When it comes to a backpacking stove you have a few different fuel options. The two most popular are canister stoves, which work with propane canisters, and liquid fuel stoves, which work with a variety of different fuels. But there are a few other alternative fuel stoves, like a wood burning backpacking stove, for instance. The great thing about a wood stove, of course, is that your fuel is waiting for you at your campsite already, so there’s no need to carry it with you.
Wood Burning Backpacking Stove
What to look at when shopping for a wood burning backpacking stove.- Weight – One of the great things about wood stoves, as pointed out above, is that you don’t have to bring your fuel with you, fuel often being the heavier piece of the stove set up. But even amongst wood burning backpacking stoves there are some drastic differences in the weight, which can be from a wide variety of features and variables.
- Alternative Fuels – Sometimes you don’t have the option of wood. Maybe you’re camping somewhere where there is a wood fire ban, for instance, or where there just isn’t any wood around to burn. In that case, it can be helpful to have a wood stove that can also burn other fuels, like alcohol or esbit tablets.
Best Wood Burning Backpacking Stove
Some of the very best choices when it comes to a wood burning backpacking stove.- Littlebug Junior Stove - This is a little stainless steel model that will work very well as a wood burning stove. It also burns alcohol, so you do have some alternatives if wood isn't an option. Since it's stainless steel it does weigh a bit more than it otherwise would, but at 5.1 ounces, or 144 grams, it's not exactly heavy, especially when you remember that you're not carrying any heavy fuel with you.
- Vargo Titanium Hexagon Stove - The Hexagon is a straight wood stove. It's really just a hexagon made from titanium, though there is definitely more to it than that. The side are all slanted slightly inwards towards the top, for instance, so that the heat is concentrated towards the bottom of your pot, giving you as much heat as possible. The whole thing will also fold down so that it's easy to pack up when not in use. It also weighs just 4.1 ounces, or 116 grams.
- Evernew Titanium DX Stove - The DX has a design very similar to the Junior from Littlebug above. It burns wood, but like the Littlebug it will also burn alcohol, making it a more versatile choice than something like the wood stove from Vargo. Unlike the Littlebug stove this one from Evernew is made from titanium, which helps keep the weight down to a very respectable 4 ounces, or 113 grams. So a lightweight and versatile wood burning backpacking stove.
