Page 1 of 2

Marion, Jean, and Jacinto …1 out of 3 ain’t bad? Mar 5-6

Posted: Mon Mar 07, 2011 3:55 pm
by Burchey
Out the door at 4:30 am, I fired up the Maxima and headed out through Temecula on the 79 to Idyllwild, home of giant carved wooden animals, rock climbing, and this really cool leatherwork dude. I planned to overnight and bag 3 peaks in-and-out from the Deer Springs Trailhead : Marion, Jean, and San Jacinto. On an unrelated note: I’m finding that one of my strengths is underestimating myself or my supplies on winter trips. Did you like how I made it into a strength?! Oh yeah! Never admit fault!

My feet hit the dirt about 7:00 am, and from the car ( 5600ish feet) to about 6800 or so, the snow was here and there. In some spots, snowshoe-worthy. In others, bare rock and dirt.

I’m trying to figure out if this was a bad omen…
Image

About 2.3 miles in at the Suicide rock turnoff, the snowshoes went on. They basically stayed on for 90% of the rest of the climb, with just a few hints of earth poking through now and then. I trudged up to Strawberry Junction through the luke-warm week-old powder, which is now my 2nd least favorite snow to break trail in ( next to cold dry fresh powder ). You don’t sink in quite as much, but now your 4 pound snowshoes are caked/covered in a nice heavy slush. Build those quads baby! I wish it had been colder to keep the snow firmer, but we make do, eh? Eh.

Image

As I reached Strawberry Junction (8000+), I had just finished my 3 liter bladder. Time to melt some snow – git it! I dug a leg pit, set the stove up, and busted out the trail mix and the foam pad for a little rest action.

Please don't run out.
Image

After I snatched up some h2o, I laid back on the pad and snoozed for about 30 minutes. When I woke up, I checked my limbs for signs of mountain lion attack, and packed it all up for the struggle ahead.

I wasn’t quite sure which way to go, but with the help of my topo map and m’gut, I choose a direction and headed off into the trees. As I passed 8500 feet or so, the trees and snowdrifts were joined by a ton of friendly boulders, which made route-finding a little interesting.

Image

Image

On this particular face, it alternated between sinking and sliding through the wet snow, and then scrambling rocky ledges with the shoes still on. It would have been a major pain to keep taking them off and putting them back on, so it was adventures of class 3 snowshoe climb session yeah!

Questionable - and just the beginning
Image

Much-needed rest
Image

Luckily for me, the snow was more frequent than the stone, and I made my way up to 9000ish feet at the small saddle. I headed up to a small peak just shy of 9200 to have a look around, and was greeted by beautiful views of Taquitz, etc.

Is that how you spell it?
Image

I realized there was no more to climb heading that direction, so I headed back across the saddle and began picking my way through a slope of massive boulders and drifted snow.

Image

Motherf***er.

This part was a BEAST. The boulders ranged from my-ego-sized to house-sized, and there really wasn’t a consistent path of snow between them. In addition, the snow that was between them jumped back and forth from ice-hard to snow-bridge surprise! I punched through so much trying to squeeze between and up these things, and I was becoming more and more exhausted. I would imagine I spent at least 3 times as much energy getting up this 600 feet of boulders as I would just hoofing it up the same hill with a hardpack slope.

Yeah! I love it!
Image
Image

The sun was getting lower in the sky, and I decided to find a decent spot to camp once I crested the pile of giant rocks. I settled in around 9600 feet, and even though it’s not my style, I actually picked a great spot out of the wind. I could hear it howling all night in the trees above me, but my tent barely moved. Before I hit the sack at 7 pm, I melted some more snow for water, ate a little, and watched the sun sink into the horizon. Que bueno.

View from m'tent
Image

Alarm goes off at 3:30am, and I’m so happy to climb out into the cold. So happy. I started packing up my gear in the tent, trying to melt some snow to fill my 3 liter bladder, and deciding what to do with my gear that I don’t want to schlep to the 3 summits I will attempt that day. Turns out, according to my gas canister, I won’t have enough water to make all three peaks and back to the car. I was only able to eek out enough for the bladder, and I knew myself – I’d need way more than that to complete my trip. I figured I could at least get Marion done and back with that…probably be dry not too far from the car, so I modified the plan as such. Everything I didn’t want to carry – I buried wrapped up in my sleeping pad a few inches under the snow.

Secret stash upon my return
Image
Image

I took my food, water, and a few essentials and headed off into the dark. I was moving just before 5 am towards the saddle below Marion’s summit. The snow was firmer in the early morn, but I was still sinking in quite a bit as I traversed the slope and climbed. It didn't really firm up until 10,000 feet or so, and I think most of that was due to the winds up there beating the hell out of it. As I climbed up the last face below the summit of Marion, the sun came up and provided a little extra light for this ole boy.

Good morning Marion
Image

About 40 feet from the top, I dumped my shoes and pole and iceaxe, and scrambled around and up the boulder-pile that is the summit of Marion. The last 12-15 feet is a fun little pseudo-stemming problem, which would be no big deal anywhere else, but a potential broken leg up here is a huge pain in the butt(leg). I eyed a climb up the backside, but I felt more secure in my boots in the little chimney. Pack came off, and I very methodically climbed up to the top, careful to stay low and hang on in the powerful gusts of wind.

Image


The clouds were tearing over the top of San Jacinto in the distance, and I could see the Gabes and the Gorns and pretty much everything else. What a nice finish to a tough route, the last 300 feet were really nice, and the views were excellent.

More windy than a beast - gps cord blowing straight out
Image



Someone left their old piece of crap wooden box chunks up here
Image

Image

My two other goals out of reach
Image

I climbed back down to my pack, found my way back to my shoes/axe, and then headed down the face in a more direct path than I thought I came up. I had probably burned through half of my bladder of water by then, and I was trying to manage my perspiration by keeping only enough clothes on to stay reasonably warm. I returned to my campsite at 9600, dug up the rest of my gear and repacked it, and started towards my favorite boulder field of death. "Going downhill through these things will HAVE to be easier, right?"

Image

Image

Nope.

I tried to head down slightly more east of my original route up, and it turned out to be even more difficult. I was punching snowshoe shaped holes through 3 feet of snow, surrounded by the top half of huge boulders, and when I pulled up the sunken leg, I'd see several feet of daylight and the bottoms of those giant boulders down below. Super safe yeah! To get out of some pits, I had to scramble/scrape up and down the face of these things in my shoes, sliding down slopers and then jumping the gap and landing in the drifts across the way. Funny to watch - scary to experience. Bottom line is - I'm an idiot. I made it though!

The rest of the way down was pretty non-eventful, save for running out of water a couple thousand feet above the car, and the awesome tracks I found running along the side of the mountain. They looked a couple days old (wind/sun degraded), and I know my pictures don't give much, but I wonder if anyone has an idea on the guilty party. I have big hand (XL glove), and my fingers are spread to show the length of the print. I would imagine the actual paw was smaller than the imprint, and they seemed to be longer than they were wide for sure. It seemed like the total width of the path was fairly narrow, which reminds me how a cat will walk like they're on a balance beam, but I'm not sure they were feline. Maybe a big coyote? I found them around 8600 feet or so.

Image
Image

I also found some odd cables running up to dead trees from the ground near a Strawberry Junction, any ideas on these things?

Image
Image

Who knows? I dry-mouth-shuffled the 4 or 5 miles back down to the car from the junction, and after I hydrated and let my stomach settle for a bit, had a great burger at some joint in Idyllwild. Life is good.

Blue on the way up, red shows my different path down to the junction
Image

Re: Marion, Jean, and Jacinto …1 out of 3 ain’t bad? Mar 5-6

Posted: Mon Mar 07, 2011 4:20 pm
by davantalus
Hahaha! Nice report. Your antics kept me totally amused. Those clouds in the video were movin'!

A great burger in Idyllwild? Where?? That place on the island in the center of town open back up yet? I couldn't believe they were closing when I was up there mid-summer.

Re: Marion, Jean, and Jacinto …1 out of 3 ain’t bad? Mar 5-6

Posted: Mon Mar 07, 2011 4:32 pm
by longcut
thanks Burchey, thoroughly enjoying your reports man!

Re: Marion, Jean, and Jacinto …1 out of 3 ain’t bad? Mar 5-6

Posted: Mon Mar 07, 2011 4:51 pm
by Burchey
Longcut, glad you like 'em. To be honest, I like to write it all down, go back and read it when I'm stuck in some horrible office - nice to stroll down memory lane and remember where you've been.

Davantalus, I think it's that place on the island you're talking about...with the outdoor eating area that usually has a big grill going, inside they've got a model train running around the top of the dining room. I got great service, and I really enjoyed the burger, even though my stomach was SUPER jacked up from being dehydrated. I had to eat it very slowly, which just ain't my style.

Re: Marion, Jean, and Jacinto …1 out of 3 ain’t bad? Mar 5-6

Posted: Mon Mar 07, 2011 5:09 pm
by Hikin_Jim
Dude,

Nice TR. Like that shot of the evening sun from the tent. Stylin!

Sucks that a canister didn't last the weekend. Were you using an 8 oz size (230g)? Looked like it in the photos. Should've been enough even with melting snow if it was full at the start.

Were you running the stove at full bore? Running full tilt will be faster but will burn through fuel more quickly. You'll get more snow melted per tank of gas if you turn it down a bit. Generally, a lower "flame" (yes, I realize a Reactor doesn't have exactly a flame) will do the same amount of work for less gas than a high flame.

HJ

Re: Marion, Jean, and Jacinto …1 out of 3 ain’t bad? Mar 5-6

Posted: Mon Mar 07, 2011 5:23 pm
by TracieB
Thank you for the TR, I think you're nuts, by the way! But kudos for all the snow camping you're doing. That's a steep trail, any time of year.

Re: Marion, Jean, and Jacinto …1 out of 3 ain’t bad? Mar 5-6

Posted: Mon Mar 07, 2011 5:54 pm
by davantalus
Burchey wrote: the outdoor eating area that usually has a big grill going, inside they've got a model train running around the top of the dining room.
That's the one. Glad to hear they're operational again. I have some fond memories from my parents taking me there as a kid. Lately though the burgers hadn't really been living up to my trips down memory lane.

Re: Marion, Jean, and Jacinto …1 out of 3 ain’t bad? Mar 5-6

Posted: Mon Mar 07, 2011 6:40 pm
by EManBevHills
Your T/R sure was a refreshing read!
Glad you made it back to the car without incident.

Re: Marion, Jean, and Jacinto …1 out of 3 ain’t bad? Mar 5-6

Posted: Mon Mar 07, 2011 7:06 pm
by lilbitmo
Burchey - Very nice TR, great shots, that's a tough haul in dry conditions, you earned that summit nice work.

On a side note when I'm running low on water and I have snow I will mix it with the water in my bladder and/or naglene bottle to make it last longer, shake the hell out of it - just a thought

Thanks for the TR and pictures :D

Re: Marion, Jean, and Jacinto …1 out of 3 ain’t bad? Mar 5-6

Posted: Mon Mar 07, 2011 7:58 pm
by Dave G
Don't skimp on the fuel next time, Burchey; it so ain't worth it! :o
Great TR. Kept me laughing even as I was half-expecting that more bad stuff bad was gonna happen. :lol:
I'd have been tempted to spark up that wooden box you found and hang my snow filled bladder over it. It's amazing how thirsty you can get in winter and eating snow seems to only make it worse after a certain point. :x

Re: Marion, Jean, and Jacinto …1 out of 3 ain’t bad? Mar 5-6

Posted: Mon Mar 07, 2011 9:39 pm
by Burchey
Hikin_Jim wrote: Sucks that a canister didn't last the weekend. Were you using an 8 oz size (230g)? Looked like it in the photos. Should've been enough even with melting snow if it was full at the start.
Jim! I was hoping you'd chime in with some advice. Deal is, it wasn't a brand new canister (230g), and I'm a dope for not bringing another small one along as a backup. Lesson learned for sure. I don't think I had it cranked up the whole way, and I'll make sure to keep an eye on that in the future. I also need to Frankenstein a couple beer koozies or cozy or whatever into a cover for my canister.
TracieB wrote: Thank you for the TR, I think you're nuts, by the way! But kudos for all the snow camping you're doing. That's a steep trail, any time of year.
Thanks Tracie, and I am nuts. I love the steep if it would just harden up, my crampons are getting bored.
lilbitmo wrote: Burchey - Very nice TR, great shots, that's a tough haul in dry conditions, you earned that summit nice work.
On a side note when I'm running low on water and I have snow I will mix it with the water in my bladder and/or naglene bottle to make it last longer, shake the hell out of it - just a thought
Thanks, I'll keep the snow in the bladder thing in mind, and I'll also not be a dope and carry extra gas next time. I definitely had enough time to get out to the other two peaks and back, I got back to my car at 11 am as it was...just needed more JUICE. I mean agua.
Dave G wrote: Great TR. Kept me laughing even as I was half-expecting that more bad stuff bad was gonna happen. :lol:
I'd have been tempted to spark up that wooden box you found and hang my snow filled bladder over it. It's amazing how thirsty you can get in winter and eating snow seems to only make it worse after a certain point. :x
When I saw the dead skunk 100 yards into the trail, I should have just went back to the car and hit the Casino near Anza instead. It was a sign! Overall, even though I like to complain, it was a great trip. I feel like I'm a little less careful than I need to be, but how much fun can you have being careful?

2 1/2 cups. That's how much.

Re: Marion, Jean, and Jacinto …1 out of 3 ain’t bad? Mar 5-6

Posted: Mon Mar 07, 2011 9:52 pm
by Hikin_Jim
Dave G wrote: Don't skimp on the fuel next time, Burchey; it so ain't worth it!
You got that right.
Dave G wrote: It's amazing how thirsty you can get in winter and eating snow seems to only make it worse after a certain point. :x
There's an old myth that eating snow either fails to hydrate you or worse actually dehydrates you. Not true. Eating snow will drop your core temperature -- which is no problem on a hot day like this past weekend, but it will not fail to hydrate you and certainly will not dehydrate you. HOWEVER, when the snow is dry powder, it takes a lot of snow to produce a little bit of water, so much so that it can feel like it's doing nothing.

This past weekend was so warm that the trick of stuffing snow into your bladder/bottle or eating it directly would've worked well.

HJ

Re: Marion, Jean, and Jacinto …1 out of 3 ain’t bad? Mar 5-6

Posted: Mon Mar 07, 2011 10:01 pm
by Hikin_Jim
Burchey wrote:
Hikin_Jim wrote: Sucks that a canister didn't last the weekend. Were you using an 8 oz size (230g)? Looked like it in the photos. Should've been enough even with melting snow if it was full at the start.
Jim! I was hoping you'd chime in with some advice. Deal is, it wasn't a brand new canister (230g), and I'm a dope for not bringing another small one along as a backup. Lesson learned for sure. I don't think I had it cranked up the whole way, and I'll make sure to keep an eye on that in the future. I also need to Frankenstein a couple beer koozies or cozy or whatever into a cover for my canister.
First, in cold weather ALWAYS go with a fresh canister. The propane (which is a great cold weather fuel) burns off faster than the isobutane (which is an OK cold weather fuel), so old canisters are poor performers in cold weather. Might not have mattered too much during the day this weekend, but could have mattered at night or in the early morning.

Also, it's definitely a good idea to bring enough fuel. Probably don't need to tell you that after this weekend. :lol:

And then, yes, a cozy or something is good if the air is colder than the canister. I generally like to make sure I have a piece of closed cell foam for under the canister if I'm on snow. Snow can chill the canister fairly quickly.

There's a fairly short article on Seattle Backpacker's Magazine that talks about simple cold weather strategies for stoves like the Reactor.

HJ

Re: Marion, Jean, and Jacinto …1 out of 3 ain’t bad? Mar 5-6

Posted: Mon Mar 07, 2011 10:30 pm
by MattCav
GREAT REPORT BURCHEY! and im loving the used gear sale stove. reactor?

Re: Marion, Jean, and Jacinto …1 out of 3 ain’t bad? Mar 5-6

Posted: Tue Mar 08, 2011 6:58 am
by Hikin_Jim
MattCav wrote: GREAT REPORT BURCHEY! and im loving the used gear sale stove. reactor?
Rumor has it that it is indeed a Reactor. :)

HJ

Re: Marion, Jean, and Jacinto …1 out of 3 ain’t bad? Mar 5-6

Posted: Tue Mar 08, 2011 7:32 am
by Dave G
Hikin_Jim wrote: There's an old myth that eating snow either fails to hydrate you or worse actually dehydrates you. Not true. Eating snow will drop your core temperature -- which is no problem on a hot day like this past weekend, but it will not fail to hydrate you and certainly will not dehydrate you. HOWEVER, when the snow is dry powder, it takes a lot of snow to produce a little bit of water, so much so that it can feel like it's doing nothing.

This past weekend was so warm that the trick of stuffing snow into your bladder/bottle or eating it directly would've worked well.

HJ
I'll often eat snow while I'm hiking to supplement what I'm drinking. The dry powder is weird, though. If you're already thirsty, it seems to absorb what little moisture you have in your mouth so you feel worse off for having eaten it.

Another thing I've done if I have a base camp is the old "black trash bag in the sun" trick to melt snow while I'm gone.

I'm just waiting for them to get that all weather dehydrated water perfected. Then there will be no worries and we'll all be carrying light packs. :wink:

Re: Marion, Jean, and Jacinto …1 out of 3 ain’t bad? Mar 5-6

Posted: Tue Mar 08, 2011 8:04 am
by Burchey
I think chowing down on snow this trip would have been perfect, as I was trying to cool off anyway and help manage my sweating. Two birds with one stone.

That is the reactor, and I got it from some dude on this board, but I can't remember his name. He was a little weird, had some sort of stove-fetish or something.

Oh, and Jim - thanks for all the tips on keeping the canister warm, I had it in my sleeping bag, but I will say the snowshoe isn't quite as good as some foam or something for cold-insulation purposes.

Re: Marion, Jean, and Jacinto …1 out of 3 ain’t bad? Mar 5-6

Posted: Tue Mar 08, 2011 9:39 am
by Hikin_Jim
Dave G wrote: Another thing I've done if I have a base camp is the old "black trash bag in the sun" trick to melt snow while I'm gone.
Sheer brilliance of course. I also will clip a snow stuffed Nalgene to whatever part of me is most in the sun and let the sun do it's job. Putting a snow stuffed Nalgene into your pack is a bit counter productive.
Dave G wrote: I'm just waiting for them to get that all weather dehydrated water perfected. Then there will be no worries and we'll all be carrying light packs. :wink:
Wait no more!
Image

HJ

Re: Marion, Jean, and Jacinto …1 out of 3 ain’t bad? Mar 5-6

Posted: Tue Mar 08, 2011 9:46 am
by Hikin_Jim
Burchey wrote: Jim - thanks for all the tips on keeping the canister warm, I had it in my sleeping bag, but I will say the snowshoe isn't quite as good as some foam or something for cold-insulation purposes.
lol. Not quite. Here's my pad for what it's worth:
Image
I haven't ever made a full cozy. When it starts getting really cold, I start grabbing a different stove.
Burchey wrote: That is the reactor, and I got it from some dude on this board, but I can't remember his name. He was a little weird, had some sort of stove-fetish or something.
Fetish? What fetish?
Image
My precious!

HJ

Re: Marion, Jean, and Jacinto …1 out of 3 ain’t bad? Mar 5-6

Posted: Tue Mar 08, 2011 10:07 am
by Dave G
HJ, I see that teapot in a lot of your photos. Since I generally just use my stove to boil water, I'm thinking that might be handy if it's lighweight. Details?

Image

Re: Marion, Jean, and Jacinto …1 out of 3 ain’t bad? Mar 5-6

Posted: Tue Mar 08, 2011 10:20 am
by Hikin_Jim
Dave G wrote: HJ, I see that teapot in a lot of your photos. Since I generally just use my stove to boil water, I'm thinking that might be handy if it's lighweight. Details?

Image
Dave,

I actually have two of the darned things, a 0.9L and a 1.5L. They're both Primus LiTech annodized aluminum tea kettles. They're not as lightweight as a titanium pot. I'll weigh them if I remember tonight.

They have three main selling points: convenience, convenience, and convenience. Did I mention they're convenient? :wink:

Seriously though: no pot grabber, a really good handle with a plastic grip so one doesn't burn one's hands, and THEY POUR WITHOUT SPILLING. I just find that whole thing of using a pot gripper and pouring out of a regular pot to be a bit of a hassle, and I'm always dribbling water around. I like the tea pots because there's zero hassle and no spills.

Also, they have a nice, wide base which is good for absorbing heat. If your flame is wider than the pot, you're wasting a lot of heat, heat that you've had to pack up the mountain in the form of fuel. In the above use (as in the photo), my fuel tank and stove both fit in the tea kettle along with a lighter, a bandana, and a squishy cup.

The proof of any gear is how often you use it. I find myself repeatedly grabbing my tea kettles. My ti pots do a lot of sitting these days. However, if I were on a trip where I was really trying to cut every ounce, I'd probably grab one of my ti pots.

Probably not the most light weight, but pretty light and very convenient. If I'm just melting snow and boiling water, they're perfect.

HJ

Re: Marion, Jean, and Jacinto …1 out of 3 ain’t bad? Mar 5-6

Posted: Tue Mar 08, 2011 11:50 am
by norma r
Great TR Burchey and fun adventure! Always enjoy your narrative and photos. As difficult as mixed terrain can be it sure keeps it all interesting and never allows you to get bored. I take it you tell someone your route and when you are expected back when you go out there solo? Right? Cuz i want to keep reading your TR's!!

I personally eat snow when winter hiking if i am using Nalgene's. Since i don't like hanging a Nalgene on my pack, grabbing a handful of snow is time efficient. It seems to quench my thirst.

Your fuel dilemma reminded me that... Dave G and i ran out of fuel one evening in Dusy Basin and consumed a less than memorable dinner. Water was plentiful, but hot food, not. Our breakfast of three Oreo's each with a dab of peanut butter was the best cold breakfast i've ever had. We did talk about FOOD and what we were having for breakfast/lunch when we got to Bishop the whole hike out. We were hungry!

Re: Marion, Jean, and Jacinto …1 out of 3 ain’t bad? Mar 5-6

Posted: Tue Mar 08, 2011 12:58 pm
by Burchey
norma r wrote: I take it you tell someone your route and when you are expected back when you go out there solo? Right? Cuz i want to keep reading your TR's!!
Hey Norma! To be honest, I'm a big fan of talking about my trip after. I know we've all got our opinions about helicopter rescue and all that. I'd rather not get rescued if I'm out in the middle of nowhere and get hurt - if I can't get myself in and out of there, than that's just what happens. I've watched several family members waste away in nursing homes, and I feel if I go out in the gorgeous mountains and leave this world that way, I'm not really sad about that. I'd prefer that fate.

That being said, my girlfriend would kill me if I died out there, so you better believe I'm coming back every time.

Re: Marion, Jean, and Jacinto …1 out of 3 ain’t bad? Mar 5-6

Posted: Tue Mar 08, 2011 1:35 pm
by Dave G
norma r wrote: Our breakfast of three Oreo's each with a dab of peanut butter was the best cold breakfast i've ever had.
As I recall, the reason we ran out of gas was because we stayed an extra day to savor (and recover from) finally getting to the top of Mt Sill. Not my fault! :roll:

Makin' ya hungry, Norma? :wink:

Image

Re: Marion, Jean, and Jacinto …1 out of 3 ain’t bad? Mar 5-6

Posted: Tue Mar 08, 2011 1:43 pm
by Hikin_Jim
Dave G wrote: Image
Yum!

Them thar's hikin' food.

HJ

Re: Marion, Jean, and Jacinto …1 out of 3 ain’t bad? Mar 5-6

Posted: Tue Mar 08, 2011 1:47 pm
by Hikin_Jim
Burchey wrote: my girlfriend would kill me if I died out there, so you better believe I'm coming back every time.
Yeah, I bet she'd never speak to you again. :wink:

HJ

Re: Marion, Jean, and Jacinto …1 out of 3 ain’t bad? Mar 5-6

Posted: Tue Mar 08, 2011 2:04 pm
by obie
I've watched several family members waste away in nursing homes, and I feel if I go out in the gorgeous mountains and leave this world that way, I'm not really sad about that. I'd prefer that fate.

That being said, my girlfriend would kill me if I died out there, so you better believe I'm coming back every time.
Be safe Burchey. Great pics and narrative.

Train hard and get out there but, know your limits.

Re: Marion, Jean, and Jacinto …1 out of 3 ain’t bad? Mar 5-6

Posted: Tue Mar 08, 2011 3:31 pm
by norma r
Dave G wrote: As I recall, the reason we ran out of gas was because we stayed an extra day to savor (and recover from) finally getting to the top of Mt Sill. Not my fault! :roll:
i said we ran out of fuel, not gas! :P

Re: Marion, Jean, and Jacinto …1 out of 3 ain’t bad? Mar 5-6

Posted: Tue Mar 08, 2011 11:39 pm
by Hikin_Jim
Dave G wrote: HJ, I see that teapot in a lot of your photos. Since I generally just use my stove to boil water, I'm thinking that might be handy if it's lighweight. Details?

Image
The tea kettle in the photo, a 1.5 L Primus LiTech, weighs 7.7 oz. By contrast:
A Jetboil 1.5 L GCS pot weighs 12 ounces.
An MSR stowaway 1.6 L pot weighs 19.5 ounces.
An REI Ti Ware 1.3 L pot weighs 6 ounces.

I'd say that the Primus kettle compares reasonably favorably with the others. The slightly smaller Ti pot weighs less, but that's to be expected with Ti. You'll also pay a lot more with Ti. The aluminum kettles are priced at $20 for 0.9L and $22 for 1.5L at Campmor.

Couldn't weigh the 0.9 L pot tonight; it's in my daughter's room, and she's asleep. Campmor says it weighs 5.3 oz. That sounds about right.

HJ

Re: Marion, Jean, and Jacinto …1 out of 3 ain’t bad? Mar 5-6

Posted: Wed Mar 09, 2011 8:09 am
by Dave G
Thanks, HJ! I think the 1.5L is the way to go for me.
(Apologies for the thread drift, Burchey.)