[pct-l] Canister Stove vs. Alcohol

[Diane at Santa Barbara Hikes dot com]

I know I'm late to the party but here's my advice about alcohol  
stoves and the invisible flame:

1. Wave you hand over it, very high, not real close, and you should  
be able to feel the heat. If you can't feel it, wave it a little  
lower until you can feel some heat.
2. Observe the shadow if you are cooking in the sun. You'll see wavy  
lines coming from it in the shadow if it is lit.
3. If the stove is not in the sun, look closely. The flame may be blue.
4. Just have patience. Get it lit, wait for it to warm up, put the  
pot on and when your food is done, take your pot off and if there is  
still alcohol burning, just let it burn.
5. Consider putting a pebble in your stove if it is windy. I  
considered this but never tried it. Or a quarter. Keep the wind  
screen around it. Keep the pot on until the alcohol is burned off if  
you have to. Don't let it blow away. Better to burn your dinner than  
the forest.
6. Keep a big bottle of water at the ready if you start a fire. Good  
thing to do no matter what kind of stove you have.


On May 6, 2010, at 10:00 AM, pct-l-request at backcountry.net wrote:

> So I just recently got an alcohol stove. I haven't used it in the  
> field
> yet but have lit it on my patio. I like it cuz there's not much to it
> and it's light, but am very concerned that I can't see the flames.  
> Kinda
> scares me for out in the wilderness even if I do have a nice area  
> clear
> from flammables. It also doesn't seem like the most stable thing  
> either
> on the ground or putting a pot on top. One of the nice things is how
> light it is, but to ad legs or something for stability would put the
> weight back up.
>
> Any advice from seasoned alcohol stove users would be appreciated. I
> plan to go cookless for most of the trail, but in the areas of lots of
> rain or snow I want the possibility of a warm meal once in a while.
>
> Thanks!
> Kathi

Books I've written:
~ Piper's Flight
~ Adventure and Magic
~ Santa Barbara Hikes
http://stores.lulu.com/dianesoini