Build An Ethically Clean Campfire
♫ November 28th, 2011 3:16 am
It is discouraging to walk into a scenic backcountry campsite only to find that others before you have left large, charred logs lying across the fire pit. These types of fires are not all that impressive or warm, plus what they leave behind is ugly and detracts from the aesthetics of the area. The key to a hot, bright and ethically clean campfire lies on the ground under your feet, even at campsites seemingly scavenged of all suitable wood. The reckless fire builder looks for the largest log in the forest. The responsible fire builder looks for small twigs and branches, which are much more abundant and typically overlooked by others.
Smart campfire building begins with the collection of small branches and twigs in three sizes: small, medium and large. Be sure to collect only material already on the ground. Do not cut or break branches from standing or downed trees. The smallest branches and twigs should have a diameter similar to a pencil and be broken into 6″ lengths. These will be used to build the initial pyramid. Branches in the medium category should have a diameter of approximately 1/2″ to 3/4″ and be broken into 8″ to 10″ lengths. Finally, large wood for our purposes is anything you can break by hand or foot. This typically includes branches and small logs up to approximately 1″ to 2″ in diameter. If you are packing an axe or saw, then you can go a little bigger. Try to keep the length of wood in the large category to around 12″. As you collect the wood for your campfire, create three piles. One pile for each size mentioned above. The amount of wood in the picture to the right will keep a campfire burning for approximately one hour.
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