Stove of choice

[Thess87]

Have a drop camp bou hunt booked with BRA next year. Just curious what your stove of choice is for a trip like that is.

 

[Becca]

Weight limits and fuel availability usually determines which stove we take on trips like this. We did a packraft sheep hunt with BRA in 2013 and took a jetboil Sumo cup modified to fit a Soto windmaster stove (our standard backpacking set up) bc we only did dehydrated food. If you have the weight allowance for a two burner propane stove and real food, it’s awesome to have as opposed to freeze dried.

I believe BRAhad isobutane for purchase at that time (2013), but you’d best double check. Are you leaving from Bettles? If you are flying Wright’s to get to Bettles, I don’t think they will allow you to fly with any kind of fuel, so you will be limited to what you can get in Bettles.

 

[Thess87]

Yeah most likely from beetles possibly from the pump station. She said they would have the iso just didn’t know if everyone went with a small stove or like you said a bigger more convenient one. Where did you fly out of and how’d you get there? I don’t really want to fly Wright’s cause of the 50 lb limit but also I don’t want to pay for a rental to set there all week.

 

[Becca]

We live in Wasilla, so we took two days and drove to Coldfoot (overnighted in’s fairbanks) and then floated the Koyukuk to Bettles via packraft because we had extra time and want d to see more of the area. An awesome trip before the trip, but probably not logistically feasible for a lot of folks because it adds an extra 4 days before you even fly out. Given the choice between flying Wright’s and paying to park a rental car, I would probably fly Wright’s. Quicker and simpler, and cuts down on your travel time so you can hunt longer.


With regard to your initial question, if you can spare the weight for a 2 burner stove and real food, that’s absolutely my preference (assuming propane is available). Boiling water and rehydrated meals are fine when you don’t have the option not to, but there’s nothing like real home cooked food after a long day hunting. We fly our two burner stove and a weeks worth of food to Kodiak most years, and while it adds weight it’s awesome.

 

[Thess87]

Thanks

 

[Larry Bartlett]

jet boil...it's windy and sometimes cool.

BTW, the common trash I find in the Northwest region is....wait for it...isobutane canisters from 1990s to present day. Makes them one of the most common items to use and most tempting to half-burn and leave behind.

please don't. That region is worth keeping clean, but these "target-rich" drop locales build up half-buried trash and shit paper...and it only takes one group.

 

[Kevin Dill]

jet boil...it's windy and sometimes cool.

BTW, the common trash I find in the Northwest region is....wait for it...isobutane canisters from 1990s to present day. Makes them one of the most common items to use and most tempting to half-burn and leave behind.

please don't. That region is worth keeping clean, but these "target-rich" drop locales build up half-buried trash and shit paper...and it only takes one group.

It's Alaska's version of the Everest syndrome: O2 bottles littering the mountain because they're just too much trouble to bring out. I use isobute and my policy is every last piece of trash comes out with me...and whoever is with me...period. It's actually easier to just bring all of it out versus figuring out what can be burnt completely...might leave residue...etc. I don't even have campfires these days in the remote places I hunt.

Anyway...isobutane stoves are my choice. Primus ETA Spider set has done me extremely well, but a word of caution: gas orifices are teenie-tiny and can get plugged with very little debris. Bring a cleaning wire and wrench. Personally, I bring an extra stove in the form of a titanium Snow Peak unit that weighs nothing and folds up smaller than a Cliff Bar.

 

[Thess87]

Thanks guys. Really looking forward to the trip. And that’s ashame about the trash won’t have that problem here.

 

[North61]

If you decide on a canister stove I like the MSR Windburner over the jet-boil. MSR stands behind their product. Jetboil, not so much. (I have used both Warranties and jetboil doesn't go the extra mile for customers) The MSR will be a bit faster especially in a wind and is quieter in use. The Jetboil does have a nifty integral sparker which even works at times if you hold your mouth just right. Other than that MSR all the way.

Jet Boil Vs MSR WindBurner - YouTube

 

[hodgeman]

I've used the Jetboil for quite a while- if weight limits are tight and iso is available- it's an easy choice if you're just boiling water for dehydrated chow. Jetboils completely suck for any sort of "real" cooking.

 

[OXN939]

Used MSR Whisperlites for 3 summers of backpacking in Alaska; another solid vote for them here. Some basic disassembly gives you access to remedy about 80% of issues you'll encounter, and those issues are rare to begin with. I'll be bringing my same veteran Whisperlite to the Brooks Range in August.