Fall Camping and Wood Fires Go Together 

Fall in the mountains of Colorado is moody. Days of rain, snow on the high peaks, and then brilliant, low-angle sunshine that makes you want it to last forever. Now is the time to take advantage of any bit of good weather and get outside before the snows reach down to the valley floors.

Using my Ganesha stove is great on a hot summer afternoon - but on a fall evening with a chill in the air, it’s dreamy.

The Perfect Campsite / Story Behind the Name / Kent Survival

I’ve camped in hundreds, maybe thousands of places. Were any of them perfect? Time on the trail gives you time to think about these questions, even if there’s no perfect answer. That said, I think I can name some of the key elements:

• Privacy. It’s nice to feel like you are the only person out there in the peace and quiet.

• A great view. I am lucky enough to live in the mountains, so I want to see them, dangit! It’s incredible to watch the light on the peaks change, and see the stars wheel overhead.

• A small stream. The soft sound of running water is incredible, and it’s nice to not have to haul water.

• Trees nearby, or even a big one overhead (on a slope, with a view of course). The weather does often turn, and trees can provide some protection. Plus they provide fuel for my Ganesha stove.

There are a few other things to consider, like bugs. If the mosquitos or gnats are bad, a breezy ridgetop is going to be better. Heat matters too. I’ll often stop in the shade (a temporary camp, if you will) until the day starts to cool. Then I’ll carry on and see if I can find the most-perfect spot before dark. 

What do you think? Did I miss some key elements? How would you define a perfect campsite?

The Many “Right” Ways to Start a Fire

How hard can it be to start a fire? Well, when it’s pouring rain or dumping down snow. It never helps that you might be exhausted, cold and impatient. So it’s worth putting together the things you need for a worst-case scenario, and getting some practice with methods that are super-reliable.

The Ganesha stove was designed with fire safety in mind.

The most prominent fire safety feature of the Ganesha stove is the fireproof ground cloth that comes with every stove. This is a piece of welding fabric (fiberglass coated with silicone on both sides) that sits under the stove, catches embers that fall, and reduces heat transfer to the ground. When not in use, it wraps around the folded stove and keeps any ash and soot on the inside of the package. 

Double walls on the Ganesha keep the hot fire inside the stove, and the outside below fuel ignition temperature (it’s still hot, don’t touch!).

One of the first questions people ask about the Ganesha stove is, Can you always find dry wood for the stove? Having spent years using only this stove for backcountry cooking, I no longer have any anxiety about finding fuel. Not only can I find dry wood, but I can get the stove cranking in just a few minutes. Here are all my insider secrets!