Everybody needs to know several methods for building a campfire effectively in challenging situations (without gas or matches).
You probably wouldn’t be reading this post if you didn’t feel that fire building is an essential skill, not just for surviving in the backcountry, but simply in the boy scout sense of having mastery over an essential skill here on planet earth.
During a emergency situation, whether in the backcountry or even in suburbia, this could be the only way to cook and generate light and heat until the crisis is over. Most of us know 1 or 2 fire building techniques.
The problem is, those methods may not provide the best results depending on you circumstances.
Like most things that are worth doing, there are a countless ways to accomplish your goal of starting a useful campfire, each with it’s particular strengths and drawbacks.
When it comes to “tactical fires” your goal could be life saving heat, quick cooking, or even covertness.