fire lighting


How to light fatwood

We don’t have many conifers around our ancient woodland camp, but recently we were gifted some fatwood by Joe, who lives in Snowdonia.  Joe attended our IOL Bushcraft Competency Certificate training course earlier this year. So I thought I’d put together a short video showing how to prepare and ignite fatwood. We teach how to […]

how to light fatwood | other natural tinders | bushcraft | fire lighting | Kent | London | south east

inner bark of beech | bushcraft | fire lighting | Kent | south east | London

Inner bark of beech

This is the only occasion on which I’ve found inner bark of beech.  Over the winter a beech branch came down and so I put it to one side to use later for some carving.  I went back to it recently and found that I could pull away fibres from the inside of the bark.  […]


Collecting thistle heads to use as a tinder

This time of year finds me collecting thistle heads to use as a tinder, amongst other species of downy flower heads.  Because they’re seasonal I collect enough to see me through the next 12 months. In my experience downy flower heads work best as an ember extender, they don’t generally do much more than flash […]

Collecting thistle heads to use as a tinder | downy flower heads | tinders | bushcraft | fire lighting | Kent | south east | London

collecting goosegrass for tinder | using cleavers as a tinder | Natural tinders for bushcraft | other natural tinders | bushcraft | fire lighting | Kent | London | south east

Collecting goosegrass for tinder

I’ve been in the woods collecting goosegrass for tinder recently.  Goosegrass (Galium aparine) is also known as cleavers, sticky weed, sticky Jim and a host of other names.  It’s the stuff that sticks to your jumper! It comes through early in the year and starts to die off  in late summer.  Once it’s dried out […]