Making fire in wet conditions

Revolverrodger

Revolverrodger

Joined
Jul 23, 2007
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I just came back from a hike in the forest. It had been raining for the last couple of days and raining on/off during the whole day. I decided to test myself an try to make a one tree fire (also used wet birch bark). Well it took more time than I expected to get to the dry wood and get enough small sticks to start a good fire.
Any hints and tricks to help making fire in these miserable conditions ?
Here is a video of my solo day hike for those interested !
[video=youtube;m06WZuXxTyc]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m06WZuXxTyc[/video]
 
More smaller stuff. Even wet stuff will get going if its small enough. Not sure of what timber you were using, or what you had access too. dry standing willow burns very hot, so can give you a bit of an advantage. I think that went fine, I would just start with more. I do it all the time, trying to get started with wet wood, and make the mistake of not having enough small stuff to start with.
 
I had mostly access to dead maple in that forest
Next time I will prep more small wood and try lighting feathersticks
 
I have no experience burning maple, it didn't grow in my part of Sakachin just poplar, pine, birch and willow mostly. If we did have a maple it would have been treated like a holy relic.
 
Not sure if you have conifers in your forests, but trees like spruce and fir are typically dense and will have lots of dead limbs below- they are often so dense that even in extremely wet conditions they are bone dry underneath.

Sometimes you just have to work hard to get to dry wood, but have always found it was time well spent in getting a fire going. Once you get a good fire going, you can carefully add damp wood.

Regardless, having tinder that you carry with can usually save the day- I've recently been using LiveFire tins as my "absolutely have to get a fire going" carry item. Easy to take a spark and will burn for up to 20 minutes- regardless of conditions I've always been able to get a fire going with it
 
I test myself in these types of situations one thing that has worked for me is I always carry a bandanna with me and so I make small curls like you're feather sticking and small shavings and put them in the bandana and then put that close to my body to dry out while I continue to process wood. I also use bark to hold the smaller pencil and finger sized sticks so they aren't on the wet ground and if its still raining I cover them with another piece of bark or garbage bag I have with me.
 
Strangely in that part if the forest coniferous trees are very rare. You are absolutely right that twigs from coniferous trees are excellent kindling and most of the time remains dry.
Thanks for the bandana idea ! I will certainly try that next time
 
Get off the ground if possible. Down low you are in the coldest and dampest air.

Maple is an excellent burning wood but I never start with it, simply haven't tried because I live in mixed forest. Usually go with spruce in the wet. Fir may be good elsewhere but balsam fir tends to soak up the moisture. However, the blisters of resin added to birchbark are almost a sure fire.

The branch/sapling you used is about the minimum size to find dry wood in the center. And often you want double or triple the kindling and starter wood to get going in the wet.

You can also scrape some ferro in to use like magnesium in an emergency. I think you did good though. I'll have to try a hardwood-only start, as I usually go with spruce to get a bed of coals.
 
I didn't watch the video, but do you have a source for fatwood?
It's extremely abundant in my area, and I have used it many times to get a fire going in adverse conditions.
 
Unfortunatly I never found any fatwood in the forest
Any hints for fatwood in the north eastern woods ?
White pine doesn't seem to make alot of fatwood
 
White and red pine will have some. Spruce as well. The resin is pushed to the surface when there is damage. Generally, you will have to look at knots or particular areas of grain because pine here does not grow the same as in the south. Hemlock knots as well. The greater density of spruce and the even distribution of resin also tends to keep branches extremely dry, as well as the excellent overhead cover. Thin shavings/feathers can be lit with a ferro.

Balsam fir tends to push the resin into the bark, hence all the blisters which you can poke with the point of your knife or a sharpened stick and collect the resin. It is one of the best firestarters, basically it is fatwood without the wood. And there is no need to carry it with you or wait for it to dry.

Yellow birch and the other birch trees also have excellent oils in them for starting fires. I would say birch bark and balsam fir resin is our equivalent of fatwood. Don't take too much from a single tree and try not to damage the intact bark of the birch. Use spruce branches for your fuel and you'll have an established fire in short order.

It depends on your area though. What trees are most common in your area?
 
It worked and you had fun - those are good things!

GadgetGeek is spot on about more smalls. I gather tiny branches from bushes on the forest's edge as I hike in. There were tons of small branches off the ground in view during some of the vid after you had started the fire. The dead ones would have worked well. In forty years of making fires in the woods I have never needed to baton wood for a fire. There is just so much out there that I can gather in 1/4 the time it takes to split. I would have started with wood half as thick as the wood you split and started with.

The Teepee fire lay is the poorest fire lay IMHO. I mostly use the Lean To or a variant of the Hunter's aka Two Logs. Here are two vids that cover finding and using fatwood fairly well. Also some tips on fire lays.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sS5IF8wcVPs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M-SW9HW0OFA

Congrats on the EmberLit! Have loved mine for many years.
 
I once lit a bundle of gathered materials after a 2-3 day rain on a cold damp morning. The materials were in a largish dome with my hands under it. The partial hornets nest inside would light/die/light/die. After quite a while with cold hands I was getting P.O. Then in a touch of frustrated anger I ripped the knife back across my firesteel up and down rapid fire. When I did this I noticed that it felt warmer inside my bundle, on my cold hands. So I continued more of this really ripping on the firesteel. Not only did my hands get warmer but after a bit the materials dried enough that I was starting to get momentarly flames on my hornet nest. It took about 20 min. maybe to get that one going and it was one of the hardest and most gratifying wet start fires that I've created. Now most days I just carry a couple of lighters and a rod. I feel secure enough to trust myself now, and feel no real need to continue experimenting. Although I"ll whip a rod out now and then for a tea or camp fire to keep with it.
 
heh, I don't know what to do without fatwood sometimes. I need to start moving away from it.
 
When practicing your skills... If you are making fire more than you are failing at it, you aren't challenging yourself enough. Fatwood is cheatin', Joe... you know this.
 
Rick Marchand said:
When practicing your skills... If you are making fire more than you are failing at it, you aren't challenging yourself enough. Fatwood is cheatin', Joe... you know this.
Click to expand...

So the goal is to NOT get a fire going? I've been doing it all wrong then. ;)
 
Rick Marchand said:
Well, I'm glad I got to you before you became overly proficient.:thumbup:
Click to expand...

Nah. I'm a hiker not a survivalist. I prefer a more practical approach. I guess it's what you call "cheating." :D

Just watched the vid op. Be sure to remember that the ground is always wet. Put down some bark or some small sticks(a base) on the bottom to insulate it from moisture from the ground. Also, you need to go smaller with your kindling. I noticed you were using big knives. With a saw i find a big knife to be a hindrance for going small. You either need to split the sticks smaller or make fuzz sticks. Both are easier with a mora. But, if you like big knives, supplement the big knife with a sharp folder. Do what you did and then make some fuzzies with the folder. It'll increase surface area and make things easier. But, sometimes it can just be a bear. Getting a fire is the goal and you got it. Everything will get faster the more you do it.


Also, be sure to clear all of the forest duff away from your fire. You're probably not going to have a forest fire in those wet conditions but it's a good habit to get into.
 
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