Well, I may have solved my problem, anyways. I don't like carrying stoves or fuel, but stoves are pretty darn nice for "quick" stuff, like coffee in the morning or boiling a few cups of water for the freeze-dried stuff during a lunch stop.

I don't know how this works yet, but the idea has some potential. Apparently, you just load it with short, pencil-size dry twigs, and let it burn from the top down. The holes in the bottom suck air up through the middle, allowing for a hot and efficient primary burn. The angled holes along the top rim are supposed to help burn up the excess gases (and thus reduce soot, and allow for a hotter and even more efficient burn).

  (You need to Login or Register

A handful of smaller twigs can be collected anywhere enroute, and stored in the pack until used, staying dry and ready. No extra emissions or any other side effect of fossil fuels, and it's made from a recycled can and some extra tent stakes. When it breaks, I can still recycle the can, and simply make a new one.

I don't know how well i works yet, but perhaps I'll try it out in the next week or two. It's not as pretty as the one pictured in the link, but then, neither is anything else that comes out of my garage. I guess we'll see...

---