Extinguishing a Fire Completely

How to put it out

1Plan ahead — stop adding wood well before you're done and let the fire burn down to ash if you can.
2Drown it — pour lots of water until the hissing stops and all the embers are saturated. Soak everything, not just the glowing bits.
3Stir it — use a shovel to mix water into the embers, ash, and dirt, turning coals and scraping charred sticks to expose smoldering material underneath.
4Drown it again — add more water and stir until everything is soaked and cool.
5Feel for heat — hold the back of your hand above the ashes. Any warmth means it isn't out; keep drowning and stirring.
6Don't leave until it's cold to the touch — "if it's too hot to touch, it's too hot to leave."

Remember it as

Drown, stir, feel — cold out, or not out.

Every single fire, every time you break camp, go to sleep, or leave the site — no exceptions.
The last and most important step of the whole fire skill — a beautifully built fire left smoldering is a wildfire waiting to happen.
Following the Outdoor Code's promise to be careful with fire.

Incomplete extinguishing is a leading cause of wildfires. The point of drown-stir-feel is to reach the hidden embers that look dead but aren't.
Never bury a fire to put it out. Dirt insulates the coals, which can smolder for hours and reignite or creep through roots — use water and stir.
Don't rely on dirt or sand alone — water is what actually cools the coals.
Check with the back of your hand, not your palm — the back is more sensitive and less likely to get burned.
If you're low on water, stir dirt in with what you have and keep checking for heat — but the standard is drowning, so plan your water to put the fire out, not just start it.
Scatter cold ashes (once truly out) per Leave No Trace, and make sure the fire ring is cold before you leave.

Each word is a step you can't skip. Water alone leaves buried embers, stirring alone just spreads them, and skipping the feel-check is how "out" fires reignite.
Start putting it out earlier than you think. A fire burned down to fine ash is far faster to fully drown than one still full of chunky coals.
Underground creep. In duff, peat, or thick roots, a poorly extinguished fire can travel underground and surface as a wildfire hours later — another reason to soak and stir, not bury.

Verifying a fire is cold before leaving is mandatory — incomplete extinguishing is a major wildfire cause.