"Anyone got tips for lighting a camp fire when its wet and or raining?

Answer 1

I always find birch bark to be the most effective. If it's not available, just try and find three thick logs and build a little 'stonehenge' shape to work under. I camp mostly in pine forests and find the best way to light a fire in the rain is to forget the traditional tepee design and just create a heap of kindling (both green pine boughs and dead sticks), which you prop u with a few sticks and work under. It will keep the rain off and drain a lot of water from the covered inner lair. Strips of bark or clusters of twigs will dry fast and burn hot enough to get this started, and burn hot enough to get the heap ablaze.

It will usually smoke and smoulder, but heap up your fuel twice as high as you normally would, anything to buy the bottom time to catch, plus the thick sticks will need extra time to dry out.

The key is airflow into the propped up bottom of the heap, and constantly feeding small twigs/brown pine needles into the fire underneath.

I do a lot of trailblazing in my local provincial park, and have never been unable to light a fire in the rain.

Another method is to create a makeshift lean-to out of thick fuel against either a rock or log, cover it with pine boughs or whatever, and build your fire underneath it, the interior face of the lean-to sticks will also dry out and serve as your thicker pieces of fuel.

Answer 2

look for a rotten fallen pine tree around the area that you are camping. if you find one, bust it open and find the pine knots. these knots light real easy even when wet and will burn longer and hotter than other wood. stack your damp wood around the burning pine knot, leaving area for air to get to the flame. this will evenually dry the other wood and start a nice camp fire.

Answer 3

Cheap with dry news paper

Try and dry out the wood if possible and build it like a little house like the ssecond pig and put paper under
If it pour heavy nothing will work

Answer 4

Cut a soda pop can in half, fill with lighter fluid, place your wood around the can and douse wood with lighter fluid light and the fluid in the can will burn for about ten minutes, by then you should have some of the wood dried out and burning

Answer 5

Look for the Bark of a birch tree. You got to build a good fire around it. but it should light very easy. look for a fallen birch tree because it will be dryer and it wont hurt the tree.

Answer 6

strip off the bark and under the bark is dry paper like stuff that will dry out easily use that and small thin sticks to start the fire and pine cones cattails bust open and use them as kindling

Answer 7

go to walmart and buy a box of starter logs. you can light the starter log, and the log will stay lit long enough to not only dry out the wood but to catch it as well. and you wont even need to crumple up paper.