Maybe this discussion goes too far. If anyone wants to feel guilty about their behavior, do it on a plane flight, or driving a car. Any form of backpacking is the least of our worries.

Using fire as an example. Burning wood is completly carbon neutral. That's why I heat my house with it. A fire the size on one's fist will cook most backpacking meals. When I see campfire rings I dismantle them. How can using a fire be cheating? Using dino fuels, with stoves made in Japan, that leave disposable canisters cannot be a step forward.

OregonMouse, a resident of the PNW is absolutely right about the overabundance of fuels in forests throughout the US. Just use common sense at high elevations and during times of high fire danger.


Edited by ppine (11/12/11 12:36 PM)