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- Jun 30, 2003
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My daughter’s been bugging me to take her camping. I thought a good first step would be to see if she has the patience to break down wood, get a fire started, and boil water.
I found this little wood stove for under $15 on Amazon; didn’t want to commit to a fancy German hinged one for >$90 just yet. It latches together instead of folding, but it’s lighter and packs smaller too.
This is the neighborhood park, but we’re fortunate that there’s a woodlot on the fringes, so we walked around and picked up some deadfall. (Which was a little cleanup for the landscapers too!)
It had rained all morning, so we had to shave some wet, moldy bark off some of the branches. (Delica was deployed) We decided on three sizes of branch, but the biggest size (1-1/2”) wasn’t needed; too big for the tiny stove.
I brought a Tumbleweed starter, which worked great despite the wood being a bit soggy. If had to start it with shavings and a ferro rod, it would’ve been a LONG time!
The water boiled a lot quicker than I thought it would.
It was super fun. If you’re looking for some light bushcraft activity to do with your kids or grandkids I recommend this.
Stanzi and I decided we will get a bit more fancy next time. Maybe sausages to add into some kielbasa and cabbage soup. I’m also going to bring the chopper knife that 91bravo lent me instead of the hatchet.
Here’s a quick video clip and some photos:
Getting the fuel ready:
Whittling off some moldy & wet bark:
Kindling ready. That bigger kindling wound up being about the right size fuel. The bigger branches you see in other pix weren't needed. If they're still there, I may split them later.
Feeding the little monster:
Ready to light 'er up!
This ramen is pretty good and is available at Costco. I fortified it with a 3 year-old can of green beans and mushrooms from our pantry: (it was fine, of course)
Nom-nom-nom. Look how protective she is of her ramen!
What kinds of little weeknight bushcrafting projects have you done with your kids and put your knives into service?
I found this little wood stove for under $15 on Amazon; didn’t want to commit to a fancy German hinged one for >$90 just yet. It latches together instead of folding, but it’s lighter and packs smaller too.
This is the neighborhood park, but we’re fortunate that there’s a woodlot on the fringes, so we walked around and picked up some deadfall. (Which was a little cleanup for the landscapers too!)
It had rained all morning, so we had to shave some wet, moldy bark off some of the branches. (Delica was deployed) We decided on three sizes of branch, but the biggest size (1-1/2”) wasn’t needed; too big for the tiny stove.
I brought a Tumbleweed starter, which worked great despite the wood being a bit soggy. If had to start it with shavings and a ferro rod, it would’ve been a LONG time!
The water boiled a lot quicker than I thought it would.
It was super fun. If you’re looking for some light bushcraft activity to do with your kids or grandkids I recommend this.
Stanzi and I decided we will get a bit more fancy next time. Maybe sausages to add into some kielbasa and cabbage soup. I’m also going to bring the chopper knife that 91bravo lent me instead of the hatchet.
Here’s a quick video clip and some photos:
Getting the fuel ready:
Whittling off some moldy & wet bark:
Kindling ready. That bigger kindling wound up being about the right size fuel. The bigger branches you see in other pix weren't needed. If they're still there, I may split them later.
Feeding the little monster:
Ready to light 'er up!
This ramen is pretty good and is available at Costco. I fortified it with a 3 year-old can of green beans and mushrooms from our pantry: (it was fine, of course)
Nom-nom-nom. Look how protective she is of her ramen!
What kinds of little weeknight bushcrafting projects have you done with your kids and put your knives into service?
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