Make a fire and light a fire with materials you find exclusively in nature. It can take a long time to make a glow that can turn into a fire, but with patience and diligence, anyone can make a fire with nature’s aids. Samvirke describes here 3 methods to start a fire with natural aids so you can impress family and friends on a tent or camping trip.
Prepare tinder
Tinder are a term for small, dry and highly flammable kindling material that is used when starting a fire in nature. It can be anything from thin flakes of bark to foliage, dry and wilted grass, dry leaves, resin or the large, dry mushrooms that are often stuck on tree trunks, called pine fungus. As long as it is completely dry and can ignite with a spark, it can be used.
Always find a pile of tinder and place it nearby before you start making a glow. Also, be sure to have a pile of small and large twigs lying around to build the fire itself with after you have made a flame.
Frictional fire in several ways
You can make fire through friction in several ways, but the principle is the same. By the friction between two pieces of wood, the wood dust is heated, which is released by rubbing wood hard against each other, and slowly forms an ember, which is gently tipped over into the tinder. Close the tinder gently around the ember without choking it and blow evenly on the bottom until the glow intensifies and flames up. After that, it’s just a matter of carefully covering the barrel with twigs and branches and building the fire around it.
Fire plough
The fire plough is a simple way to make fire through friction. You will need two pieces of wood, a base and a stick, the plough, and a knife or sharp stone.
The base piece should preferably be a fairly flat piece of wood with a width of approx. 5 to 10 cm. The length can vary depending on whether you are one or more, but should be between 0.5 and 1 m. A long board can be held at one or both ends by standing or sitting on it, while a shorter board can be fixed by tapping a few smaller branches into the ground at the ends of the board.
The plow is a stick that should fit well in the hand, with a length of 30-50 cm and a width of 1 cm.
- Cut one end of the stick to a rounded tip and shape the rest of the shaft so that it is comfortable to hold.
- Take the base piece and cut two parallel grooves of 20-30 cm in the wood with a distance that roughly matches the rounded tip of the stick, and remove a thin layer of wood between the grooves so that there is an elongated depression in the base.
- If necessary, make a V-shaped notch at the far end so that the glow can be tilted out more easily.
- Place the base piece on the ground so that it is stable and can be held firmly. Get on your knees at one end with the stick in both hands, place the tip in the recess of the breech and start rubbing, or ploughing, the stick back and forth.
- Start calmly until the stick and recess have taken on the same shape, i.e. end tightly and then speed up.
- When the wood dust gets so hot that it starts to smoke, you’re close. Speed up further and continue until the smoke development is constant.
- Now you can gently tilt the glow out of the breech, into your barrel and calmly breathe the flames to life.
- Now quickly but carefully build the fire around the burning barrel before it burns out and without suffocating the fire. Breathe calmly with determined time in the fire.
Fire drill with bow
A fire drill also creates a glow through friction and can be made from materials found in nature, but it is an advantage to use a knife rather than a sharp stone for cutting and slicing the wood. The method is a hard and slow process that can take 3-4 hours from start to finish, so set aside plenty of time before you start.
A fire drill consists of:
A stick called a ten, 20-30 cm long and as straight as possible with a diameter of 1-2 cm.
A base plate roughly in the shape of a board or plate and 1.5-2 cm thick.
A handrest to hold the stone in place with, such as a naturally hollowed-out stone that is comfortable to hold.
A bow made of a piece of bent or pliable wood and a string, possibly made of natural fibres such as pounded and braided nettle stalks, or a lace if you don’t also want to make your own rope.
A tray for the glow, such as a piece of bark.
- Start by rounding both ends of the stone and attach the string to the arch. Make sure that the bow can give way a bit so that the string can be wrapped once a ten.
- Using a knife or sharp stone, make a recess near the edge of the base plate into which the end of the stone fits. When the recess is made, a V-shaped notch in the wood is cut into the recess so that the glow can more easily be tipped out onto the piece of bark under the base plate and moved to the barrel.
- When everything is ready, wrap the bowstring around the ten. The stone is placed in the small recess in the base plate and held in place with the handrest on top.
- Hold the base plate firmly with one foot so that it does not move along the way, place the other leg with the knee in the ground under the body and begin with long, calm strokes to run the arch back and forth until the stone has adapted to the handpiece and bottom plate.
- When the stone starts to bite into the base plate, the speed quickens and it is important not to stop until there is a stable, constant smoke development from the recess in the base plate. It can easily take a long time, so arm yourself with patience and don’t give up.
- Stop and gently tilt the glow out onto the bark piece when the smoke is constant. Pour the glow into the barrel bottom and gently inflate on it until the glow catches and lights the barrel.
- Now quickly but carefully build the fire around the burning barrel before it burns out and without suffocating the fire. Breathe calmly with determined time in the fire.
Hand fire drill
The hand fire drill works in the same way as a fire drill with a bow, and can easily be made from materials found in nature. This method is also hard, especially for the hands, and slow, but requires fewer materials and less preparation. If necessary, bring a pair of tight-fitting gloves so that you do not wear all the skin off the palms of your hands.
A hand fire drill consists of:
A stick, tenen, 50-75 cm long, which should be as straight and smooth as possible, with a diameter of about 1 cm.
A base plate, roughly shaped like a board or board, is 1.5-2 cm thick and is long enough to be held with one foot or by sitting on the end of the tree.
A tray for the ember, such as a piece of bark.
- Start by rounding the end of the stone that should fit into the recess in the base plate.
- Using a knife or sharp stone, make a recess near the edge of the base plate into which the stone fits. When the recess is made, a V-shaped notch in the wood is cut into the recess so that the glow can more easily be tipped out onto the piece of bark under the base plate and moved to the barrel.
- Whether you want to sit on the butt, support yourself on one knee while holding the base plate with your foot, or use a completely third method, is entirely up to you. Try what works best and is most comfortable for you. Remember that you will be sitting in that position for a longer period of time.
- Place your hands at the top of the tip and start rotating it between your hands until your hands approach the bottom.
- Move one hand back to the top and grasp before moving the other. The tea must not jump out of the recess, because then all the heat will escape and you can start all over again.
- If you sit leaning over the fire drill, be careful that the sweat from the hard work does not run down your nose, drip onto and extinguish the fledgling glow.
- Keep rotating the stone until there is a stable small column of smoke from the drill. Then gently tilt the glow out on the piece of bark and put it in the barrel, while you calmly breathe life into the glow until it flares up and you have fire.
- Now quickly but carefully build the fire around the burning barrel before it burns out and without suffocating the fire. Breathe calmly with determined time in the fire.
