Thanks all for the great info. I'll stay away from the XL2. There is a used 170 close by for a $100 that sounds like it will fit the bill nicely. I have been using my pruning saw for quite a while, and works just fine for the smaller stuff. But I am not talking about just ONE 8" log. The amount of windfall we get around here a pruing saw wont cut it - HA!
Just wondering what pruning saw you are using? Make/model size? Just asking because I heated with wood for five winters using a 30 inch sandvik and a 2.5 lb limbing axe. Around 4 to 5 cords a season.
Like I said, not all pruning or handsaws are created equal.
Today in that scenario (well, your scenario of a lot of walking trails and cutting along the way) I would go for a big silky curved pruner in a scabbard(pro arborist saw), a 36 inch Bahco bowsaw strapped to the pack, and a fiskars quality or above felling axe to be carried. Silky for smaller branches, the bahco to cross cut large logs, the felling axe to finish getting down leaners.
I guess it depends on how far you want to travel and clear. Miles and miles, camping out, etc, carrying your food and water and gear, I want the hand tools, the only gallons size and weight of uel I would want is *my* fuel, heh,, whereas like a 1/2 mile trail clearing a day..perhaps a teeny chainsaw, but I would still want an axe.
Id carry the chainsaw inside of the plastic case designed for it to contain drips and so on, strapped to a frame, and the bar oil and mix in tight sealed quart bottles. The canned premix makes dandy containers, already labeled approrpiately so no need to cobjob something else, and you can refill them up. Thats what I use now, after first using the original contents.(and it is good fuel that lasts a lot longer than pump gas..)
As to a small cheap saw, Id take a poulan s25cva over any current dinky homeowner class saw (used, for the money). You can still find those things cheap and they just flat out rip. But whatever, anything in the 30 whatever cc range would work.
Another option is any of the high end battery saws, I know my oregon would work great for the task you have. They aint cheap though.