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Backpacking food

3K views 22 replies 11 participants last post by  TD 
#1 ·
I have my first backpacking trip in about 10 days. I have just about everything I need except food. Been doing some research and seems like mountainhouse makes the best instant meals. Can anybody tell me the difference between the mountain house pouch and propak? Also, any other recommendations for easy, lightweight food to bring? I'm thinking I might bring some quaker instant oatmeal packs for breakfast. Any info is much appreciated.
 
#2 · (Edited)
I eat about anything in the woods as it all tastes better outside! Unless you are a real gourmand, I'd keep it simple on the first trip. Later, you can do lots to improve your dining experience.

Here are some tips:

• Never believe the serving size unless you eat like a bird after strenuous exercise. If it says it feeds 2, plan on it feeding 1.

• I stretch the budget by looking for meals that have ingredients that I can supplement. For instance get 'Turkey and Mashed Potatoes' and bring extra dehydrated potatoes and dried peas or corn to make the 2 servings actually feed 2. Do the same with any dish that includes or could be put over rice or pasta.

• Bring small amounts of herbs, spices and condiments to jazz up the food. The tiny bottles of Tobasco are great for this.

• You can often find dehydrated fruits and veggies at normal stores. Buy them to dress up oatmeal, pancakes or main dishes. Get some nuts too as they are great add-ins.

• if your first day or two isn't a killer and you aren't going ultralight, consider bringing some 'real' food. Freeze a steak, a big bag of stew, some marinated chicken, etc. and double bag it. Then wrap the frozen item in your sleeping pad and/bag along with some fresh veggies and salad. Prepare, chop, marinate, etc. everything at home to keep it simple in camp.

• Speaking of fresh food, buy some Freezer Bags or Boil In Bags; they really simplify camp cooking and clean-up and allow you to make your own camp food. For instance : mix up all the ingredients for an omelette in a freezer bag and freeze. At camp, drop the whole bag into boiling water. When done, eat out of the bag. Or instead of instant oatmeal, make your own by using Quick 1 min oats in a bag along with your choice of fruit, nuts, spices and sweetener. Pour in boiling water, wrap the bag in a cozy or jacket to keep warm. It should be ready to eat in 10 mins. Hint, a cheap insulated soft lunch cooler or sack works great as a cozy and to pack in frozen steaks, omeletes, etc. cut off any and all extraneous weight like straps and handles.

• Pre-package lunch and snacks for each day into a Baggie. Pack more than you think you'll eat each day. In the morning, pull out the day's lunch bag and put it somewhere handy so it is easy to grab snacks on the go and lunch when you need a break.

• Get familiar with your stove at home. Practice lighting it. Heat some water or cook a few meals on it in the backyard or a local park. Try it in the wind. Practice refueling it or attaching/detaching canisters. Read the instructions, esp. troubleshooting tips. Pack those with you or take a pic of them with your phone/camera. Bring back-up matches/lighter even if it has a piezo.

• Do the same with your water treatment method. If you have a pump or Steripen, or drip filter, just like your stove, try them at home. Read all the instructions and tips. If you'll use a chemical treatment, be sure you understand the instructions, esp. wait times. If the water will have a chemical taste afterwards, make up a day's worth at home and see if you can/will drink it all day. If you find yourself having to force yourself to drink enough, consider adding flavoring to mask the taste: powdered drink mix, drops of orange or mint extract, drop in an Altoid or sugar cube , etc. Also, especially since it's a dry year, be sure your water containers will have enough volume to get you from one water source to the next. If in doubt, I carry more than I think I need, factoring in the terrain, elevation gain, sun exposure and weather.

Anyway, have a blast and be sure to report back!
 
#3 ·
I eat about anything in the woods as it all tastes better outside! Unless you are a real gourmand, I'd keep it simple on the first trip. Later, you can do lots to improve your dining experience.

Here are some tips:

• Never believe the serving size unless you eat like a bird after strenuous exercise. If it says it feeds 2, plan on it feeding 1.

• I stretch the budget by looking for meals that have ingredients that I can supplement. For instance get 'Turkey and Mashed Potatoes' and bring extra dehydrated potatoes and dried peas or corn to make the 2 servings actually feed 2. Do the same with any dish that includes or could be put over rice or pasta.

• Bring small amounts of herbs, spices and condiments to jazz up the food. The tiny bottles of Tobasco are great for this.

• You can often find dehydrated fruits and veggies at normal stores. Buy them to dress up oatmeal, pancakes or main dishes. Get some nuts too as they are great add-ins.

• if your first day or two isn't a killer and you aren't going ultralight, consider bringing some 'real' food. Freeze a steak, a big bag of stew, some marinated chicken, etc. and double bag it. Then wrap the frozen item in your sleeping pad and/bag along with some fresh veggies and salad. Prepare, chop, marinate, etc. everything at home to keep it simple in camp.

• Speaking of fresh food, buy some Freezer Bags or Boil In Bags; they really simplify camp cooking and clean-up and allow you to make your own camp food. For instance : mix up all the ingredients for an omelette in a freezer bag and freeze. At camp, drop the whole bag into boiling water. When done, eat out of the bag. Or instead of instant oatmeal, make your own by using Quick 1 min oats in a bag along with your choice of fruit, nuts, spices and sweetener. Pour in boiling water, wrap the bag in a cozy or jacket to keep warm. It should be ready to eat in 10 mins. Hint, a cheap insulated soft lunch cooler or sack works great as a cozy and to pack in frozen steaks, omeletes, etc. cut off any and all extraneous weight like straps and handles.

• Pre-package lunch and snacks for each day into a Baggie. Pack more than you think you'll eat each day. In the morning, pull out the day's lunch bag and put it somewhere handy so it is easy to grab snacks on the go and lunch when you need a break.

• Get familiar with your stove at home. Practice lighting it. Heat some water or cook a few meals on it in the backyard or a local park. Try it in the wind. Practice refueling it or attaching/detaching canisters. Read the instructions, esp. troubleshooting tips. Pack those with you or take a pic of them with your phone/camera. Bring back-up matches/lighter even if it has a piezo.

• Do the same with your water treatment method. If you have a pump or Steripen, or drip filter, just like your stove, try them at home. Read all the instructions and tips. If you'll use a chemical treatment, be sure you understand the instructions, esp. wait times. If the water will have a chemical taste afterwards, make up a day's worth at home and see if you can/will drink it all day. If you find yourself having to force yourself to drink enough, consider adding flavoring to mask the taste: powdered drink mix, drops of orange or mint extract, drop in an Altoid or sugar cube , etc. Also, especially since it's a dry year, be sure your water containers will have enough volume to get you from one water source to the next. If in doubt, I carry more than I think I need, factoring in the terrain, elevation gain, sun exposure and weather.

Anyway, have a blast and be sure to report back!
That is a lot of great advice, thank you! I'll definitely have to do some thinking and planning on what I will be eating over the couple days I'm out. And I'll definitely have some pictures and a report for this trip!
Thanks
 
#8 ·
As usual, Freestone did an awesome job. I'm embarrassed to say that I have a couple things to add. These all come from experience.

Water Treatment: if using a filter be sure you have the means to clean the filter should it be become clogged. A clogged filter becomes completely useless. You'd be surprised how quickly/easily they can become clogged. Always have a back up plan. I keep a bottle of fresh Iodine tablets in my first aid kit (see Freestones write up on chemical treatment)

Butter & garlic work wonders for frying trout. A small non-stick skillet is very handy for frying up trout or making pancakes. I have a very small flip that I pack to help flip pancakes and trout. Dried blueberries (or freshly picked huckleberries along the trail) are a fantastic addition to pancakes or freeze dried cobbler meals.
Cookware and bakeware Gas Automotive tire Soil Temperature
Plant Tent Cookware and bakeware Ingredient Water

I like granola with dried fruit & nuts and powdered milk. If its cold in the morning add hot water. If its hot weather, add cold water. Homemade chocolate chip cookies cooked like brownies in a pan make a wonderful treat.

Add Pepcid or other antacid of your choice to your ibuprofen and Imodium A/D to your first aid kit. It can make the difference between a comfortable days hike or nights sleep vs. a very uncomfortable one.

A small amount of sugar in a ziploc baggy doesn't weigh much & is nice to add to blueberry tea or other drink. Starbucks Via instant coffees are hard to beat if you're a coffee drinker.

Think about how you're going to clean up afterwards. On short 2-3 day trips, I like to bring a few paper towels folded up in a ziploc baggy to help with this. A small scrubber sponge that nests inside your bowl and pans is pretty handy.

Also, a nylon food bag and long cord are handy for hanging your food from a tree if you're in an area where critters big and small are a concern.

Double & triple check your stove to make certain its flat and level before turning it on and balancing a pan of water on it. Don't dump out that last little bit of hot water left in the bottom of the pan. Instead pour it over a towel and use it to wash your face and neck before climbing in your sleeping bag. (Boy does this ever feel good). Or pour it in a water bottle to sit and cool over night.
 
#9 ·
Just returned from 4 days in the Mt. Jefferson Wilderness.

Last trip I took instant oatmeal for breakfast cuz I was lazy. Blech!! This time back to my formula: Rolled oats from the bulk foods bin at the grocery store. One serving not enough, two is too much, so I made 1 1/2. 3/4 cup of rolled oats, a dash of salt, some golden raisins, 2 spoons of brown sugar, and 2 spoons of Milkman into snack size zip lock bag. It's tight but it fits. One guy brought a small fry pan, so I had a couple packs of Spam in the single slice sealed bag. The extra salt it provides is welcome after sweating so much the day before. And Via coffee from Starbucks is the low weight low bulk winner, but you can carry a French press in your pack, not me.

Lunch was flat bread, hard salami, and med.-sharp cheese; cashews, beef jerky, granola bars, dried mangoes.

Dinner was Mountain House freeze dried. Says 2 servings, meaning it was a bit more than I needed or wanted, but I ate it all and had no dessert. Took tequila in one of those 4 oz. plastic wine bottles they serve on airlines; much lighter than my stainless steel flask.

Second trip with my Katadyn gravity water filter (8.25 oz) love it! compared to the old Hiker pump filter (14.5 oz). Also second trip with beer can alcohol stove. Unlike the You Tube videos, mine doesn't boil 2 cups of water in 5.5 minutes unless the wind isn't blowing. Even with my aluminum foil wind screen, with wind it takes 2 fillings of alcohol to boil the water. So I have to plan more fuel, but with a stove that weighs about 1/10th of an oz, it's still the least weight/bulk alternative. I took it knowing that my friends had isobutane stoves in case my alky didn't pan out.

Other than the Spam, I only cook water. Other meals are admittedly more satisfying, especially on longer trips, but that means cooking, and that means more weight and bulk in pans, stove, and fuel and clean up. My friends easily carried 10 pounds each more than I did, including but not limited to the cardboard packaging the Via coffee comes in. That's just silly.

Sg
 
#13 ·
i've been getting used to my steripen. i like it for day hikes or solo trips, but when I'm in a group I like to purify a gallon of water to use for cooking. I find that I much prefer my MSR Sweetwater filter for this task. It screws onto a standard bottle and fills it relatively quickly. I transfer it to a milk jug. Once I have filled the milk jug, I fill the 32oz bottle. I end up with 5 qts of water to use for cooking that night and is normally enough to get hot water going for coffee the next morning. While it boils, I filter another 1/2 gallon to use for more hot drinks and breakfast items.

I LOVE cooking with my Peak Giga Stove. I have the Ti version with electric ignition. It is super quick and easy to setup and light. It handles the wind just fine. A few rocks stragically placed works wonders in really gusty situations. It is compact and fits in a sandwich sized ziploc with my spoon, spork, flip, salt/pep, backup matches, etc. If you are in a large group, where you're boiling 6+ cups of water per mealtime, then you go through some fuel. This is true with any stove though. It turns down low enough to cook pancakes or trout in butter and garlic. My brother uses a Whisper Lite stove. Its funny, I can have my stove set up and & 4 cups of water almost boiling by about the time he has just got his to warmup where he can turn it up and start cooking. Biggest draw back I've noticed is that canister fuel stoves are noticeably less efficient in really cold conditions or high altitude.
 
#18 ·
I've heard good things about Packit Gourmet, but have yet to try it. Since I hate lugging tons of stuff into the boonies, I always go with f/d foods, but breakfasts are a pain in the ass to really do a good job of. However, there's a new powdered egg mix out there, the Ova Easy. First class! Rehydrates well, tastes as good as fresh eggs, and if you don't mind carrying a skillet and some butter you should really be able to make a great breakfast! Costco has cooked, diced bacon in a bag; they say to refrigerate but i've left it open on the counter for several days with no ill effects. You can sautee some onion and mushrooms with a little butter, garlic powder, some seasoned salt, dump in the egg mix, and there you go. Easy!

I also always carry a Platypus bag made for my cognac or scotch, whichever strikes my fancy. I'm way too old to want to suffer:D
 
#22 ·
So we ended up not backpacking, just camped for 5 days. We brought my 3 year old nephew and had a blast camping and fishing around the west side of Mt Adams! Not many fish to speak of, I am a complete rookie to fishing lakes! Here's a few pictures of some places we camped and or explored in that area.
 

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