View Full Version : No-cook plan
I've been toying around the idea of a no-cook approach. I've thought up a quick menu that sounds good, and am interested in opinions and advice from those who have gone this route.
Breakfast:
Instant Oatmeal/hot chocolate mix
Snacks:
Granola Bars (usually 3/day consumed)
Snickers bar (usually 2/day consumed)
Supper:
Combo's (1 pack)
Ramen (1 pack minus flavor pack - I don't do MSG)
Note: I don't do lunch, ever. I tend to snack all day at home and on the trail.
It totally depends on what works for you. When it comes to food, I recommend different flavors.
Where's your gorp?
I ended up using liquid meals because it was a sure fire way for me to consume lots of macronutrients without gagging and wasting lots of time.
Wise Old Owl
11-16-2010, 22:48
Sorry Joe thats not a plan... we have threads on that before and to be honest, you will be bored with that quite quickly. Try the AT Food planner for fixing it.
I've eaten dry, instant oatmeal for breakfast forever....
I eat 3 granola bars each day, throughout the day
I usually grab a chocolate bar of some sort during the day
Diner, for me, is usually a large salad, peanut butter and crackers, chips and hummus, or mac-n-cheese.
I don't get bored with food. I eat to fuel myself, and I eat what keeps me going best. Boredom is a choice, IMO.
I searched for threads on this.... didn't come up with anything.... will try again.
WOO - Thanks for the input... but I'm looking to hear from those who have gone this route.
Wise Old Owl
11-16-2010, 23:05
That cool Joe - there have been several good thread on this - I am not sure how to search on it but they are all posted in the food forum....
AND CLICK HERE
http://www.amazon.com/Appalachian-Trail-Food-Planner-000-Mile/dp/1889386618/ref=dp_ob_image_bk
Don't know why but this thread reminds me of the guy who thought all Ramen was the same and came in no flavors- He had been throwing out the flavor packets thinking it was an oxygen absorber packet. Too funny.
Yep, whatever works for you but I enjoy at least a good hot beverage on a cold morning to get the bones going before a hike.
Good luck.
Spokes - that's what I've been weighing in my mind. Nothing like a good hot tea/cocoa/etc... on a cold or damp day. But, the simplicity of non-cooking has it's appeal too. So, I've been wondering how'd things would fare to just go without cooking.
I'm heading out for a 3 day trip the end of the month, and think I'll try it out. I was hoping to get a few more ideas, for the record and all.
How much carbs, protein and fat are in your proposed meal?
That's nowhere near enough daily energy for a thru.
Mizirlou
11-17-2010, 06:54
I've been toying around the idea of a no-cook approach. I've thought up a quick menu that sounds good, and am interested in opinions and advice from those who have gone this route.
Joe, check out King Krawler’s (GA-ME 2010) advice on Trail Journals: “I contacted a 2009 thru hiker whose journal I had followed. His advice and suggestions were invaluable.”
http://www.trailjournals.com/entry.cfm?id=331405
A lot of bench warmers on WB (like me) are online to sniff the trail from afar, either laid up from wounds, or in between section hikes, or just generally sniffing in lieu of doing. Find a thru hiker’s journal you like, go to the well and drink up. And FWIW I hate cooking even more than I hate lugging the components. Good luck, Joe, and have a good hike.
max patch
11-17-2010, 07:59
First, nothing wrong with going "no cook" on a thru. I tried it - mailed my stove ahead 3 weeks in CT and tried it myself - and discovered it wasn't for me.
Your proposed diet is lacking in calories and nutrition; supper is woefully inadequate. There are threads where people have listed no cook" diets which you should review.
fiddlehead
11-17-2010, 08:04
About 8 years ago (???) Ray "Wall" Greenlaw set the speed record on the PCT unsupported.
He did it without cooking.
He wrote a book about it called "The Fastest Hike"
I remember that he drank a lot of powdered drinks.
I thought it would be very hard to do but talked to him later and found out he runs a lot and often drinks powdered drinks for his fuel.
Good luck.
I think you will get tired of Ramens and instant oatmeal
daddytwosticks
11-17-2010, 08:20
Do whatever makes you happy. If I were to attempt no cook, I'd still bring a small ti or aluminum mug and an esbit tab or two. Nothing like a hot drink in the morning every now or then or to beat hypothermia. :)
Appalachian Tater
11-17-2010, 08:26
You've got almost zero protein on that menu, maybe a few grams from the peanuts in the Snickers, nuts in the granola bar, and the milk in the hot chocolate. No fruit except maybe some raisins in the granola bar, no vegetables, little protein.
What a horrible thing to do to your body. Why would you want to deliberately subject yourself to malnutrition while hiking over 2,000 miles?
Look up basic nutritional requirements and the components of a balanced diet, then double them and add in some more calories from fat.
garlic08
11-17-2010, 09:09
I'm one of the confirmed no-cook guys. I haven't carried a stove for many years. Here's a link to my diet summary: http://www.trailjournals.com/entry.cfm?id=213108
I say lay off the bars. No need for them--they're expensive and you have to carry the packaging. Make your own cereal with oats, nuts, and dried fruit. Old fashioned oats work just as well for me as instant or quick, and I like the consistency better. Carry good old raisins and peanuts (hey, that spells GORP) in bags instead of bars. Go heavy on the nuts and cheese (and dried meat if you eat it) for protein and fat. A bag of cashews is a real treat, in addition to the gorp. I carry a ramen or two for emergencies or when nothing else is available, but that stuff is pretty nasty on a regular basis. Tortillas (whole grain if available, which is seldom) make a great vehicle for just about anything--cheese, meat, or peanut butter. With the weight I save in fuel, I always justify carrying at least one fresh fruit or veg per day, maybe just a carrot, pepper, or piece of celery.
I went stoveless on my AT thru. It worked fine for me. I lost hardly any weight or muscle mass and came right back to my firefighter job without skipping a beat. It was pretty cheap too. My trail food budget for the AT thru was $800.
I wish someone had told me about stoveless hiking earlier. I learned about it from a guy I met early on the PCT. I started bouncing my stove ahead a few hundred miles at a time, alternating cook with no-cook, and figured out that I like no-cook better.
Joe, I knew a couple thru's last year who ditched their cook kits in lieu of going cold. They all ended up including a lot of power/energy bar/supplements stuff.
As others have mentioned, maintaining your protein intake is important. Don't forget the potassium levels too otherwise those leg muscle of yours will cramp up and make you look like a pretzel on the side of the trail! :D
Keep us posted on what ends up working best for you.
Joe, I knew a couple thru's last year who ditched their cook kits in lieu of going cold. They all ended up including a lot of power/energy bar/supplements stuff.
.......
Obviously I didn't meet garlic08!
You've got almost zero protein on that menu, maybe a few grams from the peanuts in the Snickers, nuts in the granola bar, and the milk in the hot chocolate. No fruit except maybe some raisins in the granola bar, no vegetables, little protein.
What a horrible thing to do to your body. Why would you want to deliberately subject yourself to malnutrition while hiking over 2,000 miles?
Look up basic nutritional requirements and the components of a balanced diet, then double them and add in some more calories from fat.
Thanks, not what I was looking for. I posted twice that I was seeking advice from someone who has done this. You obviously don't qualify, so I don't understand why you attempted to answer my question. There are many things you fail to consider, like town stops and the food that will be gained there. My list was basic, and I was looking for input to supplement it. Please do not reply to my post unless you intend on answering my question. I found your post to simply be annoying, not helpful.
I'm one of the confirmed no-cook guys. I haven't carried a stove for many years. Here's a link to my diet summary: http://www.trailjournals.com/entry.cfm?id=213108
I say lay off the bars. No need for them--they're expensive and you have to carry the packaging. Make your own cereal with oats, nuts, and dried fruit. Old fashioned oats work just as well for me as instant or quick, and I like the consistency better. Carry good old raisins and peanuts (hey, that spells GORP) in bags instead of bars. Go heavy on the nuts and cheese (and dried meat if you eat it) for protein and fat. A bag of cashews is a real treat, in addition to the gorp. I carry a ramen or two for emergencies or when nothing else is available, but that stuff is pretty nasty on a regular basis. Tortillas (whole grain if available, which is seldom) make a great vehicle for just about anything--cheese, meat, or peanut butter. With the weight I save in fuel, I always justify carrying at least one fresh fruit or veg per day, maybe just a carrot, pepper, or piece of celery.
I went stoveless on my AT thru. It worked fine for me. I lost hardly any weight or muscle mass and came right back to my firefighter job without skipping a beat. It was pretty cheap too. My trail food budget for the AT thru was $800.
I wish someone had told me about stoveless hiking earlier. I learned about it from a guy I met early on the PCT. I started bouncing my stove ahead a few hundred miles at a time, alternating cook with no-cook, and figured out that I like no-cook better.
Awesome, exactly what I was looking for. Thanks a million!!!
max patch
11-17-2010, 10:58
[QUOTE=Joe Cross;1069629 Please do not reply to my post unless you intend on answering my question. I found your post to simply be annoying, not helpful.[/QUOTE]
What Appalachian Tater said was spot on. If you don't like the message thats one thing, but you didn't need to shoot the messenger.
It was a negative comment when I was asking for positive feedback from those who have done this - as stated. Negative people annoy me, and I have a habit of annoying them right back by asking them to go away from me.
Thankfully I have two excellent responses that are very helpful. I didn't post out here to listen to "you can't do that" junk, but to hear from those who did it in the manner I am inquiring about, and how.
I think a related question is whether discussion on a particular thread belongs exclusively to what the original poster is interested in; I've been on both sides of that one, not looking to join a debate really, but I think that conflicting assumptions on this point sometimes cause thread unhappiness.
W.r.t. the original point, I don't go cookless, am considering doing so for part of next years trip, but my hiking companions this year went cookless. Lots of tuna and occasionally similarly foil-packaged chicken breasts were consumed. Lucky really liked those little packaged cheese or peanut butter filled crackers. A treat that I recommend, if you do much in the way of resupply boxes, is to get some dehydrated refried beans --- use on a tortilla with olive oil, perhaps crushed corn chips, whatever else you can get such as cheese or whatever. Tasty and nutritious.
I assume you already know the trick of eating pre-packaged oatmeal by putting water right into the packaging. A nice treat, but a lot of packaging.
I don't recall if you mentioned basics like dried fruit or jerky.
One thing I intend to experiment with is getting meals that normally are rehydrated as part of the cooking process, and just rehydrate without cooking, possibly using body heat to make them a little less "cold". How appetizing these turn out to be might well depend on the particular meal in question.
If you feel that you won't get bored with little variety, you might very well be right. I hiked with a fellow that ate nothing but trail bars except for one hot meal for dinner, and at least for short (couple of week) trips he was always happy. Apart from the dinner meal, I don't tend to vary my diet much either, though I do try to carry as much variety as I can in the way of breakfast shake powder, different types of gorp, of dried fruit, even of jerky and certainly trail bars.
On the AT in particular, of course you're right that resupply options are closer together and nutrition can be substantially augmented by just eating in towns a lot along the way.
I actually eat oatmeal dry, straight out of the package, every morning and wash it down with a bit of Tang. With all the different flavors of instant oatmeal, hard to get bored with breakfast.
Same with granola bars. I take 3 with me to get me through my work day. With all the varieties in these types of bars, and the amount of protein that some have, I've managed ok by this for the past 3 1/2 years.
I may stay with a stove as I depend on green tea a lot. Both as a light stimulus, and as an anti-oxidant, as I am not carrying fresh fruit on the trail. When I hit up a town/resupply point I'll munch out on some fruit and yogurt. With the amount of exercise that one gets while hiking, some form of daily anti-oxidant should be included. The granola bars are a great source for this, but I'm not sure if I want to give up the green tea in my diet.
As a note, I have completed 10 marathons. Last year I did the Delaware trail marathon, the Laurel Highlands Ultra, and the Marine Corps marathon. To add to the above breakfast and daily snacks, for supper I would have a Knorr rice side dish or instant potatoes and a salad. I haven't has as much as a sniffle in over 5 years, so I'm guessing my diet and lifestyle are healthy enough. Just trying to figure away to maintain this along the AT with resupply options outside of mail drops, and keep it simple - like no cooking.
I actually eat oatmeal dry, straight out of the package, every morning and wash it down with a bit of Tang. With all the different flavors of instant oatmeal, hard to get bored with breakfast.
........
As a note, I have completed 10 marathons. Last year I did the Delaware trail marathon, the Laurel Highlands Ultra, and the Marine Corps marathon. .......
I do that too and actually like the taste!
You need to check out the Bethel Hill Moonlight Boogie 50 miler. Google it.
twosticks
11-17-2010, 14:19
Old fashioned oats work just as well for me as instant or quick, and I like the consistency better.
Hey Garlic,
How much of each do you put in? It sounds good, but I'd like a good starting point.
Thanks.
Twosticks
@Joe:
if you depend on green tea you may try it with cold water. I do not know how strong the tea gets(coffeine), but it tastes not to bad. At least herbal and fruit teas work good with cold water, just wait a little bit longer.
@Joe:
if you depend on green tea you may try it with cold water. I do not know how strong the tea gets(coffeine), but it tastes not to bad. At least herbal and fruit teas work good with cold water, just wait a little bit longer.
Not a bad thought.... I'll give it a try weekend after next!
buzz48843
11-17-2010, 16:40
I'm one of the confirmed no-cook guys. I haven't carried a stove for many years. Here's a link to my diet summary: http://www.trailjournals.com/entry.cfm?id=213108
I say lay off the bars. No need for them--they're expensive and you have to carry the packaging. Make your own cereal with oats, nuts, and dried fruit. Old fashioned oats work just as well for me as instant or quick, and I like the consistency better. Carry good old raisins and peanuts (hey, that spells GORP) in bags instead of bars. Go heavy on the nuts and cheese (and dried meat if you eat it) for protein and fat. A bag of cashews is a real treat, in addition to the gorp. I carry a ramen or two for emergencies or when nothing else is available, but that stuff is pretty nasty on a regular basis. Tortillas (whole grain if available, which is seldom) make a great vehicle for just about anything--cheese, meat, or peanut butter. With the weight I save in fuel, I always justify carrying at least one fresh fruit or veg per day, maybe just a carrot, pepper, or piece of celery.
I went stoveless on my AT thru. It worked fine for me. I lost hardly any weight or muscle mass and came right back to my firefighter job without skipping a beat. It was pretty cheap too. My trail food budget for the AT thru was $800.
I wish someone had told me about stoveless hiking earlier. I learned about it from a guy I met early on the PCT. I started bouncing my stove ahead a few hundred miles at a time, alternating cook with no-cook, and figured out that I like no-cook better.
Sounds like a great plan. Do you add water to your oats or just eat them dry?
ChinMusic
11-17-2010, 16:48
I've been toying around the idea of a no-cook approach. I've thought up a quick menu that sounds good, and am interested in opinions and advice from those who have gone this route.
Breakfast:
Instant Oatmeal/hot chocolate mix
Snacks:
Granola Bars (usually 3/day consumed)
Snickers bar (usually 2/day consumed)
Supper:
Combo's (1 pack)
Ramen (1 pack minus flavor pack - I don't do MSG)
Note: I don't do lunch, ever. I tend to snack all day at home and on the trail.
I tend to go no-cook myself. I might change my mind on a thru, time will tell, but will def START no-stove. On my section hikes I almost have to force myself eat and hot foods are not appealing.
Your list seems to be lacking some protein and calories. I would add some GORP with dried fruits.
Some will say your diet is lacking. Take some vitamins and eat better in towns would be my answer.
Joe, if you want maintain a better ratio of constructive criticism to destructive criticism, I think you would be better served by providing additional details regarding your diet.
royalusa
11-17-2010, 17:32
Hi Joe, we also go totally cookless these days. We like the simplicity and the less weight.
We played around with some of the food options in a chart to see where our carbs/fat/protein were as well as which foods are good for calories/ounce vs. calories/cup (more impt when looking to pack lots of food in a bear vault) ... OK, so we had a lot of time to play ... but it was fun.
You can put together a sample meal based on the chart and double check your calories and carbs/fat/protein tallies to make sure you're getting enough of all.
For the most part, fruit and veggies are missing from the chart...you'll want to add those items to your meals as well.
Here's an article that might provide you some additional information: http://www.thru-hiker.com/articles/pack_light_eat_right.php
Really, anything you can do with a stove, you can do without a stove. We've done mac & cheese, couscous, oatmeal, mashed potatoes, stuffing, etc. The only thing we typically avoid is the Liptons/Knorr side dishes as they require too much soak time for our preferences.
Hope that helps you.
Hi Joe, we also go totally cookless these days. We like the simplicity and the less weight.
We played around with some of the food options in a chart to see where our carbs/fat/protein were as well as which foods are good for calories/ounce vs. calories/cup (more impt when looking to pack lots of food in a bear vault) ... OK, so we had a lot of time to play ... but it was fun.
You can put together a sample meal based on the chart and double check your calories and carbs/fat/protein tallies to make sure you're getting enough of all.
For the most part, fruit and veggies are missing from the chart...you'll want to add those items to your meals as well.
Here's an article that might provide you some additional information: http://www.thru-hiker.com/articles/pack_light_eat_right.php
Really, anything you can do with a stove, you can do without a stove. We've done mac & cheese, couscous, oatmeal, mashed potatoes, stuffing, etc. The only thing we typically avoid is the Liptons/Knorr side dishes as they require too much soak time for our preferences.
Hope that helps you.
Absolutely perfect!!!! You rock!!! Thanks a Million!!!!!
stumpknocker
11-17-2010, 18:48
I've been going cold for a few years now, but I eat different foods mostly than have been mentioned here so far.
My breakfasts are almost always peanut butter and jelly on a 10 inch tortilla and I always look forward to that. One variation is that sometimes I'll pack out a few pastries for first breakfast out of town.
I don't usually eat lunch, but I "graze" all day. I mix it up with cashews, raisins, crackers, Fritos and a 3 ounce can of chicken salad and an occasional fresh avocado.
Dinner depends more on time of year. I'll leave town with the 10 inch tortillas for dinner. I always carry sliced cheese (imported Swiss being my favorite). If it's cool to cold out, I'll carry pre-sliced hard salami or if available, I'll buy a rotisserie chicken and pull the meat off the carcass and carry it in a Baggie. Either of those with Swiss cheese packed into a toritilla makes me REALLY look forward to dinner every day!!
If it's warmer out, I'll go with a roll of garlic summer sausage and slice my own on the Trail. I'll carry single pouches of Spam (also if available). I pack those on the tortillas along with the cheese.
Sometimes when I'm in town I may see something else that looks really good, so I'll buy that and carry that out.
I haven't been able to eat what most consider "Trail food" for quite a few years now. Can't even stomach the thought of most of it.
The surprising part is my coffee. I drink a lot of coffee when off Trail, but not when I'm on Trail anymore....with no ill effects. :)
supper is woefully inadequate.
I'm not saying you're wrong. You may be right, but I'm not going to look up the macronutrients on a diet that isn't mine. I do like going a little lighter on dinner, if only to delay my morning bowel movement to a warmer part of the day.
mweinstone
11-17-2010, 23:21
bonepac owns the hostile in marryland. he finished first in 06. his hike was 4 months to the day.he ate alot of pbj on bagles. when bonepac crossed your path he smelled great like grape jelly .mrs pac and the lilpacs were waiting for their dad so he hiked fast.at night in the smokeys or at cold spring shelter, i forget, we offered him hot foods. he refused. he was happy, well fed, and healthy. his journel on tj lists each days food. its my all time fav journel. easy to read and makes you crave jelly and peanut butter bagles. his no stove thru was the only one i ever saw and its only problem was it made us suffer worrying, but bonepac was fine and happy.
Appalachian Tater
11-18-2010, 08:13
You've got almost zero protein on that menu, maybe a few grams from the peanuts in the Snickers, nuts in the granola bar, and the milk in the hot chocolate. No fruit except maybe some raisins in the granola bar, no vegetables, little protein.
What a horrible thing to do to your body. Why would you want to deliberately subject yourself to malnutrition while hiking over 2,000 miles?
Look up basic nutritional requirements and the components of a balanced diet, then double them and add in some more calories from fat.
garlic08
11-18-2010, 08:16
Hey Garlic,
How much of each do you put in? It sounds good, but I'd like a good starting point.
Thanks.
Twosticks
Sounds like a great plan. Do you add water to your oats or just eat them dry?
I usually buy a regular box of rolled oats, a half pound of walnuts from the baking aisle, and pound of raisins. If I can find a small (3 qt) box of powdered milk, I'll add that to the mix, but that's pretty seldom. I add water if it's convenient, otherwise dry is OK too.
I forgot to mention above that I usually pack instant mashed potatoes, too. And fig newtons, of course. My one concession to junk food is a box of Wheat Thins at every resupply. If I don't carry cheese due to extreme heat, I'll use peanut butter.
Like Stumpknocker, I also like to carry town food leftovers, or buy an extra deli sandwich in town, for the first meal on the trail.
Appalachian Tater
11-18-2010, 08:17
What Appalachian Tater said was spot on. If you don't like the message thats one thing, but you didn't need to shoot the messenger.
Indeed. There is a "Straight Forward" forum for people want a very specific answer or who have Asperger's.
Mizirlou
11-18-2010, 08:24
Look up basic nutritional requirements and the components of a balanced diet, then double them and add in some more calories from fat.
Hot, spicy Taters for breakfast :D
Liv2Ride
11-18-2010, 09:39
Parden me but I'm super confused. You say "no-cook" yet the menu that you listed for breakfast and supper sounds like you plan to at least boil water. I thought that boiling water for the purpose of rehydrating food is the same as cooking. Am I wrong?
I've been toying around the idea of a no-cook approach. I've thought up a quick menu that sounds good, and am interested in opinions and advice from those who have gone this route.
Breakfast:
Instant Oatmeal/hot chocolate mix
Snacks:
Granola Bars (usually 3/day consumed)
Snickers bar (usually 2/day consumed)
Supper:
Combo's (1 pack)
Ramen (1 pack minus flavor pack - I don't do MSG)
Note: I don't do lunch, ever. I tend to snack all day at home and on the trail.
njordan2
11-18-2010, 09:45
With that said, I have gone no-cook on the AT.
Oatmeal-yes, granola bars-yes, ramen-yes
But to make up the deficiencies, here are a couple of things that I found are very nutrition intensive: sweet potatoes and walnuts.
The walnuts are easy, grab them, carry them and eat them.
The sweet potatoes are more upfront work. I grow sweet potatoes so that is the start. Clean them, but do not peel them. Cut them up and boil them until they are completely soft. Mash them in a large bowl until they are the consistency of pumpkin pie filling. I then spread them out on the racks of a dehydrator and let them dry for a couple of days until they are hard and shatter like glass. Break up these hardened sweet potato patties and grind them to dust in a grain grinder. Mine is the old hand crank model. This cuts the weight to about one-fifth or one-fourth of the as picked weight. So a one pound sweet potato is now 3 or 4 ounces.
The result will reconstitute in even freezing water due to the massive surface area of the granuals. Use two cups of water for one cup of sweet potato powder. Add half a teaspoon of salt, (you need that hiking), half a teaspoon of cinnamon, a dash of nutmeg, about a quarter cup of walnuts and a quarter cup of raisons. If you feel inclined to adulterate the mess, you can even add some brown sugar. For a more grassy type flavor I would also substitute GROUND flax seed for the walnuts. Flax seed must be ground or you simply do not digest it.
This is a very hearty meal. It has over 700 calories, over 50% recommended daily allowance of potassium, (you need that hiking), over 100% of vitamin C, and like 10 days worth of vitamin A, (no kidding: 1000%), 25% of your fat for the day and about 20% of you protein. Protein is important, but not as important as a lot of people play it up to be. If you get all the vitamins, minerals and calories you need, you can live to be 90 years old and never eat in a day more than half the recommeded amount of protein for an American.
enjoy.
max patch
11-18-2010, 10:04
Parden me but I'm super confused. You say "no-cook" yet the menu that you listed for breakfast and supper sounds like you plan to at least boil water. I thought that boiling water for the purpose of rehydrating food is the same as cooking. Am I wrong?
You don't need to boil water for instant oatmeal; on the trail I eat mine with powdered milk, honey, and cold water. I believe the OP said he eats the ramen right out of package without cooking.
the goat
11-18-2010, 13:26
I've been toying around the idea of a no-cook approach. I've thought up a quick menu that sounds good, and am interested in opinions and advice from those who have gone this route.
Breakfast:
Instant Oatmeal/hot chocolate mix
Snacks:
Granola Bars (usually 3/day consumed)
Snickers bar (usually 2/day consumed)
Supper:
Combo's (1 pack)
Ramen (1 pack minus flavor pack - I don't do MSG)
Note: I don't do lunch, ever. I tend to snack all day at home and on the trail.
i roll stoveless.
however, you'll def need more calories than that.
see: tuna, PB, bagels, cheese, pepperoni, fritos, cheetos, oreos.
it's also nice to pack a steak out of town to cook via foil/ campfire
Blissful
11-18-2010, 13:53
As a note, I have completed 10 marathons. Last year I did the Delaware trail marathon, the Laurel Highlands Ultra, and the Marine Corps marathon. To add to the above breakfast and daily snacks, for supper I would have a Knorr rice side dish or instant potatoes and a salad. I haven't has as much as a sniffle in over 5 years, so I'm guessing my diet and lifestyle are healthy enough. Just trying to figure away to maintain this along the AT with resupply options outside of mail drops, and keep it simple - like no cooking.
You are doing a lot more to your body than a marathon. I hiked with a guy in Maine who did marathons and he said hiking the AT was the hardest thing he'd ever done (I actually cruised by him, oops). And was absolutely having a hard time with it. He said marathons are easy compared to this.
So instead of shooting posters giving their opinions based on knowledge in the foot (and Appalachian Tator has helped tremendously with medical issues here - I'm thankful for him), maybe stop typing and listen to some sound advice AND from those who done the trail or who have the background to offer the advice they give. No one is going to do it exactly like you or anyone. But there are people who really care (wow) and maybe want to see you succeed. :eek:
But if you can't take advice that people give or at least look at it with an open mind and only want to hear things that satisfy preconceived notions or "do it your way or no way", then this forum may not be the best place for your kind of temperament.
Wise Old Owl
11-19-2010, 22:10
regular box of rolled oats
a half pound of walnuts
pound of raisins.
(3 qt) box of powdered milk,
instant mashed potatoes
fig newtons,
Wheat Thins
Beans/legumes
Jerky/sausage
Dried fish/meat
Instant Breakfast
Seeds/nuts
Peanut butter
Cheese
oil
HIGH CARBOHYDRATE
Drink mix: cider, gatorade
Pudding mix
Soup/Gravy mix
Cereals (hot or cold)
Rice or couscous
Ramen noodles (10 pkgs.)
Potato flakes
Baked cookies/breads
Crackers/chips
Granola bars/PopTarts
Flour/baking mix
Dried vegetables
Dried fruit
Candy
Mocha flavored energy bar.
Gatorade
Hard candy
*Dried apples
*Prunes
*Dried apricots
*Dried figs
*Fruit leather
*Pretzels
*Fig bars
*Graham crackers
*Plain bagel
*PopTart
*Saltines
*Granola bar
*Peanut butter Granola bar
*Cracklin' Oat Bran
*Natr. Valley G’ola
pastries for first breakfast out of town.
cashews, raisins, crackers
Fritos and a 3 ounce can of chicken salad and an occasional fresh avocado.
10 inch tortillas for dinner. sliced cheese (imported Swiss being my favorite). I'll carry pre-sliced hard salami
Rotisserie chicken in a Baggie. Swiss cheese toritilla
herbal and fruit teas
garlic summer sausage
single pouches of Spam
tortillas along with the cheese.
fruit and yogurt
Wise Old Owl
11-20-2010, 11:38
Summer: 1 pound food/day, carbs and protien, little fat, to lose weight.
Spring/Fall: 2 pound/day, mostly carbs, some protien, little fat.
Winter: same as Spring/Fall, plus an extra pound of 50/50 fat/carbs.
My Spring/Summer/Fall food is stuff like:
Milk, Honey, Tea, Citrus, Oatmeal, Raisins, Dates, Almonds, Beef Jerky.
My extra winter food is stuff like:
Fudge
Salami
Fruit and Nuts - More nuts than in Spring/Summer/Fall
Bacon and Scones - Fat to make the scones, scones to soak up more fat
Chocolate Chips and Raisins - They pack well together
Olive Oil and Honey - Simple way to pack extra emergency food
Fruitcake - it's like eating condensed everything, and it WORKS!! (Plus there are plenty of people who'll give them away free at Christmas time!! )
Home-roasted pecans (or walnuts). Spread pecans on a cookie sheet, drizzle butter on 'em, season according to taste (I like hickory salt), and roast @350° until they start to turn a darker brown.
Peanut Butter
Real Butter (add to cooked meals)
Nutella
homemade high-cal baked goods (scones, cookies, etc...top with butter, peanut butter, or nutella)
Add 7-summit bars to that list...
· bagels (cream cheese)
· Pita bread
· Logan Bread
· granola bars
· candy bars
· dried fruit
· GORP (nuts, M&M's raisins, yogurt peanuts, crackers, dried fruit, etc)
· Pringles
· crackers (the dense kinds at health food stores)
· Wheat Thins
· Cheeses (string cheese, blocks of mozarella, etc)
· Tuna (sold in pouches now)
· lunch meat
. Hard boiled eggs/ with salt packet
. jerkys pemmican
. Summer sausage (eg Landsjager) (80 cal/oz)
Don't forget vitamins and fish oils...
Tenderheart
11-20-2010, 11:46
I will not be carrying a stove in 2011. It ain't hard. Breakfast: bars, lunch: bars, supper: bars. Throw in a few pop tarts and peanut butter, and you're good to go. And as I did in 2000, I will eat my way in and out of towns.
litefoot 2000
malowitz
11-20-2010, 12:00
I thrud in 2010 and ditched the stove very early on. My diet included:
Milk and cereal bars for breakfast (cinnamon toast cruch, honey nut cheerios).
When I couldn't find them in a town for resupply, I did Nutri-Grain bars
Almost every day, I had a large serving of peanut M&Ms, at least 1 oatmeal cream pie, at least snickers bar, and at least one granola bar
Dinner was usually a Thomas's bagel (readily available in most markets) and a pack of tuna in foil. I'd eat Reeses Pieces for dessert.
At various points in the hike I also had peanut butter, fruit slice candies, fruit leathers (kind of like fruit roll-ups, but w/more actual fruit). And sometimes I'd pick up other goodies in town for the day out (sub sandwiches, cinnamonrolls,etc).
I also had G2 and/or Propel drink mix to add to a couple of bottles of waterper day.
As a back-up/safety, I carried a heavy protein bar. I finally ate it just to get rid of it.
Essentially, I found I could eat all sorts of crap food and keep going!
I think you're going to end up wanting more food for dinner than you had listed. However, don't worry about it. You can adjust at every town and you'll almost certainly modify your diet over the course of the hike.
Wise Old Owl
11-20-2010, 13:03
Liv2Ride - in one of his posts he points out he eats it dry - doesn't boil water.
I think he gave up on his own thread.
Slo-go'en
11-20-2010, 13:23
Joe,
Consider taking along an alki stove. One of those and a little fuel don't weigh much or take up much space and will be real handy once in awhile for a hot blast of tea, HC or ramas. Especially in the spring when the mornings are still chilly and it is often damp or wet out.
I decide to go stoveless while on a long section hike (800 miles). I did GORP for breakfist and lunch, a Snickers in late afternoon to get me the last few miles and then PB+J for dinner and some cookies for desert. I had been eating pasta for dinner and loosing weight, switching to PB+J stopped that. This long before power bars had been invented, so now days I throw a few of those in too.
The other advantage to that diet was I could find all the ingredients at any two bit gas station conveniance store near the trail- though they weren't the cheapist places to buy food. But not having to find a real grocery store every 3-5 days was a big plus.
Peanut Butter is great. By the end of my thru last year I was eating 2 jars of it a week- spoon it right out the jar (JIF Peanut Butter with a Touch of Honey was the best)- Yum!
Jelly is too messy for me and besides carrying flatbread every other type bread or tortilla totally disintegrates in my pack.
Zarathustra
11-23-2010, 05:32
Just finished an AT thru hike (no cook the entire way), here's most of the stuff I ate on a regular basis. I'm not the healthiest eater, btw.
-nature valley granola bars
-basically any and all Little Debbie Snack Cakes, but the ones that aren't easily crushed are best
-bagels and cream cheese are amazing
-Snickers/Baby Ruth/Butterfinger/Crunch/Milky Way bars
-Skittles, Starburst, or some other type of candy were almost always in my pack
-powdered drink mixes, aka lemonade powder, tang, ice tea (really breaks up the monotony of water)
-I got sick of cold oatmeal, peanut butter, GORP fast
-chips were good if I could fit them in my pack without crushing them
-peanut butter crackers
-cheese, tortillas, and pepperoni were good for awhile, got sick of that though
-loaf of bread. I'll eat it plain if I'm sick of peanut butter
I really got sick of people saying, "You sure will be miserable not having a warm meal, or a warm cup of coffee at the end of the day". Tell them to get in their damn sleeping bags and stop being pansies.
ChinMusic
11-23-2010, 11:43
Just finished an AT thru hike (no cook the entire way), here's most of the stuff I ate on a regular basis. I'm not the healthiest eater, btw.
I think I met you near the Fontana Shelter. Good to read you finished.
Zarathustra
11-23-2010, 12:00
thanks man
the goat
11-23-2010, 12:04
I really got sick of people saying, "You sure will be miserable not having a warm meal, or a warm cup of coffee at the end of the day".
seriously. that's one of my pet peeves too.
i find it's much better to have eaten & set up camp in the time it takes for others to watch their water boil.
what's wrong with cooking your food? Cave men learned to do that a million years ago :D
Panzer
4eyedbuzzard
11-23-2010, 23:11
Hi Joe, we also go totally cookless these days. We like the simplicity and the less weight.Going stoveless is certainly an option. However, it's been well established in past discussions that saving weight is actually not a benefit. Any weight saved by not carrying a stove and fuel is almost always more than offset by the necessity of carrying foods that have greater water content.
Really, anything you can do with a stove, you can do without a stove. Um, NO, you can't (unless you build a fire).
royalusa
11-24-2010, 09:57
Going stoveless is certainly an option. However, it's been well established in past discussions that saving weight is actually not a benefit. Any weight saved by not carrying a stove and fuel is almost always more than offset by the necessity of carrying foods that have greater water content.
Um, NO, you can't (unless you build a fire).
To clarify I guess I should have said "We like the simplicity and the less weight, FOR US." as it is less weight FOR US.
The reason going cookless for us is less weight is as I said in my original post. "We've done mac & cheese, couscous, oatmeal, mashed potatoes, stuffing, etc. The only thing we typically avoid is the Liptons/Knorr side dishes as they require too much soak time for our preferences." We eat the same foods regardless of whether we have a stove. For us, going cookless means we save 1.5-3 pounds by the time we added up pot (we eat out of baggies when stoveless), stove, fuel and fuel bottle. No, we don't build a fire. We just add water, soak if desired, and eat. Oatmeal, mashed potatoes, stuffing and ramon we eat immediately - no soaking. The mac & cheese and couscous, we soak at camp for 10-20 minutes while doing other chores, and then eat. We typically do not carry mac & cheese and couscous to avoid the soak time.
It's not the approach for everyone, but it works for us. We did a few cookless days on the trail before committing to it and found that we liked the taste of the food cold just fine.
the goat
11-24-2010, 11:00
what's wrong with cooking your food? Cave men learned to do that a million years ago :D
Panzer
lol, we're less evolved, i guess!
for me, it's because you end up eating salty mush every night, and you have to go through the tedious process of boiling said salty mush, and the tedious process of cleaning up after cooking the salty mush.
We typically do not carry mac & cheese and couscous to avoid the soak time.
Couscous + cold water = 15 minutes later you are eating. It doesn't need a long sit time nor hot water. We make couscous salads often this way!
No cook would be fine, but you'd get sick of it soon. How about raw? I've done several long sections doing raw, lots of nuts, and you can soak grains and such. Olive oil and onions a staple - but do need a fresh resupply regularly!
I hope you find what works for you. Why no stove?
TheTwanger
12-01-2010, 16:59
I couldn't make it to Katahdin without cooking.. Warm food keeps me going..
Hikes in Rain
12-02-2010, 09:28
Besides, if you're not cooking, what do you do for coffee?!?
4eyedbuzzard
12-02-2010, 10:30
Besides, if you're not cooking, what do you do for coffee?!?
Yes. One MUST have heat for coffee - and of course - BACON! :banana
Besides, if you're not cooking, what do you do for coffee?!?
Suffer.
:D
Hikes in Rain
12-07-2010, 14:48
Not on a vacation I've planned for weeks (at least!), and driven nine hours to get to! No coffee?!? Barbarious! :eek:
We spent last weekend on the Olympic Coast at Kalaloch Lodge in the park. They have always had an espresso machine. Imagine my reaction when I found it gone this time.
Husband drove me 65 miles round trip to get a latte from the nearest latte hut on the side of the road :D Good thing there was lots of hikes near as well :D
I started off with a stove but when the cold weather moved out i decided to go no cook. For warmer weather (30+) i dont think i will ever carry a stove again. heres a few ideas...
Breakfast
1.) Blueberry bagel nutella
2.)Plain bagel with cream cheese cake frosting and nutella. that might have been my favorite trail food it tastes like a bostom cream pie. combine that with a pack of pop tarts and a carnation instant breakfast and your gonna be right around 1000 calories.
3.)Poptarts are also great there about 450 calories a pack and cheap. they dont do anything in the protien department however, if your looking for protien bagels have the highest content that i found in all commercialy available breads.
Lunch-Well u got a good sugar rush in the morning now you gotta get some good salts and protien.
1.)Nuts...i prefer cashews and or pistachio nuts both are very high in both protien and salts.
2.)Potatoe chips and another good source of salts and fats. I like pringles becuase there cheap and they pack easy how the canisters are a little bit bulky. i used a platapus for hydration so i just stuck them in the side pockets where the water bottles normally go.
3.) my favorite on trail lunch was flat breads with good deli meats or sardines and some good cheese. flat breads pack and taste amazing!
Dinner
For dinner i would usually do 2 or 3 bagels with some kind of meat and cheese. i alse used tortilla as a bread and they worked pretty well.
Of course thats not everything at every resupply i was craving something different so my food bag was rarely the same. that being said my food bag was usually pretty heavy i carried about 3 pounds of food for each day. People can say what they want but asked anyone that i hiked with and hey will tell you i ate pretty damn good! for me there was nothing better than sitting down to take a break and actually enjoying what i had to eat.
Wise Old Owl
12-11-2010, 19:54
well I think he gave up on this thread due to all the posts, some folk can't handle it,
Let me make this clear - if you want to go non cook - enjoy, I will not argue the point.
On the other hand one cannot hydrate so you end up carrying heavier food that can be consumed on the run.. so you end up in a non UL situation, and at the same time a time saving thing is going on. The trade off isn't going to tilt the balance enough either way. So go to it.