Biggest Muskie, Meet Biggest Bonfire

“Paul,” Gary says, “We’d better get moving. I’ll let you break the news to Lisa.”

Lisa had ducked out of the room, and Gary took the opportunity to invite me to the big bonfire happening that night. Jack, Gary’s buddy, had piled up some brush about 12 feet high at the local lodge. Officially, it’s 6′ x 6′ x 6′ – the maximum size for a civilian bonfire. Unofficially, these were quite conservative measurements that involve numerous rounding and conversion errors. This was going to be a big bonfire.

When we arrive, it’s shrunken a bit – pine burns fast – but it’s still huge. It’s too big to stand anywhere near. This isn’t a bonfire for cooking or s’mores – this is a just a big fire. It’s massive. Instead of logs, there are TREES. 10′ out, it’s too hot to face head-on. 15′ out, it’s still a little too warm. You can feel the heat 30′ out. The light from the fire illuminates trees across the street. It’s awesome.