There’s a particular feeling that comes with kneeling in front of a fire that’s going out. Everyone else is settled into their chairs. You’re the one poking at it, adding another log, watching it smother instead of catch.
I’m hit or miss at building a fire. Some nights it goes up like it was waiting for me. Other nights I’m forty minutes in, on my knees, with a pile of half-burnt wood and a lot of smoke.
Why I recommend it
PyreLogs are steel bases you put underneath your firewood. That’s the whole thing. They lift the logs up off the ground so air can get under the fire instead of only around it.
The idea came from people propping up wet logs on rocks during a damp trip in Kentucky, and once you hear it that way it’s obvious — a fire needs air from below, and a log lying flat on ash isn’t getting any. They also keep the stack from collapsing in on itself and smothering the flames.
I was introduced to them at Switchback, and I’m intrigued by anything that claims to help me build a fire. I gave the system a whirl and got a hotter, better fire out of it.
Missy’s Honest Take
Could I have done the same thing with wood? Yes. You can build a base out of your own logs, or use rocks, which is where the whole idea came from in the first place.
So this isn’t gear you need. It’s gear that makes something I’m bad at more reliable. They’re steel, they’re reusable, and they’re small — which is why they have a permanent spot in the van instead of coming out for special occasions.
What you’ll need
Nothing extra. They go under the wood you already have.
They come in two sizes — a 14-inch original and a 9-inch mini — so match it to the fire ring or pit you usually end up with. And they’re steel, so they stay hot long after the fire is out. Let them cool before they go back in the van.
Get this gear
PyreLogs are for anyone who has knelt in front of a dying fire wondering what they did wrong. If you build a good fire every time, you’ll do fine without them.
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