Complete cooks sets can be bulky, heavy and still lack functionality. When backpacking it is a good idea to think what items you really need and eliminate the rest. Most of the time when backpacking, all you need is a pot to boil water, something to eat out of and something to eat with. The GSI Pinnacle Dualist has all that plus an extra cup to drink out of and all of this for 2 people at the lightweight of 21.6 oz.
The dualist comes with a 1.8 liter pot that is coated with Teflon. This was super nice when it came time to clean up. Food came off without hours of scrubbing and the inside of the pan still almost looks like new. There is a built in strainer in the lid which makes it nice to easy drain water from noodles or beans. The set also includes 4 bowls and 2 telescoping foons. GSI refers to 2 of the bowls as mugs. These have an insulated sleeve to help keep things hot and a lid to sip out of.
All of the contents nests inside of each other and is secured by the lid and the folding handle on the pot. It also comes with a carry bag which is handy for transporting the set. If you reconfigure just how you put the set together you can fit a small canister stove and an 8 oz. or smaller fuel canister inside the set. This conveniently gathers your cooking system into one set.
We took this up backpacking in the Uintah Mountains with a group of five. The 1.8 liter pot was great for boiling water for the group. If you read my review on the MSR MicroRocket you will see that I cook biscuits and gravy in the pot and it worked great. I was surprised at just how much food I was able to cook in the pot. And the cleanup was a breeze each and every time.
The biggest downside for me was not something with the pot or bowls but with what it lacked. When backpacking I usually fly fish and a frying pan is helping when cooking. Definitely not a deal breaker as there are other methods to cooking fish and I think most people use their pots to boil water when backpacking. But if you are like me, and like to fry up some fish, don’t forget the pan.
Verdict: The GSI Pinnacle Dualist is a full featured cook set for two. The 1.8 non-stick Teflon pot is perfect for boiling water but also great to cook in and then cleans up easily. The set does not include a frying pan, so if that is something that you use regularly you will need to bring one as well. This lightweight cook set is plenty big for 2+ people and a great deal at $64.95 with all the features that come with it.
Product provided for free by the manufacturer for review purposes.