Building a fire is one of the most important camping skills you can learn. It鈥檚 also one of the most difficult to master.
So we turned to John Gookin, who鈥檚 been an instructor with the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS) since 1981. He鈥檚 also worked as a search and rescue commander for Freemont County (think Wind River Range) for a decade.
“Starting a fire is not a survival skill until you get good enough to do it in tough circumstances,” Gookin says. Read: First, you have to practice鈥攁 lot鈥攂efore you can rely on your fire skills to save your life.
Here are five tips to build a better fire in the backcountry (conditions permitting) for the novice pyromaniac.
Pick the Right Spot
First, do your research about where you鈥檙e going to be camping and follow local fire laws. If you鈥檙e camping on BLM or Forest Service land, you should be able to get this information from a website or with a phone call. Once at camp, look for established fire rings to limit your impact on the forest. If you鈥檙e backpacking, follow when building a fire.
Buy the Right Lighter
The fanciest fire-lighting gizmo on the market probably isn鈥檛 as good as a simple lighter, Gookin says. Go with a piezoelectric lighter (the one you click rather than roll under your thumb) because it uses electric current from crystals to make the spark and thus works when wet. You can buy a piezoelectric lighter for about a dollar at most supermarkets. Take note: while you can get a fire started with a match, magnifying glass, or even a bow-drill, it鈥檚 easiest to start with the lighter.
Collect the Right Kindling
Start with small kindling (think shaved cedar bark) and work your way up toward that log you鈥檝e always wanted to burn. Place the small, flammable stuff in a teepee or log-cabin shape. Only once that bundle is on fire (or reaches 451 degrees Fahrenheit, if you really want to geek out) should you begin to add larger sticks.
Pro tip: Gather more piles of small wood than you think you’ll need鈥攐rganized by size鈥攁nd have them ready to go before you light the kindling. Scour the forest floor for dead wood that鈥檚 neither green nor decomposing. It should be easy to break into small pieces, and won鈥檛 have much moisture inside.
Give It Air
You鈥檝e lit your kindling and have started to add small sticks. Now, you have to give the fire some air. Gookin suggests putting an old tent pole underneath the kindling and blowing into it to stoke the fiames. If you don鈥檛 have a tent pole, fan the fire with a wide-surface camp tool, such as a spatula.
Keep It Safe
One of the best ways to keep your fire under control is to limit your stick size to thumb-width or thinner. And always think about weather. If you鈥檙e trying to build a fire in high winds, the chance of sparks flying beyond your fire pit is high. (It鈥檚 also much more difficult to light up.) You probably shouldn鈥檛 have a fire that day.
If you do manage to light a fire, make sure it鈥檚 completely out before you pack up for the night. Pour water on it until the ash has a soupy consistency. Never assume your fire is out鈥攖here can be hot coals underneath the ash that can start a forest fire days after you鈥檝e left the area.