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Kayak camping cooking solutions
- Category: Equipment, rigging & preparation
- Published on Friday, 04 December 2009 09:47
- Written by Josh
When it comes to kayak camping, there are a few options available for those looking for a lightweight, compact cooking stove. In a nutshell there are 3 basic categories of ultra-light stoves (gas stoves, spirit burners and liquid fuel stoves) and all of them are well suited to most kayak camping endeavours. There are some fairly significant differences between them though (each of them have their pros and cons) and it pays to know what those differences are before handing over your hard-earned money. Although I wrote the following article for an outdoors website almost a decade ago (and targeted it towards hikers) little, if nothing has changed in that time and most of it is applicable for kayak camping scenarios as well. 
Gas stoves are generally the easiest to operate, and as everyone knows, cooking with gas is easy-peezy-lemon-squeezy. Gas hiking stoves are compact units that are connected to a gas cartridge or canister, and are sometimes equipped with piezo ignition switches for easy lighting. Whether you are cooking elaborate meals (such as stews, curries, etc) or are simply boiling water for soups, coffee and freeze-dried meals, gas stoves will be suitable.
There are certain situations, however, where gas stoves won’t operate very well – and maybe not at all, so it’s a good idea to know a bit about where you are planning to use it, and what the weather is likely to be. Depending on what kind of gas is being used (butane or propane), gas stoves do not always operate very well at high altitudes or in extremely cold conditions. Propane is the best alternative for use in any condition (especially for high altitudes or cold climates), though generally isn’t well suited for hiking because propane canisters are made out of thicker steel, which of course adds to the overall weight. Propane/butane blends are available but are not guaranteed to work in all conditions. 
Spirit burner stoves are also very easy to use, and are very popular with hikers across the world. Without a doubt, the most common spirit burner style stoves are the Trangia storm cooker units. Incorporating the burner, windshield, 2 pots and a frying pan, storm cookers are often described as a total cooking solution that are well suited to cooking stews, stir frys and similar meals. They are available in full aluminium and some are lined with non-stick or stainless steel lined surfaces (the latter of which is preferred by the writer).
A spirit burner is very easy to set up and operate – it’s a simple matter of putting some methylated spirits into the burner (adding a few drops of water will help reduce pot blackening), holding a flame to the burner and hey-presto, your away. Not only are they simple to use, they will operate in any condition and they are very quiet. There are some disadvantages to spirit burners, however, and it pays to be aware of these issues. The first potential problem is that compared with liquid fuel stoves, are not very efficient and can chew through quite a bit of fuel in a relatively short space of time. The second potential problem is that spirit burners do not burn very hot, and thus take longer to boil water than gas or liquid gas stoves.
Liquid fuel stoves are a little trickier to set up and operate, but for many people, is the best solution for cooking in the backcountry. There are several reasons for this. Firstly, liquid fuel stoves are typically very efficient and do not burn through fuel as fast as the alternatives, which means less fuel is required to be carried. Secondly, liquid fuel stoves burn significantly hotter as well, and are the best at boiling water efficiently.This is a big plus for those moments when you just want to make a cuppa, or are otherwise living off freeze-dried or dehydrated meals.
Finally, liquid fuel stoves are capable of operating in extreme conditions and do not suffer the same problems of gas stoves. The only down side to liquid fuel stoves is that they are more expensive than the alternatives and that some of them are downright terrible at regulating heat. This isn’t a problem for people who are simply using them to boil water, but models with simmering capability are by far the most suitable for hikers who take their backcountry cooking seriously.
They are often referred to as multi-fuel stoves because some of them will operate on a varierty of fuels, including unleaded petrol (not recomended). This often makes them an attractive option for international adventurers as well, as not all fuel types are commonly available in all parts of the world. Shellite is a good clean fuel that works in almost all of them, although some manufacturors also offer a premium fuel, which is in theory a lot like premium fuel for your car. While liquid fuel stoves are significantly more expensive than their gas-powered counterparts, and require a bit more fiddling to get going, they are almost always very good quality and Coleman, Primus & MSR have great reputations (the latter of which being favcured by the writer).
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