Backpacking Stoves - What To Buy

So many choices. I’ve used a lot of stoves over the years. Most work just fine, with only a few always causing issues. The easiest thing you can do for yourself is to buy a canister model. All you have to do is screw the stove onto the canister and light it up. With several canister sizes, the weight is usually light. There’s also a lot of talk about how canisters don’t work in cold temperatures or high altitude. They may not perform as well but people use them to the highest camps on Mt. Everest, I’ve seen them as high as 19,000 feet.

I only recommend the liquid fuel models if you are going on a very long backpacking trip like the entire Pacific Crest Trail or some big climbing expedition. There’s also the rare person going to nowheresville that might need to use jet fuel in the stove. I’d guess 95% of multi-fuel stoves ever sold have only used white gas before.

MSR Pocket Rocket

I bought this stove in Germany even though it was made near my home in Seattle. It’s been reliable for over 8 years now. It’s so compact; I often forget to take it out of my pack, carrying it needlessly on day hikes.

MSR XGK

This is what we used on Mt. McKinley. The XGK is super powerful, uses multiple gasses, and is field maintainable. We actually build a stove stand that allowed 2 XGK’s to be placed together for maximum heating power under our large cooking pot. I ended up selling my stove to some porters on Aconcagua who wanted it really bad.