Fuel types

[hoffhiker]

I am preparing for a thru home next spring and before I buy a stove I wanted to find out what are the most availablefule source along the trail. Also I am not worried about weight I
am peeping for a 60 pound pack. Thanks

[Mags]

Alcohol and canisters are the easiest to resupply. White Gas used to be staple at hostels..now a bit less so. You can still find it in many hardware stores, grocery stores (what I call the BBQ section. )and outfitters.

Esbit? Less so.

Wood stoves are the easiest to obtain fuel for (naturally) on the AT but you will need some practice to use when it is is wet out.

[Feral Bill]

\ I am not worried about weight I
am peeping for a 60 pound pack. Thanks

Why?,,,,,,,,,

[HooKooDooKu]

... White Gas used to be staple at hostels..now a bit less so. ...

One benefit to a white gas stove (like the MSR WhisperLite) is that it can also burn gasoline (upgrade a WhisperLite to the International version and you can also burn kerosene, upgrade to the Universal and you can also burn canisters as well as kerosene). They work in all 4 seasons, and are generally bomb-proof (great for large or heavy pots and large groups). It won't burn gas and kerosene as cleanly as white gas, but it will burn.

However, compared to alcohol and direct-connect canister stoves (such as MSR Pocket Rocket), white gas stoves are heavy. The typical white gas stove will weight 3/4 to 1+ pounds, while the alcohol and direct-connect canister stoves weight less than 1/4 pound.

(BTW, a JetBoil would be in the class of direct-connect canister stoves like a Pocket Rocket. While a JetBoil might weight 3/4 to 1+ pound, that weight includes the pot. The "stove" portion of a JetBoil is still only about 1/4 pound)

[Mags]

One benefit to a white gas stove (like the MSR WhisperLite) is that it can also burn gasoline (upgrade a WhisperLite to the International version and you can also burn kerosene, upgrade to the Universal and you can also burn canisters as well as kerosene).

Just be aware, not all white gas stoves are multifuel. (More for others than you). Also, while autofuel can work, it can gum up the works more vs white gas. Something to keep in mind.

[Drybones]

I am preparing for a thru home next spring and before I buy a stove I wanted to find out what are the most availablefule source along the trail. Also I am not worried about weight I
am peeping for a 60 pound pack. Thanks

1. Alcohol/Heet is the most readily available fuel.
2. It wont take you long to realize you dont want to carry 60 lbs.

[Maddog]

I use an alcohol stove...Evernew TiDx...it's light and can use multiple fuel types! Maddog

[Theosus]

I like my Fancy Feast Stove. It will burn yellow Heet, denatured alcohol, and moonshine (in a pinch).

[No Directions]

I have to ask, what could you possibly carry that would add up to 60#?

[Another Kevin]

I have to ask, what could you possibly carry that would add up to 60#?

Half of the contents of Tipi Walter's backpack?

[max patch]

I have to ask, what could you possibly carry that would add up to 60#?

My normal leaving town weight was 45 pounds. When I left Monson I took 10 days of food (I wanted to take my time thru the 100 mile wilderness) including a whole roasted chicken and a couple beers for the first nite, and some extra clothes as it was starting to get cold. The scales at the Old Church Hostel showed my pack weight to be 62 pounds.

[Wise Old Owl]

Half of the contents of Tipi Walter's backpack?

Funny as hell... I have absolutly no idea what you are talk'in about..... whoops the owl fell off the chair...

[Just Bill]

I'm normally a helpful fellow, but at sixty pounds I hope you have an Esbit, Alcohol, Canister and White gas stove in your pack. If you're going to pack for "just in case" then get serious about it. No matter what you find in town you'll be prepared- and that's the name of the game.

[Hill Ape]

lemme know when you pass thru neels gap, i'm not too proud to dive into the box. 60 lb is getting into the dangerous territory. you'll drop dead weight, or you'll drop out, or you'll injure yourself.

[moytoy]

I am preparing for a thru home next spring and before I buy a stove I wanted to find out what are the most availablefule source along the trail. Also I am not worried about weight I
am peeping for a 60 pound pack. Thanks

Do you have a southern uncle named Tipi? Anyway, other than wood, alcohol is the easiest fuel to find. But along the AT fuel is not really an issue. Use what works best for YOU.

[Ironbelly]

I surely hope that 60lbs includes food and water! In all seriousness, that is quite heavy. Even if you don't have the best and greatest lightweight gear your pack is still heavy. If you start a new thread and post up your entire gear list with weights of items we can offer you many ways to cut the weight down a bit. I would venture a guess to say you could easily get to 45lbs.

[Old Hiker]

I use a Pocket-Rocket.

I had no problem seeing the smaller (4 oz?) iso-butane canisters. If the small one wasn't available, there was always the 8 oz. The only place I couldn't find one was at the store at Fontana. I was behind a herd of hikers, so the gas and most of the supplies were gone.

I carried the 8 oz, with a 4 oz for a backup on my attempt. I ran out of gas in the Smokies, but another hiker sold me his extra to get rid of the weight.

[hoffhiker]

I have been walking stairs for 4 months carrying 55 pounds in my pack 4 hours a day 6 days a week. That is how I am training. Can't wait for snow to.do.some hiking in cold weather