wiiawiwb Posted August 8, 2019 Share Posted August 8, 2019 I've concluded, from many trips with others, that having a fire while sasquatching is detrimental to the mission. People naturally talk and the pops and hissing from the nearby fire can drown out a faint scream. It wreaks havoc if you decide the area around camp is good to record audio. I remember hearing lots of unusual vocalizations that were drowned out by crackles from the fire or campfire chatter. No audio wizardry was able to remove the background "noise" without affecting the scream. I think it is typical to load up the fire before everyone goes to bed for the night. It was my mistake to have an audio recorder nearby when there was the best scream ever. Oh well. Now, I make it a point to place an audio recorder a good quarter mile from the campsite. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JKH Posted August 8, 2019 Share Posted August 8, 2019 I learned that quickly. On my first recording attempt, there was noise from the nearby river and a hum from the tent heater. Still got a great howl and other stuff, but it could have been better. I've never understood why people go out with their recorders in a chatty group, I drop mine where people are unlikely to be. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MIB Posted August 8, 2019 Moderator Share Posted August 8, 2019 I conclude quite the opposite regarding a campfire. The only time we don't have a fire is during high / extreme fire danger when regulations ban campfires. Campfire is a component of the sasquatch "bait." However, I set my recorders a ways out from camp for the reasons you suggest .. and more. The main addition is snoring. I've had to listen through hours of Bill and I snoring from opposite ends of camp because I set the recorder too close to camp thus I couldn't use software (Audacity) to visually skim looking for individual sounds worth listening to. Car camping there are other sounds .. metallic pops and pings as parts heat or cool, stuff like that. MIB 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SWWASAS Posted August 13, 2019 BFF Patron Share Posted August 13, 2019 Much of the summer here in Western WA are fireless because of no burn regulations. The other factor with recordings is running water. You probably will loose a lot of material recording near running water. Most streams are also above the threshhold of my hearing to hear BF movement close by. I want to know if one is moving close by because of the very low frequency thuds they make, even when they are trying to be quiet. Rocks banging together in a stream make noise in the same frequency range. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kiwakwe Posted August 16, 2019 Share Posted August 16, 2019 I never have a fire at night. A lot of my outings are done solo and I would have welcomed the company of one and also the bait aspect but i don't like what it does to my established night vision. The noise factor is another element of interference. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wiiawiwb Posted August 16, 2019 Author Share Posted August 16, 2019 Now that I have a thermal imager, I find it interesting to sweep the area to see if the campfire has piqued any interest and caused something to creep up nearby. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedHawk454 Posted August 30, 2019 Share Posted August 30, 2019 thats a tough question who doesnt want to be out in the woods without a campfire? On 8/13/2019 at 2:22 PM, SWWASAS said: Much of the summer here in Western WA are fireless because of no burn regulations. The other factor with recordings is running water. You probably will loose a lot of material recording near running water. Most streams are also above the threshhold of my hearing to hear BF movement close by. I want to know if one is moving close by because of the very low frequency thuds they make, even when they are trying to be quiet. Rocks banging together in a stream make noise in the same frequency range. Is it like clockwork or are the fire bans issued when the moisture levels fall below certain threshold? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SWWASAS Posted August 30, 2019 BFF Patron Share Posted August 30, 2019 The fire bans are based on relative humidity, forest dryness, and wind velocity. Now that I have one, I prefer to use a propane fire pit. No smoke, no need for a fire ring, nice heat, less noise, less fire danger, and it goes out when you turn off the valve. In a remote camp, water to stir a wood fire out dead, might be a precious commodity. In severe fire danger periods, even the propane fire pits are prohibited. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Catmandoo Posted August 30, 2019 Share Posted August 30, 2019 4 hours ago, RedHawk454 said: The other factor with recordings is running water. You probably will loose a lot of material recording near running water. Most streams are also above the threshhold of my hearing to hear BF movement close by. I want to know if one is moving close by because of the very low frequency thuds they make, even when they are trying to be quiet. Rocks banging together in a stream make noise in the same frequency range. I like to be camped by a very small creek with low flows. The 'white noise' is present but not over whelming. A group of several deer / elk walking by will block the white noise. Depending on how sound you sleep, it is an instant wake up call. White noise and blocking of white noise can be helpful. 37 minutes ago, SWWASAS said: In severe fire danger periods, even the propane fire pits are prohibited. The no smores periods can be compensated by having Moon Pies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Huntster Posted August 30, 2019 Share Posted August 30, 2019 1 hour ago, SWWASAS said: .........In severe fire danger periods, even the propane fire pits are prohibited. We just had a horrible fire season. I usually use a small charcoal bbq when camping in my camper, but they prohibited them this summer, but allowed propane bbqs, The ruling was that if it had an on/off valve/switch, it was legal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedHawk454 Posted August 31, 2019 Share Posted August 31, 2019 Are firebans in Washington state also done at the county level? I always go straight to the counties for relevant fireban information usually county firebans supercede national forest firebans On 8/30/2019 at 1:43 PM, SWWASAS said: The fire bans are based on relative humidity, forest dryness, and wind velocity. Now that I have one, I prefer to use a propane fire pit. No smoke, no need for a fire ring, nice heat, less noise, less fire danger, and it goes out when you turn off the valve. In a remote camp, water to stir a wood fire out dead, might be a precious commodity. In severe fire danger periods, even the propane fire pits are prohibited. I always respect the firebans but the government likes to complain about it too much. They whine when there’s too much rain because of the new undergrowth, and they whine when it doesn’t rain because the undergrowth dries up and becomes fire fuel fires can be successful put out with dirt. It’s why I always bring a shovel. Responsible campers will always put out a fire completely, but we have firebans because of the careless and disrespectful campers out there. I found this hollowed out rock in Wyoming. I didn’t camp there’s. You’d have to haul ur gear up there by foot Below is one of campfires from back in May Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SWWASAS Posted August 31, 2019 BFF Patron Share Posted August 31, 2019 Interesting rock. Did it appear to be hollowed out by humans? Any tool marks? Or is it some sort of very large geode? Most fires are carelessness or stupidity. I accidently set a couple of fires when I was a kid. One was a homemade rocket that blew up. The poor grasshopper crewman did not make it. The other time I was cooking a potato just to see if I could. Chock those up to youthful stupidity. But embers can fly a long way even if you are careful. My county shuts down burning before the state does. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Huntster Posted September 1, 2019 Share Posted September 1, 2019 21 hours ago, SWWASAS said: Interesting rock......... Indeed. .......... I accidently set a couple of fires when I was a kid. One was a homemade rocket that blew up. The poor grasshopper crewman did not make it........ 😂 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MIB Posted September 1, 2019 Moderator Share Posted September 1, 2019 22 hours ago, SWWASAS said: Most fires are carelessness or stupidity. I accidently set a couple of fires when I was a kid. I resemble that remark. About a half mile up the little "crick" that flowed by our house was a deeper pool. Down in a crack, hard to get around. One day when I was about 8-9 I noticed bubbles coming up from the bottom where two cracks intersected. Not sure why I thought of it but I lit a match and tossed it out on the water. WHOOF ... flames everywhere. I had a busy 5 minutes or so stomping out / splashing burning grass and small bushes that hung over the water. That piqued my interest in geology. Got coal and natural gas in that country, just not accessible enough / good enough quality to make extraction profitable. MIB 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SWWASAS Posted September 1, 2019 BFF Patron Share Posted September 1, 2019 Methane off of decomposing stuff is pretty volatile. Some garbage dumps are trapping it and mixing it with natural gas. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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