Why is it so many light campfires , even when its 35 -40 degree days ,?
So many people pull up and they are gathering wood before they setup the van most times .
Its a habit and a very unhealthy one , In my 15 years travelling around OZ not one of these inconsiderate people have ever asked " do you mind if I light a fire"
Yet I"m pretty sure most of these people would be alarmed and shocked if someone lit up a Cigarette within 10 meters of them .
how they stand the stench on their clothes and in the van is beyond me .
My wife has emphysema and so we have to move regularly because of campfire smoke .
Let the flames begin :)
2trout said
06:42 PM Aug 16, 2020
I sometimes have a fire in my "Pig". This is an enclosed metal ball with a chimney. How do you feel about them or similar?
Greystone said
06:55 PM Aug 16, 2020
No flames from me. I don't like them either. The only time I burn firewood is in my high efficiency wood fire heater. Open camp fires are polluting the air.
Check this site out some info comparing to cig smoke etc.,
TROLL
travelyounger said
07:43 PM Aug 16, 2020
To Orid
You best to stay at places where fires are not allowed or give camping or traveling away or go into one of those retirement villages with all the rules where you maybe belong
Cheers
Plain Truth said
07:47 PM Aug 16, 2020
Greystone wrote:
No flames from me. I don't like them either. The only time I burn firewood is in my high efficiency wood fire heater. Open camp fires are polluting the air.
And your high efficiency wood heater doesn't pollute the air. B.S.
orid said
08:17 PM Aug 16, 2020
well good luck
to all who sit around these highly toxic fires , check the website please,
-- Edited by orid on Sunday 16th of August 2020 08:26:41 PM
the rocket said
08:34 PM Aug 16, 2020
travelyounger wrote:
To Orid You best to stay at places where fires are not allowed or give camping or traveling away or go into one of those retirement villages with all the rules where you maybe belong Cheers
Savage
TheHeaths said
08:34 PM Aug 16, 2020
Unfortunately, I am yet to find an unbiased self interest group.
Smoking, open fires, diesel vehicles, petrol vehicles, power stations, Bush fires, and many other things contribute to our current levels of pollution, and unfortunately, if we are travelling, we are ALL part of the problem, except maybe our member Bicyclecamper!
Unfortunately Orid, most if not all of us have habits or likes that annoy others. We just have to adjust.
-- Edited by TheHeaths on Sunday 16th of August 2020 08:36:34 PM
bgt said
08:42 PM Aug 16, 2020
FWIW I suffer from chronic migraines. Have done so for 35 years. The key trigger is smoke. Campfires are a real PITA. If I drained my grey water and it ran under your van all hell would break loose. But you can light a fire and smoke everyone out. How about the person who plays loud music way into the night? That would arc you up. Or maybe I could run my generator while you try to sleep. But don't worry about the poor sod who is smoked out just so you can watch the flames.
It's all about common courtesy? Think of others and not just what suits you.
TheHeaths said
08:48 PM Aug 16, 2020
bgt wrote:
...............Think of others and not just what suits you.
Exactly.
Mike Harding said
08:51 PM Aug 16, 2020
Live and let live perhaps? If people annoy me I move on.
Camp fires are a basic aspect and requirement of human society and have been since the dawn of time.
Fire gazing is a form of meditation and is positive to our mental health.
Sitting around a fire with friends, or strangers, engenders a bonding process - it is hard to imagine developing social relationships in the bush when sitting around, say, a rock.
Collecting firewood is good exercise.
Man has been breathing fire smoke since the dawn of time - I'd not worry about any long term health aspects.
A camp fire provides an ambience.
A camp fire provides warmth and cooking capability.
I like a camp fire.
By the way: how's your car running? And the electricity at your home? Still polluting the planet?
Mamil said
08:52 PM Aug 16, 2020
There's something comforting about those flickering flames and smell of wood smoke that calls to our most basic primeval instincts
Warren-Pat_01 said
10:11 PM Aug 16, 2020
Personally, camp fires don't worry me providing people are considerate of others, where the wind is blowing. In National Parks in northern QLD, fires are not allowed but on a recent day trip to the White Mountains NP, not only did we find that a fire had been used but it was left STILL BURNING! Pulling a burning log out of a fire doesn't extinguish the flame. And I wonder whether the wood was gathered from within the park??
What irks me at the moment is (we are coming to the end of a stay in an upmarket caravan park in Cairns) why do some men have to smoke in the facilities? The smell of the smoke hangs around for ages if there is no breeze!
Santa said
10:19 PM Aug 16, 2020
Mike Harding wrote:
Live and let live perhaps? If people annoy me I move on.
Camp fires are a basic aspect and requirement of human society and have been since the dawn of time.
Fire gazing is a form of meditation and is positive to our mental health.
Sitting around a fire with friends, or strangers, engenders a bonding process - it is hard to imagine developing social relationships in the bush when sitting around, say, a rock.
Collecting firewood is good exercise.
Man has been breathing fire smoke since the dawn of time - I'd not worry about any long term health aspects.
A camp fire provides an ambience.
A camp fire provides warmth and cooking capability.
I like a camp fire.
By the way: how's your car running? And the electricity at your home? Still polluting the planet?
Well said Mike, nothing I can add, camp fires are one of the joys of camping.
Life's tough Orid, tougher for some than others, get over it.
Eaglemax said
10:54 PM Aug 16, 2020
Some fairly sharp replies on this topic.
I think in essence there is justification on both side of this debate.
I too have camped in hot evenings or near gale force winds and jolly camper had to light a fire- not for the therapeutic flames, not for the heat nor to share it with fellow campers- nope- for ya gotta have a fire when you camp mentality.
Such mentality has no place in a world whereby mans cultivation (and complete manipulation of every inch of land) has resulted in less and less trees and therefore fallen limbs for our furry friends to live.
Im no greenie, we should feel free to enjoy a (small) campfire if it serves the purpose in the right climatic conditions. Those that are smoke sensitive should expect campfires. They should find alternatives- thats the way it is.
So my own campfire isnt very often, the evening must be ripe for it. And I dont need to strip all the immediate area for large hollow logs that burn all night.
Its like many things, a perspective thats a balance of a happy evening, not being selfish and leaving some hiding holes for our fauna that, have as many rights as us to a home.
orid said
11:10 PM Aug 16, 2020
get over this ,
And wood smoke produces far more particulate pollution than cigarette smoke does.
EPA researchers estimate the lifetime cancer risk from wood smoke to be 12 times greater than from a similar amount of cigarette smoke.
In a laboratory study at Louisiana State University, researchers found that hazardous free radicals in wood smoke are chemically active 40 times longer than those from cigarette smokeso once inhaled, they will harm the body for far longer.
Other EPA estimates suggest that a single fireplace operating for an hour and burning 10 pounds of wood will generate 4,300 times more carcinogenic polyaromatic hydrocarbons than 30 cigarettes.
orid said
11:27 PM Aug 16, 2020
as Eagle max says there are lots of campers light a fire just for the sake of it I have witnessed so many times someone will light a fire then sit inside their van , then come back out as it dies and pile on more wood
then leave it smoldering all night , next morning yes get the thing burning again , seldom do I see people cooking on one , many people I see putting on rubbish like plastic bottles .
Yes wonderful to see lots of people meeting around a campfire (rare occasion ) but would those same people like to sit in a cafe with people smoking around them ?
Wood smoke is natural, so it must be okay. Really
We tend to think that substances that are natural are harmless, but this isnt true.
Asbestos, tobacco, and uranium are just a few of the natural substances that are harmful to human health.
Even though humans have burned wood since the beginning of time, scientists have only recently discovered just how hazardous wood smoke pollution is to our health.
The negative health effects of residential wood smoke have now been extensively documented in hundreds of scientific studies. The pollution generated by wood burning has been linked to a litany of health problems that include asthma attacks, diminished lung function, respiratory ailments, heart attacks, and stroke.
Bobdown said
11:30 PM Aug 16, 2020
orid wrote:
get over this ,
And wood smoke produces far more particulate pollution than cigarette smoke does.
EPA researchers estimate the lifetime cancer risk from wood smoke to be 12 times greater than from a similar amount of cigarette smoke.
In a laboratory study at Louisiana State University, researchers found that hazardous free radicals in wood smoke are chemically active 40 times longer than those from cigarette smokeso once inhaled, they will harm the body for far longer.
Other EPA estimates suggest that a single fireplace operating for an hour and burning 10 pounds of wood will generate 4,300 times more carcinogenic polyaromatic hydrocarbons than 30 cigarettes.
You are totally blindsided by some yank researchers..........cigarettes contain over 4000 chemicals, wood is a a natural product, not man made.
A campfire is Natures TV, enough said.
Cheers Bob
orid said
11:48 PM Aug 16, 2020
NOW CMON BOB LETS GET SERIOUS
TheHeaths said
07:00 AM Aug 17, 2020
Perhaps caravan parks may be better for you then Orid?
Most of them preclude fires and will allow you to be smoke free.
Possum3 said
07:06 AM Aug 17, 2020
From my cold dead hands you'll remove my firelighters.
iana said
07:25 AM Aug 17, 2020
I think having a fire is one of the many Primal Instinctive traits humans have. I would list all the comments above as true, I too can find camp fires annoying, at the same time would like to sit around one. Re health remember that the tribal communities in Africa etc. have fires in their huts. In Papua New Guinea when we went bush to the villages, a fire inside the hut was the norm. A bit of education re fire safety and consideration to fellow campers and the "Australian" dry environment would not go astray.
Mike Harding said
07:42 AM Aug 17, 2020
Possum3 wrote:
From my cold dead hands you'll remove my firelighters.
I like it :)
Whenarewethere said
08:00 AM Aug 17, 2020
We did have one fire in 2016 in the NP fire pit. There was plenty of good quality supplied timber & we were the only campers in the entire campground.
One night in the Megalong Vally, it looked like every single person had a fire going, there was zero wind & the air was so thick with smoke stuck in the valley it was ridiculous. We had to leave as our eyes were watering from the irritation.
We both suffer from migraine & smoke can be a trigger. Also we just don't want to smell of smoke as it gets into everything.
We cook on a metho stove with a few drops of water to prevent soot on the pots. Couldn't be bothered cleaning pots used on a fire.
Tony LEE said
08:20 AM Aug 17, 2020
At chambers pillar campsite which is a clearly posted protected area, a group of people in short wheelbase land rovers rolled in. A couple of vehicles had half a forest tied on top, but one clown started ripping out a large dead? shrub next to the info shelter. I stopped him, but he wasn't too happy about it, but some of his fellow travellers put him in his place.
In the Simpson, which had just that year prohibited wood gathering as clearly set out in the desert parks info. A large convoy of land cruiser members of sydney club rolled in and the waggon master directed them to gather firewood so they spread out like ants and soon had a massive heap of ripped out shrubs. I went over with the ifo and fronted him and he claimed not to know anything about it, but at least they were told to put it all back where they found it.
On the canning stock route, the environmental vandals driving chamberlain tractors masquerading as charity benefactors used to drag whole trees for miles to create a huge camp fire every night and then used to trundle off next day leaving massive piles of ash to defile the area next to Wells.
And these are just three instances of organised groups behaving very badly when they should know better. What about the millions of cases of living trees and shrubs being vandalised by individuals just so some morons can enjoy their smokey ambience and leave patches of heat sterilised ground behind them.
dogbox said
09:00 AM Aug 17, 2020
Mike Harding wrote:
Live and let live perhaps? If people annoy me I move on.
Camp fires are a basic aspect and requirement of human society and have been since the dawn of time.
Fire gazing is a form of meditation and is positive to our mental health.
Sitting around a fire with friends, or strangers, engenders a bonding process - it is hard to imagine developing social relationships in the bush when sitting around, say, a rock.
Collecting firewood is good exercise.
Man has been breathing fire smoke since the dawn of time - I'd not worry about any long term health aspects.
A camp fire provides an ambience.
A camp fire provides warmth and cooking capability.
I like a camp fire.
By the way: how's your car running? And the electricity at your home? Still polluting the planet?
sitting around a fire is something mankind has done since they discovered how to control fire. seems to be some council in Melbourne that wants to ban the use of wood & wood products in backyard BBQ they got 5 signatures on a petition so the so the ban on burning wood is still a long way off , but you can still drive your petrol or even worse diesel powered car to where every you wish to go just add camp fires to the list of things in life that annoy you an move on. enjoying what is left of your life rather than waste it complaining about other peoples issues some of my fondest memoires as a child were camping around a campfire with hot dogs and marsh mellows why should the kids of today be denied that experience
Gundog said
09:34 AM Aug 17, 2020
a quote from a great movie " I love the smell of napalm in the morning" bloody good fire lighters
Whats a bush camp without a good camp fire?
orid said
10:13 AM Aug 17, 2020
Kids are the most at risk of asthma at the very least?????
Why is it so many light campfires , even when its 35 -40 degree days ,?
So many people pull up and they are gathering wood before they setup the van most times .
Its a habit and a very unhealthy one , In my 15 years travelling around OZ not one of these inconsiderate people have ever asked " do you mind if I light a fire"
Yet I"m pretty sure most of these people would be alarmed and shocked if someone lit up a Cigarette within 10 meters of them .
how they stand the stench on their clothes and in the van is beyond me .
My wife has emphysema and so we have to move regularly because of campfire smoke .
Let the flames begin :)
Check this site out some info comparing to cig smoke etc.,
TROLL
You best to stay at places where fires are not allowed or give camping or traveling away or go into one of those retirement villages with all the rules where you maybe belong
Cheers
And your high efficiency wood heater doesn't pollute the air. B.S.
well good luck
to all who sit around these highly toxic fires , check the website please,
www.familiesforcleanair.org/
-- Edited by orid on Sunday 16th of August 2020 08:26:41 PM
Savage
Unfortunately, I am yet to find an unbiased self interest group.
Smoking, open fires, diesel vehicles, petrol vehicles, power stations, Bush fires, and many other things contribute to our current levels of pollution, and unfortunately, if we are travelling, we are ALL part of the problem, except maybe our member Bicyclecamper!
Unfortunately Orid, most if not all of us have habits or likes that annoy others. We just have to adjust.
-- Edited by TheHeaths on Sunday 16th of August 2020 08:36:34 PM
Exactly.
Live and let live perhaps? If people annoy me I move on.
Camp fires are a basic aspect and requirement of human society and have been since the dawn of time.
Fire gazing is a form of meditation and is positive to our mental health.
Sitting around a fire with friends, or strangers, engenders a bonding process - it is hard to imagine developing social relationships in the bush when sitting around, say, a rock.
Collecting firewood is good exercise.
Man has been breathing fire smoke since the dawn of time - I'd not worry about any long term health aspects.
A camp fire provides an ambience.
A camp fire provides warmth and cooking capability.
I like a camp fire.
By the way: how's your car running? And the electricity at your home? Still polluting the planet?
There's something comforting about those flickering flames and smell of wood smoke that calls to our most basic primeval instincts
What irks me at the moment is (we are coming to the end of a stay in an upmarket caravan park in Cairns) why do some men have to smoke in the facilities? The smell of the smoke hangs around for ages if there is no breeze!
Well said Mike, nothing I can add, camp fires are one of the joys of camping.
Life's tough Orid, tougher for some than others, get over it.
And wood smoke produces far more particulate pollution than cigarette smoke does.
EPA researchers estimate the lifetime cancer risk from wood smoke to be 12 times greater than from a similar amount of cigarette smoke.
In a laboratory study at Louisiana State University, researchers found that hazardous free radicals in wood smoke are chemically active 40 times longer than those from cigarette smokeso once inhaled, they will harm the body for far longer.
Other EPA estimates suggest that a single fireplace operating for an hour and burning 10 pounds of wood will generate 4,300 times more carcinogenic polyaromatic hydrocarbons than 30 cigarettes.
then leave it smoldering all night , next morning yes get the thing burning again , seldom do I see people cooking on one , many people I see putting on rubbish like plastic bottles .
Yes wonderful to see lots of people meeting around a campfire (rare occasion ) but would those same people like to sit in a cafe with people smoking around them ?
Wood smoke is natural, so it must be okay. Really
We tend to think that substances that are natural are harmless, but this isnt true.
Asbestos, tobacco, and uranium are just a few of the natural substances that are harmful to human health.
Even though humans have burned wood since the beginning of time, scientists have only recently discovered just how hazardous wood smoke pollution is to our health.
The negative health effects of residential wood smoke have now been extensively documented in hundreds of scientific studies. The pollution generated by wood burning has been linked to a litany of health problems that include asthma attacks, diminished lung function, respiratory ailments, heart attacks, and stroke.
You are totally blindsided by some yank researchers..........cigarettes contain over 4000 chemicals, wood is a a natural product, not man made.
A campfire is Natures TV, enough said.
Cheers Bob
Most of them preclude fires and will allow you to be smoke free.
I like it :)
We did have one fire in 2016 in the NP fire pit. There was plenty of good quality supplied timber & we were the only campers in the entire campground.
One night in the Megalong Vally, it looked like every single person had a fire going, there was zero wind & the air was so thick with smoke stuck in the valley it was ridiculous. We had to leave as our eyes were watering from the irritation.
We both suffer from migraine & smoke can be a trigger. Also we just don't want to smell of smoke as it gets into everything.
We cook on a metho stove with a few drops of water to prevent soot on the pots. Couldn't be bothered cleaning pots used on a fire.
sitting around a fire is something mankind has done since they discovered how to control fire.
seems to be some council in Melbourne that wants to ban the use of wood & wood products in backyard BBQ they got 5 signatures on a petition so the so the ban on burning wood is still a long way off , but you can still drive your petrol or even worse diesel powered car to where every you wish to go
just add camp fires to the list of things in life that annoy you an move on. enjoying what is left of your life rather than waste it complaining about other peoples issues
some of my fondest memoires as a child were camping around a campfire with hot dogs and marsh mellows why should the kids of today be denied that experience
a quote from a great movie " I love the smell of napalm in the morning" bloody good fire lighters
Whats a bush camp without a good camp fire?