Fire As A Life-Essential

Fire is a friend that serves several important purposes in outdoor settings.

We use fire to cook uncooked food and to heat up already processed food. Fire is used to elevate the temperature of non-potable water to 212 degrees as a means to sterilize it and render it safe for human consumption. We use fire to ward off the cold that would otherwise cause us to become hypothermic and possibly die as a result of our core body temperature getting too low. The heat from a fire is effective in helping to dry damp or wet clothes that would otherwise increase the danger of hypothermia. The light from a fire, even a small fire, at night lends a sense of comfort to us. The smoke from a fire during the warmer months keeps mosquitoes away from the immediate area. Fire and smoke also help to discourage four-legged night visitors while we are trying to rest in preparation for the next day ahead of us.

Fire requires three elements in order to exist. Every fire requires fuel, oxygen, and an ignition source that is hot enough to generate combustion.

We find and utilize the fuel (wood) that nature provides. Nature provides the oxygen (air). We carry with us the tools necessary to generate the initial combustion.

In teaching the art of fire making to youth (and others) I have always pointed out the importance of collecting all the fire making material needed to build a fire that will sustain itself before wandering away in search of more firewood or to engage in the other affairs necessary in setting up a camp. A fire of twigs and small sticks will quickly burn itself out and send you back to starting over from the beginning.

Have on your person and in your kit the tools necessary to build a fire. Don’t just possess them. Become proficient in using them.

There is quite an assortment of modern and primitive ways to generate combustion. 

I consider primitive ways to be quite novel. 

I think it is important to acquire the primitive skills if you can. Knowing how to spin an ember with a hand drill and a bow drill involves a learning curve and a good amount of physical energy. Learning them can be a lot of fun. Learning them can also be terribly frustrating and, for some people, physically impossible due to a number of physical health conditions. 

These primitive methods also become practically impossible in wet conditions.

The primitive flint and steel method is a fun way to generate combustion. It was, at one time, the “modern” method and made the fire making chore a lot easier for people. The problem with primitive flint and steel is that the pre-processed charred material necessary to catch a spark has a tendency to absorb moisture from the atmosphere and becomes difficult to ignite with the relatively cool small sparks from a primitive fire steel and a rock that is capable of shaving sparks from the steel.

While these primitive methods can indeed be used to generate combustion, I am of the opinion that they should not be depended upon as the “go-to” methods when there are more effective and dependable modern tools to accomplish the purpose, especially in a multiple day/night get-home journey that can, in every sense of the word, be considered a survival scenario.

Matches (particularly the wind and waterproof types), Bic (and similar type) lighters, and ferro rods (modern version of primitive flint and steel) are the most practical combustion tools that you can carry on your person and in your kit. They are the most dependable methods of generating the initial heat necessary in the fire making process at our disposal.

Practice the art of fire making until the art is perfected. 

It is important to practice in all types of weather. Practice with damp, wet, and otherwise marginal material. Fire is a life-essential.

It is not always a bright sunny day or clear dry night when we need a fire.

Note: This blog article is an excerpt from a larger body of work focusing on practical prepping and personal preparedness that we will be uploading soon and making available via Kindle Direct Publishing.