutting with a long knife. There are knife makers from all over the country who attend as well. You are likely to see Bill Bagwell or Wendell Fox on hand with their handmades that one may purchase. It’s a real smorgasbord every time one attends the event.

The Journey Begins

I left my home in South Eastern Massachusetts at 4:00 on October 5 and headed west to Hamilton, Ohio where I would meet Mike Sastre of River City Sheaths and continue the trip from his place the next morning.

I arrived at Mikes at 6:30pm on the same day, making 892 miles in 14 ½ hours. We sat up and talked, as I had not seen Mike since the Riddle in New Orleans. I was shown the workshop Mike uses to make his famous sheaths using Kydex and Concealex. Some power tools and lots of hand tools, including an assortment of knives and neck sheaths hanging from a rod hung from the ceiling that had to number in the hundreds. These he uses as templates to make the neck sheaths.

Mike still had a few sheaths to make before we headed out of town the next morning so I got some shut eye and he stayed up until 3:00 am finishing the sheaths promised to people we would be meeting there at the Riddle. We were up early, packed the car and headed out of town after stopping for breakfast. Mike had some packages to mail to customers before we left and we stopped at the PO and UPS store. We were on the road at 12:00 noon October 6 heading to Clarkston, Washington where we had reservations for Wednesday at the motel where we would pick up the jet boat to start this years adventure on Thursday morning.

Mike and I made a stop along the way to see a friend of his named Bob Taylor of Round Eye Knife and Tool fame. Bob entertained us with lots of coffee and some demonstrations of ground techniques before we were allowed to leave for the last leg into Clarkston, Washington on Wednesday morning October 8. Bob lives in god’s country, away from the hustle and bustle of city life. Bob and I hit it off right away as we have some common ground between us that made for a very friendly visit with one of the worlds true warriors.

We pulled into the parking lot of the motel in Clarkston, Washington at 5 pm. We both immediately took our much-needed showers as we had driven straight through from Hamilton, Ohio to our final destination, swapping the driving when the other got tired. Mikes a real road warrior like myself in that regard, and there was never any problems with stopping to rest along the way between us, we drove straight through making 2000 miles in 32 hours of drive time.

After showering, we headed down to the lounge to see if others had arrived. There in the lobby was Dr. K, a martial arts instructor; Rob Patton, a knife maker; Scott Homscheck, another martial instructor and known for his neck whips which he hand makes; also present was Wendell Fox of Fox’s Forge in Oregon. Mike introduced me to these gentlemen and we settle in for some relaxing conversation getting to know one another in a very friendly atmosphere considering so many people present who had never met before. That’s one of the things you find on events such as these. The specific reason that brings people from across the world to train with Master at Arms James A. Keating brings people to the table with a smile that have the same interests and goals as yourself.

I left to go find my friend Mike Mello and his wife Nancy who were staying in their mobile home parked next to the motel. Mike and Nancy are traveling the country for two years in their home, Mike having retired from his job on an early buyout at the tender age of 42. Mike hailed from Massachusetts until this summer when he and Nancy sold their home on the North Shore and headed for greener pastures and life’s adventures on the roads of the U.S. They eventually plan to settle somewhere out West where Mike can have enough room to bang away at long range targets with his M-1A. Mike had received instruction in defensive knife from me for the last year and a half in a one on one setting before leaving. He was new to the Riddle of Steel but not new to the defensive blade crafts that would stand him well in the training to come in the next few days.

I located their trailer and we headed back to the motel lobby to pick up others who wanted to eat dinner. Several of us ate at the motel dining area. There was Mike and Nancy Mello, a guy named Jake, Wendell Fox, Mike Sastre and another man named Chuck who a few people knew from past Riddles. After dinner we retired to our rooms for a good nights sleep before the next day brought an early rise and the adventure began.

The Boat Trip up the Snake River

We loaded our gear onto the jet boat at 8 am on October 9. Everyone gathered at the dock in preparation for send off at 9am. Old friends were greeting each other, some new people to the Riddle were introduced to others by friends and I started to get that familiar feeling of family before we ever got onto the boat again. I always get that feeling when attending Jims Riddles. It has to be experienced to understand I would imagine.

Dan, our boat captain asked us to board once the gear was stowed away under deck. The jet boat is run by Beamers Boat Service from the same area. There were 38 Riddlers plus Jim and his companion named Santos Garcia for this trip. We got underway promptly at 9am. The boat has an 800-horse motor to make the rapids up river easily.

We were treated to Dan explaining various things along the riverbanks as we headed up the Snake. The area is rich in history of miners, and surveyors prospecting for gold, families who chose to live on the river starting in the early 1900’s and before that. This country is home to the Nez Perce Indian peoples. Archeological sites abound up and down the river and are protected by the federal government at this time. The whole area is declared a natural preserve and everything that goes up the river is packed back out. I never saw any waste or food wrappers anywhere on the river while on this adventure. Pristine country, high desert and mountains on either side of the Snake brought picturesque views along the way.

The following two pictures should give one a good idea of what the area looks like from the water.

We arrived at the camp about 1pm, some 80 miles up river from civilization. The country is rugged and there are guided hunts for the game that abounds in the area, mainly Big Horn Sheep and Mule Deer further down river from where we were staying.

Cindy and her partner who would see to our needs and prepare the meals each day as we stepped from the jet boat greeted us. What a gal she turned out to be. Funny, accommodating, and always there if you needed something, she and I hit it off right away.

We were escorted to the cabin areas and told to find a bed in one of them that would be home for the next four days. I ended up in a room with Mike Mello, Robert Humelbaugh, and Wendell Fox.

The picture below is of the area where the boat docked and we would spend the next days training along the river. You can see the jet boat if you look carefully lower left of center where the river emerges.

We were asked to be on the training area of the camp in half an hour. There we heard Jim speak of the ideas he had for us this year and we were introduced to Santos Garcia, a Native American who Jim brought to the event this year to enlighten us on the culture of the Nez Perce and the rich history of the canyon while we were training.

The 38 Riddlers then got right into training under Jims watchful eyes. He mentioned that we were far from civilization and to be extra careful in training with our partners as medical attention was hours away at best and not a call to a local ambulance service. We trained everyday, with nature walks in groups of 8-15 along the 7000+ years old Nez Perce trail used by the tribes to come from the high country to the river to fish and spend the winters. Snow never comes to the canyons is what we were told.

Below are some photos taken traveling the trails that run along the river up on the canyons. The third picture is of Jim Keating at one of the caves entrances we encountered. The fourth and fifth picture depicts Mike Mello and myself at the cave and on top of one of the peaks. The sixth picture is of another view of the grasses that grow in the canyons, and the last picture is of myself standing at a marker that informs the guests to the area that in this place, men who opened the canyons centuries ago are commemorated.

Speaking of weather, we enjoyed great temperatures, the first two days being in the 80’s and down to mid 50’s at night. After that it turned seasonably colder with day temps running high 50’s to mid 60’s and nights falling to just above freezing. It was somewhat difficult to get yourself out of bed for natures calling at 3 am as the cabins did not have heat, but everyone sucked it up and persevered with no whining.

I was up at 5 am every morning, meeting Jim Miller of Ohio, Mike Mello and Scott Homscheck who was always busy making his neck whips attempting to keep up with the orders from the Riddlers who attended in the kitchen area. It became a joke of sorts with the three of us, Mike, Jim and myself finishing off a pot of coffee before the others were out of bed. It got to the point where Cindy showed me how to make the coffee and refill the urns that always held java for the Riddlers after we had consumed an urn on our own by 6 am. To be honest I think I was doing the most consuming of coffee but without a doubt I had help from those two as well.

Training started promptly at 8 am every morning. We were treated to Santos Garcia talking to us about the history of the canyon and his people who come from that area. We were brought in touch with ourselves spiritually with Santos’s guidance. Each evening Santos would also end the day of training by having us gather in a circle and having us recite an old indian ritual and paying respects to the ancestors of the canyons. It was very enlightening and I actually felt one with the canyon at days end through Santos Garcia’s spiritual guidance. He is a very interesting individual and I look forward to meeting and talking with the man again one day. It was a one of the highlights to my journey up river for this year’s event.

We were able to train on a sandbar in the river just below where we were camped on a few occasions. The picture below gives one an idea of what we were treated to.

On Saturday evening Jim asked me if I would be willing to put a knife sharpening class on in the dining hall. I had brought the spyderco ceramics and the accu-sharp for regrinding primary edges with me and had been sharpening knives in my cabin for other Riddlers during the previous days. Some of the Riddlers wanted to leave with more knowledge of sharpening and so the stage was set for that night at 8pm. I had Riddlers bring their knives to sharpen during the class and I even sharpened a long Bowie blade on the ceramics for them. The Spyderco sharpmaker is a great unit for keeping ones edges sharp and many people were pleased such a class had been held so they could go home with confidence in their ability to sharpen their own wares when the time came.

On Sunday morning October 12, we were up early per Jim instruction. We were treated to Santos gathering us together to watch the sun rise over the canyon peaks as a group for the final day on the river. We paid our respects to the spirits in the canyon that watched over us during our visit to the area and then were called for breakfast by Cindy ringing the triangular chime off the kitchen porch like you would see in an old western film when the chuck wagon cook called the cowboys in off the range for meals. Very rustic with a sense of history was my impression. Cindy even let me ring the call for dinner that had always been something I had wanted to do since a little boy watching my favorite cowboys on the television.

We were reassembled in the workout area of the camp, reviewed some of the training and techniques we had seen and then went to our cabins and packed for the river trip back to civilization in Clarkston, Washington. A graduation picture was taken and certificates of completion were awarded to every Riddler by Jim and a few assistants, see below.

We boarded the boat at 12:00 noon for the ride back down the river. The trip down was a lot faster on returning and exhilarating to say the least. The vistas of the canyon walls and river intertwining between them are something I’ll never forget.

We arrived at the dock and everyone unloaded their gear and headed their own ways back to where they had come from. Mike and I stayed at the motel that night and shoved off for the 2900-mile journey to home the next morning, catching several Riddlers checking out and heading for the airport. Last good byes were said with sadness as none who made the trip up the river wanted it to end. It was the close of a sojourn for most of us and all that remained was to get our butts back to where we had come.

I made many new friends on the river this year. Friends like Jim Miller; John Friedlander; The Quaid family; and many more whom I have not forgotten but whose names I can’t remember. Several of the Riddlers who attended are active members on Blade forums. Guys like Argyll; Lunumbra, Ray Smith, Satin; and Robert Humelbaugh attended this year, some having made the trips up river in the past, some for the first time. You guys know who you are; I enjoyed meeting you and being able to train with you at such an event as the Riddle of Steel.

This review would not be complete without mentioning the Quaid family who attended the event this year. They hail from California and own a few Harley Davidson shops. A few of the brothers brought their sons with them. I think there were six of them in all. Two of the boys were handicapped, one having been involved in a major 4 wheeling accident 4 years ago where he broke his back and walked with braces. The first morning of training, this young man exited his cabin without the braces he had never been without for four years. The heart this young man has could be nothing but an inspiration to all of us everyday. The other brother was severely disabled when he was 5 years old in a bicycle accident. Not once in the time I spent at this years event did I see either one of them sitting down taking breaks during training.

This review is dedicated to both of these young men. With all of the physical troubles they endure daily in their lives, not once did I see anyone training harder than these two boys. Their spirit and determination to train alongside their father and uncles, and the way the brothers showed their independence in life was awesome to watch and a humbling experience for me.

If Jim decides to ever hold another Riddle in the canyon, and you have the chance to attend, you should make the effort to be there.

Mike Sastre, you are a real road warrior and friend. I enjoyed the time spent traveling with you overland to the Riddle this year. The trip was great, thanks for the experience of it all.

To Jim Keating, my mentor in the world of defensive knife, thanks for the adventures, knowledge and friendship you share with all of us who meet and train with you.

Robin Brown