My first camping and backpacking gear I was able to muster my dad into giving to me was two things: old and cheap. Digging through our storage he would find an old military mess kit. A pale color, nested with multiple pieces and an embedded set of silverwear it would serve me well for years. That experience is unlikely to be unique. The allure of the military surplus to gather cheap camping equipment that will be durable and functional is persistent in America, and even today with the likes of camping stores like REI, you will still find those pieces hidden in many camp kits.
For Japan, the mess kit has a far deeper story that has transcended centuries, material types, and intentions all serving the goal of feeding those in the field.
Wapper Cooker Overview:
The 2024 New Products from Snow Peak sees the introduction of the Wapper Cooker CS-250. Immediately it's easy to see that it's a piece pulled from a longer history than the cylindrical JetBoil dominance of modern camping cookware. Comprised of three pieces, each can double as storage or cookware, with the middle and top component also playing the part of a lid. Constructed from a deep gray aluminum, it's a bit larger than you may expect with the capacity to cook up to four cups of rice.
The Name:
At first glance, the name may look like a typo intended to say wrapper. But that would be incorrect, and Wapper is the correct spelling. It comes from the Japanese word Megawappa (曲げわっぱ), or translated literally "bent-woodware". This description has been used for centuries to speak on an early version of the Bento Box. Constructed from strips of straight grain and knot free cedar wood, the Megawappa has carried food for countless generations of people.
The oval design had become so ubiquitous with portable food, that by the 1940s and Japan's entry to World War Two, it was translated from the traditional wooden construction to stamped aluminum. This evolution served a multitude of purposes. It was more durable, easier and cheaper to mass produce for the entirety of an army, while also serving double-duty by allowing it to be used for the first time as cookware in addition to tableware.
A WW2 era Japanese Mess Kit
Snow Peak's Solo Series:
As Snow Peak entered the 1990s, they had rooted themselves firmly in the space of camp shelters and furniture. The first dome tents, tables, chairs, and tarps had all been released. But the pieces that supported the camp experience, dishes, stoves, etc. were all still being offered with Snow Peak as the simple retailer.
In 1995 that would see the first steps towards an all-inclusive offering with the introduction of among many divisions, the Solo Series. What Americans would describe as backpacking equipment, this was lightweight, multi-functional gear for shorter trips where you're either alone or responsible for making sure you were well equipped.
A Solo Camper from the 1996 Snow Peak Catalog
Snow Peak, looking to support this style of camping would look to the Megawappa and the WW2 mess kits for the first time with this release. Reinventing it with Titanium, leveraging the spacious and bulbous design to use it not just as cookware, but as an all-in-one storage solution.
How to store serving tools, fuel, stove and more inside
Offered individually, but with the option to purchase as a complete kit as well. The SCS-101 came with the Wapper Cooker, three piece silverware set, collapsable Sierra Cup, and the two-in-one cutting board/fuel stand.
Reintroduction of the Wapper Cooker:
After twenty-years, the Wapper Cooker has been reintroduced for 2024 with some slight changes based on how camping has evolved in that time. First and foremost, the material has changed from titanium to aluminum. Reflecting how most backpackers now use Jetboil all-in-one stoves, or smaller cooksets for the most ultralight option possible, the need for titanium was moot. Additionally, since most people would use this with larger stoves, aluminum will offer a more consistent and regulateed heat transfer.
With that ability to allow a few more ounces in the design, there has also been a shift back to some of the features that were present in the WW2 era mess kits.
The two most notable visual updates then are the inclusion of the third, middle component. Allowing anyone to have a plate while eating or lid while cooking without sacrificing the other cookpiece.
It also features a sliding carry handle, that not only helps keep the lids in place, but pulls deep inspiration again from the now nearly century old mess kits of Japan.
Final Thoughts:
This is without a doubt my favorite type of piece of camping equipment. Rooted in a deep history, both positive and negative, it ties together so many lines of our collective history outdoors and my own personal experiences in nature.
While not yet available in the US Market (though currently for sale in Japan and the UK), I'm excited to add it to my kit, reflecting on its story whenever I use it.