[pct-l] fuel canisters

[Bob Bankhead]

Obtainable? Yes. 
Easily obtainable? Define "easy".
Availability depends on when and where you resupply.

Inventory levels of hiker-desired items vary wildly from location to
location and seen to correlate with the herd as it moves north. If you are
waaay far ahead of the herd, stores may not yet have received their seasonal
inventory or may not yet be open (especially true in the Sierra where the
roads are still closed by snow).  If you are slightly ahead or in the
fore-front of the herd, you'll probably be ok. If you're towards the rear of
the herd, you may find the shelves picked clean and new inventory not yet
received. Belden town store is famous for this, especially after their
annual Bikers Weekend; it can take a month for them to restock.

Given the long transit time and other problems associated with (legally)
shipping fuel of any kind - liquid, solid, or gaseous - you are better off
buying as you go. 

You know where you're planning to resupply; call ahead and see if they stock
the fuel you want. The really smart money asks about the possibility of
pre-purchasing said fuel at a given location so that you know it is waiting
there for you with your name on it. If for whatever reason you are unable to
get to that supply drop, let them know and ask them to either donate it to
the needy hiker of their choice or just keep your money, sell it again, and
call it even. Consider the non-refund your price for not completing the
agreement. IMO, asking for a $5 refund may well serve to discourage their
willingness to do this again in the future for some other hiker. 

FWIW, Muir Trail Ranch in the middle of the Sierra guarantees to have stock
of virtually every kind of fuel a hiker needs to purchase ..... even the
always hard to find Esbit tablets.

Worst case scenario, you have to eat cold food for a while.
 



-----Original Message-----
From: pct-l-bounces at backcountry.net [mailto:pct-l-bounces at backcountry.net]
On Behalf Of mark utzman
Sent: Sunday, April 22, 2012 1:22 PM
To: pct-l at backcountry.net
Subject: [pct-l] fuel canisters

Hello All,
 Are fuel canisters easily obtained all along the trail? What about stocking
up on them and sending them in a bounce box? Thanks, Mark
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