Start and maintain a fire using friction, spark, and solar methods. Covers site selection, material grading (tinder/kindling/fuel), fire lay construction (teepee, log cabin, platform), ignition techniques (ferro rod, flint & steel, bow drill), flame nurturing, and Leave No Trace extinguishing. Use when needing warmth, light, or a signal in a wilderness setting, when boiling water for purification, when cooking foraged food, or in an emergency survival situation requiring heat or morale support.
以現有之天然與攜帶材料,於荒野條件下生火並維持。
purify-water)forage-plants)擇一安全、實用且環境衝擊最小之位置。
Site Selection Criteria:
┌─────────────────────┬────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Factor │ Requirement │
├─────────────────────┼────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Wind │ Sheltered or with a windbreak │
│ Ground │ Mineral soil, rock, or sand │
│ Overhead clearance │ No branches within 3 m / 10 ft │
│ Distance from water │ At least 5 m / 15 ft from streams │
│ Distance from camp │ Close enough for use, far enough │
│ │ to avoid spark hazards to gear │
│ Drainage │ Slight slope or flat; avoid hollows│
│ │ where rain pools │
└─────────────────────┴────────────────────────────────────┘
清出直徑約 1 米/3 呎之圓圈,露出礦質土。若於雪上或濕地,以青木或平石建平臺。
預期: 已清整、平坦之火場,圓圈內無易燃雜物,上方淨空充足,並有擋風設置。
失敗時: 若無適合地面,以 4-6 根腕粗青木(活木)並排鋪成懸臺。若風勢過強,以疊木、石塊或以 45 度斜張之防水布建擋風屏障。
以三類收集材料,各依乾度與尺寸分級。
Material Grading:
┌──────────┬──────────────────┬──────────────┬───────────────────────────┐
│ Category │ Diameter │ Examples │ Quantity needed │
├──────────┼──────────────────┼──────────────┼───────────────────────────┤
│ Tinder │ Hair-thin fibers │ Birch bark, │ Two fist-sized bundles │
│ │ │ dried grass, │ │
│ │ │ cedar bark, │ │
│ │ │ fatwood │ │
│ │ │ shavings, │ │
│ │ │ cattail fluff│ │
├──────────┼──────────────────┼──────────────┼───────────────────────────┤
│ Kindling │ Pencil-thin to │ Dead twigs, │ Two armfuls, sorted by │
│ │ finger-thick │ split sticks │ thickness │
├──────────┼──────────────────┼──────────────┼───────────────────────────┤
│ Fuel │ Wrist-thick to │ Dead standing│ Enough for intended burn │
│ │ arm-thick │ wood, split │ time (1 armload ≈ 1 hr) │
│ │ │ logs │ │
└──────────┴──────────────────┴──────────────┴───────────────────────────┘
Dryness Test:
- Snap test: dry wood snaps cleanly; damp wood bends
- Sound test: dry wood clicks when struck together; damp wood thuds
- Source priority: dead standing > dead leaning > dead on dry ground > dead on wet ground
預期: 三堆分類材料置於火場觸手可及之處。火絨應極乾且細碎處理。引火柴折斷應清脆。
失敗時: 若所有火絨皆潮濕,以刀刃刮取內樹皮(雪松、樺、楊)製成細纖維。松明(枯針葉樹之松脂心材)即使潮濕亦可點燃。最後手段,採用攜帶之引火物(塗凡士林之棉球、蠟漬紙板)。
依用途與條件擇一火堆架。
Fire Lay Decision Table:
┌──────────────┬──────────────────────┬──────────────────────────┐
│ Fire Lay │ Best for │ Construction │
├──────────────┼──────────────────────┼──────────────────────────┤
│ Teepee │ Quick start, boiling │ Lean kindling against │
│ │ water, signaling │ a central tinder bundle │
│ │ │ in a cone shape │
├──────────────┼──────────────────────┼──────────────────────────┤
│ Log cabin │ Sustained heat, │ Stack pairs of sticks in │
│ │ cooking, drying │ alternating layers like │
│ │ │ a cabin; tinder in center│
├──────────────┼──────────────────────┼──────────────────────────┤
│ Lean-to │ Windy conditions │ Push a green stick into │
│ │ │ ground at 30°; lean │
│ │ │ kindling against it with │
│ │ │ tinder underneath │
├──────────────┼──────────────────────┼──────────────────────────┤
│ Platform │ Snow/wet ground │ Lay green logs side by │
│ │ │ side as a base; build │
│ │ │ teepee or log cabin on │
│ │ │ top │
├──────────────┼──────────────────────┼──────────────────────────┤
│ Star/Radial │ Long burns with │ Lay 4-5 logs radiating │
│ │ minimal fuel │ from center like spokes; │
│ │ │ push inward as they burn │
└──────────────┴──────────────────────┴──────────────────────────┘
保留氣流縫隙。火需氧氣——材料鬆疊,勿緊壓。
預期: 結構穩固,火絨可及以供點火,氣流縫隙充足,引火柴之安置使火焰得以從火絨循次攀至引火柴再至燃料。
失敗時: 若結構倒塌,以插入地面之支撐棒作中心立柱。若氣流不足(火冒煙而不著焰),開鬆材料間縫隙,並確保迎風面底部有開口。
依可用工具擇一點火法。
Ignition Methods (ranked by reliability):
┌───────────────┬────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Method │ Technique │
├───────────────┼────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Lighter/match │ Apply flame directly to tinder for 5-10 sec │
├───────────────┼────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Ferro rod │ Hold rod against tinder; scrape striker down │
│ │ rod at 45° with firm, fast strokes; direct │
│ │ sparks into center of tinder bundle │
├───────────────┼────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Flint & steel │ Strike steel against flint edge to cast sparks │
│ │ onto char cloth laid on tinder │
├───────────────┼────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Bow drill │ Carve fireboard notch; place tinder below; │
│ │ spin spindle with bow using steady, full-length│
│ │ strokes until coal forms in notch │
├───────────────┼────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Solar (lens) │ Focus sunlight through lens onto dark tinder; │
│ │ hold steady until smoke appears; gently blow │
└───────────────┴────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
預期: 火絨於火星或火焰接觸 30 秒內開始發紅(燃炭)或產生小火焰。
失敗時: 若火星落入而火絨不燃,則火絨過濕或過粗。將火絨更細處理(刮、撕、蓬鬆)。若用火棒,先將少許鎂屑刮至火絨上作助燃劑。若用弓鑽,確保鑽桿與火板為同一乾軟木(柳、雪松、楊),且凹口深達鑽桿之凹陷中心。
火絨點燃後,謹慎由燃炭過渡至火焰。
預期: 火焰於 1-2 分鐘內從火絨攀至最小引火柴。劈啪聲表示燃燒已自維持。
失敗時: 若火焰於引火柴階段熄滅,則引火柴過粗或過濕。以刀將引火柴劈得更細,或僅用最乾、最細之枝。若火焰窒息,火堆架過緊——輕提材料以改善氣流。勿用力吹散燃炭。
循序增加材料尺寸。
Fuel Progression:
Tinder → Pencil-thin → Finger-thick → Wrist-thick → Arm-thick
(each stage must be established before adding the next)
預期: 穩固自維持之火,產生一致熱量,每 15-30 分鐘添燃料即可維持。
失敗時: 若加大木時火持續熄滅,則跳級過快。退回小一級,建立更大之炭床再升級。若木嘶鳴冒蒸氣,則過濕——劈開露出乾燥內木,或靠近(非置於)火旁令其先乾再加。
Extinguishing Protocol:
1. Stop adding fuel 30-60 min before you need the fire out
2. Let wood burn down to ash
3. Spread coals and ash with a stick
4. Douse with water (pour, stir, pour again)
5. Feel with the back of your hand 10 cm / 4 in above the ashes
6. If any warmth is felt, repeat douse-stir-douse
7. When cold to touch, scatter the ash over a wide area
8. Replace any ground cover or duff that was moved
9. "Could someone walk by and not know a fire was here?"
預期: 火場觸之冰涼,無可見燃炭,區域看似未經擾動。
失敗時: 若無水可用,以礦質土(非腐植質,後者可能悶燒)覆蓋熄火。反覆攪拌並檢查。切勿於未冷之前離開火場。若燃炭埋於深灰中,將灰刮開並澆濕露出之燃炭。
purify-water — 煮沸水需持續之火;煮沸法依賴本技能forage-plants — 許多植物提供火絨(樺皮、香蒲絨、乾草),且部分需烹煮paper-making — 以植物纖維手工造紙;與火絨備製共用纖維處理與製漿技術