To build a fire

FAIRFIELD - A group of children did something Monday most had never done before: start a fire.

The second- and third-graders gathered at Jefferson County Park in Fairfield where they were led by Jefferson County naturalist Brittney Tiller in learning the basics of this powerful element.

Tiller said one of the most important things for kids to learn about starting a campfire is that they require more than just the biggest logs in the forest. A successful fire will use fuel of various sizes.

Tiller said that groups of all boys tend to be a little slower in starting their fires than girl-dominated groups because the boys want to ignite the largest limbs first, while the girls understand the value of the smallest twigs.

To get their fires started, Tiller had the group look for long grasses that the kids could combine into a bowl shape, similar to a bird's nest. The kids found tiny sticks to use as kindling, and a few thicker pieces of wood to keep the fire going once it started.

Monday was a decent day to start a fire, given the time of year. There was no snow on the ground, and the area hadn't received precipitation for a few days.

Nevertheless, the kids found the grass too damp to light with a match, so they had to think of an alternative source of kindling. They looked around and discovered the park was full of evergreen trees, and there were plenty of pine needles that littered the nearby road. They collected these needles and placed them in the park's fire pits.

The needles proved to be drier than the grass, and that allowed the groups to start their fires shortly thereafter.

Helping Tiller that day were a couple of volunteers, Hannah Lyons and Kara Jeffrey, both recent graduates of Fairfield High School. Lyons graduated earlier this year, while Jeffrey graduated in 2019. Jeffrey interned with Tiller over the summer and is considering a career in conservation. She is a sophomore at Iowa State University where she is majoring in animal ecology and is particularly interested in marine biology conservation.

Lighting a match was a new experience for some of the kids at Monday's nature program. Landon Bowers said he had always wanted to learn how to use a match but never had the chance.

At one of the fire pits, Tiller told the kids not to hold a lighted match upside down because it would burn their hand. She helped Wyatt Smith use a match, who was apprehensive at first but eventually was able to light one and start a fire.

Bennett Worley said he had some experience with fire and had gotten burned by a lighter once before, but he wasn't afraid of getting close to the flame. Jace Stein said he had fun that afternoon learning how to start a fire, and that the skill will come in handy when he goes camping, which he's done with his mother and grandfather.

Aria Everett said she was hesitant to start a fire and noted that her mother nearly burned her finger once at camp, and that made her scared of fire for a while. Adalyn Schleicher said her favorite part of the afternoon was getting to cook and eat s'mores.

Tiller said she's done this program before and was surprised to learn that some kids had never eaten a s'more before.

'Eating a s'more is a rite of passage in Iowa,” she said.