stoves?

i use the msr pocket rocket. couldnt be smaller or lighter (only 3 ounces), and boils water in less than 5 minutes. a 4oz gas canister will last at least for 3 dinners, 3 breakfasts for two. i use that, because i dont like to mess with fires for just a cup o joe or boiled water if im only out for a few days. couldnt be easier and convenient at a minimal weight penalty. I am sure others will chime in with alchohol or esbit, but i go with speed and convenience as it is such a light package anyway.

50 bucks for the stove and gas.

Alcohol or Esbit are great for boiling water and instant type foods. Cannot simmer. Also, not good for melting snow (short burn times), and probably do not get as hot as a gas stove. I use a Caldera Cone alcohol stove on most trips.

I like the Snow Peak Stoves. Light and convenient. Support pots well. I cannot speak to melting snow, and in really cold weather, you need to warm the cannister before using. Wind can be an issue using these stoves. The Gigi stove can be fitted with a Snow Peak windscreen that works well, but at 2 oz, weighs almost as much as the stove. Many BPL members have made lightweight windscreens. A search will find examples. I have a Snow Peak Giga Stove (3.75 oz) and a LiteMax Titanium (1.9 oz). The Snow Peak windscreen will not work on the LiteMax. The LiteMax is my main stove when not using the Caldera Cone set-up. Last winter, on a 4 day trip, I had a lot of wind. Even using my pack and sleeping pad as windscreens, it was not easy, and I ran out of fuel the last morning. I was using the smaller 7 oz cannister, and would have been fine if I had used the Giga Stove and SP windscreen.

There are many reviews of the Snow Peak stoves here on BPL.

For really cold weather and lots of snow melting, I use a white gas stove (MSR) Whisperlite or Dragonfly. These are heavy, but are workhorses. I don't do a lot snow camping, so don't consider me a cold weather cooking expert.

–

I successfully climbed Shasta 22 times, so I can tell you what works for a stove [there]. For melting the large amounts of snow needed, you probably want a white gas stove. Maybe Roger will chime in and tell you that a butane stove is best.

We always used white gas stoves, and we saw relatively few of other types on the mountain. It sounds like you need to melt and cook for two people. A melt pot of the size 1.5L to 2.0L ought to work, and you can just boil water in it. However long you expect to be up high on the mountain, take enough fuel to last for at least one extra day.

Also, dig a hole in the snow right outside your tent, and operate the stove there to keep it and the pot out of the wind. Alternatively, build a wind wall up about three feet to protect your tent and keep the stove within it.

–B.G.–

There must be a million threads on stoves here! And one hundred thousand on the relative merits of white gas vs canister. :-)

If you subscribe you will find a horde of technical articles discussing the performance of alcohol and canister stoves, including serious winter use.

Since this is Backpacking LIGHT, and white gas stoves are all much heavier than the alternatives, and less powerful than many remote canister stoves, we don't discuss them much. Obsolete technology in the eyes of many.

Cheers

A good site for stoves is zen stoves. http://zenstoves.net There's a good section on there with pros and cons for different stove types.

Thanks, all, for the advice! Based on Bob's experience, it seems like there's no good reason to spend money on a different stove this year.

In the old days, we would have either one or two MSR stoves set up in a large hole, depending on the group size. We always kept the stoves separated so that we could hear them individually for performance. You know how your ear gets tuned to a certain tone of stove roar. But when the wind is howling up there, you can't hear them at all.

Since you are likely to be camping exactly where hundreds of others have previously camped, and since you are melting snow for drinking water, it would be highly advisable to boil the water before consuming it.

–B.G.–

if your gonna take any trips that dont involve melting snow and you really want a super light and easy cooking method try freezer bag cooking!

just boil water

add boiling water to ziploc bag containing the desired meal

mix then let it sit for instructed cook time(or when you feel its cooked) usually 2-15 minutes depending on the dish

eat from the bag with a spoon

then when your finished just zip up the bag and keep it with the rest of your garbage being packed out.

no pots to have to scrub! simplicity!!!

i have been using this style of backcountry cooking for years with ease. my cook system with my fiance is just a fancy feast cat can alcohol stove and an evernew .6 litre titanium pot. works great! weighs less than 4 oz

peace
.maestro.