Tried going stove-less on the JMT last summer and the results were weird

I ditched my canister stove for cold soak meals and thought I'd save weight, but I ended up craving hot coffee so bad by day 4 that I almost grabbed someone else's abandoned stove. Has anyone else tried this and caved to the hot food urge mid-trail?

3 comments

3 Comments

patricia_schmidt1415d ago

Drop the stove and just pack instant coffee packets you can cold brew in a water bottle overnight, way lighter than carrying a whole cook system. Cold soaking meals actually works fine for everything except rehydrating beans or thick sauces, so youre not missing much by skipping hot food. Honestly the craving passes after a few days once your body realizes it doesnt need warm meals to function.

cora_scott7715d ago

Oh man the coffee thing is real. I remember one trip where I tried cold soaking and ended up putting my peanut butter tortilla next to my water bottle in the sun hoping it would warm up somehow. Maybe it's just me but I swear the psychological need for something warm hits harder than the actual hunger. Like my brain just decides that a cold breakfast is unacceptable even if my stomach doesn't care. I ended up bringing a tiny alcohol stove the next time just so I could have one hot cup of something in the morning and it made the whole trip feel more civilized.

finleyh8915d ago

Buddy of mine swore by carrying a tiny thermos just for morning coffee, said it saved his whole trip.