The Last Kitchen, Part 8 of 26. Gerzsi and friends are made up; the gear is real and independently tested. This post contains affiliate links (disclosure).
Previously: Otis the goat led the crew up a muddy trail to a silver tower that passes the ring’s orders to every kitchen. Chef Tamás learned the hard way why trekking poles beat two sticks. At the top, a dozen drones shaped like spatulas circled the tower. Missed it? Read Part 7 · All parts
“Drones have batteries,” said Otis. “Batteries get tired. We wait.”
So they made camp behind a big rock and waited. The wind came over the ridge like it had somewhere to be. Gerzsi’s teeth chattered so hard he sounded like a woodpecker.
Otis had brought a fancy camping stove with a little screen on it. It blinked OBEY and refused to light. Chef Tamás sighed and unpacked his own: a small burner the size of a fist that screwed onto a gas canister. No screen. One valve. One click.
The flame blew out. He lit it again. It blew out again. On the third try Gerzsi sat down beside it and held up his flat tail as a windscreen. The flame stood up straight and the pot began to hum.
“Your tail smells like toast,” said Otis.
“I know,” said Gerzsi.
While the water heated, Tamás gave a lesson, because a cold mountain is still a classroom. “Up here the air is thinner, so it pushes less on the water. Water boils when its bubbles can push back against the air. Less air, less pushing, so it boils at a lower temperature. Roughly one degree Fahrenheit lower for every five hundred feet you climb. That’s why pasta takes longer in the mountains: the water is boiling, but it isn’t as hot.”
Gerzsi checked it with his thermometer. The water was boiling at 207°F, not 212. He felt very scientific.
Around midnight the drones slowed down, then drifted to the ground one by one, like tired leaves. Gerzsi crept to the tower to look for a switch.
He didn’t find a switch. He found a panel at the bottom with a mark carved into the edge. A bite mark. Two big front teeth, one slightly chipped.
Gerzsi touched his own front teeth. One of them was slightly chipped.
Next: Part 9, tomorrow. Mo sharpens the last blade.
🛒 Gear from this part
A backpacking stove that handles wind. Treeline Review timed boils in a 30 mph wind and named the SOTO WindMaster its best overall stove. CleverHiker named the MSR PocketRocket 2 its best overall. Both are in our guide.
Can’t wait for tomorrow’s part?
Gerzsi can’t either. While Chef Tamás’s stock bubbles for four hours, he puts on a sci-fi audiobook and listens with both ears flat against the pot lid (he says it helps). If you’re new to Audible, the free trial is an easy way to start one for the slow-cooking hours.
Free trial for eligible new members; Amazon sets the terms on the sign-up page. Affiliate link: Gerzsi may earn a commission.
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