By Kyle Merritt
I have always taken pride in my fire making abilities, but never thought of myself as a “Solo Stove” guy. It seemed a little too confined for my penchant for fierce, sprawling blazes. However, we often camp places where a “Leave No Trace” ethic means no fire pits, and the Ranger Solo stove was the answer. The awesome feature of the Solo Stove is that you can just let the fire burn down to ashes at the end of the night and pack it away into the carry case the next morning. The Ranger is a smaller version that takes up less room in our camper, measuring at 15” diameter and 12.5” tall. The smokeless design keeps a hotter, cleaner fire with less smoke and sparks to burn holes in your favorite backcountry ski jacket. You can add the cast iron cooktop option to make your Solo Stove even more versatile. The 14” diameter griddle sits on a stable hub above the fire pit and distributes heat evenly across the surface, allowing for around-the-fire griddle cooking of everything from burgers and veggies to pancakes and eggs. MSRP: Ranger 2.0, $199 / Cast Iron Griddle and Hub, $149. Solostove.com/en-us
