http://www.woodlife.co.uk/2010/01/31/now-that-was-a-cold-one/ Thu, 29 Jul 2010 10:39:48 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0 http://www.woodlife.co.uk/2010/01/31/now-that-was-a-cold-one/comment-page-1/#comment-16451 Pablo Mon, 01 Feb 2010 12:50:46 +0000 http://www.woodlife.co.uk/2010/01/31/now-that-was-a-cold-one/#comment-16451 Great comment and thanks. Great tips. The issue here though wasn't getting it alight - it was keeping it alight! Great comment and thanks. Great tips. The issue here though wasn’t getting it alight – it was keeping it alight!

]]> http://www.woodlife.co.uk/2010/01/31/now-that-was-a-cold-one/comment-page-1/#comment-16438 Le Loup Mon, 01 Feb 2010 03:03:18 +0000 http://www.woodlife.co.uk/2010/01/31/now-that-was-a-cold-one/#comment-16438 I always carry a very small amount of kindling in my belt pouch, just slivers of pine and bits of twig. I also carry a beeswax candle stub for placing under damp kindling. I rarely have had to use them though, I collect any dry kindling I find along the way, "squaw wood" as it has been termed. Dead limbs and twigs still on the bush or tree where they dry out quicker than the kindling on the ground. I also look under rocks, fallen trees, rock overhangs, inside hollow trees fallen and standing. One can usually find leaves and twigs and collect enough to make fire. Of course I do carry tinder as I use flint and steel (not the ferral rod!), and tinder gets very hot. I not only have tinder in the tinderbox, I also carry spare tinder in my empty gunpowder wallet. Fire is too important to go without in winter. “Fierce winds and blowing snow reduced the men to huddling among large rocks, unable even to start a fire.” Samuel Hearne, Canada, 1770. “Dwarves can make a fire almost anywhere out of almost anything, wind or no wind; but they could not do it that night, not even Oin & Gloin, who were especially good at it”. The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien “This induced me to resolve not to travel more by land without my gun, powder and shot, steel, spunge (punk wood) and flint, for striking a fire…” Patrick Campbell, 1792. From my book, Primitive Fire Lighting-Flint and Steel. Regards, Le Loup. I always carry a very small amount of kindling in my belt pouch, just slivers of pine and bits of twig. I also carry a beeswax candle stub for placing under damp kindling. I rarely have had to use them though, I collect any dry kindling I find along the way, “squaw wood” as it has been termed. Dead limbs and twigs still on the bush or tree where they dry out quicker than the kindling on the ground.
I also look under rocks, fallen trees, rock overhangs, inside hollow trees fallen and standing. One can usually find leaves and twigs and collect enough to make fire. Of course I do carry tinder as I use flint and steel (not the ferral rod!), and tinder gets very hot. I not only have tinder in the tinderbox, I also carry spare tinder in my empty gunpowder wallet. Fire is too important to go without in winter.
“Fierce winds and blowing snow reduced the men to huddling among large rocks, unable even to start a fire.”
Samuel Hearne, Canada, 1770.
“Dwarves can make a fire almost anywhere out of almost anything, wind or no wind; but they could not do it that night, not even Oin & Gloin, who were especially good at it”.
The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien
“This induced me to resolve not to travel more by land without my gun, powder and shot, steel, spunge (punk wood) and flint, for striking a fire…”
Patrick Campbell, 1792.
From my book, Primitive Fire Lighting-Flint and Steel.
Regards, Le Loup.

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