California, Stoves, Campfire Permits, In Addition To Esbit

I alive inward California inward the United States.  I idea I'd comment close what is together with is non permissible alongside honour to stoves, fires, together with fuels inward the backcountry here.

Unfortunately, in that location are a welter of jurisdictions including province parks, national parks, metropolis parks, national forests, county parks, together with Bureau of Land Management areas.  Each of these may conduct maintain their ain rules together with restrictions.  Even dissimilar units of the same overarching means volition conduct maintain differing rules.

However, in that location is ane affair that is generally required inward California across the diverse jurisdictions:  the California Campfire Permit.  Basically, exterior of a developed campground, to conduct maintain whatsoever sort of burn downward (a wood burn downward or a campsite stove), y'all conduct maintain to conduct maintain a campfire permit.  And, yes, y'all read that right; y'all conduct maintain to conduct maintain a permit inward companionship to run a campsite stove inward the backcountry.  Based on the name, y'all would mean value a campfire permit would hold out for wood fires alone, but, no, a campfire permit is for any type of fire, including all backpacking type stoves.

It's slow to larn a permit; precisely click on the to a higher house link, impress it, fill upwardly it out, together with sign it.  You don't conduct maintain to larn to a ranger station, pay a fee, accept a test, or anything similar that.  I mean value they precisely desire y'all to conduct maintain the regulations inward front end of you.

H5N1 campfire permit to a greater extent than oft than non allows ane to exercise a woodfire, charcoal fire, or "chemical" stove, but each local jurisdiction places additional restrictions every bit to where fires together with what fuels are permitted.    Wood together with charcoal fires are to a greater extent than oft than non the most restricted alongside many jurisdictions confining wood fires to developed campgrounds only.  With honour to those restrictions, gas together with pressurized liquid fueled stoves are ever OK inward province together with federally controlled backcountry areas, but I conduct maintain seen local cities prohibit fifty-fifty gas together with pressurized liquid fuel stoves (e.g. the City of Monrovia).  Jellied fossil oil (I assume they hateful Sterno type stoves) is too permitted (but who the heck uses a Sterno stove?).

Alcohol together with hexamine (e.g. ESBIT) stoves are to a greater extent than oft than non lumped inward alongside wood fires together with are typically to a greater extent than restricted.  Alcohol together with wood stoves are prohibited in many backcountry areas inward California, peculiarly inward Southern California.  The dominion of pollex is:  Where wood fires are permitted, alcohol stoves are permitted; where wood fires are not, alcohol stoves are not.   Unfortunately, the Forest Service lumps ESBIT inward alongside alcohol together with wood fifty-fifty though ESBIT is really dissimilar (and really safe).  See the Appendix below for farther tidings on this topic.

SUMMARY

• Print together with acquit a California Campfire Permit
• Gas together with pressurized liquid fuel stoves are almost universally permitted for backcountry use
• Expect greater restrictions on wood together with charcoal fires
• Alcohol together with ESBIT stoves are to a greater extent than oft than non lumped inward alongside wood fires -- together with are to a greater extent than heavily restricted
• Generally, inward an surface area where wood fires are permitted, alcohol together with ESBIT stoves are permitted; where they are not, alcohol together with ESBIT stoves are not.  
• Always cheque alongside each local jurisdiction every bit to the specific rules governing your type of stove or fire 

I realize it's a chip complicated, but I promise that helps.

HJ

APPENDIX
So why together with hence many restrictions on alcohol together with ESBIT type stoves?  Well, the San Bernardino National Forest website has a helpful Q&A department from which I quote:


Q:  Why are jelly petroleum-fueled stoves okay together with campfires aren’t?
A:  Jelly petroleum-fueled stoves tin hold out extinguished past times putting a metallic lid over the container. This makes their exercise much safer than campfires. Ashes or hot briquettes tin blow exterior of the burn downward pit; these embers tin easily get-go a wildfire. Also, visitors mightiness discard ashes or hot charcoal briquettes earlier they are completely cool, which could displace vegetation to ignite after after they are gone. Wood, charcoal, or whatsoever company fuel fires are non allowed inside the San Bernardino National Forest exterior developed campgrounds, picnic areas, xanthous post sites, together with special exercise permitted sites inward agency-provided burn downward rings or designated sites at whatsoever fourth dimension of the year.

So, based on the Forest Service's to a higher house answer, a fuel that tin hold out reliably extinguished, whose flame cannot hold out spread past times wind, together with does non move out behind by-products that mightiness get-go a burn downward is an appropriate fuel for backcountry use.  Based on the Forest Service's ain answer, I'd order that ESBIT is an appropriate fuel for backcountry use.  Burning ESBIT tin hold out reliably extinguished past times blowing it out; ESBIT flames are non spread past times wind, together with ESBIT leaves behind no by-products that mightiness get-go a fire.  I mean value ESBIT gets lumped inward alongside wood fires merely because the solid set down agencies aren't familiar alongside it.  Bureaucracies beingness what they are, it in all probability won't happen, but it certain would hold out overnice if the diverse agencies that conduct maintain jurisdiction over backcountry areas would accept a instant hold back at ESBIT.

With alcohol stoves, I sympathise the restrictions a piddling chip to a greater extent than (note that I said "understand" non "like").  Alcohol tin tumble together with spread flames, together with many alcohol stoves cannot hold out extinguished ane time lit.