No trace camping includes the campfire

BUILD IT IN THE PREPARED PIT!

By Allen Macartney

From just off shore, the campsite looked absolutely lovely: sandy beach, lots of pine trees and shade. But after stepping out of the canoe, our delight quickly turned into disgust. The site was an eyesore, littered with blackened pits from at least five campfires. Rocks, trees and the ground itself were scarred with charcoal and soot, ready to stain camping equipment and clothes.

Too many canoe-in campsites look like this one did, and they shouldn’t.

Most campgrounds offer a prepared pit for a campfire and cooking. Park rangers have prepared these to ensure both safety and sustainable green camping for decades into the future. But too many people building their own pits all over the place, not realizing what they are doing to the underlying soil.

Campfires heat the ground to a high temperature that destroys nutrients built up over generations. So much so that the soil can no longer support plant life.

I’m not suggesting you avoid campfires, and use only hiking stoves for cooking. Nothing builds camaraderie and great memories like sitting around a campfire, telling stories and sharing a meal. But give the ground a break. No matter what the size of your group, stick to only one campfire in the prepared fire pit.

If you arrive at a site without a one, build your own well away from overhanging tree limbs or where roots sit at or near the surface. Heat can kill the roots and ignite a smoldering underground fire that can work its way to the surface and burst into flame days after you leave.

Instead, build a campfire on gravelly or rocky soil with as little soil as possible. Or lay down sheets of aluminum foil on bare rock, and build your fire on this. Afterwards, pack out the foil with your garbage.

Enjoying a campfire brings “leave no trace” responsibility. That includes cleaning up melted plastic spoons and forks, crumpled foil, cigarette butts, and litter left over by previous campers. Dump blackened rocks that weren’t part of the pit into the forest. Spread pine and spruce needles and twigs over cold fire scars.

Future campers who paddle in will wade ashore, look around, and appreciate what you did. 