Burning Wood = Saving Forest

Hello Everyone,

I just received an email from Erin Engelson from the Kenya Stove project. Most of us backpackers are fully aware of wood gas stoves and probably own at least one. Well now that cool little stove that runs on twigs laying around the camp site, and you've been using to make coffee on is going global. If you have been following the recent issues in Africa dealing with the illegal charcoal production, you know its a growing problem and its destroying habitats for many animals most notably Gorillas. The problem is that charcoal is what is used in many of the home cook stoves and fires of the local population. Well the Kenya Stove projects has taken the idea of the wood gas stove and come up with a possible solution to that problem. I don't want to steel too much from the kenyastove site but burning wood most notably mesquite (an invasive species) in these larger stoves could reduce if not eliminate the need to make charcoal. I urge you to check out this site and help out if you can. It sure is nice to see that a piece of gear that backpackers built just to boil some water is about to help people and conserve nature in such a positive way.

See you on the trail,
Lance


http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/627536440/kenya-stove-revolutionizing-how-people-cook

Reinventing the Wheel

Hey Everyone,

I just watched a video from Tinny on Mini Bull Design. It seems that the pot that I, as well as many others have been using, is even better than we thought. Tinny has been creating many different pot designs over the past year. He's made everything from pro 20oz wide mouth pots to little QMH 8oz pots. He recently built a new wide mouth ring for the lip of a pot. He also has started to make lids for Snow Peak Ti-mugs. His recent endevor was a new bottom that featured heat sinks. The question was, was it worth the time that he put into the manufacturing of this new pot. This is the kind of thing that I love about Tinny, hes always experimenting with new ideas and designs. That is the reason that I consider him the finest alcohol stove builder around. This is also why I only carry Mini Bull stoves. Here's the video from his site that explaines the rest.



See you on the trail,
Lance

Cook Set

Hey everyone,
This is my current cook set. I say "current" because a backpacker's gear list is constantly evoloving. I have weighed every piece and it all comes out to 5.7 ounces. Having custom made gear is one of the ways in which I am able to save a lot of weight and size. I love this setup; it has worked extremely well for me. If you choose to switch over to an alcohol stove, all I can say is practice with it and your setup at home until you are 100% confident with it before hitting the trail. If you have any questions let me know.

See you on the trail,
Lance