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What is your favorite type of campfire?

 
Timothy Norton
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Growing up, I was a part of the local boy scout troop. Our troop leader made it a point to teach of several different styles of campfire creation and the different reasons we may want to use them. While you can successfully have a fire with a tossed together pile of sticks, I found how valuable putting a little effort in could be through the experience.


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What is your favorite campfire style?

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M Ljin
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I’ve had most success with “council” and “tipi” styles, which is also what I use in the fireplace. “Fire between logs” is also very good. When outside, I have had more success when all the sticks are parallel or at a close angle compared to when they’re going in different directions, especially when the wood is not completely dry.

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Kyle Hayward
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Starfires work great for long cooks, something like beans etc... without burning through your wood, they just have to be tended well.
 
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Depends.  If I am looking for all night warmth outside , I use a combination of a modified star fire and reflector fire.  If I am only concerned about cooking, then some version of the smoldering fire.  

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Douglas Alpenstock
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I think the type of wood you have at hand, and its condition, sort of dictates the kind of fire you build. In a genuine survival situation there's little margin for experimenting with boutique arrangements.
 
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Typically, I've found the tipi the easiest to start, outdoors - depending on the weather, kindling & tinder. In the wood stove, we usually use the council fire. If I'm cooking over it, it depends on how well equipped I am, in the moment, but I prefer a Dakota fire hole, for concentrated heat, and lower fuel consumption, as well as little to no smoke in my eyes.

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Juan Roble
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Wow! Making an open fire outdoors is practically banned throughout my whole country. They only allow approved barbecues, and in the area where I am, to have a barbecue it has to be enclosed within four walls. The risk of forest fires here is very high.

I remember when we were kids, we used to go camping and make campfires in the evenings. We always surrounded them with stones, like in the drawing.

These things make me think about going to visit other places, meeting other people who live close to nature, and being able to share the authentic things that still remain in each part of the world.

Roble (Spain)

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Anne Miller
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I have not made any fires since moving to our current location because we are always under a burn bane.  Always, period.

We recently stay at a state park and they were under a burn bane, also.

When I was in Girl Scouts we were taught to use the Tepee Fire type.

To me, that is the easiest to get started for a novice.

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Jay Angler
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Juan Roble wrote:Wow! Making an open fire outdoors is practically banned throughout my whole country.


We have various levels of water and fire restrictions from May through November due to wildfire risk. Alas, there are many other ways that wildfires can start, so it's important to read and understand all risks (example: many people don't realize a car that's just been driven has *very* hot parts underneath that can start a grass fire if the grass is dry and tall - if they've only ever driven on city streets, the risk simply doesn't occur to them.)

I have a stash of bricks, so that if I *have* to cook outdoors due to a long power outage during our dry season, I can build a quick J-tube rocket and cook on top of it. I would try to ensure I had something to use as a wind block if it was windy because it would reduce the risk as well as improve the efficiency of the cooking.

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Jackson Bradley
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I use the "top down" fire method 95% of the time. That may be called the "fireplace fire" on the illustration.

Works great for just about any situation.

Top-Down.jpg
[Thumbnail for Top-Down.jpg]

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Douglas Alpenstock
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I didn't really answer the OP's question. Tsk!

I always start out with a "lazy man fire" (a.k.a. a lean-to fire) using a stout support piece with two slightly smaller support pieces resting on it at an angle, forming a "V." This support structure ensures the kindling can't collapse on my blazing tinder and snuff it out. If the ground is wet/frozen/snowy I put down a piece of bark from a dead tree and then build my tinder in it. This sits in the nook created by the three support pieces. Kindling is then arranged to sit on the support pieces. If I want a bigger fire and have lots of wood this will morph into a sort of teepee fire as I go.
lean-to-fire-2.png
old reliable: lazy man / lean-to fire
old reliable: lazy man / lean-to fire
 
Megan Palmer
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In our region, there are usually fire bans throughout summer and/or a fire permit is required.

However, we use the criss cross aka top down method in our wood burner.

If fires were permitted outdoors, we would probably use the same method with stones encircling the fire or a fire pit if it was a windy site.
 
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