Camping and Backpacking GEAR thread

Hole in the Rock road is awesome! Did you go over to Spooky Gulch too? I love those slot canyons

 

Nothing major, but I picked up this Sea to Summit drip coffee filter. In my never ending search for making my pack lighter and as minimalistic as possible, I'm excited about this one. No extra filters to carry, packs flat. The double stainless screen filters well too.

Oh and did I mention I got an email that our backpacking permits were approved for Glacier National this summer?! Super excited about it.

 

The new burner style on Colemans is awesome! (I forget what it's called). Look into it. Ultra efficient.

Having had skillet style/size griddles, I don't like them. Get cheap pan that just covers the burner. We did get a full size griddle that covers both burners and love it.

 

@aero3685 those are both great stoves. A buddy of mine has the skillet version. It's great for breakfast foods hash, eggs, etc. It's fine for red meats, bacon, etc but you just need to be aware of grease build up as it quickly fills up.

If you are going to be traveling with no end date (I'm envious) Check out this workhorse....

https://www.campchef.com/camp-stove...-chef-mountaineer-2-burner-aluminum-stove.hut tml

It's a bit more $$ but you have two dedicated burners and can always get a cheap griddle for the best of both worlds. You also have the ability to connect it directly to larger propane canister. I've had a number of camp stoves. The mountaineer will be my next.

Best of luck.

 

Something like this, or do the burners look like the old style? I'm not set on a brand, just pulled the two first ones up since they were easy to find. Just trying to find something that I'll like and will have more of an adjustment than the cheap stove I have that is somewhat low/med/high since I'll be cooking with it ALL the time.

http://www.cabelas.com/product/cole...535&categoryIds=104795280|581015880|104246280

 

I am fine with spending a bit of money, since I want it to be nice, and last! That one is nice, although the propane location is almost the worst location for my setup. But I am sure I can figure something out.

 

@aero3685 If you really want to nerd out on stoves....for your reading pleasure

http://www.outdoorgearlab.com/topics/camping-and-hiking/best-camping-stove

In my opinion, having owned several, stay away from Coleman.

 

Best thing I did for our 2-burner Coleman was to get the fitted hose to attach to the 25# propane tank. Those 1# jobs running out in the middle of a meal is a PITA!

 

Speaking of propane... has anyone used one of these?

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000TXOJQ4

Instead of a heat exchanger, this seems like it would be much more efficient for hot water.

 

I would highly recommend that you check out Partner Steel stoves before purchasing. This will no doubt be my next stove purchase when it is time. https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/closed-partner-steel-stoves-group-buy.483272/
The group buy didn't go over too well, as Partner Steel backed out after TW met the required amount of purchases. Nonetheless, their stoves have been reported by TW members as being the best stoves they've ever owned.
I just wish I would have hear about them before I purchased my Camp Chef Summit. https://www.rei.com/product/115536/camp-chef-summit-2-burner-camp-stove
I like it much better than my Coleman because of the adjust-ability of the flame. I could never get my propane Coleman to simmer or run on very low that well. As far as the Camp Chef, I have no complaints... which is why I can't justify purchasing a Partner Steel stove. I am hoping my Camp Chef stops working soon, so I can get move over to a PS stove!

 

I'll second a Partner Steel.

I mounted one in our teardrop - it is a great stove. And, will last several lifetimes...

 

Dammit those are nice stoves. That 22" double burner model may just have to get bought.

 

I started looking at them, didn't get into too detailed research, the only thing that popped out was that they appear to be very tall compared to other stoves, with a lot of wasted space which is not ideal. It could just be the pictures though.

But i didn't get a chance to look into dimensions. I'll do that later.

Got a chance to check dimensions, it must just be the pictures, but they seem to be listed at about 4" tall which is normal... They looked much thicker. I'll need to do a bit more research since I'll need to make a decision since I'll need it to build the swing out.

 

I entered Peek-A-Boo from the "front" where you have to climb up a bit, seen in this photo (freakin' amateurs in front of us were using a tiny little rope held by children as an anchor, it was odd).



I actually met an elderly couple that had been on the road for 6 months. They were wanting to hike thru Peek-A-Boo so I kinda helped them through it. Greg was pushing 70 and did great! His wife Kathy did even better!

This is near the end of Peek-A-Boo. You can see Greg climbing out and Kathy's hat.



We followed the trail around to the rear of Spooky, but I didn't think I was gonna really fit well in there. I am 6'3" and pretty uh, wide. I didn't wanna leave Greg and Kathy "behind" either so what we did was hike up next to where Spooky is and walk along the edge back to the entrance of it.

This is the rear entrance, or the "top" of Spooky:



Few other shots of Spooky from along the edge:





You can see some folks down in there in this one:





This is right near the front entrance. I tried to find a safe way to down climb here but couldn't, at least not with the folks I was with and with a camera backpack on and a tripod!



So, we climbed down this, to the right of the Spooky entrance:

 

Awesome pics! What the hell are they doing? lol here's a couple from my trip there. We loved the slots so much, we camped out for the night and hiked back in with headlamps to do the canyons in the dark. It was definitely spooky.

 

That is awesome.

 

Just ordered an 18" two burner with the wind thingamadoodles. Need to get moving on the mount and gas setup for it, so I needed to make a decision! After I get that figured out, I'll order the propane heater/pump setup.

 

Just a note: I run my Partner Stove off of 1 lb. bottles. I use an adapter (I had to get 3 before I found one that worked correctly) and it works great!

 

I'm jealous. I may just have to suck it up and get one. You're stoked you didn't buy multiple stoves, like I've done, before discovering the Partner Steel stove. Also, I was just checking out your build thread. Love the screw work, full time explore gig..SUPER JEALOUS!! Maybe someday. Noticed that you need better sleeping pad.. if you still need that I have another recommendation. Check out Jack's Plastic Welding website and their Paco Pads.. these are pads that are used by river rafters and are bomb proof. I have one of their regular paco pads and I had them build me a custom size to fit on my sleeping platform. They are bomb proof, waterproof, etc. You can toss these things on the ground and not worry about them and they just wipe off. Not to mention, super comfortable. Check 'em out!

 

My 22" arrives via UPS tomorrow

...just in time for Overland Expo West next week . 4 days of cooking bliss. Now I have the BTU's to properly run my Coleman stovetop oven.