They say that there is more than one way to skin a cat, well, there is also more than one way to make a campfire. Sometimes when you are out in the wild you have to use the materials that are at hand. Try these ways or making a campfire.
1. USE A MATCH
Get a match. Oh, you were looking for something more dramatic? More challenging? OK, that's coming. However, when you have been out hunting or hiking all day and want nothing more than to sit next to a nice campfire and cook your dinner, check your pockets for a match first. That's the easiest way to make a campfire except for maybe that gun looking contraption your wife uses for lighting her smelly candles.
2. USE FRICTION
Try some friction based fire making. Every cowboy movie since the beginning of time has at least one scene where someone rubs two sticks together and makes fire. They make it look so easy. It is the oldest method, but certainly not the easiest. It is possible, though, with the right wood and technique. Choose a dry softwood such as willow or aspen to use for the fireboard (it is preferable to use this wood for the spindle as well, but you can get away with using a slightly harder wood there). Now for technique in three easy steps:
A. Cut a notch in the side of your fireboard. It should be V-shaped with a small depression at the top of the V (for your spindle). Place a piece of bark under your fireboard, right under the notch so that it will catch the ember once you get it going.
B. Find a straight stick that is about two feet long to use as a spindle. Place one end in the notch on your fireboard and while pressing it down into the fireboard, roll between your palms, working them down the spindle. They key is to do this very, very fast so the spindle creates a lot of friction against the fireboard. Keep doing this until you form an ember (the tip of the spindle glows red).
C. Tap the ember gently onto the piece of bark and place it in some tinder while you blow on it gently. This will cause the ember to ignite the tinder causing a flame to form.
3. FRICTION WITH A BUDDY
Get a buddy and make it a little easier. It is easier for two people to create the pressure and speed required to form an ember than it is for one lowly soul to go it alone. The same concept applies to this method as in the one man show version of friction based fire making. However, this time one person keeps the spindle pressed firmly against the fireboard while the other person rotates the spindle. A shoelace looped around the spindle work well to make the rotation easier.
4. USE A BOW DRILL
Make a bow drill. This is probably the easiest way to make a fire if you are using a friction fire starting method. It is very good at keeping the pressure and speed necessary to produce an ember. The same rules apply as far as the wood for your fireboard and spindle (about as big around as your thumb). You will need a strong shoelace of piece of leather for this.
A. Prepare your fireboard as you would if you were doing the hand drill method. Cut a V-shaped notch in the side and create a slight depression at the top of the V. Tie the string to both ends of a stick, as if you are making a bow, but leave the string a little loose. The stick can be any wood, it just needs to be pretty sturdy. Place a piece of bark under the V to catch the ember.
B. Set the spindle in the depression and loop the string of the bow around it. Use a piece of wood or a rock to place over the top of the spindle to give you more leverage as you bear down.
C. Saw the bow back and forth very vigorously so that the looped bow string rotates the spindle. Keep making the sawing motion until an ember is produced.
D. Place the ember into some tinder and blow gently on it until it creates a flame.
5. THE FIRE PLOUGH
Make a fire plough. Word of advice: Try one of two of the other methods before giving this one a shot. It can be done, but it isn't easy and it isn't any fun. This is another method that the movies tend to make look so easy. Judge for yourself, though.
Find some nice softwood to make your fireboard and cut a groove down the middle but not all the way to the end. Make a shaft from a wood that is only slightly harder and rub it vigorously up and down the groove. The friction that this movement creates will cause fireboard particles to be pushed out and eventually catch fire and the friction increases the temperature. That's the idea anyway.
6. USE STEEL AND FLINT
Strike a spark with steel and flint. You really need a char cloth for this method because it will have to catch the spark. Strike steel, such as a pocket knife (carbon steel works best), against flint to create a spark. You can also use an axe head against flint. Hold your flint and char cloth in the same hand so that the spark can reach the cloth. Strike the steel against the flint, but more of a glancing blow than a direct hit. Continue to do this until the sparks hit the cloth and catch fire.
7. THE PUMP FIRE DRILL
Create a pump fire drill. This is a nifty little way to start a friction fire without as much work. The Iroquois Indians are credited with this little marvel. It is definitely worth trying. You will need a piece of hard wood to use as a cross bar and a flywheel as well as a softwood spindle and fireboard. There are only three steps for set up.
A. Make the flywheel by boring a hole in a piece of the hardwood. The piece of wood should be round. Work the spindle through it. It should be snug. The hole for the crossbar (also made of hardwood) should be a little roomier so that is moves easily up and down the spindle.
B. Use a shoelace or leather thong to attach the top of the spindle to the crossbar.
C. Use the flywheel to twist the shoelace around the spindle. Press on the crossbar so that the spindle rotates and rewinds the shoelace in the other direction. Continue doing this until the friction gives you an ember.
Don't forget to either pack some char cloth or put together a tinder bundle made from dried grass and cottonwood bark or other similar materials. After all, an ember isn't very useful if you don't have something to catch it and ignite to a flame.
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