Wile E

Make the $20 investment to be prepared, especially if you are going to be out on the trail multiple days. The MSR Waterworks series of water purifiers rarely fail if maintained properly but past experience of "human error" and accidently losing a part during cleaning proved that having the necessary backup part in the kit "saved" the trip. How much would you pay to not have to "hike out" in the middle of a 6 day trip because you lost an o-ring or back flow preventer ball? Probably more than $20.

I have used the MSR ceramic water purifier that my brother owns for more than 6 years. I finally broke down and bought my own. When looking at the market I decided to go with what I know works. It's easy to clean and maintain. I'm a holdout of using camelbacks and prefer my Nalgene bottles so the simplicity of screwing the water purifier onto the Nalgene and getting water makes it great while taking a rest stop next to a stream or at the end of the day in preparation for cooking. Beyond the Nalgenes we easily store the water we need for the evening in a 2.5 gallon collapsable plastic jug and usually have some left over to give to the AT thru hikers!

Spend the extra $$ and go with the DuraLite. The Duracoat 3-layer coating works. This set is great for cooking for up to 3 people and cleans up easy. Use wooden utensils to cook your food and when possible eat from a separate cup in order to help save on the finish. This will be the last set of cookware you'll need if you maintain it. Keep your eye on it though... others will be jealous and you may find it missing.