Coolest CampStove Ever

There’s always something a little unnatural-feeling when you’ve been hiking all day, you’ve set up camp, and then you light the match to fire up your propane stove. We like the new BioLite CampStove that uses twigs instead of propane or gas to heat up your food, and converts energy from the fire into electricity to charge your phone, iPad and other electronics—yup, it’s got a USB port. 

The company is working with NGOs in Africa to bring its stove technology to areas where pollution from the daily cooking fires poses serious health threats. Researches are studying whether BioLite stoves, which use half the wood of traditional cook fires and reduce smoke by up to 95 percent, could be integrated into these populations to mitigate health risks. Considering that more than half the world’s population cooks its food on open fires, it’s an interesting proposition.

Cool stove, cool company—what’s not to like?