What is your take on fires in campfire rings?

[Ozz]

I hate the fires people start 10' away from my Monte, usually it is by the rear, or living room. We are sitting there, enjoying the cool air coming in, which we have made a considerable effort and expense to find, by the way, then they pile wood in the ring, douse it with charcoal lighter, and light it up.
My question to them, how would you feel if I came over to your home and lit what smells like a chemical and trash fire 10' from your living room window? The smoke, even with the trailer sealed up, windows closed, still smells like wood smoke.
My take on it is that when people do this it is inconsiderate and they really don't care who it bothers.
Sue has asthma, can't breathe well on a clear day, really has problems with the smoke. I just don't like smelling the smoke and having everything in the trailer smell smoky.
It is hard to find a c.g. that doesn't have them. If not impossible out west. I am a believer that you can pretty well do anything you like, as long as you are not bothering someone else.
It would be different if it was a community fire ring well away from the trailers.

[Mrs. CountryGuy]

Not disagreeing with you, but, here is part of their thought process.

Camping = campfires.

Note, I did not say, RVING!

They believe it is their right to have a campfire on their weekend campouts.

Some people really really love campfires.

There are others that have issues with them.

My main gripes are:

Bonfires that have 10 foot of wood piled up, the flames jump to 20 feet. Said bonfire is not built in a community fire pit, but, as you say, 10 foot from my propane bottles, err, rig.

OR: lets burn the trash from the last remodel at the stick, no matter that it is treated lumber and is hazardous to your health to burn this junk.

OR: have a fire during dry conditions and oh, please, lets be sure that the wind is blowing at a minimum of 25 MPH.

Nope, tain't camping without that good ole campfire.

And, yep, there are times we enjoy one - - for those that think I totally hate em. I don't, totally. But, I am not a real fan of the smoky flavor/smell inside Tana either.

Oh, and Ozz, they really don't give a flip how much you spent in effort or $$$$ to get to the campground. SIGHHH

[nosticks]

Ditto on the asthma for both of us, we can't take the smoke either. If we really just want a small campfire, I light a Duralog. I've carried three with me over a year and still have two left. I've seen too many clowns building bonfires in those rings and using wet wood to add to the smoking inferno and then dumping garbage and other semi-burnables in there as well.

I am noticing more campgrounds without the fire rings. They have instead, a community fire ring located away form the base camp sites usually around a rec center. I think it a far better idea. Some will whine and say "yea but that's what camping is all about, gathering the family around a camp fire", as they leap from their multi-thousand dollar palace on wheels to their carpeted outdoor seating area surrounded by their TV and stereo system.

So as to my take on it, a few well placed community fire rings would do just as well to burn a marshmallow as one under your window.

[Ozz]

Consideration of others, politeness, goes a long way. I don't even slam my truck door, I shut it, push on it until it catches and it is closed securely, we don't slam compartment doors. I don't yell for Sue's help when outside, I knock on the wall, or go around and talk through the open door. I also don't light a stinky campfire outside a neighbors windows.
Just my take on co-existing with others in a crowded environment.

[Carl32092]

It's called, "common courtesy" and it's getting to be a rare collectors item lately! I miss it!!

[NCFischers]

I'm afraid that I would have used my water hose or fire extinguisher to remedy the problem after asking them to put it out.

[bigmurf]

Devils advocate here now.... I paid for this site, there is a fire ring here, I am going to use it! When you check in ask if there are fire rings and ask NOT to be near one.

BTW: I smell charcoal lighter right now coming from across the street.

[ole dude]

I paid for the site, if it is permitted, and I want a fire, I will light it up. However, if you were to tell me it creates a health discomfort, I might shut it down. This is something we all have to deal with in public places. I smelled lots of fire starter stuff this last week end, folks were having a good time and cooking out. Not a problem.
NCFischer, were you to come over with a fire extinguisher or water hose, be ready for a problem. Jus sayin.

[indy roadrunner]

Lets see it is 99 plus degrees outside, humidity 80%, everyone is soaking wet with sweat so lets stack up fire wood and build a bon fire with blaze reaching 4 - 5 feet high. Lets all pull up our lawn chairs and stick out our feet to keep them warm. Now that's camping. Who cares if the smoke is so thick you can't see who is sitting 4 feet away from you - I am camping and camping is a bon fire. So lets throw on some more logs and really get them ambers floating up in the air falling on top of everybodys rubber roof. The neighbors in the next site doesn't even have to come over to roast marshmellows they just put them on a stick and presto they melt. Would someone throw on another wet log the smoke is clearing and I can see what looks like the outline of a Montana next door - wonder if that is Ozz. Oh well looks like the fire is dying down it's close to midnight so throw the rest of the wood on the fire so in the morning we will have a good bit of coals to start another fire.

Sorry folks I am not a campfire fan. I think in the autum they have their place when it is cold out but even then I think respect of others is a concern.

[Ozz]

It all goes back to consideration.
If a RV Camp allows fire rings, they will be at every site.

[TheCoachPotatoes]

I personally like this old Indian saying I heard once.

"White man build big fire, can't sit near. Indian build little fire, sit near."

Don't know that it really applies here, but I like it anyway!

[Ozz]

Ha! I like it too Al and Nita.

[noneck]

I like campfires, I don't like upsetting my neighbors, I have gone w/o campfires when it was too close, I've had campfires that always blow on my neighbor and I feel bad but what do I do now??? My night is a bust and so is theirs...

[HOOK]

I try to be considerate, polite, and neighborly, yet I will meet deliberate overbearance with vigorous resistance, if it becomes necessary.

[The Old Fogies]

I'm going to put my two cents in here. Camp fire are a part of camping. We will build one to roast marshmallons. It's just part of camping. The grandkids feel deprived if we have to go without Smores.
We also keep our fire small, as the Indian. I also don't like the bon fires.
How about the lour radios. Stinking lighter fluid on the grills. The list could go on and on. Still I enjoy being out here when I get the chance.

[CamillaMichael]

Don't mind "camp fires." Don't like "smoke pits." Seems the average leans toward smoke.

[washley1]

I am in agreement with The Old Fogies! The real big smoke pits are AWFUL, and if there is a chance to do it tactfully I would point out the beauty of hard wood fires rather than pine, and dry wood rather than green, to those neighbors who are uneducated in fire pit protocol. My bigger beef is always with knuckle heads with radios and TV's going full bore outside all day and half the night!

[bear]

Ozz,

PUT MY fire out ,I don`t think so, Turn off your Stinky Diesel you started up at 5 AM so you could leave at 7 AM, and put out those ciggies that you had to have right out side my bedroom at 11 pm and not in your own trailer cause you did not want to smell it up..Oh and don`t use the HEAD cause you were to cheap to buy chemicals so I get the Aroma,Oh I forgot turn that xxxx night light out I can`t sleep and now the DOG`S......... I AM GOING HOME..... AND PUT UP WITH MY NABOR`S DOG`S

I carry a large fan it works well and usually they get the hint...

LOL,LOL,LOL,

David
In beautiful Coeur d Alene,Idaho

[Bill-N-Donna]

We’ve been in parks where I wanted to build a fire but when the campers are just too close we go without one. I agree that a campfire is part of getting out with the family and having some fun. In tight crowded parks I’ve found there are usually restrictions on building fires somewhat. I won’t build a fire any closer to someone else than I would our own camper. For the most part we stay in parks where there is plenty of room for a campfire.

[hookman]

We like fires but alot of time it is fire season (this year is the exception) so we bought a propane camp fire which in almost all areas are allowed as they are considered the same as a gas BBQ. You can do almost any thing you do on a real fire but there is no smoke which is great in an RV Park. We still enjoy the camp fires a Quartzite and other places where there is a lot of room.