Backpacker – August 2019

PHOTOS BY COURTESY

Field Test
ROUNDUP

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Our favorite canister stoves hit a sweet spot between

performance, weight, and packability. For soloists

and small groups, kitchen duty doesn’t get any

easier. By Stasia Stockwell

Boil Battle

FASTEST

1. Primus
   Power Trail
   There’s no quicker way
   to dinner than with the
   Power Trail. It boiled wa-
   ter for a group of four in a
   fl ash, and its best-in-test
   simmer control delivered
   perfectly sautéed
   veg gies at 9,000 feet
   in Colorado’s Sawatch
   Range. The stove’s
   6-inch-wide arms easily
   support 3-liter pots, and
   its 2 .9-inch burner head
   provides a consistent
   fl ame. Ding: The Power
   Trail’s piezo igniter is
   fi nicky at best, so bring a
   backup lighter.
   Boil time for 1 liter of
   water: 2:45*
   Fuel effi ciency: 18 grams
   for 1 liter of water
   $60; 5 oz.; primus.us

BEST ALL-AROUND

2. Jetboil Flash
   The new Flash is lighter
   and boils water faster
   than previous iterations,

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