• materials need close proximity to transfer heat while enabling sufficient air flow
• white material is difficult to ignite while dark material lights easily
• the focus from the lens/mirror needs a flat surface to ignite vs. fuzz

So I began to prepare the paper hand towel for lighting.

These paper towels come as tri-fold sheets enabling it to be dispensed successively so after I removed a sheet I proceeded to refolded it into it’s long rectangular shape. I ripped it in the middle and then ripped each half in the middle. I stacked these parts together and rolled them into a rather tight cylinder. This combination of concentric sheets allowed airflow while providing close proximity. I needed something dark upon which to focus so I found a dark dry leaf that I broke down and placed in the core at the end. I later used a black felt-tip pen to darken the outer edge on a subsequent effort that worked great!

Once I began to focus the light from the sun onto the priming leaf, smoke appeared quickly and I have learned that it pays to “wobble” the focus around a bit in an ever-widening spiral because once the initial material is ignited and consumed by the burning light it doesn’t provide on-going ignition so this practice provides an ever-widening area of what I call a critical mass of heat. Blowing on this area while focusing the light from the sun will build and sustain this growing ember. Once the ember is established It helps to hold the tinder bundle above eye level with the ember at the bottom so that as you blow on the ember it preheats the rest of the material and accelerates the process.

These paper towel rolls can be somewhat stubborn to produce a flame in themselves but can be placed within additional surrounding sheets of paper or in a pile of tinder like dry leaves and coaxed into a successful flame that can be built into a campfire.

As always, I encourage you to practice using this method to prepare you for it’s use in an emergency situation.

It occurred to me while “wiping down” after a shower that even though I had just bathed I certainly wasn’t sterile and repeated use of my towel could expose me to discrepancies in bathing to other parts of my body. Would any smudge from my feet end up in my hair the next time that I used the towel? I came up with a process to minimize this possibility.

Almost every towel on the market has a tag that states the type of fabric and usually includes washing instructions. I use the tag as an index for reference when orienting the towel for use. I hold my towel with the tag on the upward edge facing me, that way the pattern of use is repeatable. If there is no tag you can color a corner with a permanent marker as an index or perhaps sew a spot with contrasting thread.

Here’s the pattern: I use the top portion for my head and hair, the upper middle portion for my chest and arms, the lower middle for my personal areas and legs, and the bottom portion for my feet. I can alternate sides on alternate days or change sides after a set number of days.

This may not be a concern for the rugged outdoors folk but it’s nice to have an approach for those who are a little more fastidious in their hygiene practices.