fluffiest stuff you can find—fine, very thin, even wispy material such as dead
grass, birch bark, Spanish moss, or scraped cedar bark. These materials are
best at capturing a spark or ember when formed into a bird’snestshaped
bundle. Once the bundle catches, you can blow it until it glows and ignites.
Stage 2 tinder is slightly thicker and more substantial than stage 1 tin
der, and includes toothpickthick bits of wood, pine needles, or thinly peeled
bark such as birch bark. These materials will take the flame you created with
your stage 1 tinder, hold it a little longer, and burn brighter. You can jump
right to this stage if you are lighting your fire with matches or a lighter.
Stage 3 tinder is another baby step up, to the smallest pieces of burnable
material, such as pencilthick dead and dry twigs. These will take the second
ary flame and hold it even longer than stage 2 tinder. Remember, however,
that although the flame may seem more substantial at this stage, you still don’t
have a fire. Sure, you have a flame, but it would take little to put it out.
The following are other possible sources of tinder:
Bird down: I’ve never used bird down, but it certainly has the characteristics of
good tinder.
Cotton balls: These are fantastic as tinder, and you may have them in your
firstaid kit (the end of a Qtip works too). Cotton takes a spark well and
converts it to flame. If you daub a bit of petroleum jelly or lip balm (which also
may be in your firstaid kit) on the cotton, it will hold the flame longer than
cotton alone.
Lint: This is a favorite in many survival books, but lint is difficult to find in a
survival situation.
Sawdust: You can make a little by cutting wood with your folding saw.
Produces a good stage 2 tinder.Kindling
Once your stage 3 tinder has caught, you can progress to the kindling level.
Kindling is not as readily combustible as tinder, so don’t use it until you
have a discernible flame.
Kindling generally comprises small twigs and sticks that are thin
enough to burn easily but thick enough to last longer than a few seconds.
You will slowly graduate from those that are about the thickness of a pencil
to those that are the thickness of your thumb.
Fire (^) | 107