Holy smurf. That must have been the lightest canoe ever!
Day 18: For the most part I don’t have a dedicated “fire kit” with me during regular hikes or camps. I’ll be sure to have a ferro rod with me and some matches in waterproof container. I might have a Bic lighter. And…I usually have my mini-survival kit, aka the ‘Boo-boo” kit (featured in an earlier post in this thread. I’ll post the contents of that at some point.). The Boo-boo kit has some fire making resources. However, my mindset changes when I’m out in winter cold and deep snow either by myself or if I’m with my hiking/hunting buddy. I tend to be more on the cautious side of the scale . My buddy tends to be more…..’adventurous’. We’ve manage to get ourselves a bit lost a few times. And he tends to be less prepared than I am (which I think is one reason he calls me up to go on some adventure: he doesn’t like to be out on his own…and shouldn’t be! )So, last Fall, when he said he wanted to go hunting up in the mountains…during a snow storm…I put a Winter fire kit together. I wanted to be sure that if we got stuck somewhere I could make at least two (2) fires. One fire to survive the first night, and another when we got lost trying to hike out….(Image removed from quote.)The kit is based on a small 8.5” x 6.5” (21.5 cm x 16.5 cm) pouch I sewed up from pieces of an old army duffle bag. The bag is water-resistant, but not water proof—it has a regular zipper top.Actually, the zipper is not the best choice here. If I had had a larger YKK zipper that was a bit more rugged, I would have used that. Thinking about cold and numb hands, I added an easy-to-see zipper pull. (Image removed from quote.)Inside are two zip-top bags, one with a Bic, the other with more options. The two bags, with the pouch weigh 7.88 oz (223 gm). Probably heavier than it needs to be, but it does give me options. The Bic lighter is probably extraneous. I had one in my pants pocket (I’m pretty sure) when we were out. However, Bics don’t do well when they get wet and cold. So a back up is a good idea. Here the idea is that if I know I’m going to need to make a fire at that moment, I’ll pull this Bic out of my fire kit and stuff it into a chest pocket to get it warmed up while I gather fire wood. That’s why it is in a separate bag. Now to the main pouch:(Image removed from quote.)This pouch is an old MRE hot beverage bag. I like these things because they are a good size and tough, as well as waterproof. The whole reason for the green pouch is to protect the MRE bag. However, this specific bag had also been used the year before as a fire kit (sort of recycled for the following year) and it seems to still be intact. It wouldn’t be a bad idea to replace it, however. The duct tape tabs on the opening is designed to make opening the bag (these can be tough to open up) easier with cold & numb hands. I do this with a lot of my kits, e.g. FAKs, that get stored in zip-top bags. I don’t want to be fumbling with a bag when I need FAK supplies or fire starters. (And duct tape can be used to start a fire, too. )The contents:(Image removed from quote.)Top, left, going around clockwise: — Small zip bag with a couple hanks of waxed jute. I love this stuff and it is my favorite fire starter (close up later). — Small ferro rod, tested; throws great sparks. — Military magnesium block with striker. I don’t love these, but they do work. Looking at it now, I think I should add a small cord lanyard to this one. — SOL “Wet fire”. These things are great and catch a spark nicely. Great tinder to have if one is trying to get some damp wood going.— Candle. A candle can be used to increase the temp of a snow cave (watch out for drips), but a candle is the ultimate fire starter. For fire starting a small tea-candle might be a better choice, but this candle is multipurpose. I light the candle before putting it in the bag so I know the wick has drawn up some wax and will be more water-resistant. — Small bag of vaseline impregnated cotton. This is actually a mix of vaseline and Bag Balm (David will know what that is. ). If I have the Wet Fire tinder, do I need vaseline-cotton? I don’t know, but I can raid this to use for chapped lips or hands or minor cuts. And if conditions are not too rough, I can use just a little of this to get a flame going. — Box of waterproof matches in a zip bag. A match safe with hurricane matches might be even better, but I like these little boxes of wooden matches. Nessmuk was a match man. In the center:— small bag of char cloth. In reality, given other options, the char cloth probably isn’t needed. But I’ve fond char cloth to be so useful catching a spark, and it is so small and light…why not? — ‘fire straw’. I don’t remember where I learned about these, but a few years ago I made a batch of vaseline impregnated cotton balls stuffed into ordinary soda straws that get hot-crimped to seal them up. Consider them a poor-man’s Wet Fire. I think this is my last one. They work great and I should probably make up a few more…..Close up of my waxed jute and the ‘fire straw’:(Image removed from quote.)Here’s the problem with my jute hank: it has too much wax. I overdid it. Even in good conditions I’m going to have to mess around pulling it apart (trying to save some of the wax that will inevitably fall off) and tease the fibers out. The good thing is that some fibers can be exposed at one end and the whole thing can be burned like a candle. But, if my hands are cold and numb and not working…..let’s break open a Wet Fire….. Even with its shortcomings, waxed jut is still my favorite tinder. The MRE bag, repacked, weighs 5.5 oz (157 gm). I could probably save a bit of weight by ditching the magnesium bar…and maybe some of the jute. A smaller candle might also save weight. However, I did not mind carrying this kit with me over many snowy miles. The options give me peace of mind that even in tough circumstances I can get a fire going.Assembled all in the green pouch, it is fairly slim and can easily fit into a pack pocket, waist bag, or cargo pants pocket. There is plenty of room to spare in the green pouch—it could be used to collect tinder and small kindling. So, that’s my Winter kit. I see room for a couple of changes. I think I’ll add a small piece of aluminum foil to use as a tinder base. Not necessary, but potentially useful in wet/snowy conditions. Otherwise, it will probably stay exactly as is for this coming Winter.
I had the same thought, i don't live a Nessmuk life but if i did i think i would want a saw, axe, saw and fixed blade about covers it for me, yes the axe can do the job of the saw mostly but the saw is so much better at it, even though its the folder i have used most in this challenge so far, i would question it if i was thrown into the wild, things might change but that's where i am for now.Day 18 And on that note, it's true i could have used the axe and tidied it up with a blade but i needed a clean cut with no splits(Image removed from quote.)
Nice shot, though!
Day 19I cut a staff.(Image removed from quote.)(Image removed from quote.)
Day 10:Early start. Corvid supporting Guppie on sorting out yesterday’s battery prob. on truck:(Image removed from quote.)Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Day 19:(Image removed from quote.)Sent fra min FRD-L09 via Tapatalk
That was a aha moment for me in terms of survival saw. Kochanski is always inspiring and a true expert in borreal forest survival.
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