How do you get food weight down for an extended hike?

[todd52]

After completely revamping my gear list and reorganizing my gear (still not finished but I got my pack weight down from 25 pounds to only 20) I went out and bought about 10 bags of various trail mixes. When the cashier checked me out and handed me the bag I was immediately disappointed at how much it all weighed and I still have more to get!.

If a person is planning on hiking for 2 weeks continuously with no mail drops/re-supplying but yet still wanted to have enough food for that length of time, what types of food would they take?. I'm assuming there are plenty of places to get water along the trail so maybe small pouches of dried soups, coffee, etc?. Once you start getting into things like peanut butter, nuts, dried fruits, etc I have noticed that the weight really piles on (not to mention the space it takes up) and so it's only natural to want to take less of these items but if you do that then you are having to re-supply in town every few days which is kind of a pain because it breaks your hike up.

So, any suggestions on what type of foods one should take for a 2-week hike without adding lots of weight?. If it isn't possible, then how about a one week hike or one and a half week hike?.

[max patch]

i don't know of anyone who carries 2 weeks worth of food on the AT. A week would generally be the max, and these days 4 days or so is probably closer to the norm (depends on hiking pace, availability of towns, etc.) A perfect week for me would be to hike 6 days and rest on the 7th. I carried 10 days thru the wilderness and had 3-4 days left when I finished. As a practical matter, that 10 days of food was the max my pack could have held.

[todd52]

Thanks, so what exactly would one carry for a week?. Can anyone post a list here?. Would be interesting to see.

[Venchka]

I suggest that you start living on lightweight, no-cook or soak in boiling water cooked food. See what you like. See what gags you. The Cereal section of any well stocked supermarket will have quick cook (1-2 minute simmer) and instant versions of Cream of Wheat, Oatmeal, Grits, hot chocolate, etc. I also found freeze dried fruit in the cereal section today. I actually prefer regular dried cranberries (Craisens by Ocean Spray), blueberries, cherries, apricots, peaches, raisins, etc.
Tuna & chicken in foil (getting hard to find a decent selection) and regular cans are backpacking staples. Instant mashed potatoes, instant rice, Knorr rice & pasta side dishes are all mentioned fondly at this forum. Wander the shelves. See what strikes your fancy. Read the preparation directions. "Simmer for 30 minutes" is OUT! "Add boiling water" is IN!
Can you eat smoked baby fish from a can? For days on end? Could you live on herring, clams, oysters, sardines, etc.? I can't.
Why do your posts always start with, "I was surprised by the weight of 10 bags of Trail Mix", etc.? Don't you look at product weights, whether they are food or gear? Do some mental arithmatic?
Some folks live off of junk food on the AT. Candy bars, Oreos, Chips Ahoy, Moon Pies, Honey Buns, Snickers, Almond Joy, etc., etc. that seems wordse than little baby fish in cans.

Find out what you can eat for 3-4-7 days in a row. Let us know what you find out.


Wayne

[Dogwood]

Read food packages! Maximize nutrition while aiming at a high cals/oz ratio. Nuts, seeds, cheese, coconut, dried meats, nut butters, etc

[Venchka]

Nutella! Peanut M&Ms.

Wayne

[MuddyWaters]

1. You dont get the food weight down, except by sticking to the highest cal/oz foods you can. You need the calories. No matter what, you wont be getting enough usually.

2. Shoot for 150 cal/oz. You should know food cal/oz by heart. Olive

Olive oil - 240 cal/oz used to boost meals
Peanut butter - 190 cal/oz
candy bars, cookies - 150 cal/oz
pepperoni 140 cal/oz
trail mix - 150-180 cal/oz
little debbie snacks - 125-150 cal/oz

thats why so much of the diet is this kind of stuff.

dried pasta/rice meals ~100 cal /oz
tuna - 80 cal/oz
jerky - 80 cal/oz

These items are necessary, but bring your average WAY down. Use olive oil to boost these dinners.

3. For two weeks, you are probably looking at about 14*1.75 = 25 lbs food if keeping calories in the 150 cal/oz range. Thats 4200 cal /day. The lower your calorie average, the less calories you get. You could be as low as 2000 cal if you choose poorly!.


Perfectly do-able for someone with a light basewt. Initial pack wt would push 35-40 lbs,but would drop 1.75 lbs per day.

Quite literally, thru hikers have lived off of squeeze parkay and peanut butter. (Model T)

[Dogwood]

+1 to the EVOO suggestion. It's the great body wt equalizer when I'm hiking FOR ME.

[Venchka]

ps: I have never knowingly bought a bag of trail mix in my life. A Ziploc bag and throw stuff in it. That is trail mix. Different everytime.

Wayne

[Dogwood]

I'll tell you something else that goes hand in hand with lowering your food wt Todd52 - lowering the volume of that food through more compact cal rich nutrient heavy food choices. That also entails repackaging which FOR ME on 5-6 day hikes means eliminating 2-3 oz of excess packaging.This also snowballs or contributes to requiring a lower volume pack which should mean your back pack will weigh less!

[illabelle]

Thanks, so what exactly would one carry for a week?. Can anyone post a list here?. Would be interesting to see.

We are planning two one week hikes this year, one in PA in April, the other in Vermont in Sept. My hope is to plan it so we can resupply mid-week. If that's not practical, I will definitely cut out all the special food, no fresh fruit, no frozen veggies. Our meals would be lightweight, lean, plain, boring, and repetitive (ramen w/ mashed potatoes, mashed potatoes with ramen, ramen with ramen). But we can afford to do this, because we're going home afterwards where we can eat whatever we want.
If we were long-distance hikers, we would not be able to neglect nutrition just because it's heavy.

[rocketsocks]

1. You dont get the food weight down, except by sticking to the highest cal/oz foods you can. You need the calories. No matter what, you wont be getting enough usually.

2. Shoot for 150 cal/oz. You should know food cal/oz by heart. Olive

Olive oil - 240 cal/oz used to boost meals
Peanut butter - 190 cal/oz
candy bars, cookies - 150 cal/oz
pepperoni 140 cal/oz
trail mix - 150-180 cal/oz
little debbie snacks - 125-150 cal/oz

thats why so much of the diet is this kind of stuff.

dried pasta/rice meals ~100 cal /oz
tuna - 80 cal/oz
jerky - 80 cal/oz

These items are necessary, but bring your average WAY down. Use olive oil to boost these dinners.

3. For two weeks, you are probably looking at about 14*1.75 = 25 lbs food if keeping calories in the 150 cal/oz range. Thats 4200 cal /day. The lower your calorie average, the less calories you get. You could be as low as 2000 cal if you choose poorly!.


Perfectly do-able for someone with a light basewt. Initial pack wt would push 35-40 lbs,but would drop 1.75 lbs per day.

Quite literally, thru hikers have lived off of squeeze parkay and peanut butter. (Model T)^ This ^...............

[Dogwood]

Our meals would be lightweight, lean, plain, boring, and repetitive (ramen w/ mashed potatoes, mashed potatoes with ramen, ramen with ramen). Illabelle

If that's what you want but it DOES NOT have to be that way if you will be creative and ascertain a little more food knowledge by simply perusing the grocery store shelves at a large local grocery store for trail food ideas.

[illabelle]

Our meals would be lightweight, lean, plain, boring, and repetitive (ramen w/ mashed potatoes, mashed potatoes with ramen, ramen with ramen). Illabelle

If that's what you want but it DOES NOT have to be that way if you will be creative and ascertain a little more food knowledge by simply perusing the grocery store shelves at a large local grocery store for trail food ideas.


I was exaggerating about the ramen. On our weekend hikes, we have good food. But if we were trying to carry an entire week's food - or more - without resupply (the original question), I would sacrifice variety and fresh produce in favor of getting the weight manageable. Maybe if we were stronger hikers, it would be less of a concern. We're not strong, and that's why we hope to plan our week-long trips with resupply.

[Drybones]

Thanks, so what exactly would one carry for a week?. Can anyone post a list here?. Would be interesting to see.

You can control what you start with but when you re-supply it depends on what's available. I'll be starting 50 miles south of Damascus, that's normally 2-1/2 days but I'm carrying extra food so I can eat well starting out. Four days in my sack consist of:

(3) zip locks with 1-1/2 cups of granola & 1/3 cup dry milk, sometimes I add honey if I have it.

about 2 lbs of trail mix

(2) zip locks with a cup of minute rice and dehydrated can of salmon.

(2) bags of beef flavored Raimen noodles with 1/2 lb (before dehydrating) dehydrated hamburger

(2) 1 lb beef summer sausages

(3) sticks of cheese, each weighs 1/4 lb

(6) 1 oz sesame seed snaps...230 calories /oz

Chewing gum...not a tooth brush but it helps.

The sausage is like carring bricks, I'll eat those early on.

[Odd Man Out]

Here is a nice web page for looking up nutritional data on food.
http://nutritiondata.self.com/

Also, here is another way to think of it that maybe simplifies things. As pointed out earlier, your primary goal is to get calories but carry as little weight as possible. The vast majority of the mass (weight) in your food bag will be one of 5 things: fats (including oils), carbohydrates (starches and sugars), proteins, water, and packaging. Everything else are micronutrients (vitamins, minerals, salt, fiber). You need these too, but the total mass is so small compared to the macronutrients you don't need to worry about them when figuring calorie density. Pure fat/oil will have about 240 cal/oz. Pure protein and carbs will have about 110 cal/oz. Water and packaging obviously have zero calories. So to get as much food energy as you can in you pack, you want to have as little water and packaging as possible. Having more fat will bring the density up. If you want to get an idea of how much water is in the food, look at the nutritional label. Add up the grams of total fats, carbs, and protein and compare to the serving size (in grams). The difference is how much water there is in that food. Even "dry" foods like pasta will have some water.

For example, look at peanut butter. A 2 Tbs serving (32 g) has 16 g of fat, 6 g of carbs, and 8 g of protein. That adds up to 30 grams of nutrients so there is probably about 2 g of water. Since the water content is very low and the fat content is very high, it has a very good calorie density (166 cal/oz). I have often seen people post that don't like to carry PB because it is "too heavy". In fact, exactly the opposite is true. Dark chocolate is about the same (but with less protein and more carbs than PB).

Another hiker favorite is the Pop Tart. A 50 g serving (1 Pop Tart), has 3 g of fat, 39 g of carbs, and 2 g of protein (and 6 g of water). Another good choice (not much water weight), but as it is mostly carbs, it has a lower calorie density (105 cal/oz).

Another popular choice, cheese, actually has a lot of water (40% +/-), but because it about an equal mixture of fat and protein, it also averages about 100 cal/oz (I looked up American "cheese", cheddar, Parmesan, Gouda, provolone, they were all pretty similar).

Finally, there is the ubiquitous instant Ramen. A 42 g package has 7 g fat, 28 g carbs, 4 g protein, 4 g water and 127 cal/oz. Cook it up with some sesame oil (pure fat) and you'll do even better.

[todd52]

First of all, thanks for all the really good replies and food lists. I found them quite interesting and am learning a lot from all of this. I guess the reason I've mentioned (a few times) how I was surprised by how much various things weigh is because when I purchase half a dozen or so items and feel the weight of them individually (or a few at a time) it doesn't feel like like a lot of weight. However, the combined weight of all of these items when put ion a bag and handed to me (or stuffed in my pack) really adds up fast. That is why, now that I've gotten nearly all the gear I need, I have begun to systematically trying to get the weight down to a reasonable amount. I was surprised to read that people are carrying packs that weight 40-50 pounds. I'm a small (and out of shape) guy and 30 pounds feels like a bag of bricks to me (makes my legs feel heavy and wobbly). I hate that feeling because it makes me question my ability to do this but maybe I just need to get on some kind of excersize routine.

Thanks again for the great responses.

[Bronk]

Be ruthless in keeping your pack weight down and then ignore any lightweight rules when it comes to food...just carry whatever kind of food you want.

[Dogwood]

1 oz sesame seed snaps...230 calories /oz - DryBones

What are these? maybe, those little hard sesame chewy candies.

[yellowsirocco]

+1 to the EVOO suggestion. It's the great body wt equalizer when I'm hiking FOR ME.
Better to use regular olive oil. Extra virgin can have too strong a taste for some things, the regular is more versatile.

[rocketsocks]

First of all, thanks for all the really good replies and food lists. I found them quite interesting and am learning a lot from all of this. I guess the reason I've mentioned (a few times) how I was surprised by how much various things weigh is because when I purchase half a dozen or so items and feel the weight of them individually (or a few at a time) it doesn't feel like like a lot of weight. However, the combined weight of all of these items when put ion a bag and handed to me (or stuffed in my pack) really adds up fast. That is why, now that I've gotten nearly all the gear I need, I have begun to systematically trying to get the weight down to a reasonable amount. I was surprised to read that people are carrying packs that weight 40-50 pounds. I'm a small (and out of shape) guy and 30 pounds feels like a bag of bricks to me (makes my legs feel heavy and wobbly). I hate that feeling because it makes me question my ability to do this but maybe I just need to get on some kind of excersize routine.

Thanks again for the great responses.Doing Squats and walking every day has helped me out tremendously, soon I'll add weight to my pack and walk with that each time...it'll come, do a little at a time. Also been introducing a little bit of weight to pump, dumbells.




http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/showthread.php?91666-What-is-the-healthiest-thing-one-can-do

[todd52]

Has anyone here ever considered dry baby food cereal (ie; oatmeal, rice, high protein, barley, etc) as a food source on the trail?. I have eaten it a number of times over the years (I love it) and I can see where there would be many advantages...

1) High in calories/protein
2) Vitamin/mineral enriched
3) Weighs only a few ounces (if that) per box so you can carry lots of it
4) Several boxes can last quite awhile
5) Comes in a variety of flavors (some with fruit, etc)
6) Instant and requires no cooking (or waiting).
7) Just add water/sugar. Delicious :)

[tiptoe]

Whatever kind of food you end up with, eat the heaviest items in the first few days.

[Drybones]

1 oz sesame seed snaps...230 calories /oz - DryBones

What are these? maybe, those little hard sesame chewy candies.


They look like small nab crackers, made with sesame seeds, look a little like brittle, got them at REI...the label says 230 calories?

[Rocket Jones]

Has anyone here ever considered dry baby food cereal (ie; oatmeal, rice, high protein, barley, etc) as a food source on the trail?. I have eaten it a number of times over the years (I love it) and I can see where there would be many advantages... <snip>

;) I highly suggest you give yourself a trail name before you head out.

[JAK]

1 gram of protein weighs 1 gram
1 gram of carbs weighs 1 gram
1 gram of fat weighs 1 gram
1 gram of fibre weighs 1 gram
What varies is how much excess moisture, packaging comes with it, and how much vitamins and minerals are missing.
There are many nutritious foods already dehydrated for you, like oatmeal, lentils, dried herbs, dried vegetable mix, paprika.

[Malto]

They look like small nab crackers, made with sesame seeds, look a little like brittle, got them at REI...the label says 230 calories?

The package weight (according to Rei's site) is 1.4 oz. that would be 163 calories per oz. this matches a couple other sites. I don't trust the REI data, they claim it also has 55g of sodium. That would defy the laws of physics. At 163 cal/oz, it is dense but not a super secret high density BPing food. Fritos are yummier as are cashews.

[swjohnsey]

Lard lasts forever and is the most calorie dense food you can carry.

[rocketsocks]

Lard lasts forever and is the most calorie dense food you can carry."Greasy Bread" a Trenton, NJ favorite. Pork fat back heated on an open flame drizzled on hard bread....good stuff, but you'll need to keep getting your Oil checked by you Doctor....not real healthy.

[JAK]

That is something you can do is try and burn more fat and less carbs and protein. Aim for perhaps 60% fat, 40% carbs and protein. If you are carrying excess body fat, you could then make some of that 60% fat come off your body instead of you food supply. Perhaps as much as 50% of you daily calories could come from your body, so you diet would then become only 20% fat and carbs and protein would be 80% of your food calories.

[Malto]

That is something you can do is try and burn more fat and less carbs and protein. Aim for perhaps 60% fat, 40% carbs and protein. If you are carrying excess body fat, you could then make some of that 60% fat come off your body instead of you food supply. Perhaps as much as 50% of you daily calories could come from your body, so you diet would then become only 20% fat and carbs and protein would be 80% of your food calories.

I do exactly this on short duration trips. I have been able to take less/lower weight foods as a result and never lack energy.

[Special K]

;) I highly suggest you give yourself a trail name before you head out.

I agree! :-? I've got one for you todd52 if you are interested. Anyway, lay out a weeks worth of each meal on your dining room table:

Breakfast
snack
Lunch
snack
Supper
snack

Weigh. Repackage stuff to make lighter. Adjust from there. You may find that 3 days before resupply is better than 5 days. If you don't want to resupply in town, send yourself a box closest distance to trail. Use AWOL's guide.

[shakey_snake]

Ghee (a type of Indian clarified butter, shelf stable) and instant potatoes is like a caloric wonderland.

[rocketsocks]

Has anyone here ever considered dry baby food cereal (ie; oatmeal, rice, high protein, barley, etc) as a food source on the trail?. I have eaten it a number of times over the years (I love it) and I can see where there would be many advantages...

1) High in calories/protein
2) Vitamin/mineral enriched
3) Weighs only a few ounces (if that) per box so you can carry lots of it
4) Several boxes can last quite awhile
5) Comes in a variety of flavors (some with fruit, etc)
6) Instant and requires no cooking (or waiting).
7) Just add water/sugar. Delicious :)I like those "Zwieback" cracker, I've wrastled more than one away from a kid.

I mean my kids ;)

[Farr Away]

Has anyone here ever considered dry baby food cereal (ie; oatmeal, rice, high protein, barley, etc) as a food source on the trail?. I have eaten it a number of times over the years (I love it) and I can see where there would be many advantages...

1) High in calories/protein
2) Vitamin/mineral enriched
3) Weighs only a few ounces (if that) per box so you can carry lots of it
4) Several boxes can last quite awhile
5) Comes in a variety of flavors (some with fruit, etc)
6) Instant and requires no cooking (or waiting).
7) Just add water/sugar. Delicious :)

The main disadvantage is cost. If something is packaged for babies or toddlers, the price doubles if not triples. Compare the per ounce costs of 'baby' food versus the same thing in the 'regular' grocery aisle. Babies are big business.

[Dogwood]

Better to use regular olive oil. Extra virgin can have too strong a taste for some things, the regular is more versatile.

I had a rainy "zero day" on the CT this Fall so what did I do? what most thru-hikers do! I went to an olive oil tasting with over 100 different olive oils in Silverthorne CO. The place is right next to the Go Lite Outlet. Some of those Spanish olive oils taste the strongest but I still like EVOO whcih tastes milder TO ME than regular grocery store mass produced olive oils. According to my Sicilian and Italian friends EVOO is of a superior quality to run of the mill secondary/third/fourth presses/grinds of the same olives.

[Dogwood]

The main disadvantage is cost. If something is packaged for babies or toddlers, the price doubles if not triples. Compare the per ounce costs of 'baby' food versus the same thing in the 'regular' grocery aisle. Babies are big business.

Good point Farr Away

[rocketsocks]

The main disadvantage is cost. If something is packaged for babies or toddlers, the price doubles if not triples. Compare the per ounce costs of 'baby' food versus the same thing in the 'regular' grocery aisle. Babies are big business.Yep, great point...Now making your own baby food type stuffs is the way many go;ie puree', dehydrate, lots of variety that way, and as Tipi Walter says, your eating the same things you'd eat at home.

[Dogwood]

They look like small nab crackers, made with sesame seeds, look a little like brittle, got them at REI...the label says 230 calories?

Yeah, those things make me feel like I'm taking a bite out of a lead brick. REI has recently started carrying a chewier version(different company) though. The new ones are tastier but ridiculously expensive at REI as are most of the foods when not on sale. It may also be that the nutritional quotes you offered Drybones are total cals for the whole package and the package weighs more than 1 oz making the cals per oz more in the neighborhood of what Malto has stated below.


The package weight (according to Rei's site) is 1.4 oz. that would be 163 calories per oz. this matches a couple other sites. I don't trust the REI data, they claim it also has 55g of sodium. That would defy the laws of physics. At 163 cal/oz, it is dense but not a super secret high density BPing food. Fritos are yummier as are cashews.

[Another Kevin]

Hmm. I'm a clueless weekender, so most of my trips are short, but I do the occasional 3- or 4-day weekend.

For a 4-day weekend, I'm likely to have the first day's breakfast and the last day's dinner in town, so I have 4 days of lunches and snacks, 3 breakfasts, 3 dinners.

It's not too tricky holding that down to 7-8 pounds and still eating good food. I can carry that. Essentially: dehydrate everything I can. If I carry anything fresh, eat it on the first day out. (And I do eat fresh fruit on the first day out, and just tote correspondingly less water that day.) Otherwise, eat what looks good, and know that the food and the stove fuel are the two things in my pack that are getting lighter as I go.

A typical day would have oatmeal or Pop-Tarts or some bread
and PB in the morning, along with real coffee. During the day I'll go through some dried fruit and nuts, and some M&Ms, and a Clif bar or some such, and some more bread
with PB or cheese or rehydrated hummus or rehydrated refried beans or jerky or something else substantial. (I snack all day long; lunch is just a bigger snack.)

For 'bread', read 'some sort of (probably unleavened or at least hard) bread that travels well.' Tortillas, bagels, pita, naan, crispbread and other crackers, rice cakes, are all good.

If it's chilly, and I have the time and fuel, I might stop at some point and make a pot [**] of tea or mug of hot chocolate.

[**] My teapot is a Nalgene (they'll take the heat) with a wool sock around it for insulation. Even though I use a Camelbak or Gatorade bottles for most of my water, I carry one Nalgene so that I'll have it for hot liquids and because it fits my water filter.

Dinner is one of a number of things: chicken and dumplings; dal bhaat tarkari; couscous with garlic and oil, with sun-dried tomato and dry sausage (or shrimp or salmon); tuna and noodles; small pasta shapes with cheese; all sorts of things - all of which get dehydrated vegetables added. Essentially I ring the changes on "instant rice, pasta, couscous, or potatoes, with tuna, salmon, chicken, dry sausage, jerky or cheese, and dehydrated vegetables of some sort, and always a gloop of EVOO in the sauce." Depending on seasoning, the result could be Mexican, or Italian, or Greek, or Middle Eastern, or Indian. It's almost always spicy - I find that I like spicy food on the trail even better than I do in town. Most often I'll make up the starch and sauce from dehydrated ingredients, other times I'll start with a Knorr side or packaged mac&cheese or something along those lines as a base.

Oftentimes I'll have a dessert ready to go. Instant pudding, or even my own rice pudding or fruit cobbler, or baked goodies from town. Fresh fruit on the first day out. Freeze-dried peaches or berries don't weigh much. They take up way too much room, but are still worth it because sometimes you need a treat. All of the desserts make good breakfasts, too, if I decide to mix things up differently.

If I'm going with a partner, I always wind up doing one dinner for two, because I just can't find a smaller pouch of pouched chicken any more. Partner can carry the food for another meal.

I'm willing to spend a little bit of pack weight and a little bit of time on eating well. If I eat well, I will enjoy the trip a lot more. And that's the point, right?

[rocketsocks]

Yep, great point...Now making your own baby food type stuffs is the way many go;ie puree', dehydrate, lots of variety that way, and as Tipi Walter says, your eating the same things you'd eat at home.Well, what a treat, look what my lovely wife has prepared for Sunday dinner..Acorn Squash, with Quinoa and spinach. With a little bit of prep and dehydration..the squash would lend itself well for soup, and the quinoa can be freezer bagged...This is one of Tipi's recipes...very cool20305She also has plans for some Kale crisps..kale laid out on a baking dish, little salt, bake...better than potato chips...for ya anyway!

[Dogwood]

Well, what a treat, look what my lovely wife has prepared for Sunday dinner..Butternut Squash, with Quinoa and spinach. With a little bit of prep and dehydration..the squash would lend itself well for soup, and the quinoa can be freezer bagged...This is one of Tipi's recipes...very cool20305She also has plans for some Kale crisps..kale laid out on a baking dish, little salt, bake...better than potato chips...for ya anyway!

I'm coming over for dinner. Scrumptious! My kind of food! That looks delish. Where in Nj?

Never buy EXPENSIVE Kale Crisps. They are so simple to make at home.

One Sock, coupla questions - what's for dessert? Seems like your wife's dinner is an aphrodisiac. Are you buttering her up with kindness for a reason?

[Rocket Jones]

That's an acorn squash, not butternut. :) Both are great though. I eat squash instead of potatoes most of the time. Mix with some broth or stock, smooth out into sheets on your dehydrator and make bark out of it. Wonderful veggie side on the trail.

[rocketsocks]

That's an acorn squash, not butternut. :) Both are great though. I eat squash instead of potatoes most of the time. Mix with some broth or stock, smooth out into sheets on your dehydrator and make bark out of it. Wonderful veggie side on the trail.Right you are Rocket Jones, I'm gonna go fix that straight away...what a marooney!:o

[Dogwood]

I was buying and eating those tasty Sweet Potato chips as trail snacks but I'm going to try your less pricey recipe for Squash Chips next hike Rocket Jones!

[rocketsocks]

That's an acorn squash, not butternut. :) Both are great though. I eat squash instead of potatoes most of the time. Mix with some broth or stock, smooth out into sheets on your dehydrator and make bark out of it. Wonderful veggie side on the trail.I love the skins. If on a diet and needing a midnight snack, a sweet potato is a great way to cut calories, and still have something satisfying.

[Dogwood]

The skins of some fruits and veggies are where a good portion of the vitamins are at too.

[QiWiz]

After completely revamping my gear list and reorganizing my gear (still not finished but I got my pack weight down from 25 pounds to only 20) I went out and bought about 10 bags of various trail mixes. When the cashier checked me out and handed me the bag I was immediately disappointed at how much it all weighed and I still have more to get!.

If a person is planning on hiking for 2 weeks continuously with no mail drops/re-supplying but yet still wanted to have enough food for that length of time, what types of food would they take?. I'm assuming there are plenty of places to get water along the trail so maybe small pouches of dried soups, coffee, etc?. Once you start getting into things like peanut butter, nuts, dried fruits, etc I have noticed that the weight really piles on (not to mention the space it takes up) and so it's only natural to want to take less of these items but if you do that then you are having to re-supply in town every few days which is kind of a pain because it breaks your hike up.

So, any suggestions on what type of foods one should take for a 2-week hike without adding lots of weight?. If it isn't possible, then how about a one week hike or one and a half week hike?.

Even with a relatively high fat diet (fat has more calories per gram than carbs or protein), I found that carrying and eating 1.5 pounds of food per day I still burned enough calories to lose a half-pound of body weight per day on the AT (average hiking of 13.5 miles/day) over 3 weeks including a town pig-out meal about once a week. I had body fat to lose, but if I didn't I would have needed at least 2 pounds of food per day to spare muscle.

So, to have the least weight for an extended trip, I would budget 1.5 to 2 pounds a day based on whether I had body fat to burn, and go with the highest fat content I could stand. Examples of what I mean by high fat foods include nuts, nut butters, Olive and other oils, cheese, some meats (like pre-cooked bacon or Spam), chocolate, cake icing, filled cookies like Oreos, etc.

So for a 14 day trip, you're looking at 21 to 28 pounds of food. That's a lot. Personally, if I had another option I would not want to do this. Use mail drops; use town stops to resupply. Ten days without resupply is the most I have done because I was out west and had no resupply option, and it basically doubled my pack weight to do it.

[swjohnsey]

I'm with you. I need about 2 lbs of food/day maintain weight even with town pig out.

[Starchild]

You might try to gather foods one or 2 days towards the back end of your 14 days. Some eatable plants can be gotten quite regularly along sections of the AT, while you would not want to eat them every day (it gets tired fast), a meal or 2 where you supplemented with this combined with olive oil and some seasoning can have the effect of lowering your pack weight a bit. Such plants are not calorie dense, but do have micro nutrients, the calories would come from the oil, which is just about the most efficient energy source you can carry in terms of calories per oz.

[swjohnsey]

Lard, 253 calories/oz.

[Starchild]

Lard, 253 calories/oz.

Grain alcohol is 190g/oz but can be a bit more fun to consume then a block of lard.