light, cheap, easy backpacking food | Squat the Planet

light, cheap, easy backpacking food

catingeorgia

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nowhere bitch...that one is for you moo moo
ok i do a lot of backcountry tramping and extended trip backpacking for sometimes over a week or two before i see civilization. i usually pack the same type of food and stick to the same cheap menu to ration off. my diet consists of the cheapest and most efficient way to get by without spending a ton of cash.

I break up bags of ramen (12) into a large freezer zip storage bag and put the mix into a snack size ziplock...i take 2 pounds of rice also stuffed into a large size freezer ziplock and a large container of peanut butter to complete the protein with the rice....and of course a baggie full of multi vitamins. this is very basic and very minimalistic, very bland. i have been using this method for quite some time and it gets me by for 2 1/2 to 3 weeks with a 10+ mile a day backcountry hike with a 35 pound pack.

i have been looking to expand my options and try some new shit. i was planning on a NOBO thru on the AT starting in early march so i was wondering, "what type of rations do other people with similar travels use?":dead_zombie:
 
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dharma bum

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grits, summer sausage (sliced and sucked into one of those food-fresh bag things), oatmeal, mac n cheese, olive oil (it has about 120 calories per tbsp so add one to everything you eat.), peanut butter, shelled sunflower seeds and other nuts, etc. if you can find corn pasta.. get it.

try to make all of your food add up to at least 100 calories per oz. of weight. that way you get the 5,000+ calories a day you burn without weighing your pack down too much.

also, repackage everying you can. put all the grits into one ziplock bag. same with pasta, nuts/seeds, etc. it saves on what you have to pack out, plus you can use those bags for other things like a water catch or whatever.
 

dharma bum

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oh.. and throw out those multi-vitamins. they're no good. you end up just pissing them out anyways. the only vitamin that you should take is vitamin D. all the others (except omega 3) you should try and get from your food. buy some little sealed bags of tuna or salmon to mix with your ramen. they also make little packets of spam. multi-vitamins are a waste of money. find out what you can eat on the trail that grows natural also.

take nothing but pictures. leave nothing but footprints.
 

catingeorgia

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i have always found that vitamin c is good for soreness. i have a friend that takes a supplement called coQ10 which is known for helping with energy levels and he swares by it. he did a nobo thru on the at last year and said on the days he didnt take it he ended up crampin and the sweats...chemical dependency is what it sounds like lol. i think ill try it if i can get it in bulk at a reasonable price. good sound advice though and i appreciate it bro. summer sausage is so fuckin expensive.
 

Uncle Mom

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I like vitamins, but they are expensive. Every new one you start to take is like adding a "monthly" bill.
 

Beegod Santana

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I've been really stoked about the frequency that I've been seeing tuna packets at the dollar tree lately. If I know (or fear) that I'm gonna be out in the wilderness I normally take the following.

About 5 cans of "indulgence" food, i.e. canned shit you don't need to heat up that you like more than just plain ramen. For me, its usually a few cans of chili and some pork and beans. I know a lot of people are gonna freak out about the weight issue, but I just eat the canned food first and all of a sudden my pack feels a lot lighter that it did when I started.
Jar of Peanut butter
Block of cheese
1-4 tuna packets
some form of wheat product, bread, crackers, bagels, whatever. Just something for the tuna, cheese and peanut butter to go on.
Bag O' Ramen
If bears aren't gonna be an issue summer sausage or pepperoni is a nice treat,
and maybe a bag of trail mix.

Of course I add and take away to this list all the time depending on the situation, but this has pretty much been my shopping list for spending a week or more in the woods (or just riding like a motherfucker) for years now and I've never gone hungry, or woken up to my pack torn open by animals. Something I've seen happen to others many many times.
 
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Ithyphallic

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Tortilla wraps are essential in my pack, you can put anything in them and they provide essential carbs, and if their good quality a bit of protein too. Never pass up a dandelion either, you can make tea with the roots, salads with the flowers and greenery, and munch on the stems. The whole flower is edible and incredibly nutritious. Pine needle tea is good and good for you as well. Sorrel leaves as well are great for you, though I dont know where they grow outside of lower BC. Learn to make pemican, it's a great travel food if you have the time/space to prepare it before you set out.
 
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spoorprint

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I did a lot more backpacking in the ninetys, If I rember it went something like this. breakfast maple oatmeal , western family instant coffee made with a heeping teaspoon. about 4 granola bars per day . half a roll of crackers per day with peanut butter ( repack peanut butter in cold cream SIZE containers,
one for every two days -or just take a small plastic jar.
Lunch was an 8 ounce can of ravioli, spagetti, whatever- the microwavable foam plastic cans aren't too heavy, and as the summer wore on and my
metabalism picked up, I would abruptly not feel the need for them.
Dinner was usually dehydrated noodles or bean and rice dishes.

Variations-some health food stores sell a Japanese sea weed that you can break up and add to other dishes.Dehydrated soups are good, add lots of crackers. Nile Spice used to make double sized packet meals, but now I can only find the little dehydrated cups, which aren't enough.I always liked
the zz zip ztove to save weight. I always took stresstab vitamins, I seem to need a lot of B vitamins.

Now I haven't tried this and it sounds austere to the point of bleak: The great climber Willy Upshold claimed you could get by with just powdered milk,
Oatmeal, peanut butter, and vitamins.
 

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