check out--"the complete walker 4"..page 605--Solar Campsite.
with the right AA batteries and solar charger you could run
a Sierra Stove and a LED light "forever"--

Whatever happened to cooking over a campfire?

CityBoy,

A lot of parks no longer allow campfires (Big Bend, for instance) as part of the "Leave No Trace" principle.

-Blast

and some parks have fire bans during the dry parts of the year.
with so little snow pack and little in the way of spring rains
in northern Minnesota this year there was a fire ban..
my permit for the BWCA canoe park only allowed a fire between
7PM and Midnite..but you are right CityBoy..open fire cooking
is a dead art..when i saw the first gas stoves being used
back in the 60's i thought we were going the way of Europe
in our camping skills..

"Whatever happened to cooking over a campfire?"

Traditional campfires are notoriously inefficient in terms of time, energy required to assemble them, cooking and wood used. They are a substantial fire hazard. Often for a long time after they have been 'put out'.

The things that campfires have in their advantage are that they are relatively simple to set up, use only local materials and will do the job required if you give them enough time while providing a homey and comforting atmosphere. They are traditional.

With a white gas, propane or Zip Stove you can be up and cooking in a minute or two and, due to their efficient application of heat, be done cooking while a person assembling a campfire is still collecting wood.

Down side of a stove is that it requires carrying in a stove, and possibly fuel, and a stove lacks any power as a focal point for community or romance.

Not as efficent, particularly if you only need it for a half hour. If you aren't needing the heat, a fire is a big fat waste of time, energy and wood.

You can also use something like this where you can't use a campfire- like a parking lot.

Yes but cooking at near 5000 degrees, does not mean that you cook 10 times faster... just that everything you cook ends up EXTRA CRISPY!