Why am I so addicted to these videos??? I’m never going to use these techniques, go camping in the bush or anywhere near a bush or forest…what is this spell or algorithm you have cast on me? Seriously though, thanks for these videos. They’re are never going to save my life but they bring me everyday joy
Yeah. So fun to watch, but I will never remember it all. If the world goes to hell, someday I will be sitting in the woods wishing I had Wi-Fi so I could look this stuff up again.
You have to be careful that the ground is hard because you can start a fire underground with tree roots that will burn for weeks and will eventually move above ground.
@@joakimmoller how would it do that without the exposure to abundant air? Its trapped in soft soil how would anything burn with it being trapped in the ground?
@@StevenLeeStudios it's oxygen in the ground, and also when it burns the air comes backwards in. If you think about the top layer of leaves it's not that thick, but still hard to see fire from above in daylight.
I learnt this in the Swedish military. The advantage with this method, besides requiring little wood, is that it is hard to detect in the dark as most of the fire is below ground and doesn't give off much light. Also, it doesn't produce much smoke.
@@TheKingacevedo there are underground coal fires that have been burning for decades in a low oxygen environment. It's better to bring a small rocket stove with you that can charge your phone when you're camping. They're less likely to start forest fires. Alternatively build one out of rocks instead.
Genial idea. To everybody: attention were to do and be sure go off the fire and all the burning charcoals before go away. Sorry fom may english. Greetings from Italy.
Word of advice from a forest warden myself. This method has high possibility to cause wild fire, IF you are careless. Make sure your soil don't have underground root system or using this method in dried meadow area. Put out your fire after using it and bury the hole before you leave the campsite. :) Pardon my english tho, since i am not a native english speaker. Stay safe and love you all from indonesia.
Remember to double-check your environment. If your surroundings have a lot of loam / forest detritus, where the soil is mostly organic matter (especially if it's dry) or you're in a peaty location, DO NOT MAKE A GROUND FIRE. Same goes for a lot of conifers, pines spruces, firs, and so forth. They have very pitch-rich roots, and those can catch and hold an ember, same as the loam, peat, or thick leaf litter. ONLY DIG A FIRE HOLE IN MINERAL / CLAY SOIL, and make sure you have water on hand to extinguish it, not just try to smother it! Embers can smolder underground for literal weeks before springing up into a forest fire. EVEN IN WINTER, this can happen!
Winter ain't having no adverse effect on the inflammability, nowadays! Actually, the worst fires of the last few years (f.e. In the US) were wreaking havoc in octobre to december. Neonicotinoids also did partake in some killing of woods, which turned them into firestarters (natural process apart from killing an insane amount of insects with pesticide casings of seeds like neonicotinoids)!
The only other draw back is it seems like you can't do this because of that......I feel like I can't do anything! I'm not trying to be a jerk here! Just saying......did you guys not see the organic material around the hole?
I'm loving these innovative ideas. I'm a fan of the Dakota Fire Hole so anything similar to the Dakota method I'm a fan of. Please keep them coming. Cheers.
Final safety tip: Be sure to douse that setup with PLENTY of water. Those coals can last for an extended time and may possibly flare up at a most inconvenient moment... (EDIT: obviously, many of the responders to my comment have never heard of a root finger catching fire and flaring up 20 feet from the original pit. You must first douse the fire to cool any active flames, then scrape the embers from any unburned logs, add some dirt or sand and more water, stirring into a slurry until there is no more smoke or hissing sound. Finally, feel with your hand for any residual heat. This process can easily consume 5-10 gallons of water, depending on the size of the pit. Don't assume the fire is out and you'll never wind up being THAT GUY.)
Thats a really good point 🤔 underground fires that have lots of fuel like a whole trees root system can burn slowly but get insanely hot and you won't even know it until flames break out somewhere above ground
My scout leader was a ex marine. He taught us a bunch of cool little tricks like this every chance he had. Start a fire with rocks was my favorite. So many bloody fingers but it was badass.
@@michelehemlokhexwhite4310Yes. You scratch up a bunch of wood to get like sawdust. Then you hit the rocks against each other aiming the sparks at the sawdust. After a few tries, abracadabra you've got yourself a fire.
@@saleycole4296 you have no idea what you're talking about. This would only work with certain rocks(flint). It's not as simple as you make it out to be.
I did not know that if i did do not remember. Only if the are small in the fire they surely will pop out with pressure and in different directions too. Lighters batteries. Never burn a tire unless you want rescue team to find you. 😊
I mean if you're in a survival situation a popping rock is hardly your biggest concern. They don't exactly explode like tnt it's more like pop'n'crack.
For those who don't already know, digging a fire pit holds an inherent risk of setting roots on fire. Roots can smolder for long periods and eventually surface and ignite forest fires.
Just make sure the holes are in ' dirt' not packed organic matter. If the soil is mostly organic matter the ground can catch fire and start burning underground. Underground fires are not easy to put out and they can go anywhere.
For sure.. years ago sparks from a beach fire ignited dried roots from the edge of an eroding field. Didn't notice until the next morning when we woke up and the pasture was smoking in a bunch of places. Concerning??? you betcha.
Heads up for people in the comments: make sure that the area you're in is safe for underground fire techniques! If you do this in certain regions, ESPECIALLY if there's peat of any sort, you could cause a fire in the local peat mass or root system.
@@MrDavidkniggethose places are commercially viable peat harvest, sure. That doesn't mean it won't turn up in other places that have a regular wet season or which used to be wet for a long time.
@@MrDavidkniggehe Scottish Highlands, where I live, recently had the UK's largest forest fire on record (at a place called Cannich), due to underground peat burning. Some wild campers started a fire which went out of control from their camping gas stove; they called the fire service, who came to put it out. Unfortunately the firefighters who attended were from the nearby city, so weren't knowledgeable enough to make sure there was no underground fire risk that needed excavating or further extinguishing. They left, the fire resumed as the peat continued to smoulder and reignited, and ended up as our largest on record.
Good way to camp without leaving a trace. Just douse the fire and fill in your ‘fire pit/stove’. As others have mentioned, make sure you don’t try this near tree roots.
Pine cones man... There's tons of them most often and they light quickly... Also keep feeding hardwood into it, after awhile you'll have a deep bed of red hot coals that stays lit for awhile
Pine trees often have some dried dead branches still attached to the tree that works well enough as kindling. Certain trees have a type of cotton growing out of them similar to what a dandelion seed parachute looks like at the end of the season.
Thank you so much for actually explaining the why. another channel posted exact same thing with 0 talking and 0 explaining as to reasons why to do this.
The question is "why would you employ this?" The Dakota fire hole is meant to be low observable, but beating these holes in the ground is pretty easy to hear and make out as human.
@@TheHuntForSupper that's hubris, and a deadly mistake. If I am in a threat-level environment, it is only arrogance that could comfort me into believing that MY field craft is so good, and my perimeter so well checked, that I can be careless.
@@thomp9054 actually quite the opposite. I think the "prepper" thing is mostly a fad. There is more value in community that there is in the ability to live alone on snake livers and grubs.
My Lt taught us this and we BBQ in the field was the first and last time I did that but that was an awesome night. Was the warmest I ever had been in the field as an infantryman in the Georgia winter. That LT is a legend best leader I ever had.
I bet! I'm a graduate of the Ft. Benning School for wayward Boys ( Sand Hill Campus), myself . We used these stoves in Germany to heat "C" rations back in the day. The cool thing about these stoves is. They are smokeless once they get a good flame going...
As an outdoorsman myself, it’s important to practice these things, a lot…I have trained folks in woodland survival, when panic sets in, most forget how to survive or remember even the basics…practice
Please be wary of starting underground root fires when you do this. Those can spread for miles unnoticed and cause massive damage. I would say this would be a more of an emergency fire where if you can get it to start, it burns very hot so you can use damp wood as fuel.
@danacoleman4007 the fire or coals can ignite the roots and it will continue to burn out the root and can possibly move up to the tree catch the tre on fire n cause a forest fire.. ( I believe is what I read before from one of these bushcraft guys)
I wish this wonderful technique would work in my area. I'm on sandy soil, so there is no pounding adjoining tunnels at my house. Sand is a sulky camper. But, I think just mounding sand to look like a volcano with an indent at the top might work, with a grate or branches laid over. Never tried it. This was fun to watch!
Put a small log between you and the fire holes. If your sleep surface is fairly soft and comfortable, your body tends to roll away from the hard, rough lump.
Wondering about root fires 🤔. These can be a problem in some locations. You leave without adequately squelching your fire and some time later a wild fire starts thanks to burning roots fire. 😖 don’t get me wrong this looks like a great fire, just be aware and careful.
We used to jokingly call these Dragon Nests; blow into one of the air holes and the dragon in the nest will roar at you. In Eastern North Carolina, the hole must be less than 14" deep or you will have a mini well!
I am not really qualified to ask but since I don't see the question yet. Isn't this dangerous to do in the forest because you can cause root fires underground?
You are qualified to ask, especially if you didn't see the question asked previously. A few people have pointed out that it can cause root fires or underground hotspots. I'm an amateur, so I can only have suggestions (research to confirm): avoid doing this in a dense forest nor a place that has a thick leaf layer, burn for a short time, and use extra water to out the fire or an advanced fire extinguisher.
he does great work! He's not cocky like the other guys. I learn something that I can actually use down the road. And again he's not cocky like all the other guys!!
Oh.... you have more than two. We can use your ears, your nostrils..... your eye sockets. Or we can make new ones. We call that last one Doing a Bob The Builder.
THIS CAN CAUSE FOREST FIRES IF DONE WITHOUT PROPER EDJUCATION OF FORESTRY SURROUNDINGS. DEEP DEAD DRY ROOTS. MIDDLE OF SUMMER. I WOULD ONLY SUGGEST THIS FOR ****LAST RESORT SURVIVAL*** GREAT VIDEO!!!
A great way to start a forest fire. Roots can smoulder underground and eventually cause a forest fire. I found a place where someone set fire to debris that was dumped. The roots from the plants around the fire when pulled up here smouldering.
Amato Fratello mi ripeto spesso, ma la "colpa" è tua, perché sei un bravo maestro e non mi stancherò di dirti bravo ogni volta che fai un buon lavoro o un buon insegnamento. Un Forte Abbraccio 🫂💐🐺
This is so cool! Wondering if this technique with the sticks could work for a slightly bigger fire hole... Looks much easier than digging with a shovel
I love this guy. I used to follow this bush craft guy who knew his stuff but would try to flavor everything with Christianity and the last straw was him saying he was angry a machete he tested worked so well cause it’s not an American design. Thanks for not being a dick!
If you think a fire can't burn underground (the roots of a tree), explain how a coal fire has been burning underground at Centralia PA for 60 years. Plant roots need oxygen to function, and get it from the air between grains of dirt.
That's also a good way to not be seen. In an apocalyptic setting. You can make the fire setting a little lower by using smaller sticks and all you get is nice heat from the hole and no flame really its a good way to still cook/heat food/water and stay unnoticed.
Im jealous. My pet rocks havent given birth since i got them even when i have more than 7 breeding pairs. They havent grown either. Im clearly missing something :(
I live in New England. We grow rocks like potatoes. Can barely tap a tent post into the ground without hitting half a dozen, never mind a medium-sized log. 😅
