How to Light a Fire in the Outdoors

Traditionally, starting a fire is a criterion for judging an outdoorsman’s competence. It’s a very important survival skill. The fire can be used for cooking, signalling, keeping warm and drying clothes.

What matters most in building a fire is the kindling. Once you got a small and healthy fire going you can almost burn anything with it. Unless of course the kindling is too small and dry in which case you can use paper as a starter.

If the area is dry, try to look for something big that will be dry in the center e.g. the dry side of a dead cedar. You can then cut out slivers that are easily split and shaved into useful kindling.

You can look for other dry material at places where it is sheltered like a hollow tree or rock crevice. If you don’t want to take the trouble then bring some kindling in the first place. They’re very light anyway and so is tinder. This can be part of the ten essential outdoor gear.

Of course you can use your camp stove for cooking but if you want to keep warm with a stove it won’t be long until you run out of fuel. Drying your clothes with a stove is not a good idea either and it certainly won’t work for signalling (not that I’ve tried it.)

1. Tinder - dead leaves, paper, bark, birch, liquid fire
2. Kindling - thin twigs and sticks
3. Wood - small, graduated sizes
4. Stones - for the fire ring to prevent the fire from spreading
5. Waterproof matches - you can also dip normal matches in wax
6. Knife or spade - for clearing the grass
7. Fire Killing - water, sand, soil

You can’t just build a fire anywhere without any preperation for it. Once you have everything you need, the first thing you have to do is decide where you want the fire to be. This should be away from trees, hedges and tents.

If possible use an existing fire ring. Once you’ve found a place to build the fire, clear the ground of any flammable debris and if it a grassy area, cut out the turf and place it somewhere else to be replaced when you’re done.

Make sure you have plenty of wood for fuel. Arrange the wood from small to big. The fire from the smaller wood will burn the larger wood.

1. Stand the first twig upright on the ground
2. Surround it with tinder
3. Start to a wigwam shape by surrounding this with kindling
4. Use progressively thicker twigs but leave a gap on one side for you to light the tinder
5. Light the tinder and shield it from the wind
6. Add more twigs as necessary to each flame until it spreads to thicker wood
7. If you need to blow, get in close and blow gently
8. Once the fire is up, add larger pieces of wood to it
9. Keep on adding wood until the fire is strong enough
10. Surround the fire with the stones

It would be irresponsible for me to teach how to build a fire without teaching you how to extinguish it properly. You must ensure that the fire is fully extinguished.

You can extinguish fire with or without water. If you use water, let the fire die down, spread out the sticks and coals, and sprinkle water.

To extinguish without water, let the fire die down, spread out the sticks and coals, scrape any burning ambers from the sticks and cover thoroughly with earth or soil.

In both cases, the former campfire should be cold to the touch to prevent any risk of forest fires.

No matter what happens, don't panic!

• Never use paraffin, petrol or methylated spirits to light or revive a fire.
• Choose the site of your fire with care
• Get everything ready before lighting any matches.
• Never leave a fire unattended.
• Never underestimate a fire or the strength of the wind.
• Keep a bucket of water, earth or fire beaters handy for use in an emergency.