My remote canister stove, HX pot, windscreen combo

[Jeff McWilliams]

I leave for Bellingham, WA in 12 days to take the “Alpinism 101” mountaineering course from American Alpine Institute.  We’ll be climbing Mt Baker, and there’s a strong possibility we’ll be asked to melt snow to make water on just a few of the 5 days we’ll be there.

Here’s the stove setup I’m taking for my climbing partner and myself.

It’s a Roger Caffin Winter Stove.  Version 1 perhaps?  I don’t recall.  One of these days I may have to break down and order a newer version if/when he does another production run.   J bolts with thumb screws underneath keep the stove legs anchored to the scrap piece of plywood when the stove will be sitting on snow.  I’m using an Olicamp 1L HX pot and a trimmed down windscreen from a MSR white gas stove.

Perhaps not quite UL, but lighter than a MSR Whisperlite setup, and cheaper than purchasing an upright canister stove like the MSR Windburner or Reactor.

Pardon the busy backgrounds on my photos.  I took the pics to share with my two climbing buddies who are going on this trip with me.  Sharing them here was a spur of the moment decision.   I wasn’t aiming for Instagram-like content.

 

[Bruce Tolley]

Have you used the 1 liter pot before to melt snow for cooking water for 2 people?  For two people, I personally would want a bit bigger pot.

For the summit day, I would think each person would need 3 plus liters which would take a long time to melt with just one 1 liter pot.  (Perhaps the guides are supplying the water?)

[Jeff McWilliams]

Bruce,

Admittedly, no.  The last time I melted snow was about 5 years ago on a winter trip to the Adirondack High Peaks.  I had a 1.6L MSR stainless steel pot, a Whisperlite stove, and a heat exchanger that clamped on around the outside of the pot.

Before that, it was Rainier in 2011, and we had a two 2-gallon pots with 3 Dragonfly stoves under each pot, melting snow for a group of 12, which admittedly took a long time.

The gear list recommendations from AAI are kinda fuzzy on this:

Stove and Fuel
Liquid fuel or canister stove. Fuel is available at AAI the morning of the course.
✫ NOTE: Many people choose to share stoves, fuel and tents to decrease weight. However, some
people prefer to camp in their own tents and use their own stoves. This can be determined on the
morning of the first day of your program.
✫ Example : Soto Windmaster, MSR Windburner

Pots
Bring one pot.
❏ Early-season: Bring a bigger pot for melting snow; 1.5L to 2L
❏ Mid or late-season: 0.5L to 1L

The recommendation of a Soto Windmaster and .5L to 1L pot for a single person has led me to believe that this setup would be reasonably adequate for 2 people.

 

[Bruce Tolley]

OK. Disregard my comment. Go with the guides’ recommendation.  Their bullet for mid or late season makes it sound like you might have access to open water.

[Jeff McWilliams]

Thanks.   I feel like there are some aspects of the itinerary that are still fuzzy, and I’m finding that I just need to trust their gear recommendations rather than try and make guesses about where they’re gonna have us make camp and what the conditions will be at those camps.

It’s slightly frustrating because I tend to obsess over details like that.

 

[Bruce Tolley]

10 days will be a lot of fun. When you do your graduation climb you should be fully confident in your ability to self arrest.  The glissading is a lot of fun too.

[Jeff McWilliams]

Bruce,

6 days actually, with one of those being a intro to rock climbing at a different crag, before we go to Mt Maker.  I already dabble in sport and a teeny bit of trad, so the rock climbing day will be a review for me and to prove to them that I know my basic systems.   Members of our local outdoors club ran a mountaineering workshop on Mt Olympus and Mt Rainier, but that was 12 years ago and I haven’t used those skills since.  I’m looking forward to getting an updated, professional perspective on things like crevasse rescue and rope management when crossing a glacier.  Two other friends from the same outdoors club are taking the class with me.  We’re hoping to then tackle some of the other cascade volcanoes in the future.

 

[Paul S]

My wife and I camp in the WA Cascades all year long, so we melt snow all the time. We usually use a soto windmaster stove (and place it on a 1/8″ thick piece of closed cell foam) and an Evernew 1.3L pot. If windy we cook either under a tarp (to block the wind), or in our tent vestibule. We have also sometimes used a remote canister stove (MSR Wind Pro II) with good results. We use a moulder strip with our Soto in the winter, early spring, and late fall. I don’t think you’d need the moulder strip for summer Mt. Baker climbs.

 

[Jeff McWilliams]

Thanks for your insight, Paul.

With my departure being just 10 days away, I’m very excited and very much looking forward to this trip.

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