Why Hazel, and Why a Tripod

There is something deeply satisfying about rigging your own cooking setup in the woods, and few things earn their place in campcraft as reliably as a three-pole tripod. It lifts your pot clear of the flames, lets you adjust the heat by raising or lowering the hook, and spreads the load so nobody has to nurse a scorched hand over the fire. It also means you never have to drive stakes into the ground or build a heavy stone fireplace you will only have to dismantle.

Hazel is the traditional choice, and for good reason. Coppiced hazel grows long, straight and remarkably strong for its thickness, with a natural taper that suits a tripod perfectly. It is light to carry, holds a lashing well, and is a genuinely renewable material — a well-managed hazel stool will throw up new rods again and again. Best of all, three good poles and a few metres of cordage will give you a rig that will happily hold a dutch oven for an evening.

Choosing and Cutting Your Three Poles

Look for rods roughly 1.8 to 2.1 metres long, about the thickness of your thumb at the butt and tapering to a wrist-thin tip. Aim for straightness over bulk — a slim, clean pole will lash better and stand more steadily than a fat, knobbly one. Bend each candidate gently; it should flex and spring back rather than creak.

• Cut cleanly with a folding saw or billhook, at an angle, leaving a stump about a hand's width above ground so the stool can regrow.
• Take only what you need, and only where you have permission. Never strip a woodland for the sake of one fire.
• Reject dead or rotten rods — green bark, a lively flex and no fungal staining are what you want.
• Trim side shoots close to the stem, but leave a couple of short stubs near the butt end to help the lashing bite.

There is no need to peel hazel. Left in the round, the bark dries, tightens and grips the cord beautifully.

A Knot That Holds: The Tripod Lashing

You want three to four metres of natural cordage — tarred sisal, hemp or jute. Avoid nylon or anything synthetic that will stretch, slip and melt when the fire grows.

Lay the three poles side by side, tips aligned and butts fanned slightly. Take a clove hitch around one outer pole, then wrap loosely around all three — six to eight turns, each one snug against the last. Now make two or three frapping turns, wrapping the cord between the poles and pulling the whole bundle tight, before finishing with another clove hitch on the opposite outer pole.

Position the lashing roughly 30 to 45 centimetres down from the tips. Higher up and the legs cannot splay; lower down and the tripod feels top-heavy. Once tied, stand it up and splay the three legs evenly, like a stool, then press down hard on the apex. If it shifts or creaks, tie it again — better now than with a full kettle hanging over hot coals.

Setting the Tripod Over the Fire

Seat each foot in a shallow scrape or wedge it against a stone or log so the legs cannot creep as the pot swings. The fire goes in the centre, kept small and controllable — a modest bed of embers and short flames, not a blaze. The crucial measurement is the gap between the lashing and the flames: keep the cordage a good half metre above the fire, and you will never smell singed rope.

Build the fire after the tripod is standing, and feed it from one side rather than under the middle of the rig. A tripod placed slightly off-centre from the main fire zone is far easier to cook with and much kinder to the lashing.

Hanging the Pot and Adjusting the Height

The simplest hanger is a short length of chain looped over the apex, with a hook or an S-bend at the bottom. A chain lets you lift the pot one link at a time, which is exactly the control you want: high for a rolling boil, low for a slow simmer.

If you prefer to travel light, carve a pot hook from a forked branch — a straight shank with a notch cut near the top and a hook at the bottom. Loop it over the apex and hang the bail handle in the crook. Either way, keep the total weight under about ten kilograms and never hang a pot by a plastic or fabric strap, which will char and fail.

Before you walk away, give the pot a gentle push. It should swing and settle, not spin the tripod.

Safety, Siting and Packing Away

• Check the rules first. Many woodlands, country parks and nature reserves ban open fires outright — know before you strike a match.
• Clear the ground beneath the fire of leaves, roots and dry grass, down to bare earth or sand.
• Look up. Low branches can catch, and resinous species will drip.
• Keep water or a fire blanket within arm's reach, and never leave the fire unattended.
• Damp it out properly — water, stir, water again, then check the ashes with your hand before you leave.

When the evening is done, untie the lashing rather than cutting it, bundle the poles and store them somewhere dry. Looked after, a good hazel tripod will serve you for years of campfires, and there is real pleasure in cooking under a rig you cut, tied and raised yourself.