View Full Version : I need help with "eating" gear...
PinkLemonade7503
01-25-2006, 01:59
I could really use some advice on what to buy and what to avoid.
We (hubby & I) are just getting to the point of really trying to minimalize and lighten our gear, so we definately need all new "eating" gear, including stove, utensils, cook pot & whatever.
I'm not really sure where to even start. We have been mostly day hikers or weekend campers so everything we have is totally heavy and unusable. I've found some really light things, but is titanium better than lexan?
I'm open to anything... I'd rather spend extra money than carry a heavy pack:-) I also like the idea of making things.
This spring will be our first thru hike, so I'm sure I will overkill. We will be doing us much between now and then as possible to help get rid of stuff.
Any and all advice will be much appreciated.
~Pink Lemonade
digger51
01-25-2006, 02:29
I just bought a jetboil stove and have been trying out freeze dried foods. Its great and the food is light and good tasting. I use only a lexan spoon. It has worked for me every year. also a very small pocket knife cuts all the stuf i need to cut. But Jack Tarlin has posted some good articles on here about gear and such. You might check them out. Happy hiking and wave as you pass me.
i mostly solo, and use an MSR titan kettle, a lexan tablespoon, and a homemade alcohol ion stove and stand. total weight is about 6-7 ozs...
you can also get a walmart grease pot (about a quart?) for about $6, which weighs about 4.5 oz. the msr titan kettle is, i think, .85 liters/qts, also weighs about 4.5 oz, but costs a bunch more. but you don't have to baby it much, and can feed two people from it.
homemade ion stove is pretty easy to make if you're even only a little handy. alcohol is way different than gas, requires more planning/thinking ahead (IMHO), but weight savings, reliability, less messy fuel, and quiet operation are worth it. may not work for two adults... i've only fed myself and young daughter (but it works fine for us.)
lexan spoon over titanium, simply for cost/weight... just not worth the extra $$ to show off a titanium spoon/foon/spork...
I think this is one of the most fun areas to experiment in. Some of the possibilities are very cheap, like using long-handled plastic spoons from Wendy's, and making alcohol stoves.
One way of simplifying the kitchen to to eat only "boil in bag" cooked foods. There's another thread on this, where people share "recipes." Then you can carry only stove, fuel, pot for boiling water, spoon, and (optional) cup. You don't even have to carry soap or sponge!
My personal setup: Pocket Rocket, MSR canister, MRS Titan kettle, long-handled Ti spoon (Backpackinglight.com). I have played with alcohol stoves and Esbits, but I like to drink lots of hot tea, so I prefer the speed and capacity of a canister stove. Also, when I've been backpacking with my husband, cooking for two on a single alcohol or Esbit is very time-consuming.
I buy large cans of freeze-dried food and repackage them in quart freezer ZipLock bags (writing on the outside how much water to add), so I can just add water and eat. No dishes.
Can you tell I feel as if I've done enough housework in my life?
I too like my kettle and MSR Pocket Rocket. Still need to decide if I need a larger pot to actually "cook" things in when I can't find backpacking meals. (If I get a pot the kettle might be out of the picture, no need to carry both)
As far as the spoon, I have lexan but may get titanium cause cheesy things really stick to lexan and are harder to come off. Has anyone had experience with things sticking, or not sticking, to titanium?
Does anyone know how available fuel canisters and freeze dried backpacking meals are on the trail?
i can't say enough good things about the pocket rocket. when your cooking for two you'll need a bigger pot so titanium would save you some weight. cheaper plastic spoons melt and break easily. i've always used lexan, but i guess titainium would be ok too. my wife does the dehydration thing for food, but i am partial to the lipton's myself. after building that hiker appitite, i like to add some instant mashed potatoes to my lipton meal as well. some spices make things much better, and butter buds too. can't forget about the mac n' cheese. cheesburgers in town, and maybe some steaks too, for the all important fat content.
Does anyone know how available fuel canisters and freeze dried backpacking meals are on the trail?
somewhere in a hiker friendly town, there are fuel canisters. they are all pretty much universal now too. the msr superfly will even fit on the big green coleman canisters that you can get at wal mart or maybe the grocery store.
When we did our thru in '89, we started out with two alum pots, fork & spoon, insulated cups, Swiss army knife and MSR XKG white gas stove. By the time we were 1/2 way we were down to one 1.5 qt pot, just the spoon the cups and the SWK.
We ate mostly freeze dried (Mountain House) foods and found that cooking in the bag saved a lot of cleanup. We also carried a chopstick for stiring up the food in the cooking pouch, worked great.
This last fall, my wife and I and one of our friends did the approach trail, we had an alcohol stove with us and when we go back up this spring for 2 weeks, we will be going back to the old XGK. Still uisng the old pot, spoon and SAK and insulated cups.
Sporks suck!
I have checked at several local Walmarts, but can't find any lightweight pot like the grease pot. Does anyone know the SKU number, or what the thing is actually called ?
Thanks !
totempole99
01-26-2006, 17:37
SteveK, check this thread... http://www.thebackpacker.com/trailtalk/thread/16789%2C-1.php
Called the Grease Saver and I believe StoveStomper lists the SKU as 50033, but am not sure if that is correct.
it's called the grease saver, and it's in the housewares section, not in camping. it's often on the very bottom shelf, next to the flour sifters and orange juicers. might have to dig around a bit to find it. good luck.
snowman2005
01-26-2006, 17:53
I can highly recommend the Optimus Crux stove. A bit expensive but it folds down to a tiny size and has a good size burning head where the Pocket Rocket was a bit small for my liking. There isn't really a problem getting gas canisters along the way and they're way faster than alcohol.
I started off with a Titanium Spork. Do not get one!! Actually, I used it for half the trail before switching to a lexan spoon which I loved and they're very cheap.
I used a titanium SnowPeak cooking pot which was just perfect. I also used the little frying pan lid to make trail pizza and hot dogs - although that was the only use it was other than a lid to keep the food warm. To cook liptons (and such like) food I only had to bring water to the boil, dump in the food, put the lid on, turn off the gas and wait - but if you're cooking beans you'll have to boil for longer. I bought all my food as I went, no mail drops - never had a problem getting food, plus this way you get some variety as the types of food change slightly as you head North and the stores change their stock. Unless you really love oatmeal, don't take any - you'll always get it from the hikerboxes as it is quickly discarded by other hikers :-)
I decided to take a Snow Peak titanium cup. I LOVED IT, but I liked to drink a lot of hot drinks (coffee) and the luxury of drinking coffee while waiting for food was delicious. Plus, if you're just making Ramen you can cook it straight in the cup and not dirty the pot, then dump coffee in afterwards to clean the cup :-)
My Optimus Crux folded into my cup which fitted upside down on top of my gas canister which fitted inside the Snow Peak pot which sat on the pot lid. The spoon and lighter slotted into the pot too and I had a scouring pad in there for the 'oops' moments. All very compact. You could definitely do without the frying pan lid though - I used the empty liptons packet as a lid more often than not as they have foil in them which kept the heat in the pot. (I didn't tend to cook the liptons in the bag as I liked to add extras (mash, cheese, etc.) to them to give some extra bulk.)
I have checked at several local Walmarts, but can't find any lightweight pot like the grease pot. Does anyone know the SKU number, or what the thing is actually called ?
Thanks !
The problem with those (gerease pots) is that the rolled lip turns in. If I were looking for a lightweight pot like this (which I was) I would want one that was easier to clean. (one that doesn't have the seam "inside" the pot. (Cleaning the wally grease pot is a real pain to me)
Look at what anti gravity gear has. That would be your best bet here if you haven't alread bought something else.
http://www.antigravitygear.com/store/index.php?cPath=3
Hope this helps.
I use a Lexan spoon. I can't see any advantages with ti. It's more expensive, can scratch your pot, and conducts heat.
I'm currently using an Evernew 1.3L ti pot, but would definitely get the 0.9 if I had it to do over.
I carry a very light plastic cup and bowl also -- less than an ounce each. I pretty much always make more than one thing for dinner and often have coffee or tea as well. So, I boil a big pot of water, pour some into my bowl for mashed potatoes, some into my cup for coffee, and the rest in the pot for pasta.
I'm currently using a homemade alcohol stove, but am still not quite convinced. If it were just a question of weight, I definitely would go with canister; I think the extra couple ounces is worth the ease and speed. I do like the idea of versatile and easily available fuel, the fact that I made it myself, and its extreme simplicity and foolproofness, so I've been trying to get used to it.
After messing with various windscreens for a long time, I finally settled on tripled up regular old Reynold's foil. Super light, flexible, pretty much free, and easily replaceable.
You might also want to make a pot cozy. You can use an old sleeping pad and some duct tape for about an ounce. Anything that instructs you cook for a long time will do very well in a cozy. For example, I love to make Zatarain's Jambalaya. It instructs 25 minutes of simmering. I boil it for five, then put the pot in the cozy for another fifteen and it comes out great. I often carry a small "disposable" Tupperware bowl in my food bag. If I make a big dinner, I put it up and have it as a cold lunch the next day. When it's empty, I put any fragile foods in it for protection.
I would suggest that you keep packability in mind. Other than the fuel, I can easily fit everything (stove, stand, wind screen, lighter, bowl, cup, spoon) into my pot. Makes things very compact and convenient.
Good lord this ran long. Good luck and keep us posted with what you try out.
It sounds like you want to go light. If so, there are lots relatively unexpensive things you can do to achieve that.
Lots of good advice above, but you have to determine how much water you'll be boiling; if you drink lots of coffee or tea you might want a stove that has more kick.
I carry a pot w/ lid, an alcohol stove, a lexan spoon, a sheet of aluminum foil that I fold over and form into a windscreen.
People generally take too much cooking stuff with them; for example think about what you have or can get that could be multi-use and thus reduce weight: if you carry a Nalgene bottle you can make coffee in that.
betic4lyf
01-26-2006, 20:24
if u have a dremel or something like that, you could probably cut of the lip, and then sand it, drill some holes, and make bales. that said, i am very happy with my antigravityear three cupper. they seem like a coated version, without bales, to some pots that came with messkits.
PinkLemonade7503
01-27-2006, 01:01
thx for all of the advice... i hadn't even thought about a windscreen...
it is almost always my husband and I, so I was thinking of going with something bigger. then, on the off chance I go by myself i'll get a new pot.
i ask about the ti spoon versus lexan b/c someone else said the lexan melted or warped. I *thought* it would have to get mighty hot for that... but I have no idea.
another question....
we always take nalgene bottles, but i've read a lot of people talking about using old coke 20 oz bottles b/c they are lighter. how do these hold up? is it worth the weight difference? is there something better to try?
we always take nalgene bottles, but i've read a lot of people talking about using old coke 20 oz bottles b/c they are lighter. how do these hold up? is it worth the weight difference? is there something better to try?
If you only use a Nalgene for water, you could just ditch it and use one of those large (multiple-serving; can't remember how many liters) Gatorade plastic bottles with the orange widemouth cap. They're light, right size for a pack, and easy to fill because of the mouth size. Also easy to replace...you can ditch 'em or give 'em away and just get another one at any convenience store.
freefall
01-27-2006, 02:38
The problem with those (gerease pots) is that the rolled lip turns in. If I were looking for a lightweight pot like this (which I was) I would want one that was easier to clean. (one that doesn't have the seam "inside" the pot. (Cleaning the wally grease pot is a real pain to me.
The pot I got from Wally World, the lip rolls out. This was about 1 year ago. This may not be the grease pot but is light and held up good so far.
thx for all of the advice...
another question....
we always take nalgene bottles, but i've read a lot of people talking about using old coke 20 oz bottles b/c they are lighter. how do these hold up? is it worth the weight difference? is there something better to try?
Almost any disposable plastic bottle will work. They hold up just fine, for cold water. Pouring boiling water in them will warp and shrink them. If I know that I'll be making hot tea to go, then I bring a stouter bottle. Strongly-flavored soft drinks, like Dr. Pepper, leave a taste that will linger in your water for many, many refills. At this point, for my weekend hikes, I've got a collection of bottled water bottles of various sizes and shapes, in hiking closet, so I can choose whatever I need for dayhikes, overnighters, longer hikes, drier hikes, etc., from 8 oz. to a liter and a half. The Gatorade bottles are stouter than other drink bottles, but they have the wider mouth, so they're easier if you want to mix in some sort of powder, or even slip in a tea bag.
Stoves: with a canister stove, the mfgs. say not to use a windscreen. I don't usually carry one with me, but just set it up behind some sort of natural barrier, or use something like a magazine to block the wind, if it's a problem. Probably it would save fuel by carrying a windscreen, but I haven't been.
oliander
01-27-2006, 19:35
I usually hike with just one other person. The two of us do great with just: One alcohol stove (though occasionally, for short trips we will use an Esbit stove or if we want more luxury, a Pocket Rocket); one pot of 1.5-2 liters; one Lexan spoon each; one (not two) small insulated cup, which we share for tea; and two small Tupperware containers (size is 2-cup, I think) that have very tight-fitting lids and that will nest nicely inside the pot when you hike.
You do NOT need forks, knives (other than a small pocket knife), any extra pots or kettles, or a second cup.
To make best use of our limited items and our cooking patience, we usually do this each evening: (1) Boil enough water for tea + morning cereal + dinner. (2) Put teabag into teacup and cereal into Tupperware containers. Cover with boiling water and close lids. (3) Immediately put Tupperware containers into bottom of sleeping bags. They will keep your feet warmer when you go to sleep. Cover each Tupperware with a solid, quart-sized Ziplock bag to prevent leakage. (4) Cook your dinner in the boiling water that remains in the pot.
If you want more tea after dinner, clean out the pot and boil some more water.
You give up hot food in the morning. (Cereal will be tepid by then.) However, you also give up having to fiddle with the stove with freezing cold hands in the morning.
Oleander
Ramblin' Rose
01-27-2006, 19:53
I like the Aquafina 1 liter bottles. They have the larger opening and when they become too discusting you can pick up new ones - and they come already filled!
LostInSpace
01-27-2006, 20:14
I like 1 liter Schweppes Tonic bottles. They have wide mouths, similar to Gatorade, and bottles for carbonated beverages seem to be a tad more robust.
Here's (http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/light_my_fire_spork.html) a nifty utensil. .35 oz and only 3.99, i might buy one just because.
i currently have a vargo spork with a can opener attached at the end of the handle. i like having the can opener just in case, and besides it's a spork! you can't go wrong with that, right?
mweinstone
01-27-2006, 21:08
nalge 1litre colapsible wide mouth ,foon,2 litre msr titanium cookpot w lid, trangia burner, msr screens,clikstand,fugi water bottle for fuel 1quart,tiny peice of scour pad,msr lite lifter.
question....how can you live on a small pot?i eat a full pot of noodles,and a full pot of tea, and oatmeal is the only meal i could use a smaller pot but it would still have to be 1.5 litre minimum.and why so against washing? i welcome the washing of anything on the trail cause it lets my hands stay cleaner.when you talk about a 1 litre pot cooking for two i go crazy.every year i watch folks eat small meals.what are you guys,......not starving or not willing to carry weight? lightweight gear lessens my modern load by 65%. i like to take back some of that in more food.dont you?or is going light becoming eating light and less?
i ask about the ti spoon versus lexan b/c someone else said the lexan melted or warped. I *thought* it would have to get mighty hot for that... but I have no idea.
another question....
we always take nalgene bottles, but i've read a lot of people talking about using old coke 20 oz bottles b/c they are lighter. how do these hold up? is it worth the weight difference? is there something better to try?
lexan spoons: yes, they will melt if you leave them in the fire or in a pot on the stove for a long time, but not under normal use.
bottles: personally, almost anything that functions the same and offers trip-long durability is worth the weight savings to me... so i use 20oz water bottles. if you carry two, like a lot of poeple do, that's 2 oz vs 3/4 of a pound... and if you break one, it's $1 (free if you're not fussy and pull one from the trash) vs $9 or whatever for the nalgene.
Skidsteer
01-28-2006, 10:04
.how can you live on a small pot?
Freezer-bag/coozy cooking. It doesn't require a large pot to boil enough water for a large meal.
Is it a lexan spoon, or HDPE spoon? Most of the plastic spoons that I see are the grey HDPE material. Yes, very durable. Shouldn't melt or deform under normal use. And lighter and cheaper than titanium.
oatmeal is the only meal i could use a smaller pot but it would still have to be 1.5 litre minimumHow much oatmeal do you eat in hte morning? You only add six ounces of water to a packet. 1.5 liters is about 48 ounces. that computes to EIGHT packets of oatmeal for breakfast.
The .85 liter MSR Titan Kettle has served me well. Once or twice I have cooked a second meal (Liptons or dehydrated mashed potatoes) but generally one is plenty as long as you snack regularly during the day.
When I pack oatmeal (cold weather) I prepackage two packets in a pint ziploc and pour water in to eat. The ziploc then becomes my trash bag for the day. I don't like to take the time to wash pots in the morning.
In warm weather I take prepackaged ziplocs of cereal and powdered milk. Which I mix in my pot. With this and with night time cooking, I use the "drink your dishwater" method of cleaning. Put in a little water, sloosh it around and use spoon to scrape food off the pot. Drink the water and scrapings. Repeat. It's a little weird at first, but it is efficient (you eat ALL the food you've been carrying) and you don't need to carry a pot scrubber either.
All I use is a Evernew Titanium Kettle, Lexan Spork(combo fork/spoon), Titanium cup w/o handle. Thats it. cup fits in the kettle for carrying.
Mr. Clean
01-30-2006, 07:19
Make sure to check out antigravitygear.com for your stove. They sell several great light-weight kits, and a few for two people. I haven't had a chance to use mine yet, but the alcohol stove, pot, windscreen, and all is still much lighter than my last pot alone.
dstenberg1
01-31-2006, 19:12
I have this new utensil and it is great! Made out of heat resistant plastic and only weighs 0.35 ounces. It has a spoon on one end and a fork on the other. Small serrated knife is on the side of the fork. It is long so it can truly be used. You much see it to understand it. Check it out at:
http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/light_my_fire_spork.html
sleepwalker
01-31-2006, 19:30
I just picked up the snowpeak Titanium gigapower canister stove. It's the lightest canister stove on the market at 2.6 oz. When in it's case it literally fits comfortably in your pocket. It also kicks out 2000 more BTU's than the pocket rocket and, according to snowpeak, uses less fuel. I also own a pocket rocket and did a side by side test using my wife's and my MSR Titan kettles. The boil time for 2 cups of water was so close I call it a tie, so I don't know if the BTU claim is a crock, but ounce for ounce, I'll take the GigaPower.
I haven't been on trail with the gigapower yet so I can't testify to the durability(although I am a little concerned with the fuel adjustment knob...looks a little chinsy)but I hear good things.
I also have a snowpeak titanium spork and have for years and I can't think of a better utensil. It's so damn handy. When I'm not hiking I keep it in the car. You wouldn't beleive how often I use it. I think the weight difference in sporks is so negligible it's worth looking into a utensil that will stand the test of time rather than on weight. What the heck is .09 oz among friends? Hope this helps! Sleepwalker:D
I just picked up the snowpeak Titanium gigapower canister stove. It's the lightest canister stove on the market at 2.6 oz. When in it's case it literally fits comfortably in your pocket. It also kicks out 2000 more BTU's than the pocket rocket and, according to snowpeak, uses less fuel. I also own a pocket rocket and did a side by side test using my wife's and my MSR Titan kettles. The boil time for 2 cups of water was so close I call it a tie, so I don't know if the BTU claim is a crock, but ounce for ounce, I'll take the GigaPower.
I haven't been on trail with the gigapower yet so I can't testify to the durability(although I am a little concerned with the fuel adjustment knob...looks a little chinsy)but I hear good things.
I also have a snowpeak titanium spork and have for years and I can't think of a better utensil. It's so damn handy. When I'm not hiking I keep it in the car. You wouldn't beleive how often I use it. I think the weight difference in sporks is so negligible it's worth looking into a utensil that will stand the test of time rather than on weight. What the heck is .09 oz among friends? Hope this helps! Sleepwalker:D
i'd get the Snow Peak windscreen designed for the Giga. it really does help on breezy days.
http://www.campmor.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?memberId=12500226&productId=24544144
Gray Blazer
02-01-2006, 13:19
I ditto the Snowpeak stove and fuel. I got one really cheap from Winton at Neel's. I'm glad to see I'm not the only one who gets their plastic utensils from Wendy's. I also get packaged condiments from Fast food joints (A good way to keep Mayonaise). I purchase some kind of hard bread (Rye or sourdough, whatever) that won't crush in my pack. I get some of the 59cent packages of ham or turkey, a resealable package of cheese and that takes care of lunch. Poptarts for breakfast. My cooking pot is a two cup-cup (you can see it attached to the back of my pack (that I also got from Winton) if you look in the photo gallery) that I use for Raeman Noodles, coffee or whatever. I use an alcohol wipe to sterilize it. Some Granny Smith apples, bananas and trail mix and I'm set for 4-6 days. Hope to see you at the hiker feed on Rocky Bald, Mar 25-26.