What do you guys take for food on backpacking/hunting trips?
- Thread starter dallssheep
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leadcounsel
member
Skip MREs- they are terrible in taste and will bind you up. And the packaging is heavy so you end up throwing it and most of the extras away.
I like Thrive, Mountain House, the pouches of tuna fish, small baggies of assorted nuts (soy nuts, almonds, walnuts, cashews). Some dehydrated mixed fruits.
Bring a little bit of candy, chocolate, hard candies to chew or suck on for energy.
I like Thrive, Mountain House, the pouches of tuna fish, small baggies of assorted nuts (soy nuts, almonds, walnuts, cashews). Some dehydrated mixed fruits.
Bring a little bit of candy, chocolate, hard candies to chew or suck on for energy.
ironworkerwill
Member
There is a secret to that. Eat the jelly on the way home.
Candyman87
Member
I strip out what I'm not taking before going. I basically only take the main dish, side, and dessert. Sometimes the crackers and jelly.
Two or three won't bind you up too badly. But like I said, I'm only out a day or two at a time.
Johnny_B_Goode
member
Family Dollar and some grocery stores have packs of 15 Slim Jims for $3. They do not weigh much and they would keep you from feeling weak. I am assuming this would be a temporary situation. Trail mix is pretty good but if does make you drink a lot of water.
caribou
Member
The trick I found to MRE's is to be very cold and very tired. Come to hink of it, on bad long days like that, when Im just drained and nothings getting better, even the life raft rations taste like candy 
eating my stash every couple years has me about halfway through the case now.
Hunting for us has been excellent, and one thing I take often is Seal oil, its rendered at room temp and is a "good" fat that dosent stick to your arteries and veins. We catch Caribou , or Fish, let them freeze and then dip the frozen meats into the oil. Generally eating frozen foods at -20 would chill a body, but with Seal Oil as a condiment, the caloric value is out the roof, the meal satisfying and a great way to eat in teh deep cold without building a fire. Old timers here walked everywhere and a bag of Seal/Whale blubber/oil was "trail food" for those on the hunt.
Its sort of an Arctic thing, but if you should find yerself here, its much like MRE's, when you do end up having to eat it, its pretty damn good. Im mucho used to it now, but it took some cold days and alotta suffering before I craved the stuff
Ill tell you my Spam story someday ~~LOL!!~~
eating my stash every couple years has me about halfway through the case now.Hunting for us has been excellent, and one thing I take often is Seal oil, its rendered at room temp and is a "good" fat that dosent stick to your arteries and veins. We catch Caribou , or Fish, let them freeze and then dip the frozen meats into the oil. Generally eating frozen foods at -20 would chill a body, but with Seal Oil as a condiment, the caloric value is out the roof, the meal satisfying and a great way to eat in teh deep cold without building a fire. Old timers here walked everywhere and a bag of Seal/Whale blubber/oil was "trail food" for those on the hunt.
Its sort of an Arctic thing, but if you should find yerself here, its much like MRE's, when you do end up having to eat it, its pretty damn good. Im mucho used to it now, but it took some cold days and alotta suffering before I craved the stuff
Ill tell you my Spam story someday ~~LOL!!~~
Loyalist Dave
Member
Depends on the duration.
I carry parched corn (some of which is groung into rock-a-hominy), venison jerky, green tea, sugar, salt , cayenne pepper, raisins, dry cured bacon, 151 rum with lime added, and taffy. That's for an overnighter. For longer hikes/hunts, two to four nights, I will also take cornmeal mixed wtih flour, a tater or two, a small bottle of olive oil, and maybe some dried apples.
I may pack food bars, but they are only if I get injured and stuck, and can't prepare my food.
LD
I carry parched corn (some of which is groung into rock-a-hominy), venison jerky, green tea, sugar, salt , cayenne pepper, raisins, dry cured bacon, 151 rum with lime added, and taffy. That's for an overnighter. For longer hikes/hunts, two to four nights, I will also take cornmeal mixed wtih flour, a tater or two, a small bottle of olive oil, and maybe some dried apples.
I may pack food bars, but they are only if I get injured and stuck, and can't prepare my food.
LD
When I head to the ranch huning I usually load up the RV with some ribeyes, lamb chops, a nice rack of ribs, maybe some sausage links, stuff to make some nice salads, a bottle or two of some nice wine for dinner in the evening; I do not rough it anymore!
cluttonfred
Member
Where's the "like" button when you need it? ;-)
JeeperCreeper
Member
I agree with this caution. I keep mine close to the skin to stay warm or keep it in my mouth before biting off a chunk.
I also cracked a tooth in half on an off brand cheese-it type cracker. Luckily I was 11 or something and it was a baby tooth.
We use horses most of the time anymore. We use to backpack some, though.
I never did like to eat the Mountain House (or other ) freeze dried stuff. There was only a couple of things that I really found edible. Even at that, if it said serves 2 it really only served one. So we ended up taking decent food from home. Pre-cooked bacon or fried egg sandwiches, oatmeal, some of that dried soup isn't too bad, crackers, packages of kool aid, peanut butter, potato flakes, butter, cheese and onion sanwiches, lettuce salad in plastic bags. Most of this will keep several days even in warm weather. Yeah it weighs a little more, but there's more energy in it and you don't think about eating or craving things every waking moment. There are a lot of other light weight options if you think about it.
Even with horses for spike camps for a few days we still take about the same things only we take more canned soup and don't necessarily pre-cook that much. OYE
I never did like to eat the Mountain House (or other ) freeze dried stuff. There was only a couple of things that I really found edible. Even at that, if it said serves 2 it really only served one. So we ended up taking decent food from home. Pre-cooked bacon or fried egg sandwiches, oatmeal, some of that dried soup isn't too bad, crackers, packages of kool aid, peanut butter, potato flakes, butter, cheese and onion sanwiches, lettuce salad in plastic bags. Most of this will keep several days even in warm weather. Yeah it weighs a little more, but there's more energy in it and you don't think about eating or craving things every waking moment. There are a lot of other light weight options if you think about it.
Even with horses for spike camps for a few days we still take about the same things only we take more canned soup and don't necessarily pre-cook that much. OYE
Vern Humphrey
Member
Rice is the classic backpacker's staple. You can add dried vegetables, jerky, etc., to make various dishes on the trail.
Vern Humphrey
Member
I was an adviser to Viet Namese infantry. It was eat rice and like it -- or starve.
.
Understandable. Liking rice is certainly a big plus though. Add a half dozen
raw baluts to nibble on for snacks and a couple of carp aged to perfection (maybe a fat dog for an extended stay) and you're all set for the backpack hunt of a lifetime. Sadly we suffer from a chronic case of Bulimia just thinking about it. OYE
Vern Humphrey
Member
Those were the good old days.
cluttonfred
Member
Hehe, it all depends. More than 20 years ago I spent two years as a volunteer in Nepal eating about 70% rice, 15% lentils, 10% vegetables, 5% meat, fish or eggs. I was as thin as I have been in my adult life about 145 lbs (pushing 200 now). The girls all gained weight, go figure. ;-)
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