Dont forget to eat your conscious.Originally Posted by atmilkman
As long as it isn't my food when I need it, I do not care. But their varity sure must be limited.
I have a number of detailed gear lists with weights and cost for U/L, summer lt. weight and 3 season. Weighrs between 11.5 and 15 lbs. If interested, send me a PM with your email and I will forward.
5 days of food is max that i carried except in the 100 mile wilderness i carried more max weight in winter time with 2 liters of h20 is 30 lbs a good rule if you dont put your hands on it at least once a day you dont need to pack it (with exception of first aid kit/meds if you are carrying 55 lbs you need to rethink you pack list
I don't see any glamour in staying out 250 miles. What that ability does, is let you access areas on foot, that heavier slower people cannot. In fact, I appreciate a nice bed shower, laundry, and real food every week or so. High mileage days do wear you down IMO.
On the last 115 mile stretch of the JMT, I finished with 3 days food left in my bear can. A lot of people have to be resupplied in that stretch by packers. I could have pushed that to around 170 miles on 8 days food. Started that stretch with 25 lb pack including 2l water and 2 lb bear can.
How does keeping your base weight lower equate to a higher "carried" weight?
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carried weight is what's on your back. Base weight is everything other than food, water and consumables that is carried in your pack.
I just skimmed the responses to your original post. Seems "base weight" vs actual "carry weight" has been explained. One thing I didn't see mentioned (may have just missed it) was a caution that many folks, myself included, often over estimate the food they need/want. I dare say, for 90% of the AT, none of us will risk starvation if we miss a day or two of meals. Keep that in mind. Yeah, you don't want to be hungry, but there is little chance of you suffering any severe issues if you under estimate a bit.
Take three meals a day, enough food for a mid-morning snack and a mid-afternoon snack each day, then add a small bag of trail mix or hard candy for some in-between fuel. In the beginning, it's a good idea to portion out each meal into plastic bags before you hit the trail. That way you won't be carrying a lot of extra. Stick with that for the first couple of legs of your trip and you will soon learn how you want to adjust. For your first four days, your food should be around 8 or 10 lbs. That would be a generous amount. Make sure to incorporate high-energy food like nuts and peanut butter.
This is soooooooo true, way to much carried food out there. If my pack isn't essentially empty of food when I walk into a resupply town, I consider it a failure to plan properly. If it takes longer to get to the next resupply point than planned for, I simply stretch out the food consumption a tad and run very slightly lean for a day or two; easy to make up in town. All I have to do to feel fine is keep the blood sugar up, meaning I "ration" out my trail snacks (carbs) when I run low.
I know this style isn't for every one, but it sure works well for me in my thousands and thousands of miles of trail history.
We got into a long discussion about running out of food when I was hiking the PCT. Assume you are 4 days from a resupply and are going to run out of food 1 day early. Would you:
1. Eat normally and have 3 "good" days and 1 "hungry" day. (or)
2. Start rationing immediately and eat less over 4 days to avoid running out of food knowing your energy level would be off for 4 days.
(yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes..... I know there are other options but these are the only 2 you have in this game....)
I choose option 2. And, here's why. When I was starting on the AT, going SOBO, there were days here and there that I would get shaky and have to sit down and eat. Also, while pre-training for the AT, I figured out how hard I could push myself before I would bonk, but once at that point, I would have to sit, eat, and drink. It's better to at least have some calories every day, then starve for a full day (IMO).
I would choose number 2 as well. Easy to cut down and still feel good, have energy, and enjoy every day. Mind you, you may end up eating oatmeal for supper or Mac and Cheese for breakfast - no problem.
As part of a job I had many years ago, I intentionally backpacked the mountains of western PA for over forty miles in three days without eating anything - water only. The first day was relatively bad, after that not all that uncomfortable, your body adjusts. Yeah, energy levels dropped, but was still functioning fine. That was an excellent lesson for me, one that has stuck.
Interesting! I would choose option 1.
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Of course our bodies are all different, but I find that when I "ration" and stretch 3 days of food into 4 (for example), my energy level doesn't suffer at all; I'm hungrier, of course, but I find as long as I keep carbs in my bloodstream, my energy levels are fine. The body is amazing in it's ability to regulate your energy levels; I suppose this is simply an evolutionary trait; our distant ancestors probably didn't eat every day, feast and famine, I suppose was common.
See my post above. My experience, Day one of not eating was the worst day. That is my reason for choosing Option 2.
As long as you have enough food to just cut down a bit, I believe one could remain quite comfortable.
I would choose option 2. I have bonked out a few times when I have cut back on food, either intentionally or unintentionally (by forgetting to eat while hiking in the rain).
But I would probably try another approach: try to hike the 4 planned days in 3 days if possible without risk of injury.
Just wanted to add. Trying to stretch out little food for several days probably wouldn't work. On our trip going without food was voluntary, minimal food (two hands full of peanuts per day) was available. The folks who chose to eat the peanuts were miserable the entire three days. Their bodies never adjusted to not eating like those of us who did not eat adjusted. As a result, they felt like we did the first day during the entire hike.
In the situation you presented, however, stretching three days food to four or even five days, probably would not be a problem. At least it wouldn't for me.
I'd rather have 3 normal days and spend day 4 fantasizing about what I was going to eat when I got to town. Going a day without food is probably a good thing to practice.
A few years ago I started a thread about voluntarily going long stretches without water - I still do that - and it really paid off in the arid sections of the PCT because I had a feel for my limits and knew I wasn't going to die if I ran out of water a few miles from a source.
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I would choose #1.5.
I get the shakes and have very low energy if I don't eat anything but could stretch the last day with little food in the afternoon knowing I would be in town eating shortly.
I understood the difference between base and carry weight, Malto. What I was asking was what items/systems Starchild is talking about that decrease your base weight, but increase your carried weight.
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