Cook ware... what to get?

[Dazzy001]

As stated before; Newbe to hiking. :eek: I am looking for suggestions on cook ware for a solo hiker, Seen Titanium, Aluminum & Stainless Steel... :-? What do i really need....

Thanks in advance...

[saimyoji]

You need what works for your style. So, how do you plan to cook? I hike solo also, usually FBC or the single meal packets you can just add hot water to (Liptons etc.). I carry the SnowPeak MiniSolo Ti set about $40 at campmor, and the SnowPeak GigaPower stove manual Al about also about 40. Stove fits inside the pots with a fuel canister. I rig up an Al foil windscreen when needed.

[Lyle]

Do you have stove and accessories yet? Antigravity Gear sells complete sets that include stove pot, lid, cozy, etc. sold as a set. I have the 3-cup annodized alum. and am very satisfied with it for one person. Prices have gone up since I got mine, but I like the set-up. The cozy idea is good no matter what system you finally decide on. This set is designed to work together, meaning everything fits perfectly.

http://www.antigravitygear.com/products.php?cat=3

[Seeker]

saimyoji said it... what/how do you plan to eat/cook?

when i go solo (usual), my stove is a SuperCat or Ion alcohol stove with a Titan Kettle. I'm just boiling water to make oatmeal, soup, cocoa, a liptons-based meal, or something like a mountain house dehydrated meal.

when i go with my young daughter (doesn't eat much), i usually keep the alcohol stove but usually take a larger walmart grease-saver pot, in which i can boil more water at a shot. sometimes i'll take my MSR SimmerLite stove instead of the alcohol stove.

when i canoe-camp, i take the SimmerLite and a set of MSR BlackLite non-stick pans. with that style of camping, i can take a cooler, more meats and canned goods, and spend a lot more time cooking fancier meals.

so it all depends. were i prepping for a long-distance hike, i'd look hard at a small aluminum pot and an alcohol stove of some type, with a lot of freezer-bag type meals.

[88BlueGT]

I just recieved a GSI Extreme Cook set. I have not used it yet but have heard many good things about their sets. They are a little heavier than titanium but each has their pro's and cons. The extreme set comes with a 1L and a 1.5L pot/pan. The lid acts as a pan which is a extremly good thing since I dont plan on cooking much with it but when I need it I have it. If you hike solo you should only need the 1L pot/pan. Total weight comes in at about 11oz's for pot, pan and diamond gripper. Good luck.

[turtle fast]

If you are a solo hiker then you don't need a bug outfitter type set. Realistically, you only need the 1 liter and 1.5 liter pots. One for food cooking and eating out of (no plates needed) and one for boiling water for clean up and soup in a cup or a hot beverage like tea/coffee. A good set is the MSR Blacklite set, relatively light...has been around awhile for a reason

[sarbar]

To go to the other extreme: my son and I only take one pan: a GSI Halulite tea kettle. We boil our water in it for our meals.

If you go simple, you only need one pot, pan or kettle :) If I really needed it, I can use my Ti cup to boil in as well.

[Heater]

I second (third?) the GSI Extreme.

[pure_mahem]

You can go lighter if you're only Freezer bag cooking. Heini pot and a small alky stove. tealight alky stoves come to mind along with a supercat. but this all depends on what type of cooking you intend to do. I've used a Heini pot and a supercat for many many hikes with no issues. but I go a bit heavier know for no reason other than curiosity. I use a vargo 750ml ti-lite cup and a trangia stove. I find I can just switch my pot if I need to cook for a group or want to do traditional cooking. But I like many Freezer Bag Cook. Check out Sarbar's website for some good recipes. A lot of time you can make better stuff up than they put in those premaid bags. I find there is often a lot of sodium in those prefab bags.

[AT-HITMAN2005]

i use the titan kettle, but i know their are cheaper out there. good for cooking powdered mac, liptons, even the deluxe mac with the creamy cheese already made(although was a tight fit).

[Appalachian Tater]

I have an MSR Titan Kettle too, and I love it. But for a new hiker I would recommend a K-Mart greasepot. It costs about 1/4 of what a Titan Kettle costs, works almost as well, and if you decide you don't like hiking, you could use it as a greasepot. I would also recommend a SuperCat alcohol stove.