Whether cooking a delicious meal around a campfire at dusk or preparing hot coffee and oatmeal before a long day on the trail, food is one of the fundamentals of preparing your trip. On today’s episode we are going to cover everything food for campers and hikers. We’ll be talking about our least and most favorites and how to prepare to make the experience enjoyable no matter how you go!
We’ll help you know where to start with your food preparation. We talk about bringing along the practical and the not-so-practical, and we’ll even highlight a day in the food life of a camper and hiker!
Episode Highlights:
- Preparing to eat on the trail either for a weekend or a week takes careful planning and preparation.
- Whether camping or hiking, think about freeze-dried meals. They have come a long way and the selections at your local outdoor outfitter are endless.
- The biggest difference between the trail and the campground is the amount of food you can bring. Hikers need to carry everything they plan to eat and calories are key!
- To get ready, make a list of what you will need for each meal. Pack too much food and you’ll end up needlessly hauling around extra weight. Pack too little and you’ll spend the end of your trip rationing.
- Foods can be premixed or precooked to make life on the trail easier.
- When hiking, remember that depending on how long you plan to be on the trail, you’ll be resupplying at mini-marts or gas stations as you go.
- Thru hikers will be able to eat perishable foods on the first stock day, but after that map out your meals so you’ll have what you enjoy and need until the next restock.
- Camping is where you can do almost anything! You can elaborate on the food and therefore on the experience and enjoyment of your trip.
- When cooking with charcoal you can find all-in-one charcoal packs for camping trips and avoid those messy fluids.
- Hikers rely on gas cooking as wood fires can be dangerous and require too much energy.
- Many hikers use supply-drop services on the hiking trail. You’ll need to consider prepping the supplies, mapping your locations, and boxing them up to be sent to your nearest stop.
- Whether camping or hiking, remember to learn and adhere to “leave no trace” fundamentals.
- When making your food choices, pick your favorites. Happy food = happy times. Make that the backbone of your adventure.
Resources:
When we’re talking about food, camping is where it’s at. – Nate Harrington
Food is awesome and we all need it. – Christopher Hiller