i usually just use a handful of crumbled leaves and a bic...
" It's what people know about themselves inside that makes 'em afraid." ~Clint Eastwood, High Plains Drifter
Tinman, I think that product is Esbit under a different lable.Originally Posted by Tin Man
I just reread the thread thanks Connie and Leaftye.
Dogs are excellent judges of character, this fact goes a long way toward explaining why some people don't like being around them.
Woo
that was it, the second part is in knapping flint or using a steel striker it at 0 degrees and in manufactured flint and knife the knife is at a 30 to 45 degree angle, got it in two strikes.
There is a clear technique, but I got it now.
Dogs are excellent judges of character, this fact goes a long way toward explaining why some people don't like being around them.
Woo
I reach for my trusty butane torch. And if need be singe a bear's nose. Of course if he gets that close I'm lunch. But at least the bear will have a fire.
Very true, but perhaps more to the point, as an area becomes more persistently damp and mossy, then even spruce branches and birch bark are found then even they can become too damp and punky for kindling and tinder. It isn't so much the lack of light that eventually does in the birch, but the dampness once overgrown, or if their feet become persistently wet by some other means. Spruce survives longer in darker and damper areas, so you will find it where you won't find birch, but if it is persistently dark and dank enough then small branches that would normally snap off will be more likely to have less snap to them, more dampness, and not enough fire left in them even if somewhat dry. So the dampness of an area, the micro-climate, seems to matter as much as if not more than the species that are present, but of course the too things are related. As forests mature they do become alot darker, and also alot damper, even swampy. Elevation, and slope, make a huge difference though. Not sure, but even if the AT corridor was to become fully matured, you might find tinder and kindling on south facing slopes, and higher elevations. Not sure about birch, or even spruce, especially further south, but I should think you would still find something. Of course it is hard to generalize, or even define some terms like 'mature' or 'over-mature' or natural. It would be interesting to know what the AT corridor could be like in 100 or 300 years if left alone. I wonder how much the width of the corridor makes a difference. I would guess that it make more of a difference as the eco-system ages. The 'older' you want a forest to be, the wider it needs to be. Again, elevation and slope and other factors must play a role also in what you can get away with, and how it might evolve and adapt over the years to come.
A small fixed or locking blade knife makes it possible to get tinder and kindling even in dark and damp conditions, and might also might make it possible to do so with less impact. Without a knife, you tend to be limited to snapping off twigs and small branches, or grabbing bark clumps. With a knife you can cut deeper into thicker fallen branches.
Climate change will have an impact also, but I am not sure how. Warmer for sure, but in some places damper, and in others drier. Protecting and widening corridors like the AT might be an increasingly useful strategy for combating climate change, so it might become increasingly easier to protect and expand trails for hiking, if we need to sequester more carbon and generate more oxygen anyway. The benefits for habitat protection and bio-diversity will be perhaps as important as for managing climate change. Who knows what will happen in long term, or what the best ways will be to manage things, or perhaps to let nature manage things? The only thing for certain is that we won't be around to see it, except perhaps in spirit.
Keep up the good works Weary.
I'm not going to read all the way back, so forgive me if I repeat someone:
I dabbled with my hobo stove this spring and had quite a bit of trouble with wood ignition at first, then, I discovered toilet paper and vaseline. That combo worked like a charm!! Since everone (arguably everyone??) carries toilet tissue, there is no weight penalty. I carry a table spoon or so of vaseline in a baggie for anointing chafed areas, etc.So I'm set.
Grinder
AT hiker : It's the journey, not the destination
Micro BIC and the alcohol for my stove.
When the available biomass is stubborn, I use up some of my beeswax candle, which I also use to light the stove. The micro-bic can be hard on the hands, especially in the cold. I use a larger bic in winter because of the cold hands. Jute twine is fun to carry for lashing stuff, and makes a good wick for a vegetable oil lamp. A tealight tin will work, but it is also fun to use a clam shell, or a stone with a hollow if you find one, or a sardine or corned beef can if you happen to bring one. You might find some clay. I digress, but it is fun to mess around with stuff like that.
I finally got around to carrying a char making kit, which is just one of those round tin cans with a loose fitting lids. Anyhow, in addition to carrying the char, and making the char, I have found that it is also useful for raising your small fire up off the ground a little, inside your hobbo stove or caldera cone or whatever. The idea still needs some work.
Mini Bic and alcohol plus whatever is around, paper, twigs, leaves, etc.
dryer lint balls soaked in vaseline and a little clear mini bic so I can see how much I have left. a half dozen or so strike anywhere matches as backup in a ziploc. that and a lil' dandy stove that I made myself from free metal scrap.
alifelongpursuit.blogspot.com
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