View Full Version : Raw Food Diets....remotely possible on a Thru Hike?
Wanted to see if there was anyone in WB Land that eats a mostly raw food diet, and if so, how challenging was it to resupply.
Did you eat a lot of nuts?
How do you feel about the great dehydration debate amongst raw food purists that say dehydrators that rise above 145 degrees is in actuality cooking the food?
Tha Wookie
09-21-2005, 17:38
I've never tried, but check out this site -awesome: http://rawhike.com/
The Solemates
09-21-2005, 17:47
whacky. i think i'll go eat a steak.
smokymtnsteve
09-21-2005, 17:55
whacky. i think i'll go eat a steak.
yikes..raw meat???
soulrebel
09-21-2005, 18:12
Actually, Go-lite "Coup" uses a mix of mostly raw foods and endurance sport supplements... at least on his fastpacking hikes of 5-10days w/ no resupply.
I believe it would be hard to carry/consume enough calories consistently enough during a thru-hike if you were a raw-foodist. but anything's possible...
Bassline
09-21-2005, 18:14
My friend Freedom tried it this year. She was raw for a while, but I believe that she eventually gave it up. My advice would be to incorporate raw foods into your diet as you hike. There is nothing better than a fresh avacado, tomato, or piece of fruit after a few days of liptons meals. It is all good.
B<->
eyahiker
09-21-2005, 20:27
Sounds like a lot of trouble and work.
Alligator
09-21-2005, 21:48
That's rich, but an old play. Can't bite your tongue anymore?
smokymtnsteve
09-21-2005, 22:40
in 2004, RAW NOT WAR, who I meet @ Wesser Bald shelter was thru hiking from FL and was eating only raw food ..he was also getting the food from dumpsters behind grocery stores when he could.
fiddlehead
09-21-2005, 23:05
Having been an old friend of Doug Walsh (rawhike.com linked to above) I visited with him smack in the middle of his PCT thru hike in 2001 for a few days. (Etna, CA area) I tried some of his food and must say it was very good. He had some seeds (don't know what kind) soaking for a few hours in his pack and he drained them and ran them thru a little gadget that processed them into something that looked like rice. Then he took some seaweed and used that as a wrapper and rolled up a burrito looking thing with the seed mixture, some carrots and greens, and some sauce (possibly horseradish) and gave me one to try. It was very tasty and very filling. There may have been some other ingredients i don't remember.
He was enjoying lots and lots of fruits while on his day off and seemed to me to be eating better than many people on the trail.
Yeah, it probably takes a lot of extra work but it was definitely something that was working for him and he seemed very healthy.
Doug has a lot of experience in raw food and taught some of the techniques and recipes at a place where i first met him in 98. I think highly of him for trying something different and new and proving that something he strongly believes in can and will work.
fiddlehead, that sounds great! It would be nice to be able to mix raw foods into the hiking diet, without a massive amounts of town stops. I forgot about the sea weed wraps. TW, thanks for the link!
How do you feel about the great dehydration debate amongst raw food purists that say dehydrators that rise above 145 degrees is in actuality cooking the food?...amused. The world needs a little more silliness, and this fits the bill just right. Thanks.
Weeeelllll....if you ever watch "Good Eats" with Alton Brown, he shows how you can make a homemade "dehydrator" with a box fan and furnace screens ... and you dry with cold air, not heat ;) He put the food on the new screens, put another screen ontop and when all piled up, he used bungee cords to hold it all on.
Lanthar Mandragoran
09-22-2005, 10:20
Weeeelllll....if you ever watch "Good Eats" with Alton Brown, he shows how you can make a homemade "dehydrator" with a box fan and furnace screens ... and you dry with cold air, not heat ;) He put the food on the new screens, put another screen ontop and when all piled up, he used bungee cords to hold it all on.
I remember seeing that episode... pretty cool...
Thanks sarbar for the info, when you 'rehydrate' the cold dehydrated food, is it usually done with cold water? Also wonder if it affects the enzymes or nutritional value of the items. I'm looking at dehydrators now, I realize there are lots of opinons here on WB about them, so I'll look around.
Thanks sarbar for the info, when you 'rehydrate' the cold dehydrated food, is it usually done with cold water? Also wonder if it affects the enzymes or nutritional value of the items. I'm looking at dehydrators now, I realize there are lots of opinons here on WB about them, so I'll look around.Ya know, never crossed my mind ;) But yeah, Dehydrated food will come back with cold water-it just takes a lot longer (ie..put veggies in a container of water at least 30 minutes before eating time!)
This past weekend was my first on AT raw food experiment, it went over like a charm, did a few interesting things with food, and think it can be done! If you want to read my trip report you can do so at My Trailjournal (http://www.trailjournals.com/smile)
I'll be doing a few week long shake downs, adding a day on each end to see how the food holds up, and researching more alternatives.
I heard others have tried and failed, true?
fiddlehead
10-18-2005, 22:14
Smile: You should email Doug at the rawhike.com site. He's a heck of a nice guy and i'm sure would be glad to help you. He was a teacher of nutrition and raw diets when i met him in 98. He knows a lot about different raw foods and has now done both the PCT and CDT on raw food only. He eats pretty damn good!
Thanks fiddlehead, yes I saw his site and emailed, waiting to hear back ;-)
Yum, I liked the way I felt eating raw too. Not weighed down....
mweinstone
01-29-2006, 16:43
two thru hikers i walked with in PA one summer went all the way raw.each night they came to the shelter and pulled out a large salad bowl and heads of cabbage and sliced veggies for about 40 minutes untill they had a complete protien salad.in the morn they made yogurt every day. its so so so easy. i learned it then and i eat it allways.take any cup of yogurt and add it to milk,rice mikl or any power milk at all .about one cup of yogurt to a quart or more of milk.wait till next day and eat.it rides in a canteen or a bag.and then you make more with the same batch. its so cool to have yogurt all the time.but by far the coolest diet i ever saw was the guy in georgia who thru hiked eating inly milkyway bars and town food.he simply had nothing but 25 milkyway bars on him!and he would dissapeer from the trail at alot of crossings to eat and catch up with me later.i never knew how long his method worked.but he did it from springer to fontanna.
Actually, Go-lite "Coup" uses a mix of mostly raw foods and endurance sport supplements... at least on his fastpacking hikes of 5-10days w/ no resupply.
I believe it would be hard to carry/consume enough calories consistently enough during a thru-hike if you were a raw-foodist. but anything's possible...
Coup did the backpack without resupply on the LT, CT and JMT. His CT hike was 19+ days. His starting pack weight was ~50lbs. By his own admission he was running a calorie deficit and partially subsided by burning extra weight on his frame (I think ketosis is the correct term. An inefficient process for endurance activities).
What he did was quite a bit different because
a) there was no resupply at all (except when he started a new trail)
b) they were relatively short treks
c) he ran calorie deficit. On a short trek (the CT was the longest at just under three weeks) this is not a factor. On a long trek (PCT, AT, CDT) it would be problematic.
For more info:
http://www.golite.com/team/athletes/coup/trails.asp
As for a raw food thru-hike, it certainly is possible. As others have noted, www.rawhike.com (http://www.rawhike.com) is a great resource. But, it takes much discipline, planning and commitment. Just like a thru-hike. :)
Do some research, get some questions answered and be prepared to alter your plans if it does not work like your thought. Sounds like a thru-hike again. :)
Good luck!