fire starting bark?

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Palmetto1155

Knifemaker / Craftsman / Service Provider
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Feb 28, 2013
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Many, many! years ago I was camping with an older man, (at that time I wasn't) and he brought a small chunk of bark from a nearby tree to the camp fire. He took the bark, dunked it in pure water, then proceeded to light it, WET, with a stick from the fire. The thing lit up like it had been dipped in kerosene. He said many packers kept the stuff on them because it was so dependable, even in a rain storm.

I'm well familiar with the "lightwood", aka "lighter knots" of the south from the hearts of fallen pines. This stuff was actual bark, not heartwood, from a tree. Anyone up north know what I'm referring to and the name of it?

thanks,
 
The bark of white birch has oil in it so it will light under various conditions .
 
thanks, I wish I could remember. That stuff was amazing to see burn under those conditions.
 
Probably birch bark. But eastern red cedar is another great bark tinder. Not sure if it will light after being dunked, but because it's an evergreen, it can usually be found on the trunk in a dry state because of the protective tree canopy. :thumbup:
 
Oh, one thing I forgot to mention is, we were camping in the Bitterroot range in SW Montana at the time.
 
I have used River Birch bark here in damp weather with no problem. It's another type of paper bark birch tree.
 
Birch. We carry some in a ziplock. Weighs next to nothing and takes up almost no volume.
 
aarongb said:
I'm thinking its chaga, a fungus that grows on birch trees.
Click to expand...

Chaga doesn't go up "like it had been dipped in kerosene". Birch bark does. I live at the Western base of the Bitterroots and it is plentiful here I have found. Chaga will hold a coal and ignite tough with a bit of effort.
 
Can't think of any other bark than birch bark. Maybe something with lots of pitch. More than likely just birch bark.
 
Assuming you are talking Texas where it says you are from, it would have been River Birch (Betula nigra). Doesn't burn quite as well as paper birch, but absolutely has the volatile oils that makes it burn quite well. Found all the way south to Florida along moving fresh water, as well as many a parking lot, as it is planted as an ornamental for that pink salmony colored flaky bark. Interestingly, it doesn't like higher elevations where you will see black, yellow and paper birch.
 
If the bark was white and peeled in large papers then it was white birch. If golden yellow (shiny grey-brown maybe?) and with very thin peels like feathersticks then it'd be yellow birch. Yellow birch is prime wood and the bark is arguably better than white for tinder (white is easier to work with though).

Try not to peel the connected bark from the tree as it can scar it.

Grey birch looks much like white but hardly ever peels and has darker eyes. Probably not out in Montana though.
 
Took this pic this morning. River birch (Betula nigra) along the Appomattox River.

Birch.JPG
 
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