What to remember when making a campfire in Norway

Making a campfire is a fun activity that can bring a wonderfully warm and cosy experience to the outdoors. Before you strike the match, there are a few things to remember.

Campfires in and near forests are prohibited between the 15th of April and the 15th of September. It may be allowed in places where the fire hazard is very unlikely, e.g. nearby the sea and in approved campfire sites. This also means that everything from cigarettes to disposable grills can be illegal if used in a fire hazardous way. It is important to carefully consider how you make a campfire. Please remember that you are legally responsible for ensuring a safe campfire.

How to make a safe campfire

Make sure you are in a place that allows campfires. Check the Norwegian weather forecast website, yr.no, for the forest fire situation in each municipality.
Build the campfire in a place that is not too windy. Build it on an inflammable surface such as sand or rock. Moss and peat are not suitable to build campfires on as the glow and heat can remain for a long time. If you are near the beach, be careful of building a campfire on the rocks by the sea as it can cause cracks and discolouring in the rocks. Ask yourself if you risk leaving a long-lasting impact on nature if you make a campfire here.
It is useful to have an axe or also a saw. This makes it easier to provide wood for the fire. It is important to have water nearby to extinguish the fire with, at least 1.5 litres. The campfire needs to burn out completely or be extinguished with a lot of water. A shovel is also very useful to bring.
Place the wooden logs on the bottom. Then place a new layer of wooden logs across the bottom layer and then a third layer on the top. This makes a square, stable construction. Lay dry materials, such as dry spruce, on the top.
Use matches to ignite the wood from the top. When the structure is airy enough, the dry parts will fall into the humid part and even the wettest material will catch fire. Then you can enjoy the fire for hours. After lighting the fire, throw the matches into the fire.
Remember, never leave a campfire unattended.
Before leaving your campfire, make sure that it is fully extinguished. Use water and stir it. The campfire site must be cold before you can leave it. If it’s too hot to touch, it’s too hot to leave.
Remember to tidy the campfire site of rubbish before leaving. Try to leave as little trace as possible.

What to do in case of a forest fire

In case of a fire, call the fire department using the emergency phone number 110.

After calling the fire department you should try to extinguish the fire yourself, but be careful and do not put yourself in harm's way.

Always think about how you can reduce your impact on nature. With these considerations, we hope you will enjoy a nice and safe campfire. Have a pleasant trip!

Credit:

Norsk Friluftsliv - https://www.norskfriluftsliv.no/respektfull-rasting/

Visit Norway - https://www.visitnorway.com/plan-your-trip/travel-tips-a-z/right-of-access/

Yr.no on forest fire situation: https://www.yr.no/en/weather-warnings