Camping season is nearly upon us. So I would like to take the time to explain how to make the perfect campfire. The reason I find this necessary is because a couple years ago I came to the realization that not everyone knows how to build a campfire. I discovered this one evening when I received a phone call from Kelly while I was at work. It was a gloomy evening and she had headed up to our favorite camp site in Knoll earlier that day. I got called in to work at the last minute so I was going to meet her there the next morning. It had drizzled off and on for the last two days but the weekend was supposed to warm and dry.
She called to tell me that she was freezing and that she couldn’t get a fire lit. I asked her what she was doing and she said she had put the logs into the pit and was putting lighter fluid on them. They would burn for a bit then go out once the fluid was gone. I told her that she was going to have to get some kindling to burn before the big stuff will catch. She said she didn’t know what kindling was or where to find it. I told her that dry kindling would be a little hard to find since it had been so wet the last few days, but she might get lucky looking under the large pine trees in the area. I told her to get as many pine needles, pine cones, dry leaves, and twigs no bigger than the thickness of her thumb. I told her to use a grocery sack if she needed to collect her kindling.
After about fifteen minutes she called me back and she said she found a sack full of stuff. I asked her if she had any small logs about the thickness of her wrist. She explained to me that she had a few split logs that were about that size. I was feeling better knowing that she had all the materials needed to build a fire for her so that she could stay warm during the evening. I know there are a few different methods to building a good campfire such as the log cabin and teepee technique. Which type is better I’ll let you decide. I prefer the teepee method so that is the one I’m going to describe. Here we go.
1. Make a pile of kindling starting with your quick burning stuff like dry leaves, grass, and pine needles. Stack your pine cones, pieces of bark, and twigs on top of that leaving room for air to get to the inner stuff. (you will probably need more than you think so be generous with your kindling).
2. Take your smaller logs (ones about the thickness of your wrist) and lean them against each other in the shape of a teepee surrounding your kindling. Keep in mind to leave enough gaps so that air can get to the inner fire or it will smother from lack of oxygen. (three things a fire needs to burn is heat, oxygen, and fuel [wood])
3. Once the teepee of smaller logs start to burn begin adding medium sized logs to the fire. Be careful not to get burned in the process. The heat shouldn’t be to great at this time.
4. After these larger pieces stay lit for awhile you can add your big logs two at a time, one on either side of your structure so that it won’t cave in or collapse. Remember to not go crazy, only make a fire that you can control. Don’t make it too big.
5. One of the most important steps is don’t leave your fire unattended. If you’re leaving you should douse your embers with water or cover them with lots of dirt. If the coals are too hot to touch they are not safe to leave.
I hope this helps anyone who didn’t already know how to do it.
Thank-you for writing about this! I was a woman who also built fires off of kerosene, lighter fluid, and gasoline. Not anymore, lol! Thank-you also for an off the topic blog. I loved it and learned from it.
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