Fire or Shelter

[Trackerman]

I go for shelter first.
Tom Brown, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XcdedGuXFa0 , have something to say about this, or at least what Granpa tought him. Look at the video around 3 minutes what he´s saying about the sacred order. 1. shelter. 2. water. 3. fire. 4. food.
This concerns survival, not bushcraft, a little sidetrack, so take it for what it is.

 

[BOD]

Well there is no right way it depends on what is the priority.

Normally, in the tropical rainforests, I get a fire going and water boiling while I set up the hammock. Its a HH so tarp,net and hammock all in one and only a few minutes to do.

Once the HH and the clothesline are done I brew the tea and while it is sitting gather more firewood because I like to have a fire that will last through the night as in the morning it is harder to find dry wood.

Then while I drink the the tea the dinner gets cooking and usually I have time for a swim in the stream ( always by a stream/waterfall) back for dinner then wash up and swim again till I feel really cold and then change into dry kit and get in the hammock.

 

[traderran]

Tent first fire second.

 

[John Fenna]

Sometimes - get fire started then pitch tent/tarp/bivi while the fire burns down to good cooking embers.
Sometimes - get tarp up to shelter the fire wood and fire from howling wind and rain
Sometimes - light fire and dont bother with shelter
Sometimes - struggle to light fire with fire retardant kindling, drop from exhaustion having neither fire nor shelter
Sometimes - start fire and set about building shelter too close to firepit, set fire to shelter, pour all drinking water onto fire to stop it spreading to the rest of the forest and end up with no fire, shelter or water.......

 

[sapper1]

Thats very decisive of you John.If you need fire retardant kindling I can get plenty.

 

[rapture]

In northern winter a fire might be no 1, with the shelter later. I might want to melt a lot of snow so that I have something to drink after a lot of heavy digging

Often I do things in this order:

1. Firewood (while you have light)
2. Shelter materials (if you need to gather them)
3. Fire
4. Build shelter (in light if fire if it comes to that)

If it is warm or rainly I might do the shelter first. All depends.

Here in Sweden even the summer nights are cold so if you don´t have a sleepingbag you will need a fire for the hole night.

 

[John Fenna]

Thats very decisive of you John.If you need fire retardant kindling I can get plenty.

Yep - noted!

 

[firecrest]

True really. Ive never been out enough on my own to kbnow which if first, but somewhere cold that didnt look like rain Id say fire, if rain looked imminent but the temperature and my clothing was ok, id say shelter. When I was lucky enough to be stranded on a desert island, albeit for one night only, we didnt build or light anything, we made a bed of logs and lay watching the stars.

 

[Cody]

Shelter always first for me. I position the campfire according to the shelter location.

 

[woodstock]

If you have nothing else find shelter........get yourself out of the elements it gives you a chance to gather your thoughts and formulate a plan

 

[Chinkapin]

I think everyone has covered it pretty well!

 

[Mistwalker]

Sometimes - get fire started then pitch tent/tarp/bivi while the fire burns down to good cooking embers.
Sometimes - get tarp up to shelter the fire wood and fire from howling wind and rain
Sometimes - light fire and dont bother with shelter
Sometimes - struggle to light fire with fire retardant kindling, drop from exhaustion having neither fire nor shelter
Sometimes - start fire and set about building shelter too close to firepit, set fire to shelter, pour all drinking water onto fire to stop it spreading to the rest of the forest and end up with no fire, shelter or water.......

I love this post...best one I've read in a long time!!

As for me...it really depends on the situation at hand as far as weather amp goes...but I can say this for sure; in the mountains I live in I'd much rather build a shelter in the dark than be out in that darkness hunting firewood but more likely finding a sprained (or worse) ankle.