An appropriate time to quote from the "Backcountry of Algonquin Park Leave No Trace Outdoor Skills and Ethics" booklet.
A PDF version of it can be downloaded at .. http://www.algonquinadventures.com/BackcountryOfAlgonquinParkLNT.pdf




"Page 8 - Use Only Official Fireplaces

One should have a campfire only when conditions are right ... no strong wind, no tinder-dry conditions, downed-dead-wood is plentiful, there's sufficient time to return the ashes to a safe cold state and one has the use of a properly intact official fireplace.

Algonquin's backcountry campsites are equipped with official fireplaces. These are far more than a ring of stones laid on the forest floor. Park staff have dug down a substantial depth and width to remove any organic forest soil and roots at the location. They've then filled the resulting pit with mineral sand and/or gravel, in order to reduce the likelihood of a smouldering fire becoming established in the underground organic layer.

Many destructive fires are started when campers unwittingly relocate the stonering part of a fireplace to a “more desirable” location. They then move on, oblivious that their relocated fire-ring has started the underground organic layer smouldering. Later the wind may pick up and cause the fire to break-out to the above-ground organics, producing a conventional forest fire .. or the underground fire may spread for days destroying tree after tree from below by killing their roots. This is the very important reason for using only the established campsite fireplace!"