[pct-l] stoves?

[Donna Saufley]

>On Saturday, 12/11/10 Brick wrote:

>>>I keep hearing that "several serious fires" have been started  by thru
hikers with alcohol stoves.

>>>Which ones? When? Where? 


Brick, 

I've been very alarmed at the number of fires that hikers have caused,
mainly from alcohol stoves by also with campfires, burning toilet paper, or
in 2009 one putting his smoke (don't know which type) out in a tree stump at
Apache Peak. I've copied PopPop's story from 2005 below.  That same year
another hiker (going by the trail Name "Fritz") started a fire with an
alcohol stove that blew over, and was actually a fugitive on the trail --
the authorities were looking for him.  There was also another young woman,
whose name escapes me, who started a fire with her alcohol stove on top of
the picnic table that spread to the surrounding camp ground. She gave her
information to the authorities, but I never heard what happened in her case.
In Jester's new film, "Wizards of the PCT," one of the hikers tells the
story of setting all of his things and his campsite on fire with the alcohol
stove.  In the guidebook for Southern California, they indicate the Clover
Meadows Fire in 1980, north of Kennedy Meadows, burned 5,000 acres and was
started by a "campfire" along the PCT.    L-Rod

A Fire Story                                    
Don't Learn My Lesson the Hard Way

In mid-May while hiking the PCT in Cottonwood Canyon just north of I-10 on a
very hot and windy day I stopped for the night. After setting up my tent I
cleared an area about three feet across of anything that might burn and
started cooking my supper. For cooking I put an ounce or two of denatured
alcohol in an old potted meat can. I have a wire stand for my pot and an
aluminum wind screen. When my water starts boiling my practice is to lift my
pot, move my wire stand and put the pot back on the can to put the fire out
and save any unburned fuel. As I was doing this some grass outside my
cleared area caught fire. I immediately jumped up and started stamping out
flames and kicking dirt on them. It was no use. The flames spread faster
than I could put them out and soon the fire was racing up the canyon out of
my control. While I was trying to keep the fire from spreading downwind a
small part of it spread upwind and burned part of my tent and my pack and
some other equipment.  After what seemed a long time some firefighters came
and put out the fire. Afterwards they told me that fifty acres of grass had
burned. I feel very fortunate. Once that fire left my fire ring I had no
control over whether it was fifty acres or fifty thousand or more
importantly whether anyone (including the firefighters) was seriously
injured or killed.

In the months since I have spent a lot of time thinking about why this fire
happened and how to keep anything like this from happening to another hiker.
I am a 58 year old grandfather. Young and reckless is not the problem. I
have thru-hiked the Appalachian Trail and done most of it again in sections.
Inexperience is not the problem. I am a pilot and a sailor. My collateral
duty in the Marine Corps was Safety Officer. A casual attitude about safety
issues is not the problem. I was not cooking in or around my tent or
equipment.  I cleared off what I thought was a big enough ring and was as
careful as I could be. No fuel was spilled. After the fire my pot was
sitting on top of my stove which had unburned fuel inside. I thought I was
being careful. I was wrong! What I know now is that my concept of the risk
involved was purely theoretical. The reality is that on an average day in
Southern California there is more risk of a serious fire that on the worst
day I've ever seen at home on the East Coast or on the AT. When the
temperature is over one hundred, the humidity is low and the wind is
blowing, things dry out very quickly. Ironically in a year like this when
there has been a lot of rain the risk is worse because there is more to
burn. I've also considered the type of stove I was using and whether using
my old MSR would have kept this from happening. I don't believe it would
have. What I know now is that I could not have been careful enough and the
only sure way to keep this from happening was to eat a cold supper.

In California there are serious criminal and civil penalties for causing a
fire like this. The personal feelings of guilt and remorse are serious as
well. It is impossible to describe the helplessness I felt watching fire
spread up that canyon. I can't imagine what it would feel like had there
been serious property damage or personal injury. I hope that others will
read this and realize that if this happened to me it can happen to them. A
pot of Lipton Noodles is not worth it. Please be careful!


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