Tarps and fire

G

Gurthang

Joined
Apr 12, 2008
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44
When making a fire you NEED, not merely want, how do you set a tarp in relation to the fire.

How do you set up a fire in the rain to keep you warm, and still stay dry? Do you set up near an evergreen?

I'm very interested in how you guys tough out harsh, unexpected conditions. As we all know, warm & dry beats the hell out of cold & wet. I'm looking forward to your replies.
 
I string a line on a tree about 8 feet up and stake it back about 15 feet or so.

This places the front of my shelter about 5 feet or so from the tree.

Start at the stake and put a corner grommet there and run it up the line. With a rectangle tarp, I string it so there is a flap remaining on the front on one side. I build the fire just in front of the tent I have made on the side opposite the flap.

Take a piece of paper and fold it to practice, you will come up with a few designs to try when you get out there and practice while the weather is nice.
 
I don't usually like to have fires under anything combustible, like a tree or flammable shelter, so I will try to choose a spot that is in the clear, but still near a wooded area to provide some relief from wind. If I must get a fire going in the rain or wind, I will usually first erect a tarp and get as much tinder under it as possible. I will then clear a spot where the fire will be, make a tipi shape cover using pine bows, and go back under the tarp to start a small fire and get a few coals burning, preferably on a flat rock. Once a small fire is going, it is possible to pick it up and move it into the main fire area, where it may be necessary to huddle close shielding the fire with your coat in order to ensure the fire takes hold there. Keep babysitting it until it starts to blaze, and don't be shy to throw a green pine bow it it either. The pine bow acts as a cover against rain, and once it lights up, it goes like kerosene. After the fire gets good and hot, only a deluge of biblical proportions will put it out so long as you continue to feed it. A fire in the rain consumes far more wood, so before you begin, make sure you have a good supply under that tarp! For warmth, I will often move hot rocks under the tarp if need be and use them to keep warm, at least until the rain lets off enough to go stand by the fire for a good duration of time without getting soaked.
 
An open A-Frame with a fire ~4' away and a wall of wood opposite my resting area to dry the wood and reflect heat is something off the top of my head.
 
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Generally string up a old tent fly between two trees and angle it down so that the wind is blocked. I'll lay several 10 - 15cm limbs along the ground to form the basis of a floor. A couple of woven plastic produce bags stop any moisture movement into my clothes.
Theloungeroom-1.jpg


I then set up the fire about 3 meters on the down wind side of the fly.
Flyshelter.jpg


If there's a change in wind direction. I'll erect a bark leanto to act as a wind break.
Barkwindbreak1.jpg


Hope this helps.



Kind regards
Mick
 
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Thanks for the info. I rarely get out to practice, as free time is limited, and family takes most of that.
 
Well this sort of thing can be familiy time too. When my boy was young, the missus and I would cart him off with us into the bush. It wasn't long before I realized that his Mom's idea of "camping" was much different than that of my own (and my son's), so I was certain to set aside time for more rugged and 'interesting' excursions as well as the standard familiay camp trip. We were fortunate enough to have full access to the 69 acre scout camp, but even if one doesn't have such luxury, there is ample crown land up here on which to practise woodsmanship and enjoy nature. My son is almost 34 now and I bet he could outwit me in the woods anyday, although I find it a shame that his family life seems to have deterred him from following the outdoor life. I always try to encourage him to make camping and bushcraft a family activity, but I get the feeling his wife is a bit of a softy, and since they have a girl, there seems to be some stereotypical barrier in the way too where 'girls aren't meant to be in the woods' (bah!). It is too bad, since I can truly see the disappointment in his eyes when he speaks of "camping trips" with the litter, it's like he misses the trips we went on together ("expeditions" as we would call them yesteryear) but I can no longer accompany him in my old age, and I surely won't suggest he go alone. I guess what I am saying is do the things you love to do, and do them as a family. There will eventually come a day when those things are no longer possible, or worst case scenario, no longer interesting, and all you will have is memories. It is best to have memories than regrets, so go out there and have fun while you all can, don't think twice, just do it and make a familiy event of it!

I apologize if I impose in any way by saying these things, but I believe that the good old outdoors is the best thing for the heart and soul, far moreso than video games or watching the boob-tube, and if I could start my familiy all over again, I would walk every step in the same place as I did the first time 'round (except this time there'd be no expensive "Polaroid" cameras) ;).
 
I usually pitch my tarp so that the portion to be anchored closest to the ground is upwind. The problem is that if that end of the tarp is staked directly to the ground, the wind causes the smoke from my fire to swirl under the tarp. I generally tie some roughly three foot pieces of paracord through the holes that are located in the end of the tarp to be anchored to the ground. They are attached to the stakes. At a typical pitching angle, this permits that end of the tarp to be pitched about a foot off the ground. By doing this, I get some flow-through ventilation and typically avoid a lot of smoke swirling under the tarp.

I like to use some loops of shock cord between anchor lines and the tarp. I get less tarp damage in high wind.

DancesWithKnives
 
RC: Certainly no offense taken. In fact, I agree with you. My son & I mostly fish (I think he finds bow hunting to slow and boring) and have taken some canoe camping trips together. Getting the wife and daughter out camping has been a more difficult task. We do family fishing trips, but getting my women folk to sleep outside isn't happening short of a house fire!

DWK2: My shelter of choice is currently a jungle hammock, which I can hang a tarp over either diamond or rectangular. Given extreme conditions where a fire is NEEDED, not merely wanted, as stated in my original thought, I'd have to consider a set up like yours as being more suitable to being near a life saving fire. Thanks for the ideas.
 
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