Eating Junk On the trail

[T.S.Kobzol]

Just an observation after reading journals of NOBO through hikers ... I understand that this is old news to most here but I am still puzzled at the prevalence of hikers eating bad food while on the trail. The amount of processed food (soda, burgers, fries etc...) consumed day in and day out is staggering. Most hikers pretty much hurry to check into a motel as often as possible and then hit the junk food establishments. Reading AT journals is more like reading Camino de Santiago trail logs but with lousy food choices.



I have yet to see a journal of someone who is really eating healthy food on a regular basis.

[Lone Wolf]

14 years of long distance walking and eating bad food probably contributed to my heart attack and quadruple by-pass

[flemdawg1]

Most hikers (or even Americans) equate healthy with their weight. If you're losing weight, then you need more food. Junk food is the cheapest fastest and tastiest way to restore those calories burned off while walking between town stops.

If I could find an organic pizza or burger stand in town I'd hit it.

[Chaco Taco]

Just an observation after reading journals of NOBO through hikers ... I understand that this is old news to most here but I am still puzzled at the prevalence of hikers eating bad food while on the trail. The amount of processed food (soda, burgers, fries etc...) consumed day in and day out is staggering. Most hikers pretty much hurry to check into a motel as often as possible and then hit the junk food establishments. Reading AT journals is more like reading Camino de Santiago trail logs but with lousy food choices.



I have yet to see a journal of someone who is really eating healthy food on a regular basis.

There are plenty of people that eat "healthy". Lots of people eat there own meals. I do agree that mostly you see and hear about the junk food.
Some places are trying to clean it up a bit as well. But when you have a greasy spoon right down the road, it's a no brainer.

[RedBeerd]

I follow a very healthy diet and preparing food for my Long Trail thru hike which is 1/5 of an AT hike is very time consuming! Makes it much harder but I dont think I have to settle for crap. If a healthy diet is important enough then people will make it work on the trail..hard to beat convenience and price to calorie ratio of junk food..id rather come out malnourished than eat processed junk for 5 months..

[T.S.Kobzol]

I wonder if it is even possible to find healthy food while in town along the AT. It must be a challenge.

[flemdawg1]

Yep, convenience is def a HUGE factor here. I have 2 big sections in the next month and a half. I could:
a. Spend the next few weeks spending lots of $ and time assembling organic ingredients. Then cooking dehydrating and bagging up healthy meals for maildrops.
b. Spend 30 minutes in Walmart the morning I leave buying Knorr sides, instant oatmeal, Snickers, and jerky. And it costs 1/3 of what it would've to cook from scratch organically.

In town I could hit a nice restaraunt that serves fresh veggies or the burger palace down the street for 1/4 the costs (there's tomato and lettuce, veggies right? & fries!).

Its all about convenience and costs!

[Spokes]

Hmmmm, come to think of it, I've never seen a chuck wagon on the trail or Jamie Oliver for that matter. However I once saw a wannabe thru hiker that carried fresh asparagus in a Nalgene bottle. Ranted on and on about living a healthy lifestyle. He never finished.

[Old Boots]

You have apparently not hiked the At or you would know how much you begin to obsess while hiking about pizza and burgers and steak and veggies and fruit. In town you just consume as much as you can because you know it may be a while before you have some again. It's just the way it is. For some folks that goes for beer as well, I might add.

[WingedMonkey]

The accepted standard today is for the hiker to carry as little food as possible and to cook as little as they can get by with, or they will be called a "camper".
This leads to the constant need to "hit town" as often as one is assessable. I see and read now of hikers hitching or shuttling to town just to get a burger or pizza or anything to eat, not to mention the use of cell phones to order one to the trail.
Some of the most often given advise is that you only need to carry two or three days of food now.
I personally am not happy with that many stops, but it works for others.
Probably won't kill you for five or six months, but if that diet was your style before AND after you hike, it might.

[T.S.Kobzol]

not apparent.

I have section hiked most of the Maine and New Hampshire AT and yes I have hiked long consecutive days (never more than 17 days in the row as my vacation did not allow for longer trips) and yes I know what it feels like when you get to a grocery store after 2 weeks in the woods, how you want to just bury your face in a fresh tomato and any other food that was not available on the trail.

But we're not really talking about that are we. Most hikers go 2 days and then they hit the town (repeat, repeat, repeat) unless there are longer sections.

[lemon b]

When one gets hungry enough they will eat whatever they can get their hands on. My experience is that after hiking for weeks I am powerless over food. I see it I eat it. Don't even think about the good for me end.

[T.S.Kobzol]

This obviously also falls under : if you don't eat healthy off the trail then you won't eat healthy on the trail. Just wondering who has through hiked and falls under these two categories? :

1.) Regularly eat healhy food when not hiking but when I through hiked I let my self go and ate anything in sight

2.) Regularly eat healhy food when not hiking but when I through hiked I managed to choose healthy food majority of the hiking time

[flemdawg1]

Define healthy.

[T.S.Kobzol]

Good Question. No fried foods, food without added chemicals, flavoring, coloring or preservatives.

Define healthy.

[T.S.Kobzol]

To expand the inquiry even more: Has anyone who has Celiac disease (Gluten Intolerance) through hiked the entire AT and how did they deal with it?

[jeffmeh]

Define healthy.

Bingo. We have Bingo.

[T.S.Kobzol]

Defined Above: No Fried Foods. No foods with added chemicals, flavoring, coloring or preservatives.

Bingo. We have Bingo.

[Old Boots]

I ate an average of 2 cliff bars and 4 snicker bars a day while hiking, instant oatmeal for breakfast, ramen and salmon knorr sides, tortillas with peanut butter and nutella. I never eat that stuff at home. I ran into 1 hiker for whom cooking on the trail was important. He had grains, pasta, nuts, veggies, spices and herbs and he carried a 70 lb. pack. It depends on what helps you HYOH.

[oddbird]

Well, I am not sure what you mean by healthy, but Oddbird is eating very little junk food because he is eating gluten and dairy free. No pizza, beer, or ice cream; but he does eat bacon & eggs and bunless burgers. He gets excited about fresh veg and fruit (broccoli, citrus, bananas) in town, but to maintain his weight (which takes about 4000 calories a day) the veg and fruit don't add a lot to the total calorie count. He's carrying most of his food and to get the most calories per ounce, he eats a lot of fat (pemmican and ghee) with GF pastas, dehydrated sweet potatoes, kale and pasta sauce, some hardtack. Details on the special diets thread.

-Mrs Oddbird