Meal Planning & Eating Well
Meal preparation is an essential step in planning a backpacking trip. In the wilderness, it's important to have food that tastes good and nourishes you. You also want to make sure you pack out foods that can withstand the conditions of outdoor travel and require minimal cooking effort. The following tips will help you prepare meals and snacks for the trail.
What Foods to Pack
While freeze-dried and dehydrated backpacking meals are lightweight, convenient, and deliver sustenance and taste, they can be pricey. However, don't overlook the grocery store aisle for your trail food needs. Packaged foods with cooking times of 10 minutes or less will often work, and by checking the nutritional panel, you can ensure they provide enough calories. A good rule of thumb is to look for meals containing at least 100 calories per ounce. You can easily boost the calorie content of meals by adding healthy fats such as nuts, seeds, and olive oil. When planning food for multi-day expeditions and marathons, it is important to select foods that contain at least 125 calories per ounce or 4.4 calories per gram, which requires additional planning.
Backpacking Food Preparation Tips
Everyday Grocery Items for Backpacking
Bulk Dried Backpacking Food
Vegetarian & Vegan Expeditions Food Tips
Planning Food for a Thru-Hike
Planning Food for a Vegan or Vegetarian Thru-Hike
Resupply: How to Mail Food for a Thru-Hike and Resupply Articles by Outdoor Herbivore
Storing Food: Bear Canisters
As more humans venture out to the wilderness, bears are becoming more habituated to the presence of humans. If bears associate humans as a source of carrying food, it can lead to dangerous interactions. Regulations vary between National Parks and National Forests on where bear canisters are required and which ones are approved.
Bear Canister Requirements in the USA
Food Considerations: No Cook, No Stove
Leave the backpacking stove at home to simplify meal preparation and lighten your pack. Going stove-less is doable, and you can still enjoy a satisfying meal. In addition to the usual options like meal bars and gorp, here are alternatives to consider.
No Cook Meals
How Much Food to Pack
Pack more food than you might need, prioritizing snacks and no-cook meals instead of extra hot meals. Doing so means you can still eat if you run out of stove fuel or are too tired to fire up the stove. A general guide is to pack 1.5 - 2 pounds of food per person daily for average body weight; otherwise, pack more food or supplement meals using healthy, high-calorie food such as nuts and olive oil.
Backpacking Food Packing Tips
Food Considerations: Cold Weather
Winter backpacking can require an additional 500 – 1,000 calories per day due to the increased energy demands of cold weather and high-altitude hiking. You must focus on high-fat, calorie-dense foods to meet these demands. Eating nutritionally sound foods will make a difference in your ability to stay warm and energized. Your appetite may decrease at higher elevations and cold conditions. Be mindful of the potential to adjust your food choices accordingly by adding simple digestible foods such as smoothies, soups, and calorie-dense snacks for colder stretches.
Food for Winter Backpacking
Why Soup Makes the Ultimate Winter Backpacking Meal
Food Considerations: Hot Weather
Besides staying hydrated in hot weather, you must consume foods high in electrolytes to replace that lost by heavy sweating. Bananas, dates, potatoes, and coconut are excellent sources of potassium, an important electrolyte for maintaining hydration and muscle function.Food for Summer Backpacking
Cold Meals for Backpacking
Food Considerations: Minimize Pain
Do you suffer from sore hips, neck aches, knee pain, and leg cramps on the trail? Pain is undoubtedly a common ailment experienced by most hikers. Fortunately, nature has provided us with plenty of trail-worthy foods to help minimize and alleviate inflammation and pain. Find out what spices and foods you should pack to help fight the ache.Foods to Eat that Minimize Pain and Inflammation
Cooking the Right Way
Running out of fuel mid-hike with a backpack full of freeze-dried entrées is a common concern. The boil-soak method of backcountry cooking is highly efficient because it uses less fuel and water. Here are a few strategies to conserve stove fuel.
Tips for Cooking on the Trail
Cooking at High Altitude
When hiking at altitudes above 5,000 feet, and your trail food comes out too watery or crunchy, the most likely cause is that you needed to allow the meal to soak longer to absorb the water. Soaking dried food longer is necessary. The general guide is to add 1 minute of rehydration (hot soak) time for every 1,000 feet of elevation gain above 5,000 feet.
Tips for Cooking Backpacking Foods at High Altitude
How to Eat
Champion Chewing on the Trail
Washing Dishes in the Backcountry
Don't risk your health by heating hot meals in flimsy plastic bags. We always encourage backpackers to use the proper cooking equipment for handling boiling water and hydrating food. This list of tips should help you clean up while backpacking and ensure your safety and health.
Doing Dishes on the Trail
Staying Healthy on the Trail
Avoid the temptation to eat a lot of sugary junk foods. Eating this way can result in vitamin deficiencies, which can significantly contribute to fatigue and illness among hikers. Focus on eating a variety of nutrient-rich foods and take multivitamins if you will be eating poorly long-term.More Energy & Less Fatigue on the Trail: Iron
Strong Bones on the Trail: Calcium
Tips for Finding Low Sodium Backpacking Food and Outdoor Herbivore's Meal Recommendations for Hypertension (25% or less Sodium)
Diabetic-Friendly Backpacking Food Tips and Outdoor Herbivore's Meal Recommendations for Diabetics