Food for three days, what would you buy?

[skylark]

You have just eaten the last of your food for breakfast. You are at the cash register at Wal-Mart. The next resupply is three days down the trail. What is in your shopping cart?

[skylark]

Granola
Nuts
Dried fruit
Pop tarts
Tortillas
Nutella
Foil packs of meat (tuna, spam) about six or eight ounces per day
Instant rice sides -3
Mozzarella sticks
Crackers

[bigcranky]

That's 2 breakfasts, 2 dinners, 3 lunches, and 3 days of snacks. Unless it's very hot outside, here's my cart:


Breakfast:
Box of pop tarts, or small jar of Nutella and some whole wheat tortillas, or some instant oatmeal
Instant coffee packets (Via, if available, otherwise Nestle is ok)

Lunch:
Pack of tuna, bag of pepperoni or salami, 8oz block of Cabot super sharp cheddar
Tortillas (share w/breakfast) or those flat round breads (same)
Mayo and mustard packets
Box of Double Stuff Oreos (yeah, hate on me all you want, these are awesome)
Box of instant drink mix packets, like iced tea or lemonade

Dinner:
2 Knorr noodle and sauce sides, or instant mac and cheese
2 small pouches of meat (chicken, real bacon, tuna, whatever)
Dried veggies of some sort, tomatoes are easiest to find
A nice chocolate bar
Decaf green tea bags

Snacks:
Bag of nuts, bag of dried fruit, bag of M&Ms (make gorp)
a box of bars of some sort, I prefer granola or whatever instead of "energy" bars
Anything else that catches my eye because I'm hungry and shouldn't be shopping (adds a lot of excess weight)

Notes:
Other nonfood resupply stuff as needed: a roll of TP, small container of powder, Purell, first aid supplies, that sort of thing.
The coffee, iced tea, and mayo/mustard packets usually last through several resupplies.
In hot weather I don't bring a stove, and would just double up on lunches and snacks, and bring iced coffee packets.

[garlic08]

I'd want to know how far I was hiking and roughly how much climbing--are talking 45 miles in Florida or 60 miles in Colorado?

My rough estimate is based on miles rather than days, and that's roughly one pound of food per eight to ten miles (I carried eight pounds north into the hundred mile wilderness on the AT, for instance). I buy a mix of carbs (oats, raisins, tortillas, crackers, fig newtons, Little Debbies, etc) and fats (nuts, cheese, peanut butter) to make up the weight. It's probably around 130 cal/oz average (compared to 100 cal/oz for pure carbs, 200 cal/oz for pure fat). I don't really plan meals.

[RED-DOG]

what i would buy for three days:
pasta sides.
tortilla wraps.
peanut butter.
pop-tarts.
snickers.

[Ktaadn]

peanut butter
tortillas
precooked bacon
salami
3 Kind bars
peanut M&M's

[rafe]

Larabars. Pringles (in summer, especially.) Cheese. Pepperoni or summer sausage. Kirkland chocoloate-covered fruits, if you know the temps are going to be under, say, 70F or so. (They do melt in the heat.)

[gregpphoto]

Peanut butter and beer.

[JustaTouron]

Pasta/rice sides
Peanut Butter
Pita bread
Instant oatmeal
Mash potatoes
Beef jerky
Dried fruit
Nuts
Lunch from the hot bar
Friut cup
Salad
Milk
Bananas
Last few items never make it into my pack



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[BirdBrain]

What the great blue heron said (bigcranky).

One detail seems to be missing. Are you going stoveless? The answer ton that question could eliminate many food choices.

[rafe]

Those little kiddie fruit cups are heavy but make a delightful dessert after a hot day of hiking.

[ChrisJackson]

Let's see...three days: 6 cups mixed nuts, 6 spam singles, 6 probars, 6 epic bars, 3 cups couscous, 3 pkgs of salmon (or something with the most fat). That's pretty close. The walmart in my imagination sells probars and epic bars.

[Dogwood]

EASY. Been in this situation too many times to recall. However, I too would want to know the trail terrain ahead, how long of a hike I'm on, how far into it I am, and my fitness and physical condition at the Walmart resupply and when I started. I make regular adjustments en route on a LD thru-hike in my eating/nutritional habits as these characteristics often change on lengthy hike.

For a 3 day in 3 season conditions the rest of my kit would be really UL so I could afford to balance it out a bit with some heavier food choices. I'd definitely be adding in some fresh fruits and vegetables especially greens(kale, mustard, collards, swiss chard, spinach,etc), green onions, mini peppers, broccoli/broccolini, garlic, avocado, cucumber, radishes, mushrooms, etc

Wally Worlds definitely have some regional food choice variations in stock. Some Wally Worlds have been increasing their marketing of organic healthier IMO products. If I was cooking and it was hot outside I would be going w/ a cold b'fast. For b'fast maybe some dried unsulfured fruit, Lara bars(ME LOVE their filling Cashew Cookie variety!), cold oatmeal doctored up with nuts/seeds/fruit/crystalized ginger(found in the spice racks)/cinnamon, Belvita B-fast Biscuits or a Bear Naked Granola based bar smeared with a nut butter/tahini/hummus and a handful of made trail mix. I've seen some Wally Worlds carrying various nut butters made by Justin's and Peanut Butter & Co in 1.15 oz squeeze packets. Trail mixes are usually nuts, dried coconut/fruits from the bakery/snack aisles at WW. The smaller packs of pine, macadamia, pecan, walnuts, cashew pieces etc are very fairly priced and seem to move fast enough at WW that they are reasonably fresh enough. Some WW's have carried Let's Do Organic Edward & Sons Unsweetened Coconut Flake. This company also makes a delicious dehydrated Miso/Tofu/Seaweed Soup sometimes found in WW's in single serving packets or a box of 4 single serving packets and a coconut bar using for cooking or flavoring dinners while jumping the fat content.

Usually in the produce section of Wally Worlds I find delicious Sahale Snacks. If you get a chance try the Valdosta Pecans and Pomegranite Vaniila Cashews(yum yum). http://sahalesnacks.com/products/nut-blends/ Some WW's also have single serving package sizes of Sahale Snacks. In the same area I would look for Calbee Non GMO Snap Pea Crisps(I like the lightly salted and Ceasar selections) and Lentil Snaps(I like the onion thyme and tomato basil varieties). The Lentil Snaps are harder to find in that I've found only a few WW's carry the Lentil Snaps. http://harvestsnaps.com In the produce area I find Odwalla(Go Mega, Super Protein, and Berry Blast varieties. In the same area of the Odwalla Bars in the produce section of WW you'll find a brand I'm not recalling offering Sesame seed and Nut bars. All these bars are reasonably priced in the same ballpark comparatively priced to Snickers or Pop Tarts.

WW's also carry KIND/Strong&Kind, Bear Naked, Balance, some Cliff(White Chocolate Macadamia Nut is my favorite but many Cliff bars are loaded with added sugars that I feel, have to be balanced out with other foods or noshed quite slowly to avoid some energy bonking), and Luna bars(get over it, males can eat them too!, I haven't grown any breasts yet as result of mixing a few Luna bars into my trail food bags) which I find all acceptable for a short term resupply.

Might throw in some Anne Chung's Wasabi variety seaweed snacks to round out the trail snacks.

WW's have CHEAP Wild Salmon and Flavored StarKist and BumbleBee Tuna packets. The tuna packets in olive oil have the highest cal/oz ratios with good non ho hum flavor in the Chipotle & Olive Oil, Sundried Tomato & Olive Oil, Jalepeno & Olive Oil, and Yellowtail Tuna in Olive Oil(GREAT low price at WW!) varieties. Since this is only a three day food supply I may take along some canned Smoked Baby Clams, Petite Oysters in Safflower Oil, smoked herring, and/or Sardines in Olive oil, too. IMO, by far the BEST Sardines in Olive Oil are the King Oscar brand Two Layer in 100% Olive Oil(small, many, and tasty!). I eat a lot of fatty sustainable fishes mainly adhering to a pesce vegetarian diet. The BEST tasting tunas are the Albacore and Yellowtail in Olive Oil. Wild Planet has GREAT tasting sustainably caught canned fish varieties acceptable for trail use as well which are carried by a very few WWs.

To that while on trail where I might want some added protein I might rarely throw in some Perky Jerky Turkey in the Sweet and Spicy variety or Krave Turkey jerky in the Citrus & Basil or Garlic & Lime varieties. http://perkyjerky.com/what-is-perky-jerky, https://www.kravejerky.com/p/lemon-garlic-turkey-jerky. Under a three day food scenario I also wouldn't be averse to hauling some smoked packaged Non nitrite/nitrate containing wild candied salmon found in some WW fish department areas.

Dinners are easy. Some doctored up non hydrogenated oil containing mashed potatoes(starting out with plain mashed tatters and taking it in the taste direction you individually want to go is a better healthier alternative!), a Knorrs/Lipton side(Teriyaki Noodles or Rice are a nice change, some questionable ingredients IMO), UDON Somen BUCKWHEAT Noodles(w/ PB, non MSG containing soy sauce packets, fresh green onions, and some red pepper flakes), Simply Asia Thai Kitchen Rice Noodles in Spring Onion variety, and/or a box of Annie's Organic shells and white cheddar might be included.

WW's also sell tasty single serving packets(at some stores) of Cuginos, Sushi Chef Miso, and Bear Creek dehydrated soups which can be used to flavor meals yourself or be doctored up to create a larger more nutritionally dense dinner.

ChrisJackson, I've scanned extensively in WW's for ProBars and EPIC bars. I've only found a handful of WW's across the U.S. that had VERY LIMITED supplies of ProBars.

[Dogwood]

Some Wally Worlds carry Seeds of Change Whole Grain mixes like parboiled Quinoa and Brown Rice, Seven Whole Grains, Caribbean Style rice, etc that pair well with Taste of India, Taste of Thai, Kitchens of India, or Annie Chung Asian and Indian inspired meals. It is after all only a three day food supply so I wouldn't be as concerned with carrying one days heavier food opps for a long mileage day's dinner.

http://www.walmart.com/search/?query=seeds%20of%20change&typeahead=seeds%20

[Dogwood]

Gosh, you guys are so boring with your ho hum as usual food choices. So many other options even for a picky eater like myself at WW.

[Tipi Walter]

Walmart has a million choices and what could it matter? Just for three days? Heck, you could fast from food for that amount of time and still be ready to hike. Or if you're just carrying a measly 3 day food load, (what? 6 extra lbs??), well, grab a cantaloupe and an avocado and some grapes and maybe a plastic bottle of fruit juice and some cheese oh and even a watermelon. Who cares?

[Harrison Bergeron]

Easy. One Mountain House chili-mac 2 serving pak. One Mountain House beef stew 2 serving pak. 3 packets of instant oatmeal and apples. 3 pita pockets. 3 tuna salad packets.4 Cliff bars. One small bag of trail mix.4 ounces of premium coffee,3 packets of half and half.

[ZenRabbit]

Peanut butter and beer.

Beer is a food in my book. :)

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[plexusbritt]

3 knorr sides of different flavors

Dehydrated retried beans

A few various foil packaged meats

Whole wheat tortillas

Instant oat meal

Trail mix to dump in oatmeal

Fruit leather

Snack sized snickers

Raisins




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[Dogwood]

Walmart has a million choices and what could it matter? Just for three days? Heck, you could fast from food for that amount of time and still be ready to hike. Or if you're just carrying a measly 3 day food load, (what? 6 extra lbs??), well, grab a cantaloupe and an avocado and some grapes and maybe a plastic bottle of fruit juice and some cheese oh and even a watermelon. Who cares?

Some would care because three days of hiking don't always entail hiking 25 miles total over those three days. For some, three days hiking could represent 80+ miles of travel possibly over strenuous terrain with a huge three day food wt negatively affecting ones ability to comfortably cover that distance. The more one carries the more it often can affect footing, balance, mental attitude, etc or lead to slips or falls especially on strenuous terrain or under foul weather hiking conditions. And, the hike is not over at the next resupply. By taking on a huge overly burdensome high volume three day food wt it can negatively affect longer term physical ability possibly impairing the finishing or greater enjoyment of the hike or possibly aggravating or leading to additional medical concerns. Not all backpackers are as fit as you or as accustomed to carrying the huge heavy voluminous loads as you or hike your typical daily mileage or backpack with your hiking philosophy. :p

[Odd Man Out]

Breakfast. Fruit bats. Cheese. Salami. Instant coffee.
Lunch. Tortillas. PB. Jam
Supper. Black bean rice lentils. Cheese Tortellini with sauce mix. Mac and cheese.
Snacks. Jerky. Trail mix. chocolate
Bed time. Jasmine green tea.

[garlic08]

Breakfast. Fruit bats...

I love fruit bats for breakfast :eek:.

[BirdBrain]

My list is very predictable. I eat the same thing every day while on the trail.

Breakfast: 2 packages of sugary instant oatmeal. Starbucks Via
Morning snack: 2 Snickers Peanut Butter Squared bars
Gorp: 2oz each of macadamia nuts, cashews, and Reese's Pieces
Afternoon snack: 2 Bridgford pepperoni sticks
Supper: 2 cheesy bacon macaroni Knorrs Sides. Starbucks Via

If it is 3 days, you only need 2 breakfasts and 2 suppers. The rest you need 3 of everything.

My food on the trail is about calorie density and nutrition. Taste is secondary. Tree bark would taste good after a while. I get a little over 3000 calories per day out of this mix and it weighs 1.3 lbs per day.

[rickb]

Great ideas above, and similar to our norm.

This past 4-day weekend we took a different approach, and went "no cooking" for the first time ever. Still took a stove for Mount Haggen instant coffee, and tea.

Friday night dinner was a veggie burrito from "Burrito Me" in Plymouth, NH. Never did that before -- best trail meal ever.

Lunch was tortillas or crackers and hard cheddar or almond butter. But we also took carrots and celery, which held up great and were most welcome.

We had several kinds of prepackaged Sausages/Chorizo for dinner to eat with more tortillas and carrots and celery sticks, but switched things up and decided to have those for breakfast-- the thought being that we might be better powered by having our protein in th AM and Carbs at night.

Somehow it worked.

Our breakfasts - which we had at night -- were bowls of store-bought muscelli with a diced apple a diced pear and a bit of real maple syrup carried in one of those supper small Nalgene bottles from REI. Just plain cold water on top.

And salt (thanks McD's).

A few packs of nuts for snacks, and that was it.

Since this was different for us, it was fun and great for the hot weather. The apples, pears, carrots and cellery added weight but were amazing. Weather was perfect so we had light packs to start and we didn't have to hump much water so we did't feel it too bad.

We never carried salt in the past, but now I am thinking I will never go without. I am a slow learner.

We also did something that I expect no thru hiker has ever done, and perhaps no weekender either.

We took several pair of disposable food service gloves to use when cutting up the fruit and sausage and cheese. Crazy, right? But you know, it worked. In a communal cooking situation (even if that community is just with the spouse) with fresh foods, I think I stumbled on to something big :-).

[Odd Man Out]

I love fruit bats for breakfast :eek:.

On my last trip I only had the salami and cheese for breakfast and decided I wanted/craved some carbs for breakfast so I am adding the fruit bats for the next trip. Or is that fruit BARS ;-)

[dzierzak]

Fruit bats have a nice crunch...

[RangerZ]

Fruit bats have a nice crunch...

Protein plus carbs

[Kenai]

Awesome meal selections Dogwood. I love spicy flavorful food. You got my mouth watering just reading your post. Gonna have to try those Wasabi snacks.

[Kenai]

Where do you get your fruit bats Garlic? ;)