We Can Start A Fire! (Ten Essentials)

We Can Start A Fire!!  (Ten Essentials #8)

Cloud Canyon Day 1 10-18-08 (20)

If you ever find yourself stranded in the woods at night, the one thing that will make the biggest difference in your comfort, and possibly survival, is warmth.  You must find a way to stay warm.  In other posts we have talked about using a black trash bag and extra clothes to stay warm.  These are very important, but your best bet will be to start a fire.  Not only will it keep you warm, it will raise your spirits greatly!

Unless you find yourself on some sort of reality TV show, gone are the days of rubbing two sticks together to make a fire.  You should always carry items in your pack to make starting a fire fairly easy.  The items that I always have with me are a lighter, waterproof matches, and fire-starter.  These are all items that you can find in your local outdoor store.  I started with an empty film canister and put fire-starter pellets and water-proof matches in it so that they were all in one place together and would stay dry.  There are also several different fire-starters that you can make yourself.  Dryer lint, itself, makes a great fire starter, as does cotton balls dunked in Vaseline.

Making the fire itself is a topic for another day,  but in the meantime, make sure you are carrying all of the right ingredients to make one!

What do you carry for emergency fire starting?  Comment below and let us know!

Anna aka Mud Butt