Kat's Tutorial on Backpacking Food, Food Prep and Toiletries
The most important points to keep in mind when choosing food and toiletry items for our trip are:
1. Lightweight
2. Compact
3. Easy clean-up
Items that have all 3 of these traits are golden but not necessarily preferred by everyone. After this trip you will know what is most important to keep you happy out there. Let's discuss!
1. Lightweight
2. Compact
3. Easy clean-up
Items that have all 3 of these traits are golden but not necessarily preferred by everyone. After this trip you will know what is most important to keep you happy out there. Let's discuss!
Weight
You can absolutely haul real gourmet meals into the backcountry, but it will be HEAVY and you are limited by the size of your bear can. The lightest you can go is completely dehydrated food. It may not be the best food in the world but after carrying a heavy pack all day it's pretty decent.
I have never packed dehydrated meals. Greg has and doesn't care for it. We tend to go for salty and fatty things which give you the most bang for your buck calorie-wise.
Here are examples of store bought dehydrated food Greg's had for 9 years and hasn't decided to eat yet:
I have never packed dehydrated meals. Greg has and doesn't care for it. We tend to go for salty and fatty things which give you the most bang for your buck calorie-wise.
Here are examples of store bought dehydrated food Greg's had for 9 years and hasn't decided to eat yet:
You can also buy/make your own dehydrated food. It's much cheaper!! Think Top Ramen + some bits of jerky and dried veggies or instant soup mix + dried shiitake mushrooms. If after this trip you can't stand the weight of your pack, then this is the way to go.
If you choose to pack non-dehydrated food then the next point is really important...
If you choose to pack non-dehydrated food then the next point is really important...
Size
You have to put your toiletries, your food and all the trash you generate in a bear can. Repackaging food and toiletries into smaller sizes is the way to go. Whenever possible choose items that are non-perishable, not crushable and packed in single servings. Choose things that do not generate a lot of waste.
Here is what our toiletry bag looks like:
Here is what our toiletry bag looks like:
Some of it Greg needs and I don't use and vice versa. The bug spray is usually re-packaged into a smaller container unless we know that bugs will be bad. If we wanted to cut weight further we could share a single toothbrush and loose the deodorant and powder.
Here is an example of breakfast for 2 days for the both of us:
Here is an example of breakfast for 2 days for the both of us:
Sometimes I bake the brekkie bars from scratch, and sometimes we have instant oatmeal w/ powdered milk and dried fruit. The oatmeal is the lighter choice but bars=no dishes to wash.
Lunch for us is a big meal and usually includes trail snacks to share with others. Trail mix is great but make sure that it DOES NOT have chocolate or other chips/chunks in it. These will melt and later solidify and you will have a messy nutty brick by the end of the trip. Chocolate in candy shell form works better.
Here is an example our typical lunch and trail snack items:
Lunch for us is a big meal and usually includes trail snacks to share with others. Trail mix is great but make sure that it DOES NOT have chocolate or other chips/chunks in it. These will melt and later solidify and you will have a messy nutty brick by the end of the trip. Chocolate in candy shell form works better.
Here is an example our typical lunch and trail snack items:
Everything you see here is non-perishable and does not require refrigeration (until it's opened). You can absolutely pack perishable items - just eat them on the first night's dinner or by the second day! We often stock up on good finds like the mini chorizo and keep them in the pantry for our next trip.
And here is dinner for 2 for 2 nights:
And here is dinner for 2 for 2 nights:
One night it's couscous and curry, the other night it's couscous with spices, olives and fresh trout! If I'm out for more than 2 nights I mix it up with more Tasty Bites or sometimes bring fresh meat for the first night's dinner.
I was trained by a vegetarian group of backpackers and traditionally bring at least one of the Tasty Bite Indian packs on my trips. They can include lentils, eggplant dishes and other interesting flavors. Trader Joes has their own version, of the same idea and if you shop around you can usually get them on sale for ~$2 a pack. We boil the whole pouch to heat it up so there's minimal mess and then we use the hot water for the couscous and cider. I would suggest that you try any interesting flavors before backpacking with it to make sure your stomach and your taste buds are in agreement.
Why couscous? It's the easiest thing in the world to make and takes just 5 min off the stove. Pasta gets funny at high altitude and rice, unless it's instant, requires simmering which uses up more fuel.
Sometimes we bring dessert:
I was trained by a vegetarian group of backpackers and traditionally bring at least one of the Tasty Bite Indian packs on my trips. They can include lentils, eggplant dishes and other interesting flavors. Trader Joes has their own version, of the same idea and if you shop around you can usually get them on sale for ~$2 a pack. We boil the whole pouch to heat it up so there's minimal mess and then we use the hot water for the couscous and cider. I would suggest that you try any interesting flavors before backpacking with it to make sure your stomach and your taste buds are in agreement.
Why couscous? It's the easiest thing in the world to make and takes just 5 min off the stove. Pasta gets funny at high altitude and rice, unless it's instant, requires simmering which uses up more fuel.
Sometimes we bring dessert:
Did you happen to notice that the trash generated from all our backcountry fare happens to easily compress and fit in a single zippy? We go for vacuum packed stuff and foil pouches to save on space.
If you're on THIS trip you might not have ever seen/used a bear can. The ones I am renting look like this:
If you're on THIS trip you might not have ever seen/used a bear can. The ones I am renting look like this:
Standard Rental Can
Image taken from the REI website.
It's 12 x 8.8 inches and weighs just under 3lbs.
I swear it feels larger and heavier but at least you can sit on it.
I'm familiar with these and know if I what I have will fit or not. For you newbies, I say grab a normal sized shoebox:
Put all of your intended food items and toiletries in it.
If you have room to spare, awesome!
If it's a little over, the can is cylindrical so we can work with it.
If there is no way you can fit everything in the shoebox, you, my friend, have too much stuff.
Lose the loaf of French bread and get yourself some flat tortillas!
Also remember that we are sharing bear cans. It's going to be 1 can to every two people on this trip and 1 shoebox ~ 1 bear can so if every one of you is maxing out your shoebox. We've got problems!
Can't live without it? You can also tell me to rent you a personal can so don't have to share...
I swear it feels larger and heavier but at least you can sit on it.
I'm familiar with these and know if I what I have will fit or not. For you newbies, I say grab a normal sized shoebox:
Put all of your intended food items and toiletries in it.
If you have room to spare, awesome!
If it's a little over, the can is cylindrical so we can work with it.
If there is no way you can fit everything in the shoebox, you, my friend, have too much stuff.
Lose the loaf of French bread and get yourself some flat tortillas!
Also remember that we are sharing bear cans. It's going to be 1 can to every two people on this trip and 1 shoebox ~ 1 bear can so if every one of you is maxing out your shoebox. We've got problems!
Can't live without it? You can also tell me to rent you a personal can so don't have to share...
So lets call it 5.5 lbs (since I don't completely trust this scale) for our toiletries, 2 breakfasts, 2 lunches, 2 dinners (minus trout), trail snacks and dessert. Is that considered light? Not really, but it's not heavy either and by the end of the trip it will be only ~1 lb of toiletries, trash and leftover spices to pack out.
Easy Cleanup
I've been treated to a luxurious multi-course meal in the backcountry. It was truly spectacular but cleaning the grease off of 7 bowls, 4 pots, forks/spoons, and disposing of the grease was a bit cumbersome. Our hands still slightly smelled of it the next day. After a long day when it gets dark and the temps starts to drop I feel that a great clean-up effort is just inconvenient. BUT...you may beg to differ and since I'm not doing your dishes, that's fine by me!
Most backpacking stoves and mess kits focus on the ability to boil water and do it quickly. Simmering uses a lot of fuel and sometimes ends with scorched messy cleanup.
Here is our basic mess kit:
Most backpacking stoves and mess kits focus on the ability to boil water and do it quickly. Simmering uses a lot of fuel and sometimes ends with scorched messy cleanup.
Here is our basic mess kit:
The Titanium pot (red tab) is just for boiling water and a fuel can fits inside it during transport. Greg has a full utensil set and the green mug. I use just one stainless steel soup spoon (from Thailand) and my mug fits inside the mess kit as shown below:
We each carry a sharper knife as a general tool but for the most part the food we bring makes minimal mess (no mixing or chopping required) and we rarely need to use much camp soap. If you do need to mix something bring an extra large zippy and massage the contents!
How do I do dishes?
We boil some water, add it to the smallest container and use a spoon to suspend all of the remaining residue and food particles. This gets poured into the next largest container and the process is repeated. Normally we only have two things to wash and after the 2nd container I DRINK the used rinse water and any remaining food particles so that there is no waste of food or bits on the ground. We use a dish towel to wipe the pots dry and clean.
If we ever have a grease pit that won't come off then we'll break out the camp soap. And no, I do not drink the soapy water!
That's just how I was trained. I'm not going to make you drink your waste water unless you want to but I will tell you to bury your soapy food bits. They do not belong in a lake, creek or visible on the ground as I have witnessed on too many occasions.
Alright folks, your task this weekend is to gather up your backpacking vittles!
Questions? You know how to find me :)
How do I do dishes?
We boil some water, add it to the smallest container and use a spoon to suspend all of the remaining residue and food particles. This gets poured into the next largest container and the process is repeated. Normally we only have two things to wash and after the 2nd container I DRINK the used rinse water and any remaining food particles so that there is no waste of food or bits on the ground. We use a dish towel to wipe the pots dry and clean.
If we ever have a grease pit that won't come off then we'll break out the camp soap. And no, I do not drink the soapy water!
That's just how I was trained. I'm not going to make you drink your waste water unless you want to but I will tell you to bury your soapy food bits. They do not belong in a lake, creek or visible on the ground as I have witnessed on too many occasions.
Alright folks, your task this weekend is to gather up your backpacking vittles!
Questions? You know how to find me :)