On most of my backpacking trips, I have relied pretty heavily on energy bars. My usual choice is Clif Bars, which I know some people hate but which seem palatable to me over long periods of time. I wasn't even sick of them after the Colorado Trail eating two or three each day.
The trouble with energy bars is that they do not have a great weight to calorie ratio (Clif Bars are barely 100 calories per ounce) probably partly due to excessive packaging. In addition, unless purchased in bulk somewhere like Wal Mart or Amazon, they can be ridiculously expensive especially in small trail towns. I have paid as much as $3 for a Clif Bar. Needless to say, this would get annoying fast on my upcoming PCT thru hike if I stick with my habit of eating 2-3 of these per day. I plan to buy as I hike as much as possible so I need things that are available in nearly any small grocery store.
So I'm looking for alternatives to energy bars. One easy choice that I'm evaluating is loose granola like the kind you buy in the cereal aisle. Usually 10-12 ounce packages can be purchased for $3-4 in most grocery stores. Here is a comparison between a Clif Bar and the loose granola:
Clif Bar
240 Calories
5 grams fat
43 grams carbs
5 grams fiber
10 grams protein
weighs 2.5 ounces
96 calories per ounce
cost: $0.99-$3.00 per bar
Nature Valley Oats & Honey Protein Granola
Serving size: 50 grams (1.76 ounces)
210 calories
4.5 grams fat
32 grams garbs
3 grams fiber
10 grams protein
119 calories per ounce
cost per serving: ~$0.60
If we ramp up the loose granola to be the same weight as the Clif Bar, the result is nearly 300 calories, 6.4 grams of fat, 45 grams of carbs, 4.2 grams of fiber and 14 grams of protein.
So it seems to me that switching from Clif Bars to some type of loose granola is a no brainer. Perhaps I'll throw in some loose raisins into the mix as well.
I normally have two Clif Bars as snacks during the day so I could instead make a five ounce bag of granola and eat off that during the day. Additionally, I always have a nut based snack - either pecans, almonds and fancier nuts if reasonably priced, or peanuts if not. That snack has a ton of calories and protein and is very weight efficient.
I've also thought of switching to jars of peanut butter, something I haven't done much of in the past. That might offer the best price and weight performance of all.
Any thoughts to break the energy bar "addiction" would be welcome!