Soft woods burn hot and quick. Hard woods burn long. Maple comes in varieties soft and hard. Hickory, oak, elm, mature boxelder, sugar maple, beech, ash, giant sumach, walnut ironwood,and fruitwoods are all hardwoods that burn long and glow like coal. Willow, soft maple (about fifteen varieties I know of) basswood, sassafrass, cherry (kind of in the middle), lesser sumach, honeysuckle, poplar, aspen, and tu;ip are all soft woods that will burn quickly and put out large quantities of heat for a short period. This, however assumes they have an adequate supply of oxygen. Willow is an excellent smoke wood. Damp it down and it will burn for a long time providing smoke for meats. This is also true for cherry and soft maple. If you want heat over an extended period, stick with hardwoods. They are denser and take longer to burn.
The problem with this is that sometimes you have to burn what you can get. In this extreme, the best bet is to get the biggest pieces you can, stack them away from the wind and make sure you have a good bed of coals.
Good luck, campers.