I’ve owned and used a lot of camping stoves, from the Optimus 111b to an early Peak 1 to the Svea 123. The 111b never let me down, and its blowtorch-like burner could transform a small snowbank into a large pot of boiling water in minutes, no matter how bone-chillingly foul the weather. But it was also very big and very, very heavy, so when the Coleman Peak 1 first appeared on the market, I traded in my 111b. That was a big mistake. While the Peak 1 broadened my culinary horizons and simmered like no other camping stove I’d ever used, it also erupted in a ball of fire from time to time, for no discernible reason. When a second Peak 1 exhibited the same volcanic tendencies, I followed Farwell’s lead and cast in my lot with the diminutive Svea 123. Small and light, this little jewel was my constant backcountry companion for nearly three decades, even if it didn’t simmer worth a damn.

Lately, however, I’ve been rethinking my options, in line with a growing fondness for minimalist cooking. It’s not supposed to be kosher to KISS and tell, but I don’t think I’m betraying a confidence if I let on that—as I lean more and more toward long distance cyclotouring and weekend adventures on foot and in boats—my backcountry menus are becoming simpler. So I started looking for a simpler stove. And I found one: the Trangia spirit burner.

There’s nothing wonkish about the Trangia burner. It’s about as uncomplicated as a stove can get. No pump. No pressure tank. No hose. No generator. No valve. Just a brass cup, a screw cap, and a slightly Rube Goldberg add-on that Trangia calls a “simmer ring.” The burner is light, too. And fuel can be had in almost any Ser-Sta-Gro or country hardware outlet, in manageable quantities. Does this sound too good to be true? It’s not. So let’s take a closer look…Read more…

 
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