Preparing a Fireplace
Prepare the location of the fire carefully. Clear
away leaves, twigs, moss, and dry grass so that
you do not start a grass or forest fire. If the
surrounding vegetation is dry, scrape the fire
location down to the bare dirt. If the fire must
be built on wet ground, build a platform of logs
or flat stones.
To get the most warmth and to protect the fire
from wind, build it against a rock or wall of logs
that will serve as a reflector to direct the heat
into your shelter. Cooking fires should be walled
in by logs or stones, not only to concentrate the
heat but also to provide a platform for the
Kindling and Fuel
Some fuels cannot be ignited directly from a
match. You will need some easily flammable
kindling to start a fire. Good natural kindling
materials are thin sticks of dry wood; dry bark;
wood shavings; palm leaves; twigs; loose, ground-
lying lichens; dead, upright grass straw; or ferns.
If sticks are used for kindling, split them and cut
long thin shavings, leaving the shavings attached
(shave stick). Store kindling in a shelter to keep
it dry. A little JP-5 poured on the fuel before it
is ignited will help it start burning. D o n o t
pour petroleum fuel on a fire already started even
if it is only smoldering.
For fuel, use dry, standing, dead wood and
dry, dead branches. Dead wood is easy to split
and break-pound it on a rock. The inside of
fallen tree trunks and large branches may be dry
even if the outside is wet; use the heart of the
wood. Green wood that will burn, especially if
freely split, can be found almost everywhere. In
treeless areas, you will look for other natural
fuels, such as dry grass that can be twisted into
bunches, dried animal dung, and animal fats;
sometimes you can even find coal, oil shale, or
oily sand lying on the surface. If no natural fuels
are available and you are with the aircraft, burn
aircraft fuel and lubricating oil or a mixture of
each. Hydraulic fluid is specifically designed and
manufactured not to burn; therefore, it should
not be used.
Fire Making With Matches and Lighter
Prepare a fireplace. Get all materials together
before trying to start the fire. Make sure that
matches, kindling, and fuel are dry. Have enough
fuel on hand to keep the fire burning. Arrange
a small amount of kindling in a low pyramid.
Arrange the kindling close enough together to
permit flames to lick from one piece to another.
Leave a small opening for lighting.
Save matches by using a candle (if available)
to light the fire. If you have no candle, use a shave
stick or make a faggot of thin, dry twigs, tied
loosely. Shield the match from the wind as you
light the candle or faggot. Apply the lighted
candle or faggot to the lower windward side of
the kindling, shielding it from the wind.
Small pieces of wood or other fuel can be
placed gently on the kindling before lighting or
can be added after the kindling begins to burn.
Lay on smaller pieces first, adding larger pieces
of fuel as the fire catches. Do not smother the fire
by crushing the kindling with heavy wood. Do not
make the fire too big. Do not waste fuel.
Fire Making With Special Equipment
A flare can be used to start a fire; however,
it should be used only as a last resort. Some
emergency kits contain small fire starters, wind-
proof matches, and other aids.
Fire Making Without Matches
First, find or prepare one of the following
kinds of tinder: very dry, powdered wood; finely
shredded, dry bark; the shredded pith of a dead
palm frond; lint from unraveled cloth, cotton,
twine, or rope; first-aid gauze bandage; fuzzy or
woolly material scraped from plants; fine bird
feathers or birds nests; field-mouse nests; or fine
wood dust produced by insects, often found under
bark of dead trees. Tinder must be bone dry.
Tinder will burn more easily if you add a few
drops of aircraft fuel or mix it with powder taken
from a cartridge. Once tinder is prepared, put
some in a waterproof container for future use.
Once you have the tinder, light it in a place
sheltered from the wind. Several additional
methods of starting a fire are described in the
Flint and Steel
Striking sparks with flint and steel is the easiest
and most reliable way of starting a fire without
matches. Use the flint fastened to the bottom of
the waterproof match case. If you have no flint,
look for apiece of hard rock from which you can
strike sparks. If it breaks or scars when struck