Mardi Gras

Fire Regulations

It is important that anyone who intends on having a fire be aware that unless they follow these guidelines and have their campfire APPROVED BY STAFF, or you will not have a fire at all.

All campfires must be completely contained on some sort of a platform that is elevated off the ground and must have an insulating layer. For example, a large truck wheel rim elevated off the ground on at least three large rocks or bricks on edge, with all holes covered over with metal, and the bottom filled with about 2″ of sand, would meet the objective. The caretaker has some wheel rims at the camp that can be used by campers, you can pick up the rims near the workshop (at Lower Byng) and return them there at the end of the camp.

Once you have prepared your platform, pop over to HQ and have one of our staff inspect your campfire where you will be issued a campfire permit should you meet all requirements — BEFORE YOU LIGHT YOUR FIRE.

This is a result of a ground fire that was discovered in the camping area on the Monday after Mardi Gras 2008. Apparently a group had not had their fire container elevated off the ground and/or there was not a layer of unburnable material in their fire dish, and as a result, the heat from the fire burned into the duff on the ground and went underground. It took a fire pumper truck and lots of water to make sure that this fire was extinguished. As much as we all love shiny red fire engines, we do not wish to have a repeat visit from the local firefighters.

To summarize:
- elevated container with no holes
- 2″ of un-burnable insulation layer below
- requires campfire permit from staff before lighting
- fire good; ground-fire bad
- no permit, no burn