- Tinder – dried grass, cotton fluff, anything that catches fire quickly
- kindling – dead twigs and sticks to bring the fire up from the tinder
- fuel – larger wood that will sustain the fire
Now for a few tips:
- Always have all your material ready, close to you, before you start building the campfire. You won't have time to hunt around for them.
- A few weeks before your camping trip, start saving lint from your dryer. They make the best tinder.
- Obtain your twigs, sticks and wood from standing dead trees. Anything that's on the ground is almost always damp and make fire lighting harder.
- 21st Century Camping allows you to cheat a little bit and toss in some instant [tag]fire starters[/tag]. You can buy these from an outdoor store or make them yourselves.
- Put out the fire completely before you leave. Watch Bruce Lessels, President of Zoar Outdoor, demonstrate the steps to put out a campfire safely.
Thanks on the tips on camp fires but for me I get the other half to do the fire a lot less complicated and a lot less mess than me doing it.
Cigarette lighter. I don't smoke, but I never go on a camping trip without one.
If you are using the fire to cook with, cook over the red hot embers not over the roaring flame.
For every camping trips we have campfire is the main event. We do Smores together with the kids and form a circle around the campfire. My kids love Smores so much and their camping is not complete without it.
Great video, organized, simple, and informative. I like the tip to cut out fire sticks out of the kindling.
Nice post. Gathering enough firewood before you start a fire is very important. Glad you made that point. From experience it's always the least favorite thing to do but is well worth your time so you spend more time enjoying the fire and relaxing.