This is SPARta!

If you want to do pioneering, you're gonna need some spars.  The Scout Pioneering website has a nice article on how to put together a pioneering kit, including the color coding scheme for various lengths.  I like to use pine or poplar for spars because they grow fast and straight, and they are lightweight.  One way to get some spars is to ask a builder or developer if you can cut some trees from a piece of land that is scheduled to be cleared.

Here is a trailer load full of spars that I was given permission to cut from a construction site prior to the area being cleared.  I used a machete to limb the trees and it worked well.

Once you have cut some trees, you will need to remove the bark.  Leaving the bark on can cause your poles to deteriorate faster and can cause your lashings to slip.  There's more than one way to skin a tree.  One way is to use a draw knife.  There are also various chainsaw and angle grinder attachments.  Some advocate soaking in water to loosen the bark.  Here is how I did it:

I took two cinder blocks and put a small log in each of the holes.  This will hold your spar while you debark it.  I used a tool called a floor scraper (see image above) to scrape off the bark.  It took about 15 minutes per spar.  Make sure you sharpen your scraper.  I used a bench mounted belt sander to sharpen mine, but you could use a file.

The log will try to roll around while you are scraping it.  At first, I used a block of wood to wedge it in place.

 Then I found that twisting the cinder block at an angle works better.

After doing a few of these, I noticed that it seems to work best if you work from the bottom to the top.  Especially when you hit a knot.  I also found that it works well to strip a long stripe the whole length of the spar, and then work the edges from there.  The scraper has a bevel on one side, like a chisel.  At first I like using it bevel up, but later decided I prefer bevel down.  Bevel down bites into the bark more.

After doing several of these (22 to be exact), I have found that the best method is to strip most of the bark off with the floor scraper, then use a power washer to take off the inner bark and the remaining shreds of outer bark.  This also takes off most of the sticky pine pitch.

After this, I color coded them according to length by painting the ends with spray paint.  The color code can be found in the older edition of the Pioneering MB pamphlet, or at https://scoutpioneering.com/2013/02/14/pioneering-kit/.