maximpactphotography

   I passed a fire ring someone set up, east of Inspiration Point and decided to cook with dead wood in the shade of pines, at 7300 ft elevation in the local mountains west of Wrightwood.

I guess you could say that I found the right wood (heh), as the fire was very easy to start and maintain after processing some limbs with the GB Mini hatchet (12 oz). I really like the Solo Stove: simple, light, hot, efficient using very little wood, easy to dispense with coals and ash. I carry no fuel with me.

Some operating tips:

-Do not overload the stove with large pieces of wood. I recommend 3-5mm diameter twigs about 10 -12 cm in length and have somewhat larger-diameter wood available to sustain the fire, in the 6-10mm range.

-This stove is very hot to handle after use. I ‘ve had great success using Petzl Cordex leather belay/rappel gloves (which do dual use for climbing) in picking up the stove to empty the coals, as well as manipulating the Snowpeak 900ml pot which is normally used for cooking.  One useful feature is that the stove base remains cool due to the design, also preventing scorching of the underlying support surface.

-My aluminum MSR stove windscreen works beautifully with the Solo and Emberlit biomass stoves, reducing heat loss and improving boil times in more adverse conditions.

– I typically use either a firesteel, lighter or match to light whatever selected tinder is available, whether natural or synthetic. My preference when speed is more important is to use Coghlan prefab tinder, finding that about 1/2 of a unit is enough for most purposes.

I like the Exotac FireRod and Swedish Light My Fire Scout v2 /Fireknife firesteels in particular; integrated rod into the handle of the knife is very useful and light, and the knife’s spine is specifially designed to be used with ferro rods. The ergonomics are excellent with the Swedish models and the larger rod diameters, especially with the Exotac, are reassuring as I’ve fractured several smaller rods. To obtain the Exotacs as well as my GB Mini-hatchet, I contacted  Oso Grande Knife & Tool Co. Sport Chalet and REI carry various Light My Fire items.