gas or fuel stove

[gavri]

hi everyone
we are planning to do the walk in may- and had a few questions. We know that a lot of the lodges have kitchens but we are planning to go with a tent- so we would like to be able to cook on our own. we wanted to know if anybody has an idia which is better- a gas or fuel stove? are there gas baloons avaliable on the way? anybody knows the cost?
thanks-

[Douglas]

First, congratulations on the bold decision to camp. At the time of year you're planning to go, using the hostels might not be too bad, but it is nice to have a bit of privacy. Don't miss out entirely on the hostel experience, though - it's one of the things that the camino is about. There are some hostels you would be silly to miss, e.g. the eccentric Refugio Jato in Villafranca - but taste and preference enters into this, and it might be worth putting up another post to start an argument about what refugios you shouldn't miss, even if that isn't your main plan for accomodation. I'm a keen camper, and have to say that I didn't see much opportunity for camping along the camino. I camped all down through France, but hostelled the camino. It could be worth asking others if camping along the camino is is a feasible option. The usual reason for camping is cost reduction, but the hostels are cheap as chips so if you chose camping just to save money, maybe think again.

For the sort of trip you will be doing, take a gas stove. Note that Coleman gas is not available in France or Spain, so you need a Camping Gaz stove. That's a nuisance because you can detach the Coleman can from the stove when you're finished, making packing easier (which is why I use them), but once you've attached Gaz can to a stove, you've perforated the can so it must stay attached to the stove - that gives you an awkwardly-shaped gadget to stow in your pack. Ugh.

It's fine to have a stove, but you need something to cook. In some of the places you can fetch up, there are no shops selling anything you'd want to cook, so you might have to shop where you can and suffer a little more weight in your pack, carrying food as a precaution against the day when there is none to be had. My experience is that one day's precautionary supply is enough, provided you don't mind backing that up with an occasional fast day because you've worked things out wrong. Hey, it's a religious pilgrimage, so no problem with that.

You'll get some concise guidance on lightweight distance-walking kit, including stoves, at

http://www.scottishsport.co.uk/walki....htm#suggested

Have a wonderful time.