Bushbuddy Ultra

I must have been a good boy this year. I opened up my stocking on Christmas Eve to find among other things, a Bushbuddy Ultra and I couldn't wait to try it out. So much so that I took it out on Christmas Day into the woods in Hälsingland and fired it up.

Reviewing the Bushbuddy Ultra

As you can see I lit first time with the help of some dry tinder, and it took about 700ml of water up to a rolling boil in about 10 minutes. Not quick, but not incredibly slow either. It should also be noted that I had placed it on a tree stump at a little over waist height and there was a slight breeze in the air which of course affected performance. In a more sheltered spot I'm sure it would have more effective. Nevertheless I'm very pleased with it, and the simplicity of finding fuel wherever and whenever you are near woodland means that I'll likely use it year round in this enivronment. Add up the cost of all those gas canisters that you'd otherwise use and it's cheap too.

To top it off the stove is lightweight at 155g, which together with pot and lid, and considering that I need not carry any fuel, gives me a cooking system which tops the scales at about 275g. That's only a little more than a regular sized butane canister, and about a third of a Trangia cookset (half if you're only carrying one pot). That said, in especially windy conditions, where shelter is hard to come by, I'd rather rely on the Trangia. It is of course true that in those situations one is generally above the tree line, the stove not really being suited to that environment either where fuel is lacking. As for gas stoves, I can't see me going back. Butane canisters are heavy, and without shelter prove to be inefficient. They weigh about as much empty and I do not enjoy having to carry them back to civilisation as dead-weight in the pack. The only place I could see a gas stove being useful is far below freezing above the tree-line, but that's still a pretty moot point since I don't really spend very much time above the Arctic Circle.

Sure your pot gets dirty, irrevocably so, but you can always pack it away in a bag. Besides wood ash doesn't spoil food in the same way as ash from an alcohol stove will. What's that? Gas is faster. Sure, but what's the hurry? You're in the great outdoors to kick back and take it easy a little, not clock watch over minutes here and there! If you are looking to make the transition to a wood burner, I don't think you'd look back, I certainly won't. I simply look forward to the multitude of adventures that I'll share with this little beauty of engineering over the years to come.