pot

[Megapixel]

what have folks found to be an adequate sized pot for 2 people thru hiking, cooking the same stuff together?

[Many Walks]

Hmmm, thought this was about something else. :cool: It depends on your type of cooking of course. Generally, most people just boil water for some type of dehydrated dinner so the pot only needs to hold 2-4 cups. Size of appetites will change that and also if you want hot drinks with the meal. I think if you can better describe how you plan to eat and cook, several people here can give a better idea of what gear you need to cook it.

[Megapixel]

Hmmm, thought this was about something else. :cool: It depends on your type of cooking of course. Generally, most people just boil water for some type of dehydrated dinner so the pot only needs to hold 2-4 cups. Size of appetites will change that and also if you want hot drinks with the meal. I think if you can better describe how you plan to eat and cook, several people here can give a better idea of what gear you need to cook it.

That would make an interesting piece of GEAR. ok , moving on. I'm imagining not counting the heat of summer when i doubt i'll boil or heat much of anything, i'm thinking pasta for two, in the evenings, and if its cold, hot tea for two as well, that would probably be max for any given meal. I'm wondering about folks who have thru hiked as couples or partners what they have found they needed at one time.
I'm assuming if in need boiling water for a meal, to save on fuel, i'm better off boiling as much as I need in one pot instead of doing separate boils...in order to maximize fuel use.

Thanks for the response Many Walks

[4eyedbuzzard]

Between 1 1/2 and 2 quarts / liters. If you're going to cook / boil pasta directly in the pot I'd go with a 2 quart to prevent boil overs - not much weight difference from small to bigger pot. Or you could go with two smaller pots (1 liter) for flexibility like a pair of K-Mart grease pots. Freezer bag cooking or other boiling water only techniques would allow a smaller pot, but I think 1 liter is pretty marginal. Your style of hiking / cooking, your choice.

[Megapixel]

Between 1 1/2 and 2 quarts / liters. If you're going to cook / boil pasta directly in the pot I'd go with a 2 quart to prevent boil overs - not much weight difference from small to bigger pot. Or you could go with two smaller pots (1 liter) for flexibility like a pair of K-Mart grease pots. Freezer bag cooking or other boiling water only techniques would allow a smaller pot, but I think 1 liter is pretty marginal. Your style of hiking / cooking, your choice.

this is what i was wondering. i'm looking at a 1.3L, but i'm wondering if it's just not quite enough.

[LIhikers]

My wife and I are section hikers, not thru hikers.
We've recently switched to the K-Mart Grease Pot which is just big enough for 2 people. We don't do any real cooking, just boil water for our food.

[JAK]

My daughter and I did fine with two mugs instead of one.

[JAK]

In winter a bigger pot is worth bringing.
For 2 people or 1, same size.

[warraghiyagey]

This thread is guilty of false advertising. . . :p

[IronGutsTommy]

you got that right.. i was hoping this was about something else.. necessary gear i might add. im bringing a quarter point on my thru. i know the ultra lighters are thinking thats 4 extra ounces of weight.. well if i bring that i shouldnt need a book for awhile so ill break even lmao

[IronGutsTommy]

you got that right.. i was hoping this was about something else.. necessary gear i might add. im bringing a quarter pound on my thru. i know the ultra lighters are thinking thats 4 extra ounces of weight.. well if i bring that i shouldnt need a book for awhile so ill break even lmao

[scope]

oops, uh sorry dude, didn't mean to intrude

[garlic08]

My wife and I hiked the PCT with a 1.3L Evernew and it worked OK for us. Larger would have been easier to cook with, but harder to carry. Overall, it was the right pot for us.

[Franco]

For just boiling a 1.3l is OK. I use a 550ml (solo) , that gives me enough room for the max amount of water I use (about 450ml) plus enough for the water not to boil over.
Some like to boil water for the meal and a hot cuppa at the same time. That usually takes more fuel than doing it separately. Test that with your set up.
For cooking and particularly if you ever need to melt snow, 1.5 or 2L is better.
Franco

[Many Walks]

On our thru (Wife & I) we used an MSR Titanium 2L pot with lid. I engraved cup level marks on the inside to avoid measuring in the field. We only cooked in the evening and cooked mostly dehydrated/freeze dried food so I boiled 4 cups of water, 2 for the meal and 2 for evening tea or coffee. It worked really well for us because the stove was a MSR Pocket Rocket and I could nest the canister, stove, lighter, pot grabber, windscreen and sporks in the pot. The lid fit fine and I'd slip it all into an insulated lunch bag, which I used as a pot cozy to simmer the meal after the boiling water was added. We still use the same system now, but I downsized to the 1.5L pot. With the smaller one everything else fits, but I have to put the stove and the sporks loose in the lunch bag. No big deal, but I really didn't need the bigger pot for the way we cook so I might as well save the space and a ½ oz. or so.

[10-K]

This doesn't answer your question but I think it's better for everyone to have their own pot and stove. It's not that much additional weight and you can each have something different if you don't want the same thing, or if one of you wants to eat now and the other later.

Or, if you get separated you can both still eat, or if one of you gets off the trail whoever is left hiking won't be stuck with a big pot.

[IronGutsTommy]

gppd points 10 k. another good thing about having two stoves and pots when together.. Two Pot Meals!!! being able to make two things separately on occassion can help alot after day after day of one pot meals. one of my favorites is making mexican style rice and veggies in one pot and cooking or rehydrating meat or steak in the second pot for some very satisfying fajitas.

[stonedflea]

This thread is guilty of false advertising. . . :p

hahaha... i thought the same thing. ;D


im bringing a quarter pound on my thru. i know the ultra lighters are thinking thats 4 extra ounces of weight.. well if i bring that i shouldnt need a book for awhile so ill break even lmao

you might not need a book, but you'd need a couple extra pounds of food. :) (totally worth the trade off, though!)

[sbhikes]

My BF and I always carry our own separate pots and stoves. Part of the fun of backpacking is playing with your equipment. Plus it's nice because if he accidentally runs out of fuel or if I do, we have a backup.

But to answer your question, usually the ~2L pot is closer to what you'll need.

[Country Roads]

I wonder how many of us clicked on this one just to check it out. Yeah I was wondering. Hey we don't want to get the Craigslist censored stamp.

Now to answer the real ?: I rarely "cook", so I just use the 24 oz Heinie can to heat water, but you cook simple meals in it, like rice, couscous, spaghetti.
I expect I might switch to my MSR Titan kettle for really long hikes, because it expands the options.

For me, a 1 Liter pot is spot on for actual cooking. I would probably want a 2 Liter for 2 people.

[Appalachian Tater]

I can't think of any advantages to using a large pot over two smaller ones, only disadvantages. With one pot you will need a plate or bowl to eat from anyway. it will take longer to heat the contents. You can only fix one thing at a time. it is bulkier. If one person gets off the trail or you get separated then there are problems. With two pots you can have two different meals or food and a beverage. Go with two pots about 1 liter each.

[Johnny Thunder]

i've used a 2 liter snowpeak cook-n-save (i think it's called that) for my though and have split it with my partner, freefall, for our lt hike and everything since. it was fine size for me alone (i get hungry) and great for the two of us. i'd recommend a combination of the pot and a spare fold-e-bowl (whichever one you can find that folds flat) to any couple or tandem hiking together and sharing other gear (i.e. tent, filter, etc).

it goes without saying that you shouldn't share bits of gear with just everyone but if you're hiking with your life-partner you're already pot committed. (eh-o!!!)

the large pot and folding bowl combo is probably lighter than two pots and negligably heavier than a 1.3 liter (with the ability to comfortably cook larger and more elaborate meals). Since you and your partner have the same amount of time to cook you can both be working on the dinner...once cooks while the other chops onions/garlic...or readies tortillas...or does the dinner dance. whatever.

johnny t

[flemdawg1]

Whenever my wife joins me for a backpacking trip we use a Snow Peak Trek 1400 Ti pot and a foldable bowl and cup (Orikaso, I think their out of business now).

[sbhikes]

I wonder how many of us clicked on this one just to check it out. Yeah I was wondering. Hey we don't want to get the Craigslist censored stamp.

Now to answer the real ?: I rarely "cook", so I just use the 24 oz Heinie can to heat water, but you cook simple meals in it, like rice, couscous, spaghetti.
I expect I might switch to my MSR Titan kettle for really long hikes, because it expands the options.

For me, a 1 Liter pot is spot on for actual cooking. I would probably want a 2 Liter for 2 people.

I have the MSR Titan. It's a good pot. I replaced the lid with bendy aluminum. Lighter than the original lid.

I'm curious about cooking in the Heinekin can. Isn't there a toxic coating inside the can? That's what I've heard anyway. That you shouldn't cook with it, just heat water.

[JAK]

The threads on washing up and doing laundry have made me rethink the size of pot I need, and how many of them. On short day hikes and weekends I often get my with just a pot, but for longer trips this fall I would like to re-establish good daily ablutions and laundry routines, as much for the fun as the cleanliness. So I am thinking about a pot big enough for a shirt or pair of boxers, and perhaps a stainless steel bowl as well, in addition to my drinking mug. I think two pots and a mug, or a pot and bowl and mug, might make it easier even for just one person to juggle doing meals and some ablutions and some laundry all at more or less the same meal time, breakfast and/or supper. I have a Kelly Kettle, which makes hot water less of an issue, but it is nice to not to have to juggle or throw out hot water that can be used to soal something else when you want to rinse the first thing or make soup or whatever. I suppose plastic might work as well for some things. I use a plastic container as an organizer and I could set everything aside while I used it as a wash or rinse station.

[Dkeener]

I'd suggest between 1/.5 and 2L. Best bet is to take your biggest recipe, add for hot drinks and cleanup plus a little extra as a safety factor. Also depends if you're just doing water heating for freeze dried or cook in bag meals vs simmering stews and such.

Dennis