How do you change up your gear for a fire ban?

We don't. We use a canister stove for cooking, and on the rare occasions when we have a fire, it's small and uses fuel we can break by hand. While we carry a small saw, it's for emergency portage clearing.

TZ

I just eat simple meals and only boil water on a canister stove which meets the necessary requirements and rarely have a fire so I don't normally take an axe/hatchet. Nothing to change except maybe more attention paid to maps and alternate routes.

Would you leave the saw, ax, and hatchet at home?

We're going into Quetico for a week starting 6/17 and we will have to forego the steaks over the fire the first night. We do dehydrated meals, so the only thing I'm thinking is still bringing the saw to clear deadfall, but perhaps leaving the axe behind to save some weight. We'll see.....

I never rely on a fire for late night warmth and I never bring fresh food, so with my trusty pocket rocket and a couple 8oz fuel canisters I am good for the whole trip.

Perhaps, it would be wise to invest in a backup pocket rocket just in case, but they are dead reliable so I am not sure it's necessary.

Things I would leave home:

Saw

Things I would still bring with just in case of a life or death emergency:

Cotton Ball firestarters
Ferro Rod

adam: "
Would you leave the saw, ax, and hatchet at home?"

I almost never bring them to begin with and almost never have a fire either, but I'm usually solo. For me the question is more when would I take saw?

I bought a $100 fire grate this spring. Sigh, I”m leaving it at home.

Instead I have two mini butane stoves and 24 oz. Of butane fuel.
I love the place enough that I’ll still go but sans the nightly fire. Makes cleaning up easier I guess.
Tom

adam: "
Would you leave the saw, ax, and hatchet at home?"

Yes.

I rarely have a fire, even during shoulder seasons so it wouldn’t change my plans.

If there was a ban I would still bring a saw. On an early May trip one year there were so many downed trees that I wouldn’t have made it through the portages without it.

Another good question might be "would you cancel your trip if there was a fire ban"? I've seen people post that they would and the last time I was in under a fire ban it was certainly not as busy as expected.

Two years ago when there was a fire ban our groups dropped from 18 to 6. Then two days before we went the ban lifted!

i would still bring the saw. maybe switch from stainless steel to just titanium and iso. then try to go farther and faster. i did pick up a spare pocket rocket, just in case

boonie: "

adam: "
Would you leave the saw, ax, and hatchet at home?"

I almost never bring them to begin with and almost never have a fire either, but I'm usually solo. For me the question is more when would I take saw?"

This, on all points. :-)

During the 2020 fire ban, I still brough steaks. I packed my 10" Lodge cast iron skillet and cooked the steaks over my MSR whisperlite. It was worth the weight penalty. I ended up using the Lodge for several other meals as well, walleye, pancakes, cast iron cookie (Toll House premade cookie dough).

I have always cooked over a wood fire except during fire bans, so I will bring a 2 stoves to be able cook one big meal a day for our trip. The hatchet will stay home but the saw would still be a part of my pack.

Being close to the BW and having the ability to be flexible in scheduling, we've always just canceled the trip and grabbed a permit once it's lifted.

Processing firewood and sitting around the fire sipping some whiskey and regaling on the days and past adventures is a big part of the enjoyment.

adam: "
How do you change up your gear for a fire ban?
"

It was inevitable given the lack of precipitation this spring. That said, I would probably bring the saw and leave the axe. I always carry a fixed blade knife that could serve the purpose of an axe if need be. The saw is nice for clearing dead fall or cleaning up camp of hazard trees.

adam: "
How do you change up your gear for a fire ban?

"

Maps and a clear Plan B, because the original route may be impacted by fire.