As you’ve probably seen in some of our posts recently, we’ve been wild camping in Dartmoor, and have been hiking in Snowdonia. Far away from hostels, B&Bs and hotels, we’ve spent some evenings curled up around a camp fire baking beans and sipping tea out of flasks to eventually stretch out onto our best camping cot.
From our last few trips, I feel like we’ve learnt A LOT. I’m glad we’ve done these little test run trips before wild camping for a week in Scotland, and eventually when we trek Scandinavia because it’s taught us some valuable lessons.
We’ve been using the Kelly Kettle and hobo stove and it’s been an absolute dream. You just need a little bit of wood and a lighter, and you’ve got everything you need to start cooking up some food or brewing a cuppa tea. It’s so simple to use, I recommend this for solo campers, trekkers, hikers, backpackers, in matter of fact, all outdoors enthusiasts!
How to use the Kelly Kettle
Before starting a fire make sure that it is allowed where you are planning on having your fire. In some places it is strictly prohibited, so make sure you check the rules before you set up camp.
To start, gather dry twigs, leaves and small sticks and branches. Green wood is not good to start your fire with, you need to use dry wood to get the fire started, but green wood can be used in small amounts if you want the fire to burn longer once you get it started.
After you have your wood gathered; clear the area where you want your fire to be. Make sure it is not near brush or trees – we placed our Kelly Kettle on a rock to ensure that it wasn’t going to cause any damage to the area.
The Mimia I.A Mid layer, 200 weight, inter-active fleece from Sprayway
Now put the leaves and twigs you gathered into the center of the hobo stove. Next use sticks to build a teepee around your pile of leaves and twigs, now use larger pieces of wood to place around the teepee.
If you want to boil some water, fill the kettle with water and place it over the hobo stove, alternatively, you can just use the hobo stove as it is, to cook some food using a mini camping saucepan. If you are using the kettle, remember to remove the orange plug from the opening.
Now light a match, or a piece of paper and poke it through the side of the teepee pile to let the twigs and leaves catch fire. As the fire starts continue you can continue to add natural fuel, such as sticks, Pine cones, Birch bark, dry grass, etc., to the fire, down the chimney!
It was really easy to use, it boiled water incredibly quick, and didn’t leave any mess when we left! The best thing is, you can cook and boil water at the same time. This is a must-have piece of equipment for trekking and wild camping – we wouldn’t go anywhere without it anymore 🙂