Geoscience Reference
In-Depth Information
sure that there are plenty of gaps between the wood for air circulation. A well-built fire, with
dry wood and plenty of gaps for air circulation, will not smoke much.
Figure 7-2. Crisscross- and tepee-style fires.
Starting a Fire with Flint and Steel
Flint is a naturally occurring stone that yields heavy sparks when struck by a knife or other
sharp stones. Artificial flints do the same thing and may come with a saw striker, which creates
lots of good sparks. Starting a fire with the spark from the flint requires patience, shelter from
wind, and very fine, dry tinder. Strike sparks into your tinder (see
fig. 7-3
), and gently blow on
a spark resting in the tinder until it grows into flames. Continue building your fire following the
previous set of instructions. A modern improvement on flint and steel is a commercial mag-
nesium block with a flint. Using a knife, shave a pile of fine magnesium filings from the side of
the block. When struck by a spark from a flint, magnesium filings rapidly burst into tiny hot
flames, helping to ignite the tinder. You may wish to pick up a “Blast Match” for your survival
kit, which is a handy fire-starting device that casts a multitude of heavy sparks by rapidly rak-
ing the sides of a thick artificial flint, making the job of starting a fire without a match or bu-
tane lighter considerably easier.
