How to Select a Camping Stove

Hot food out in the wilderness is a great comfort. In cold weather it serves the all important purpose of starving off hypothermia but even in temperate weather the opportunity to put a hot meal on the table provides a bonding experience and a feeling of home. To provide hot food you will want to invest in a camping stove. The kind of camping stove you will want varies depending on your cooking needs and your camping situation.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

1. If you are going to be hiking for days at a time you will want to invest in a backpacking stove. They are lightweight, one-burner stoves that pack away easily. The stove without the gas canister attached should pack up smaller than your fist.

2. If you are car camping, boating, using a sled or horse packing you may want to consider a two burner camping stove. If you have a bigger group the convenience of being able to get a lot of food out at once is a big advantage. Even for small groups it is nice to be able to cook two things, rice and beans for example, simultaneously.

3. . If you are car camping, boating, using a sled, or horse packing another option to consider is a Dutch oven. The ease of having an oven in the middle of the wilderness is quite an experience. You can make lasagna, biscuits, birthday cake or any number of special treats.

4. Whatever stove you select, make sure to bring an appropriate amount of fuel on your camping adventure, and make sure that your fuel canisters fit your camping stove before you depart from civilization. There is nothing worse than being 10 miles into a 6 day hike only to find all of your dry goods rations are useless and you have to turn back. Except maybe to be 4 days into a 6 day hike and realize that you have just run out of propane. Pack and camp smart!