can you send fuel cannisters through the usps with your food resupply? i don t think so. if not then how can you get a new fuel cannister when you run out of fuel on your hike? i guess buy one when you [pick up your maildrop in town? but maybe most towns dont carry fuel cannisters? just wondering?
cheeserTOM
Pretty much only outfitters carry fuel cannisters. Hostels and any town with a gas station or hardwear store can usually supply you with white gas or alcohol stove fuel. Sometimes a ‘hiker box’ at a hostel will have a half empty cannister in a pinch. Cannister stoves do have their merits. They are especially convenient to use. If you think you won’t be able to refuel for a while, carry a spare. Or always carry a small sized spare. Even if you do run out of fuel, you can often boil water over a small fire. You should always of course comply with conditions and regulations regarding this debatable ethic. Or borrow your friend’s (not a stranger’s) stove for the night. Others will help you and you will help others on the AT. It is wrong to count on this but sometimes it happens. To beat this horse further, plan on cold ‘snacky’ lunches and eat hot meals only for (1st) breakfast and dinner. Some people don’t carry a stove at all and eat all trail meals cold, indulging on hot food only while in towns. I don’t recommend this but it works for those rugged souls. In the end, don’t worry about it, get out there and have fun.
Ablejack
Yes, you can ship fuel cannisters that have the proper approval based upon container design, etc. (butane, propane, isobutane, mixed, etc., but NOT gasoline or HEET or the like) via USPS… BUT… they must be properly and clearly labeled (“ORM-D: Consumer Commodity, Ground Transport Only” - written MIGHT work, but some P.O.s demand that an official LABEL be used, and many P.O.s don’t stock them!). The fuel cannisters can only be sent via “Parcel Post” (specifically GROUND TRANSPORT, even though it might be obvious that the package will never see a plane, ya know!?). “Parcel Post” can mean some BIG delays if you’re shipping to fairly remote P.O.s (which would be likely) so you need to plan your shipping dates and destinations accordingly… for example, it might not be a good idea to include a spare in your bounce box!
That’s been my experience on both the AT and the PCT with the (very hard to find!) Coleman Powermax fuel cartridges… YMMV, based upon the knowledge (and willingness!) of the particular USPS employee with whom you’re dealing!
Good Luck, Good Hike!
TBott
TBott
The answer to your question is yes, you can mail fuel thru the USPS. As TBott says there are restrictions on amounts and mode of shipment (translates to lead time for mailing). We have shipped cartridges on 4 major hikes.
Look at my webpage http://www.gottawalk.com/shipping_fuel.htm for the postal regulations and my interpretation of the refulations. You will find that many post offices balk at shipping fuel. Just print the webpage and take it with you each time you mail the fuel because you will probably get a different postal clerk sometimes.
Good Luck and happy hiking
Ken
…GottaWalk
Ken
You can buy the cannisters in quite a few places. But, there are some gaps. The info below is 2003 vintage, so beware that things change, etc. You can buy cannisters in:
Idyllwild (outfitter)
Big Bear Lake City (ditto)
Agua Dulce (car from Saufleys)
Kennedy Meadows (had in 2003, but you’d want to check)
VVR
South Lake Tahoe (outdoor store on the way to buffets)
Ashland (outfitter)
Bend (ditto)
Those are all that I know of. I’m pretty sure Hood River (from Cascade Locks) has them. Leavenworth (accessed from Stevens Pass, opposite direction from Skykomish) probably has a climbing store with them. Tuolumne Meadows did not have them in 2006.
The big gap is from South Lake Tahoe to Ashland. Depending on your hiking rate, you’d have to carry at least 2 out of SLT to get to Oregon. However, rather than staying in Castella or hitching to Dunsmuir, instead hitch to Mount Shasta City, which is a way cool town and has an excellent outfitter. That breaks up the stretch nicely.
So, you should be able to get away with only a couple of mail drops of cannisters on your hike.
Suge
another Yes. I’ve been mailing propane/butane canisters via USPS for years. As stated above, write this on the package: ORMD-3 Class 3 Surface Transportation Only.
Lately I’ve been mailing fuel separately from the rest of the supplies; just in case it doesn’t get there. So far, I’ve never had it not arrive, but I suggest mailing it two weeks before you expect to pick it up.
bluevist
Here are a few other places not mentioned already that I found had canisters during my hikes. Expect to pay quite a bit more for a canister along the trail.
CA 2006
Lone Pine, not at the climbing outfitter but at one of the general outdoor stores.
Bishop (you can take a bus from Independence)
Muir Trail Ranch, may only be available to you if you resupply there.
Mammoth
Tuolumne Meadows, may depend on when you pass through, they had plenty in July 2006 and September 2004.
Sierra City
OR 2005
Ashland
WA 2005
Stehekin, in 2005 the Ranch had a small backpacker store that carried quite a bit of lightweight backpacking gear.
I found canisters in hiker boxes in other places.
Frank