3. Leave No Trace and campfires
Part of Camp leadership basics, an introductory course on general camp-leadership knowledge. It is not the official material of any certification course.
In this lesson
- The idea of minimal impact
- What Leave No Trace's seven principles cover
- Campfires as culture and as hazard
If we only cared about protecting nature, we would stay out of it. But time in nature is the point of camp, so the goal is to visit in a way that leaves as little trace as possible. Natural places can only absorb so much use, and a group of thirty campers has thirty times the impact of one.
Leave No Trace
The Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics teaches seven principles that it calls the foundation of everything it teaches. In short, they cover planning ahead, traveling and camping on durable surfaces, disposing of waste properly, leaving what you find, minimizing campfire impacts, respecting wildlife and being considerate of others. Read the principles in their official wording on lnt.org; Leave No Trace asks that the principles not be reprinted or altered without its copyright language and review, so we summarize them here rather than reproduce them.
Leave No Trace is more than "pack out your trash." It asks campers to think about soil, plants, animals and other visitors, which makes it a natural bridge to environmental education (lesson 10).
Campfires: culture and hazard
Fire has always gathered people: for light, warmth and cooking, for celebration, and simply because sitting around one calms a group down. It also scars soil, leaves trash and starts wildfires. Japan's environment ministry asks visitors to its national parks not to camp or light fires outside designated places, to prevent damage to vegetation, attracting wildlife and wildfires.
- Follow the site's rules and use existing fire rings or a fire pan.
- Put fires out completely. Smokey Bear's rule of thumb: if it's too hot to touch, it's too hot to leave. NPS warns that kicking dirt on coals can keep them hot even longer.
- Teach children both sides: what fire means to people, and what it does to the land.
Think it through
- Which Leave No Trace principle is hardest for a group of children to follow? How would you make it easier?
- How would you explain to a ten-year-old why you're using a fire pan instead of building a fire on the ground?
Related on this site
Everyday
On every trip, pack out all trash and use a stove or fire pan instead of a new fire scar.
When it counts
In a disaster, the same habit of using resources sparingly and caring for shared space helps a community get through.
Sources and when we checked them
- Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics, 7 Principles (checked 2026-10-31)
- Smokey Bear, How to Put Out a Campfire (checked 2026-10-31)
- National Park Service, Campfires (checked 2026-10-31)
- Ministry of the Environment (Japan), manners in national parks (in Japanese) (checked 2026-10-31)
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