[pct-l] canisters

[Diane at Santa Barbara Hikes dot com]

Bear canisters are way easier to deal with than hanging food. Makes a  
nice stool, too. And you can even use it as a make-shift clothes  
washing machine if needed.

And on the topic of fuel. I was not a fan of alcohol stoves until the  
PCT. Now I love them. The fuel was easy to come by. You can buy HEET  
in auto parts or service stations. A bottle of that stuff lasts a  
long time. Some places had big gallon cans of denatured alcohol and  
would sell it by the ounce. Some people would let you have a little  
of theirs if they had too much. I wouldn't worry too much about the  
availability of fuel alcohol on the trail. In a pinch, you can always  
build a little stick fire if you are desperate. I can even build one  
in my stove if I have to. Not that I would. I always had some extra  
stuff I could eat cold.