Bringing your own little camping stove on a trek in the Himalayas is a great way to trek more independently, to stay and eat wherever you want, and to go exploring the more remote parts where few others go. If you are crossing high passes over 4-5000 meters (~15,000 ft) you’ll probably be encountering lots of snow, so carrying your own camping stove has the added benefit of enabling you to melt snow for drinking water… If you get the right high-altitude stove, that is! Here’s a few tips on finding the best trekking stove for high altitude trekking:
Let’s agree on one thing first. A good cooking device for trekking in the Himalayas (beyond the guest-house trails) needs to…
1. be robust and reliable (it’s “mission-critical gear”),
2. work in high altitudes and freezing conditions (when you need it most)
3. and be fairly lightweight (unless you’ve got someone else to carry it for you).
In my eyes, everything else is of secondary concern: How fast does it burn? Does it make a noise? Is it environmentally friendly?... Sure – it’s all nice, but… First things first.
There’s plenty of primus options out there:
And for ultra-lightweight "stoves", - |
But when it comes to high-altitude use in Himalayan conditions, it usually comes down to either a Trangia or a MSR cooker. And that’s what we need here. Both the Trangia and the MSR (specially the XGK model) are well suited for Himalayan conditions. But which one is the best cooker for Himalaya, the Trangia or the MSR stove?
Primus: Trangia vs. MSR Cooker
I’ve used a Trangia since my days as a boyscout and still use one when I’m trekking in the Himalayas, occasionally over 5000 meters. For me, it just feels better and is more enjoyable to use. I’ve used a MSR cooker once in high-altitude (trekking with friends who insisted on MSR), but the damn thing broke down half way (4 days) into the trek – by a fumbling hand… Ok, we managed to fix it up again - it actually comes with spare parts !? – but that experience just made me more happy with my Trangia! Fair to say, that’s just my preference. Lots of trekkers use MSR all the time. I guess it’s just a question of getting used to working with it.
The MSR cooker does have some real advantages: It’s usually more lightweight, burns quicker and uses less fuel. (Note that the XGK model is the best MSR for high altitude.) But I’ll have to say that when it comes to reliability, the Trangia is unsurpassed in my eyes. You pour in fuel and light a match. That’s it! The MSR uses pressurized fuel running through a pipe, so you need to prime it and pump it up - which is also why it’s more noisy.
Another thing I love about my Trangia is the design – you open the self-contained system and use the outer part as a sturdy windshield. It has little holes in one side so you turn it toward a light wind or against a heavy wind to make sure the burner get’s just the right airflow. Very intuitive. The MSR on the other hand, uses a flappy little wind-wall that I suspect might fall down or even blow away in strong wind… Although I’ve never seen that happen.
Fuel for Trangia or MSR Cooker
The last point is the fuel. The Trangia uses liquid fuel that you pour into the burner and light it. The fuel is usually alcohol which has be denaturated (meaning methanol has been added to the ethanol to make it undrinkable. Thus also called “metho” / methylated spirits). Denatured alcohol is very cheap and readily available on most gas stations, in supermarkets and drug stores (isopropyl-alcohol, pain solvent…), it’s environmentally friendly and burns clean, although it doesn’t have as high warmth output per weight as other fuels (typ 27-30 MJ per kg), such as kerosene (43 MJ/kg) and gasoline (45 MJ/kg)
The MSR Cooker is pretty close to the concept of last century primus stoves which used vaporized kerosene as fuel. But the modern day MSR mini-stoves can use many other fuels such as unleaded gasoline / petrol, diesel, jet fuel and white gas. Can you use alcohol for your MSR? Probably… One thing I found slightly annoying about the MSR fuels were that I couldn’t easily see how much was left in the (metal) container…
Conclusion: Best trekking primus.
As you probably sense by now, I’m a bit of a Trangia fan myself. But to be honest, the MSR XGK is excellent as well. I’ll just advice you to get well acquainted with it before hitting the remote trails. So if you want the most lightweight, quickest and fuel efficient cooker --> go with the MSR XGK. And if what you want is the most easy to use, reliable and windproof cooker --> Go with the Trangia.
| MSR XGK EX Extreme Condition Stove  Weight: 0.5 kg Not included: Windscreen & heat reflector  cooking pots  handle  spare fuel bottles  and service kit  . | Classic Trangia 27-5 Non-stick Stove  Weight : 0.8 kg 2 x 1-litre pot 1 x 18 cm pan or get the larger Trangia 25-5 UL Stove Set  Weight: 0.98 kg 1 x 1.5 L pot, 1 x 1.75 L pot, 1 x 22 cm pan Or the lightweight Mini-Trangia 28-T  Weight : 0.33 kg 1 x 0.8 litre pot, 1 x 15 cm pan |
See with the Trangia set, you get the complete and ready-to-use set in one package. When you buy the fuel, just use whatever bottle it comes in. Now just don't forget the food and cooking / eating utensils!
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