Originally Posted By Glenn
This is not intended as a thread to discuss the ethics of fires in the backcountry; that's an issue that involves too many variables including where you are hiking, and has been well-discussed in other threads. For purposes of this thread, let's simply accept that in most times and places, campfires would be at odds with Leave-No-Trace practices. I'm also not trying to re-ignite the "light is relative to what you're planning to do" issue; we can safely assume that as an accurate and well-proven point, too.

Instead, I'd like to get some discussion on whether fire is "cheating" at the ultralight game. This question occurred to me after reading another thread in this post, and seeing a headline at BackpackingLight.com (I think it's an ad for their store, not a serious article; but I'm no longer a member there, so I don't know.)

The other thread I read here made the point that one of the trade-offs true ultralighters (and sub-ultralighters) make in order to carry the extremely light loads they carry is to make compromises in warmth: they might choose to take a 30-degree bag when 20-degree lows are predicted, and only a light down vest or sweater, only liner gloves, and lightweight, not midweight, long underwear. The logic is that they're going to do high-mile days and spend very little time in camp, so they'll tolerate not being toasty warm for a lighter load.

The headline at BPL is: "TO BUILD A FIRE: Stave off the chill ... with a warm, comforting blaze..."

That is a strategy that works, no doubt about it (assuming you have the requisite skill to be able to get a fire going when it's been raining all day, and all the available wood is soaked.) However, it seems to me that somehow a line has been crossed here. I have to wonder if part of the UL philosophy has morphed to say that LNT, once held as a near-sacred principle, can now be compromised or ignored in order to shave a few more ounces off the load.

I'm not trashing the ultralight philsophy; far from it. I have benefited greatly by following it generally, though I haven't gone the full route. (Yet.) It changed the way many of us viewed backpacking, from an "assault on the outdoors," with 60 pound packs and everything we could need, ever, to "fitting in to the outdoors," with correspondingly lighter packs. Lessening one's impact, rather than leaving one's mark, was a natural fit with the minimalist style you adopt as an ultralighter. It sparked a revolution in gear, as cottage makers forced the big companies to drastically redesign their gear or risk losing a growing market segment.

I'm just wondering if we're reaching the point of going too far in the relentless pursuit of weight reduction, and if it has now become an end unto itself, rather than a means to an end. (I hopped off the UL train at 17 pounds, and I'll add the heavier bag and jacket without a second thought; I still don't light fires.)


I guess I cheated last weekend. I suspected we didn't have the gear for as cold as it was going to be. So we went to a place where we knew there are fire rings and planned to get up before sunrise so we could have a fire. So about an hour before sunrise, I lit a fire and we drank coffee for awhile before packing up.

When we left, the campsite was no different than we came. To me, this is the essence of "leave no trace."

In the national forest near here, it is permissable to build a fire ring where there is none. However when you are done, you are supposed to scatter the rocks and cover the ashes. The area is the cleanest I've ever hiked in. This particular area has the oldest trails in the national forest system and has been in use for almost 100 years.

From my observations, it is the car campers who leave the most trash and cause the most damage. The areas a mile away from the trailhead don't seem to change too much.



Edited by Gershon (05/03/12 11:40 AM)
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