Campfires on the Beach

ALWAYS PUT OUT YOUR FIRE WITH WATER not sand.

The King Range is shaped by fire. As you hike the Lost Coast, this is unmistakable. Thousands of acres burned in the Honeydew fire, only four years ago. When you imagine this huge fire burning and feel the nearly constant northwest wind, you can understand why the neighbors down in Shelter Cove--just downwind--are jittery about smoke rising from the beach.

Only thirty years ago, a fire burned all of what is now Shelter Cove and the burnt remains of trees still remain from that fire to remind people of how tenuous their security from fire is, there.

Most of the year, campfires are permitted along the Lost Coast and King Range. In order to legally have a campfire, campers must possess a campfire permit which along the Lost Coast is also your Backcountry Permit. The permits are available in the brown metal boxes at each trailhead--fill it out, keep the white copy, and put the yellow copy in the slot on the front of the box. With this permit, you are good to go as far as fire and overnight use are concerned.

The permit says to observe all current fire restrictions. Most of the year, you are asked to use existing fire rings whenever you can and please use water not sand to put out your fire.

"Why can't I use sand? There's plenty of it on the beach and firefighters use it." Sand can smother a fire, it is true. Winds on the King Range can go from calm to gale force in a matter of minutes, though--especially in the mid-morning hours about when most folks are leaving camp. A fire with sand poured on it is likely to have its sand rapidly stripped away. The heat is still there and soon you have a fire again. Unattended fires can rapidly make their way into the surrounding grass, up the hillside and--potentially--onto the homes in Shelter Cove.

As firefighters, we learn about the "Fire Triangle" which consists of heat, air, and fuel. Covering a fire with sand may remove air from the equation but, as I mentioned above, this may not be a reliable fix. Dousing a fire with copious amounts of water--which is plentiful along the coast--will remove both heat and air from the equation. It's a much surer fix.

Just remember that most fires aren't put out with just one quart of water! The average fire needs at least a standard bear-proof can full of water dumped on it. If you never thought of it--the bear can is a great bucket!