Build a campfire over the snow

[eisely]

Now that snowcamping is in season, it is timely to share an idea. Several years ago our troop was snow camping at about 7,000 feet on Mt. Pinos in Southern California. Another scout troop from the San Fernando Valley arrived and I saw these kids hauling a lot of firewood and what looked like a lot of junk through the snow with great difficulty. My curiousity was aroused, and we found out that night what they were up to.

 

The junk consisted of a small piece of plywood, the base for an old secretarial chair with the seat and wheels removed, and the tub from a top loading clothes washer. The scouts put the secretarial chair on the plywood so it would not sink into the snow. Then the tub fit down over the center stem of the chair to a point, and voila! A fire pit above the snow. We all enjoyed their campfire and swapped stories for several hours that night.

 

Just yesterday I saw a similar product on sale at the hardware store and that reminded me of this experience. The device I saw was just a pan from a barbecue on wheels, with a hinged screen and top. Plywood would still be required in snow. I like the junk idea myself.

[johnmbowen]

That is pretty elaborate, and based on the rafter's fire pan. We have usually got a couple of large logs to set on the snow and then built a fire on top of them. They all eventually sink a bit.

 

We also tend to dig pits with seats on the sides to keep out of the wind, and the sides of the snow pits will also tend to reflect the heat back on you. If you are rigorous you can also build a channel to a lower pit to siphon off the cold air which sinks, but we were rarely that concerned.

 

[eisely]

Whatever works. The nice thing about campfires in winter is that you don't have to worry too much about fire conditions posted by the authorities restricting you. Still follow the rules and use common sense.