Quick, Overnight Bicycle Touring

By Mark M

(originally posted in January 2008)

In my quest to lighten my load for mountainous O’s, 
I’ve decided to forgo my gasoline stove and carry only 
a photon stove.

I’ve been messing around with pop-can alcohol stoves for 
a couple of years now.  They’re dirt cheap – you can buy one 
on eBay for about $20 – and Zen elegant.

Alcohol stoves are ideal for s24’s.  They are very light (20g), trouble-free, silent, clean-burning.  They’re amazingly stingy with fuel; a couple tablespoons will bring a liter of water to boil.  Although I treasure my old brass Svea with its patina of tours, the reality is it’s noisy and demands patience and even an adroit user can easily wind up with a fireball.  Also, the fuel is poisonous, stinks if leaked, and is hard to find in small amounts.

There are many readily available forms of suitable alcohol, like methylated spirits, Heet (yellow bottle), even drinking alcohol of sufficient proof.

Drinking alcohol – ethanol – is the ideal alcohol fuel because it is non-toxic.  How many stove fuels can claim that?  Also, if ascending mountain passes, it is the most concentrated of all alcoholic beverages, so you can take less.  In fact, a tablespoon of Everclear or my personal favorite, Spirytus, a Polish vodka, is the equivalent to a can of beer, a fact which makes it real easy to have way too much.

I think the stove will satisfy all my needs for a quick overnighter where all I want to do is heat things up, especially water, instead of true cooking.  I’ll post a report on our return.

Field Reports:

“A beautifully quiet experience; no deafening roar whilst awaiting the pot to boil.”

“As I recall, the stove worked great.  Everclear certainly is flammable!”

It’s important to remember the power of a capful of of sprityus

Mark “Make it a Double” M