View Full Version : Time for me to buckle down.
Roughin' It
10-19-2009, 19:45
I am planning a thru-hike for spring 2010 and would consider myself on the right track as far as gear and fitness and plans are concerned.
BUT one thing which I am worried about (maybe scared?) is the entire cooking spectrum of the trail. I am a 22 year old male, living with 3 roommates, and barely getting by right now as far as feeding myself goes. As you can imagine, 4 college age guys don't exactly cook grand meals and swap recipes every week. So in everyday life I tend to settle alot when it comes to dinner time.
As I am getting excited about the thru-hike, I just dont know how to plan for food and cooking on the trail. Right now my stove is a Jetboil PCS, but honestly I haven't cooked many things in it that I consider a challenge at all. BASICALLY, I just want to know from some people: what the heck do you guys eat on the trail that involves your stove? Do I have a good stove for a thru-hike? I feel like a complete newbie, so any help would be great.
Mitch
Many Walks
10-19-2009, 20:02
Never fear, you have choices. You can go cookless, leave the Jetboil weight at home, just buy along the way and eat bars, tortillas, peanut butter, gorp, english muffins, bagels, cheese, salami, etc. and never have to cook. If you want the hot meals there are tons of dehydrated sides (Knorr and others) or freeze dried (Mountain House and the like) that simply require boiling a couple of cups of water. That should be no problem. If you want to learn to cook more and eat better on the trail check out the food and cooking forums on WB to learn a lot. Just don't worry about starving on the trail. You'll be hungry and will probably lose weight, but you can still eat light on the trail and pig out at the numerous town stops and food purveyors along the way. Enjoy your hike!
Lipton sides and rice-a-roni do double duty as a hot meal in school or on the trail. Just add hot water.
When it's cold, a hot breakfast (oatmeal or grits) and a hot dinner are worth the time and trouble. Don't forget Ramen noodles and instant potatoes as basic carb pots. Then add a pack of tuna or chicken for variety. When it turns warm, sending the stove home should be considered. Don't worry - you'll do fine. Mango
Like the others have said. Usually it's "add boiling water, stir, eat" but Sarbar & a few others have great sites with "Real food" that is still: add water stir eat. I suggest you practice with your stove a bit more, even the jet boil as easy as it is. Practice setting it up with gloves on, granted you may never actually wear gloves when using your stove, but I can nearly guarantee you will start it some day with way COLD fingers & the gloves will sort of simulate that in terms of dexterity.
Have a great hike!
Snowleopard
10-19-2009, 21:55
For food: Try things at home first, breakfast, lunch and dinner. Go on local hikes and eat what you're thinking of using on your thru-hike. Go for a breakfast hike.
Sarbar, dicentra and LaurieAnn are expert, have websites with recipes and have written books. Look for them on the Food forum.
garlic08
10-20-2009, 01:47
Food can be as simple or as complex as you want it to be. As mentioned above, you don't even need to cook, especially on an AT hike. Lots of options in grocery stores and convenience stores along the way. Lots of restaurants and delis, too. I did no cooking or food mail drops on my AT thru last year and it worked very well. I haven't cooked on a hike in quite a few years, and that frees up more time for me to hike.
Camping Dave
10-20-2009, 08:27
Practice with your stove 2 or 3 times a week starting now. Cook reasonably nutritious, reasonably palatable meals using ingredients you can buy in a convenience store or small grocery.
Gray Blazer
10-20-2009, 08:40
Lots of no cook items to bring, also. Apples travel well in your pack. They come in handy for afternoon snacks when you are on a long uphill or haven't rewatered. I use some hard bread to make sandwiches. Some people bring wraps for their p-nut butter and jelly. Cheese travels well, especially in resealable packs. I also use those 69cent packages of ham. You can get condiments in small packets also. Don't forget trail mix.I know posters on here will give you lots of options. Peace out.
warraghiyagey
10-20-2009, 08:42
Apples are heavy. . .
bigcranky
10-20-2009, 08:57
A stove is a good thing to have early in the hike when the weather is cold. The Jetboil is fine.
For breakfast, you'll probably start with the ever popular instant oatmeal. Adding some dried fruit and powdered milk makes it healthier. Instant grits are also good, especially with bacon and cheese. In March in Georgia, it's cold enough that a hot breakfast is a big deal.
For lunch, I just eat cold food. I like to wrap stuff in tortillas -- peanut butter and honey, or tuna and cheese, that sort of thing.
Dinner is mostly noodles or rice "sides" from the grocery store -- Knorr Noodles and Sauce are good -- try the Teriyaki noodles. I often add a packet of chicken or tuna. You'll definitely want to test this in your Jetboil before you hit the trail, to make sure it all fits.
Don't worry too much about the whole food prep thing. You'll be able to make adjustments as you go.
Gray Blazer
10-20-2009, 09:00
Apples are heavy. . .
My brother ..... he ain't heavy.
I've heard of a guy who planned to eat only gorp (trail mix) the whole time. I would think he would have had irregularity problems.:eek:
warraghiyagey
10-20-2009, 09:03
My brother ..... he ain't heavy.
Maybe, but it's a long, long road. . . .
A box of Mac and Cheese with bacon bits was a favorite for my wife Tag-along and I. It's easy to cook. Add extra cheese for more calories.
Take a very small container of Chipotle power. A pinch or two in any dish really kicks the flavor up a notch.
We premixed breakfast shakes, each in a liter Gatorade bottle, every night and hung them in our bear bag. Each shake consisted of 2-3 Instant Breakfast packets, Muscle Mike protein powder, and NEDO whole milk powder. This worked out very well for us, ensuring 600-700 calories (or more), while getting us out of camp quickly in the morning.
Don't worry. You will quickly learn from others on the trail. Observe fellow hikers' food prep around dinnertime.
Getting accustomed to your stove before departing is very sound advice. The Jetboil is on the heavy side, but thru hikers using it (that we travelled with) liked it.
Enjoy your hike! Our thru hike is one of the best things we've ever done!
Roughin' It
10-20-2009, 21:08
thanks guys for all of your help, you actually make it seem feasible.
Blissful
10-20-2009, 21:30
If you can boil water and follow directions on a package of Liptons, you can cook. It's a no brainer. Cooking is nothing. :)
Check out other threads for food items hikers bring.
Wise Old Owl
10-20-2009, 21:34
Junk food - and hikers swear by it....
Gray Blazer
10-20-2009, 21:35
Maybe, but it's a long, long road. . . .
From which there is no return....
Gray Blazer
10-20-2009, 21:41
Apples are heavy. . .
It's like hitting myself in the head with a hammer. It feels really good when I stop.
I wondered why my pack feels so much lighter after I eat those 5 apples over 4 days. I thought I was getting stronger.
I likes my apples (Golden Delicious-they are usaully firmer and less likely to get bruised).
If you can boil water and follow directions on a package of Liptons, you can cook. It's a no brainer. Cooking is nothing. :)
Check out other threads for food items hikers bring.
Cooking is something. Boiling water is nothing... just had to clarify. :)
ShelterLeopard
10-21-2009, 13:53
I haven't read any of the responses to your thread, but I know there's going to be some good advice in there, and I hope I don't repeat too much of it.
PS- This will be long, and a bit all over the place, I'm really tired today.
I am also doing a 2010 thru (starting in February), and I'm only planning food for the first month, because I have no idea what I'll be craving after a month of hiking and pasta.
Korr (or is it Knorr?) has excellent Pasta Sides and Rice Sides. You could probably live happily on different variations of those for a while, there are SO many different kinds- see your "prepared foods" section of the grocery store, the bigger the store, the more choices.
(Seriously, lots of choices- pasta alfredo, pasta with broccoli, different types of pasta, different sauces and cheeses, garlic bowtie pasta, pasta with vegetables, asian noodles, etc..., rice with mushrooms, taco rice, fried rice, so much more)
And packaged fish, like tuna and salmon are full of protein and are really good on top of the rice dishes, like rice and mushrooms. (But not so good alone- it all tastes pretty much like tuna)
Ramen is good for when you're cold, because soup is just good. And it's cheap and light. But don't bring too much, you'll get sick of it quickly.
Dried soups- tomatoe, potatoe, etc...
Oatmeal and couscous for breakfast. (I got sick of granola SOO fast on a three week hike a couple years ago, I still can't eat it without gagging)
When I go a bit further, I bring bacon (frozen in colder weather, already cooked in warmer weather), biscuit mix (bisuick biscuits cook really well in a camp fire/twiggy fire and taste great), cornbread, pancakes are always good.
Also, lots of SNICKERS. And other candy bars. And chocolate. Etc...
You don't need only dried foods- fresh food works very well, buy it in town, it's good for several days, usually. And I tend not to cook too often in the mornings- I usually eat a snickers and cook later. But when I'm in the mood for it, I cook pancakes.
See you on the trail!
datadog314
10-22-2009, 21:26
I also use the Jetboil and personally, I love that thing. I fully realize, it's alittle heavier than some of the other stoves but, when you need two cups of water boiled quickly, Jetboil does the job.
I'm a huge fan of a decent cup of coffee. This week I started using something called a teaball, my wife found it and turned me on to it. I use dark roast coffe....boil the water and dunk the teaball a few times, then hook it to the side of the cup, and it steeps while I drink..............quick, easy, kick-ass cup of coffee.
If I add 3 cups of water, I quickly have a hot bowl of "Belly-rub" oatmeal AND a hot cup of coffee. So easy, even a caveman can do it.