Where are you camping were you think you'll need to split wood?

Seriously, most public campgrounds are stoves only these days, or you use a fire ring at a fixed site using supplied wood. And most privately owned land that is worth camping on will have someone with a rifle investigating an open fire and campsite if you dont' have permission. (Something about meth labs and pot patches makes people with land kinda cranky.)

You honestly don't need a big knife 99% of the time. Trust me, I grew up in the woods. Most of the time a saw is a lot more useful for the weight and bulk, and a lot safer if you are just learning.

While you can split wood if with a long knife if needed, you usually don't need to nor do you want to. I know I'm about to scandelize people, but I've only broken three fixed blades in twenty years, and two of those were by batoning. I've also bent a machete to the point it was unusuable trying. The technique just isn't one I can recommend.

If you want to split wood, you want an axe or better yet, a maul. Or best, a hydraulic log spliter- trust me on this, my parents house is heated with wood. But in the woods, while there is the romantic ideal of splitting wood, that's all it is for the most part. Open fires, just roll something so big you want to split it over to the edge of the fire to form a reflector while it dries, then feed it in a little as needed. Rolling is good, you are less likely to pull something in your back or your belly than if you'd picked it up.

What do I carry- a folding saw, a back up single blade folder and a swiss army knife in my pack, and my leatherman and my Ka-bar MKII on my belt. And I only carry the Ka-bar becuase it is has been with me so long, it is basically a part of me. If I was going to replace it, I'd go with the Becker Crewman.