Low Impact: Another Look at the Lowly Campfire

August-September 1996

This is an article from WaveLength Magazine, available in print in North America and globally on the web.

by Lilian Alessa

Humans are unique among the planet's fauna in that they often gain comfort and a sense of safety from burning wood. A very long time ago someone realized that a good fire allowed them to see, even when the moon was dark, to be warm when the sun didn't shine and to lower the number of predators who stalked their camps. It is tempting to picture evolution selecting for those humans who liked fires over those who did not, the latter succumbing to exposure, walking off cliffs at night en route to the privy, or to large carnivores who fancied a midnight snack.

Today, the necessity of campfires is made obsolete by headlamps, cooking stoves and warm clothes. Occasionally a fire is justified for emergency purposes or when the marvels of technology breakdown, but ultimately it remains a social tool. Commercial guiding companies are notorious for using the campfire as a mechanism to build camaraderie among strangers or to comfort neophytes when darkness reminds the primitive brain that we are ill-suited for the night

With increasing numbers of people venturing out to camp in the coves and on the beaches of BC, the use of fires has reached epic proportions. Unfortunately, many fires are poorly managed, creating damaging and ugly scars upon a delicate and stunning land. Most of these campsites are extremely delicate and the pressure of repeated human visits is often beyond the carrying capacity of the ecosystem. This combined with an often poorly educated user group means that our coast may not remain as pristine as we think for as long as we would like to think. I'm sure many of you have lost count of the hideous firepits you've dismantled, the sand you've sifted or the half-burned logs that have required chopping, scattering and burning. An impromptu firepit in the forest is a sight that cannot be reconciled by any reasoning. The Broken Group, Johnstone Strait and all those areas which are inundated by kayakers and boaters alike have become grim testimony to an activity which, most often unknowingly, is destroying the very beauty we have come to seek.

If you feel I'm attacking the purest form of the "wilderness experience" then you're right. I'm also practising hypocrisy. My fondest memories of solo trips are falling asleep on lonely nights to the sight and sound of a fire, baking bread over glowing coals and basking in the comfort of the singing flames when I had to camp on a beach where two grizzlies had earlier played with mind-boggling power. However, a fire must be well justified and managed to produce minimum impact. When done properly and for the right reasons, it need not be bigger than a dinner plate and leave not the slightest trace of its existence.

If you absolutely must have a fires on your next kayaking trip, please consider the following guidelines:

1. What sort of campsite are you in? If the only source of driftwood is close to the beach/forest interface, you may be removing material important in maintaining species diversity and materials which limit the amount of erosion of forest soils. It is best to use a candle lantern, headlamp or fuel lantern to light your camp or cook on stoves in these areas.

2. All fires should be constructed below the high tide line. This occasionally means the timing and location is inconvenient. Even though there are many "established" firepits in the forest in high use areas it is better to dismantle them and use the beach*. The attitude of "it's there already, what's one more time matter?" means that poor wilderness standards will be propagated.

3. Dig a very shallow hole in the sand or gravel to allow for air flow beneath the wood. A narrow channel leading into and out of the hole aids in air circulation which may be regulated by filling it in or digging it out.

4. Fires should use small pieces of driftwood collected away from the forest/beach interface.

5. A cooking fire does not require very much wood to make suitable coals for boiling water or sauteeing and even less for simmering or keeping food warm. Extremely tasty meals may be made by burning a very small fire down to coals and burying a small dutch oven in them and the sand beneath. This is very efficient as no tending is needed once the oven is set and other camp chores may be attended to.

6. Keep a neat fire and consolidate unburned ends constantly.

7. Estimate the length of time you will require the fire and stop adding new wood early enough so as to allow existing pieces to burn down completely.

8. Ideally, a well managed fire burns down to ash and the hole is easily covered up. If any unburned coals remain, sift them out (always carry a small piece of wire mesh containing pores no larger than 1 to 1.5 cm across) and crush and scatter them below the high tide line.

9. Dismantle any firepits you come across. The most difficult and enraging ones are those which consist of entire logs which cannot be chopped up completely without a chainsaw. If the logs are moderate in size, use an axe or hatchet to chop off the charcoal region (if possible) and burn it down. Alternatively, discard the entire log discretely among large driftwood. For the pit itself, collect unburned pieces and burn them down or crush an scatter smaller ones. Sift the sand.

10. Never ever remove tree branches even if they look dead and, of course, don't even think of chopping down "little" trees. These sources of wood don't burn well anyhow because they're too 'green'.

In terms of personal comfort and health, fires do little for our seeking senses: our eyes, noses and lungs. When we leave the smog of a million cars behind, we should relish the rare air of cedar's breath and changing tides. The smoke from a campfire consists of tiny particles suspended in the air and many paddlers regularly suffer from mild smoke inhalation on a nightly basis while doing the infamous yet amusing "campfire waltz". Burning eyes, the sporadic hack of lungs protesting such exposure and the redolent persistence of woodsmoke in clothes and tents seem to have become accepted "joys" of campfires. Believe me, enduring woodsmoke blowing in the direction of your tent in a very small site is a most uncomfortable and irritating way to start off a night's sleep. When we gather to commune across the smoky glow of a social fire we miss out on the cooling day and the subtle change in scents as the night begins its shift.

For those of us who can wean ourselves away from the primal suckling of the raging heat, when we pass a few spans of the earth's turning without the red-blue flicker, we come to realize that fires steal away the night. For those of us temporarily or permanently banished to the city how many times do we have the opportunity to see the galaxy bent on its ear?

* This does not apply to walled firepits established by Parks which have been located to consolidate use and minimize impact.

Ed. note According a 1994 BC Government report, "Burning salt-laden driftwood could also result in production of dioxins and furans"-known cancer agents.

Lil Alessa writes regularly for WaveLength and instructs with Acorn Training

Low Impact Fires by Sylvio Lamarche When out there trekking or kayaking it is wise to carry a "space blanket" a foil emergency blanket, in case your sleeping bag gets wet, or in the event of hypothermia. But it can also be used to create a low impact fire! Here's what I do. I cut the space blanket in half, leaving the other half at home waiting to be put to work when the first half is worn out. When coming to a campsite with no fire ring, I lay this half blanket down and then build a fire on top. This prevents scarring or burning of the rocks and ground. After the fire is done, and when breaking camp, I dump all the ashes in the water or bury them, leaving the site clean. This is a trick that is highly recommended by back country horse clubs, and is a great idea to eliminate ugly fire rings on beaches. I find the blanket lasts a whole summer, even with many outing and daily fires. In fact, mine will probably last forever as I am into very small short fires, enough to cook dinner and refill the next days' thermos for hot noodles and tea along the way. Ed. Note: be sure the blanket is made of foil-some of them are actually made of plastic and sprayed with a metallic paint.