High Sierra Topix

In the old days 40 years ago, I led lots of group trips with a central commissary, so two white gas stoves became the norm, and I had a selection of sturdy aluminum cook pots up to 6-quart size. Later, the white gas was overkill, so I migrated to a Pocket Rocket and started using smaller aluminum pots. In more recent years, I've gone to a tiny 25-gram isobutane burner, and my only cook pot is a 550ml titanium mug, and that is purely for water boiling. Some people like titanium since it is so lightweight. Others complain about it since titanium does not conduct heat as fast as aluminum. However, for a given amount of pot strength, the titanium pot can be much thinner, so therefore it can conduct heat to the water quite nicely. The thinness of the metal is what allows the titanium to be so much lighter in weight. The good thing about the mug is that it can serve as the storage for small isobutane canisters and the burner, so my entire cook kit is very compact.

I still carry my aluminum non-stick fry pan and my Sigg pot, but it is community gear. I don't like boiled fish and the pot works out well for water for a small group.