How to Build a Great Campfire

The ability to build a campfire that will stay lit can be important in a variety of situations, ranging from surviving being lost in the outdoors to a weekend camping trip. The ability to build a great campfire is a skill, and all it takes is a little practice to learn the basics. It does help, however, to get an idea of what some of the best practices of building a campfire are before you try to build one for yourself.

Things You'll Need

  • Rocks or suitable fire ring
  • Newspaper
  • Dry kindling
  • Dry wood
  • Matches or lighter
  • Bucket of water
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Instructions

    • 1

      Clear the ground of any leaves, sticks and other debris. Place rocks around the edge of your fire pit, or another suitable form of fire ring, such as a tire ring. This will help to ensure that your fire does not spread into the surrounding area.

    • 2

      Place the newspaper or a similar material at the bottom of the fire pit. Other suitable materials are other forms of paper, cardboard, cotton balls or dryer lint.

    • 3

      Place medium lengths of wood, anywhere from the thickness of a thumb to a wrist, around the edges of the starter material. Make sure to leave some of your starter material sticking out, so that you will be able to reach it with a match or lighter. Build several layers of larger pieces of wood, one on top of the other, forming an enclosure.

    • 4

      Insert dry pieces of kindling into the enclosure, with one end in the starter material and the other pointing at the sky.

    • 5

      Light the starter material with your matches or lighter. The starter material should catch the kindling, which will burn upward and outward, catching the larger pieces of wood.

    • 6

      Continue adding more wood of increasing size as the fire gains in strength. Always keep an eye on the fire. You should never leave a fire unattended.

    • 7

      Keep a large bucket of water handy whenever you have a campfire. It will be useful to help put out the fire when you are done with it, and can also be used a variety of emergency situations, such as if any nearby brush caught on fire.

    • 8

      Put out the fire when you are done. Spread the coals and ensure that nothing is still burning.