10+ Bushcraft & Camping Tips: Forest Fires 🔥 

Excellent video. As a retired Firefighter, I can offer a 'few' more safety tips: 1)ALWAYS keep your fire size to a minimum. You don't need a bon fire to boil water or cook over. 2)ALWAYS have a method of extinguishment handy, whether it be water, a fire extinguisher, a pile of dry sand or what have you. And have a plan on what to do if the fire get's out of hand 3)NEVER throw combustible trash in your fire for any reason. The piece of trash may become air-born and start a fire a long distance away 4) at night, never leave a fire unattended. If you have to, put it out and relight it when you need to. 5)NEVER let children play with or near a camp fire. 6)Like Mike said, always clear an area down to the soil, at least 3 times that of your fire. As a rule, I personally clear out 5 feet in each direction and always build a ring out of rock to contain the flames. The list of safety tips go on and on. But the most important one is just to plain old BE SAFE around and handling a campfire!!

If you are near a water source, it'll be a bit more work, but you can use the water to spread around your fire to damp up the area for an extra protection layer.

Good advice. I had never heard of tree roots catching fire until we visited a camp ground where 3 large white pines burned from the inside out because the previous campers had a huge fire. The trees were all at least 30' from the fire pit if not more. Thanks again Mike !

FIRE BOWLS CAN BE DANGEROUS TOO!! I once used a fire bowl on a damp forest floor (leaves cleared out) and it well high of the ground and still, due to the heat coming off of the bottom of the bowl, the ground underneath still started to burn, into the ground and spread underground up to a meter away from the bowl! We didn't realise it until we started to see smoke rising from the ground. We had to pour a lot water over it to make it stop. A good tip is to put a layer of sand or even stones, in the bottom of the bowl first, to stop the heat going downwards. It is good for people to understand the dangers of fire in the woods, so thank you for sharing your video!

I was in Boy Scouts and growing up in the desert we took fire safety very seriously. We'd rake 20 feet in every direction from the fire and had two 5 gallon buckets for extinguishing fires, one full of water and the other of sand. Sand would suffocate flames and water would extinguish coals. If we went to a forest in the mountains, we'd be wary of the conditions there and quite often would not have fires. Almost all our cooking was done with propane camping stoves. Fire pits at establish camp grounds had mesh/expanded steel lids to keep the sparks in.

Washington state (USA) just had a fire start 5 days ago in a maintained campground. Someone did something foolish (we don't yet know what) but a tree was engulfed fairly quickly and spread to 8 acres. It is contained now, but they are still working to make sure it stays out. I don't know what to make of some folks. The last time I went to a small waterfall an hour from home, litter was scattered everywhere. Thank you for making a difference through educating people.

Great job Mike. Timely. Here in the Highlands we are having two serious forest fires this last few weeks. The first, caused by tourists with a disposable barbecue, has been burning for around 12 days now and at times its been miles long. It’s under control for the moment but the fire service are on scene 24hrs as its smouldering up to 4 feet down under the ground. I had to go to the aid (I’m a paramedic) of two firefighters who had been injured in an accident whilst fighting it. The second (cause unknown as yet) in a different area has, so far, resulted in two homes burning down and the planning of an evacuation of the elderly residents of a care home which may be in the fires path. Strict fire safety in the summer and doubly so with these unusual hot dry spells is essential. Peace.

Essential viewing. It's not rained here in Scotland for a month. Not everyone thinks of fire safety.

hey TA - you can add a soldering mat beneath your bushbox, which makes small embers a lot less problematic

Good advice Mike. If I may just add one thing? Top Tip: Never extinguish your Trangia stove with the lid, always use the simmer ring, it stops you from burning/melting the rubber seal in the lid! Which can start leaking if the sealing ring has melted or deformed enough?

It's amazing how many people out there are still using portable BBQs and not disposing of them properly. Another great advice video to get safe information out there Mike, nice one! 👌

Great stuff! Thank you for raising this subject. I think we need highlight that 1) it's OK to be new to something. To light a fire can be hard, but even harder to do it right. Stay curious! 2) You don't need to be an idiot to cause a forrest fire. It's like driving a car, and it's tempting to say it will be fine if you've done it a thousand times before. Pay attention and don't get sloppy! Addition: don't light a fire at stone floor (for example near a lake). It can crack and damage the stone.

I was just about to set fire to the forest. But because of this video I decided no to. Thankyou TA Outdoors for this advice.

I camp at a river a few miles from where I live and there a lot of broken concrete pieces around it and they’re perfect for a fire circle that’s decently high and it’s overlooking the river. Beautiful scenery and easy to make a good fire and be able to make it safely

Thank you for making this video! Many people are completely clueless about fire safety in the woodlands. I grew up here in the states and at 59 years young, I still remember Smokey the Bear ❤️ Thank you brother!!

I’ve been really wanting to start bush crafting but I can’t seem to find a decent video on fire safety but this video is perfect 😁

Good job Mike, this is really important. In this country you can’t legally have a fire in most areas for most of the summer, and at other times you need a permit. Only in winter can you just light a fire when camping. People still do silly things though, often through lack of knowledge. Thanks for spreading the word.

Another point to note is the reignition of a dead fire. An hour after you extinguish a fire it will reignite after it drys out the ground. Fires are just a bad idea during the summer .

Very cool video. It's not often you see videos addressing proper fire etiquette. I've been a bushland firefighter for fifteen years and we regularly get called out to poorly maintained or abandoned camp fires.

Some useful little tips there . I'm mostly in pines so don't have an open fire . Mostly use a trangia , twig stove or small fire bowl placed on a log so its off the ground and I can see whats happening. Take care Mike 👍🏕

Another thing I'm surprised people don't understand is if you're frying anything indoors or outdoors and accidentally have a grease flare up, DON'T THROW WATER ON IT! The water would only spread an oil based fire. Instead of water, Use the method of soaking a cloth and smothering the oxygen out of the fire like he mentions in this video . But most important thing of all, Don't Panic!

my tip. I've made and sustained fires before (gardener/landscaper) something I see people do/react to a fire is when its dying/died out. "Oh the fire went out so I left it" and sometimes when I went back to check on the fire, it came back to life sometimes to full big flames. If you think your fire died out and you don't want to restart it or aren't planning on restarting it. MAKE CERTAIN THAT IT STAYS OUT! This is one way how human built fires cause quote unquote wild fires and emergencies in general.

REALLY enjoyed seeing all the tips for keeping a fire SAFE. There are many places in the states where wildfires get out of control. It's good to know how to cook without being the cause of yet another one. Right now, the east coast is choking on the smoke of hundreds of wildfires burning out of control in Canada. Now, when there has been a drought, around here, you get something called "dry lightning". You get clouds and lightning strikes. This is a perfect recipe for disaster. Besides praying (highly recommended) it's smart to do no fire lighting at all. Better to be safe than sorry.

Thank you Mike if folk follow your advice we will all be able to enjoy camping for many years rather than having to wait for the land to recover after a wildfire

Thank you for your very thoughtful (and thorough) explanation of alternatives for camping in dry conditions. Here in western Pennsylvania (in the U.S.), we had a six-week dry spell about five or six summers ago. Ordinarily, when I hammock-camp in a nearby forest (close to twenty nights annually), I enjoy a cigar in the evening after dinner. But during that spell that summer, I did not even put a cigar in my pack; things had been so dry, I did not even want to be tempted to light a cigar, and possibly burn the forest. If we love the forest--you do and I do--we take special precautions when the forest is dry (I used my alcohol stove for coffee in the morning). We have had good summer rains since then, and I have enjoyed my after-dinner cigar by a fire (and Fall through Winter here, it is always wet). But my love for the forest is far greater than my enjoyment of a cigar, and I think I made the right choice. Be safe, and enjoy the woods.

Thank you for your help in teaching fire safety… in the states we are dealing with fires one big fire in Michigan was set by a campfire last week. Have fun stay safe.

This is so very important! Dealing with a lot of the smoke from the forest fires here in Canada and I heard someone even got charged in my town yesterday for lighting a fire despite the current fire ban and extreme fire risk warning. So important to practise fire safety and pay attention to the bans. Thank you for spreading proper fire safety skills. Far too many people don't realize the risks.

Mike, thanks for this episode. You have undoubtedly saved some lives and woodspaces.

13:21 All campers hikers in the western states of USA 🇺🇸 need to learn about fire in the woodlands forest. The last 20 years the weather is been dry, with little rain and snow in the Sierra Nevada.

I was camping in a state campground early in the year once, and had a totally normal fire. I had cleared the dry leaves from around our fire pit, about 5-10 feet, which I thought was sufficient. It had been a dry spring, so the leaves were quite dry, and it was windy. I turned around from the fire to break up some wood, and turned back, noticed that there was fire under the picnic table which are provided at each of the campsites. I guess that a spark or something had been blown under the picnic table. The fire quickly spread, and got out of control - I would stamp out the fire in one spot, then move to another, and the original spot would flare back up. Long story short, several fire departments responded. It was bad enough that they had to call a helicopter to dump water on it. Thankfully, the way the wind was blowing, nobody was camping in that direction. At this point I had no idea what was going to happen, as I didn't know the laws about this; I was preparing myself for possibly going to jail etc. But the rangers talked to me, said the laws about accidental fires in our state were such that I had to pay the costs to extinguish, and that was it. Of course, after that, the rangers put up a "no fires" sign for that weekend, and they said that really they should have had them up in the first place, as they recognized that in those conditions it was very easy for fire to spread. At this point in my life, I didn't have much money, so paying it was tough, but all in all I thought it was very fair. I was very lucky that nobody was hurt, and people's tents, vehicles, etc weren't in weren't damaged. Do not underestimate how easy it is for fire to get out of control, especially during dry conditions. Things could have very easily turned out far worse for me, and others at the campground too.

When I use to go camping in my youth, in UK 🇬🇧 . I would make a fire pit, dig about 5/6inch circular hole in the ground about 2ft diameter line it with rocks, then build a rock wall around it. It protected the ground, never had a out of control fire. Easy to dismantle and bury.

A big point is, in he summer you dont need to have a big fire any way. A gas stove is in my opinion really the best option.

Glad you've made this vid, Mike. Just one thing; could we have a vid at some point on what cold food you can bring that *isn't* overly processed, because processed food is bad for you. The only things I rely on is stuff that will last like carton milk, which I try to keep in a cool water source (nearby stream that's sheltered etc) and precooked canned goods that you can eat without heating that have been precooled in a similar water source - like peas, carrots, potatoes, beans etc. I eat beans for protein rather than having processed meat such as ham etc.

In our area we have high vegetable rich muck (a type of peat) that can be 20 to 30 feet deep. The surface can look fire safe. If you build a fire on it, the fire can move down into the muck and burns for years. We had a small fire that took us slightly over a month to put out. To do it we had to dig a very deep trench around the fire area and fill the trench with water and keep it filled while flooding the fire area with water. Finally the fire was declared out.

Thank you for making this video. Here in Ottawa we’ve had bad smoke from the fires in Quebec and a wooded area an hour from us.

A collapsible bucket is a nice item to have. I’m glad you talked about root fires as root fires caused severe damage to one of my favorite hiking areas. Always make sure your fire is dead out before leaving your campsite for any long periods of time.

I appreciate this video. I have watched so many “ bushcraft” videos that have this great big fire, but have no cleared area for their fire. When I have commented on the videos about fire safety, (if I get a comment back ) the response is always nasty. 👍

In Australia, we are very aware of fire control. Cheers mate. Spread the word. Another informative video.🧙‍♂

The fold out fire bowl is such a win! And its big enough to put a grill over it, which means boiling water etc. is very straight forward.

Thank you so much for posting this video! Ive seen way too many other campcraft channels where they just build a fire anywhere with no protections. I don't think people know how dangerous that can be.

I actually prefer these kinds of videos. Thanks for all the hard work.

You have great presentation skill, and as a result your videos easily translate as useful and relevant across the Atlantic. Thanks for the quality content! Much appreciated.

Another fire control method taught by Leave No Trace is a mound fire. This involves making a simple mineral earth mound roughly 6" (15 cm) tall with a flat top to build a small fire on. After the fire is put out, the dirt and wet ash can be replaced safely in the original hole and covered with the original topsoil or sod. Using a bit of ground cloth underneath the mound makes it easy to replace it in the hole. This method reduces the surface fire scar on surrounding rocks and the surface itself, just dig the hole in the brush outside the campsite and bring it to the fire build location.

Brother, you should also cover how to properly make a dakota, and what if there are hundreds of roots in the ground that can cause an underground fire

Timing is perfect

Great advice, Mike. It's important to be extra careful with fire. 👍

At min. 24 I would recoment sand. Silicium will suck the Oxigen....

Glad to see you again! Thanks for sharing. Marie from Denver Colorado USA

Where I live, we have frequent burn bans during the summer. Propane/butane stoves are allowed (something you can turn off), but campfires aren’t. Most if not all of the wild camping areas around here don’t allow ground fires.

Stoves need to be on level and firm ground, preferably a rock or stand. The gas stove can get top heavy if the pot is too big, causing it to fall (I've fought several wildfires caused this way). Trangia style stoves also need to be on a rock surface, failing that a piece of felt wool under the stove will stop it scorching the grass/ground beneath.

Extra tip. take a watering can with extra water in it and wet the area around and below where you wanna light your campfire.

As a person under 18 I Am highly inspired by Bushcrafting and your channel I hope one day I will be as good as you.

If you're not going to make a fire for a while at that spot, it might be a good idea to put the leaves back, to protect the ground and to prevent the soil from drying out.

Here in the PNW of USA, while hot dry weather can occur, I've found that the problem with having an open wood fire is usually either damp/wet ground or wet ashes in the campfire appliance installed by the campground. I always carry a large roll of aluminum foil with me when camping and when I encounter the issue of a damp or wet fire bed, cover the base of the fire bed w/ 1-2 layers of the foil. This prevents the moisture below from entering into the (hopefully) dry wood used to create the new fire, as well as serves to dry out the wet/damp fire bed underneath. When putting the fire out before going to sleep, it also minimizes the amount of new damp/wet you add to the underlying fire bed. Buy morning you may once again have a mess of wet ashes in your fire bed, but it's on top of the foil base, which can be removed and properly disposed of, and if the underlying fire bed is still damp or wet (despite the fire of the day/evening before), well, I've still got more foil I can lay down over it to start my breakfast fire on top of. I know this is the opposite problem than what your video is about, but lighting a fire in wet/damp conditions can be just as important. Perhaps the subject of a video some day?

I really enjoyed this video! I always learn something from most, if not all of your videos. Keep up the good work! 🙏🏻

Thank cylinder fire “circle” is amazing! But the next one that looks like a “colender” is literally a veggy cleaner without the holes.

At Grasslands National Park in Canada they issue you a fireproof mat to go under your stove. No fires allowed and stoves permitted only when conditions were favourable.

Many Thanks, In this heat it’s a very timely reminder to us all.

You dont have to be camping to start a forest fire. A lit cigarette thrown out a window can start a fire. In the American Southwest, trailer chains brushing against the road ( a "caravan" in the UK) will create sparks potent enough to start a brush fire. Any spark or ember, from unlikely sources will create a fire. By the way, the fire bowl you demonstrated is manufactured by : Grilliput and you can order a matching grrill to go with it.

I use to live in Northern California and many times every year peoples improper use of fire would set the state on fire. It was so sad because of politics and poor forestry practices so many of the burn areas looked like the surface of the Moon, and the corrupt environmental practices many of these areas will never recover because of how hot the fire was destroying all the seeds and killing every tree that is there. And the environmental groups stand in front of lush forest land and tell the television cameras look at how beautiful everything is after the burns, But in reality the land they stand in front of belongs to the Big Lumber Companies that manage and protect the land.

I carry my gasifier twig stove in an old cracker tin using the lid as a shield for the ground and when I'm done with the fire I put the tin upside down over the stove as a snuffer. I also dump charcoal from the grill into a popcorn tin to snuff the coals. They have fire blankets for the kitchen the one I have is 6 feet square it folds small and is used to smother stove fires they work on campfires too and I use it suspended over the fire when raining or draped on the wood reflector to keep it from burning. The bisket/cracker tin also works with the fire bowl from my Kelly kettle, I use it when traveling by car so I can pull over for a quick boil and leave no trace not even ashes.

Thanks for the video Mike 👍

Thanks for sharing your wisdom

Sadly the only one real tip where I live is the first one, for like 9 months a year at least. I live in a hot, dry, sunny and windy environment, where forest fires are a constant hazard, and specially concerning for those who love nature. It is with a healthy envy that i watch videos like this :s

Awesome episode Mike 🫡, cheers from across the pond California 🇺🇸 🍻👊🏼😎🤙🏼

MRE heaters are a God send during dry seasons to heat foods that taste better when warmed. One can buy the mil-spec or civilian version of meal heaters. They are small and weigh next to nothing.

I'm not sure why but there has been fires in Ontario around where I live and what a time you posted this😅

Dam Good info !! Thanks for sharing your ideas. 🇺🇸🇺🇸🪓🔪👍👍

Great video and good timing. Big fires here in Ontario Canada

Thank you for sharing ✌️💞🤟

A light 10L or + dry bag is a good water transport when water source close + multi purpose. You can have it full hanging on a tree just to be safe. Great video thanks

All Canadians need to watch this

In regards to the spirit burner, when you put the fire out, you were dropping the cap right-side up, which means you're melting the rubber seal inside the cap and you'll have a leaky spirit burner in the future. I usually drop the cap upside down on the burner and leave it there for a few minutes just in case because methylated spirits can be very sneaky and unpredictable. Even safer if you just let it burn out.

Great video as normal 👍 Have you ever used the flame less cooking systems? I've used them before and they're great for a hot meal or hot water.

A very good way, friends, safe and quite practical

Well, there goes my weekend plans... (jk)

👍👍👍 Some good tips .. thanks. The bottom line in hot dry weather with a fire risk, ditch the open fire .. one will survive to burn another day. Trangia (and my other alcohol burners) .. fill the fuel chamber with Glass / Ceramic Wool / Carbon Felt. It does not appreciably affect the burn efficiency but does very much reduce the risk of burning fuel spillage in the event over a 'knockover'. Lights easier and quicker too .. especially in Winter. Hobo / Wood Stove .. In / on suspect areas or sensitive surfaces, I put mine into a rectangular 'dixie' (mess tin) or similar, the bottom thereof filled with water. Keep topped up aawr for evaporation. Hot coal spillage and heat transfer downwards then is never an issue. STH .. putting an already lit Trangia into a Firebox Stove with bare hands will one day result in burned hands and burning fuel all over the place .. just saying. Take care ..

Good idea makeing this video at this time of year buddy, im sure many people would have benefited form ur advice. I have to say though... I think u should have given a shout out to swedewoods for the steam bowl idea. We all know he's the original fella who came up with that cleaver idea 😉😆👍

I agree with you !!! 👌

Good information there Mike. Just one thing......please don't use your Trangia screw-on lid for extinguishing the stove; you will melt the rubber O-ring! Just lob the simmer ring on. Cheers!

I love these short tips videos .❤

Is it illegal to set fire in woods in Britain? Because it is illegal to set fire in Czech republic

Two things spring to mind. If you’re going to smoke, bring a portable ashtray. And don’t forget fire travels by heat. Things will catch fire even if flames and sparks don’t get to them.

Very thorough, we don’t have fire bowls in New Zealand so I use a food pot steamer. Looks almost identical, $2 from OP shops, love my Firebox.

Man, Smokey the Bear is looking really good these days. Thanks, Smokey! ;)

I'm curious, do you think your views have changed since you have become a landowner? I spent time as a young teenager volunteering as a forest ranger at my local park and its always something I tend to avoid. I think caring for the land makes you feel differently about it and appreciate it more.

Great video. So important! I use this thing at min 13:15 to steam vegetables. :-D You put it into a pot, water with some salt below and the vegetables inside. Thanks to you I have now an idea what to do with old ones. :-) Fantastic! Kind regards from Germany

When I'm trying to light a fire none of that tinder would go up! But mother nature has knowledge and patience far greater than me, and your right Mike, it'll ignite. Just gotta look across the pond at the moment. Whilst some fire regeneration is probably still part of natures way, we can't afford to lose any woodland or forest areas, theres hardly any left! Glad you did this and glad you're able to reach to a huge audience even if we 'know it' already. Can't do any harm can it?!

This show's your commitment to narure, instead of condemned useing fire when it's dry, you gives a good education of how to make a fire safely... BUT! The soil can also Ignite/ burn.... And if it's dry like now, the heat/ fire can crawl down and follow roots and Flame up meters/ yards or kilometers/ miles away.... I would promote no fite on the ground, and no fire at all....

Very good video. If I do have a fire I also tend to make sure I have full bladder too, built in directional extinguisher, just my backup plan

13:15 Kitchen Kapers, Williams-Sonoma or General Kitchens Store, look for a Vegetable Steamer, I have stacked them up by three times by watching Alton Brown steaming corn. Watching Lonnie and Connie Far North Bushcraft had one small campfire using the stainless-steel steamer. Cuisinart has added a plastic handle, darn. I just remove and rig a few S S Steamers for the campfire, leaves the ground slightly warm.

very timely considering what's going on in Canada right now

Just buy a moon hubcap and what ever stick or metal stakes for height adjustment ???

When I was younger I worked at the University I was attending during one of the summers. I was working at the secondary security desk and near the desk was a day care. One day I was working I noticed some smoke and walked outside to see the garbage bin outside the building was on fire. I ran back in and grabbed the fire extinguisher only to find out it was empty. One of the women from the day care saw and came running out with the fire extinguisher they had. While I was trying to get the fire under control she went back in and called the fire department. I controlled but wasn't able to put the fire out but was able to hold it in check until the fire department came and put out the fire. Turns out, someone nearby was having a bbq and after they finished, instead of letting the coals burn out or pour water on them they dumped them in the garbage bin outside the school. Another time in the late evening, close to midnight, someone has lit a bag on fire and tossed it down the garbage chute and it caught the rest of the garbage bin on fire. I wasn't working that night but because we had to evacuate a 20 story building of students I helped out. Thankfully no one was hurt during either instance but fires are nothing to take lightly.

For a contained fire, I use a cast iron dutch oven. It's too heavy to take on a hike, but where I live, open fires are not allowed.

There is a fire in Shelburne County Nova Scotia Canada 250 square kilometers half the county displaced 150 structure lost still out of controle new York city air pollution 450 !

It's summer here in the United States of China but it's cold, windy 40-70+ m.p.h. no sunlight, very dark. Port Orford Oregon.

This is a fantastic video! ❤ I learned nothing, but I feel as though this info is shockingly unknown or just not adhered to :( and people just think you can stop a fire nice and easy with no preparation... NO! Think about the fact that if you don't quite pay enough attention for potentially seconds, you could kill millions of living things and destroy a beautiful ecosystem... or you could just take a few simple steps (like these) and never have that happen... :) I have been lighting fires my whole life, and I never even once burned something I didn't mean to. Fire is beautiful, fire is life, and fire is insanely destructive with a "mind of it's own". Treat it like a dangerous animal, and you will be fine. Treat it like it is a lamb, and a wolf devours you and EVERYTHING else along with you. Respect it and enjoy it :) ❤

Great fire safety tips! So apt for what's going on in Canada and New England right now. It is also handy to carry a folding or collapsible pail or bucket with you to fill with water (or soil/sand if no water around) to keep by the fire to put the fire out.

Such a great Video. Good explainations and lots of different Options and Tricks. I was looking for an alternative for my gas cooker, more immune to wind and got some inspiration in your Video.