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.

backpacking food planning

What Foods to Pack

While freeze-dried and dehydrated backpacking meals are lightweight, convenient, and provide good nutrition and taste, they can be expensive. Instead of relying solely on these options, consider exploring the grocery store aisle for your trail food needs. Packaged foods with cooking times of 10 minutes or less can be great alternatives. When selecting these items, check the nutritional information to ensure they offer sufficient calories. A good rule of thumb is to look for meals containing at least 100 calories per ounce. You can boost the calorie content of meals by adding healthy fats such as nuts, seeds, and olive oil. For multi-day expeditions and marathons, select foods that provide at least 125 calories per ounce or 4.4 calories per gram.
Backpacking Food Preparation Tips
Dehydrated and Freeze-Dried Food Differences
Everyday Grocery Items for Backpacking
Bulk Dried Backpacking Food Ingredients
Vegetarian & Vegan Expeditions Food Tips
Planning Food for a Thru-Hike
Planning Food for a Vegan or Vegetarian Thru-Hike s
High Proteiein Vegetarian Foods to Boost Your Backpacking Meals
Resupply: How to Mail Food for a Thru-Hike and Resupply Articles by Outdoor Herbivore

What Foods to Make

Prepare and store backpacking meals in advance so you have quick, portable options ready for weekend trips or multi-day adventures. This collection includes a variety of recipes, such as dehydrator recipes, freeze-dried meals, no-equipment recipes using cooked and dried ingredients, no-cook recipes, and meal-planning services, among others.

Backcountry Foodie Ultralight Backpacking Recipes
Storage & Heat-Safe Rehydration Backpacking Meal Pouches

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 even if you run out of stove fuel or are too tired to fire it up. A general rule is to pack 1.5 to 2 pounds of food per person per day for average body weight; otherwise, pack more food or supplement meals with healthy, high-calorie foods such as nuts and olive oil.
Backpacking Food Packing Tips
Tips For Planning Backpacking Food for Groups

Storing Food: Bear Canisters

As more humans venture into the wilderness, bears are becoming increasingly habituated to human presence. If bears associate humans with 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

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 help you stay warm and energized. Your appetite may decrease at higher elevations and in 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 those lost by heavy sweating. Bananas, dates, potatoes, and coconut are excellent sources of potassium, an important electrolyte that helps maintain 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 among 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 didn't let the meal soak long enough to absorb the water. Soaking dried food (especially hot food) longer is necessary because water boils at a lower temperature. 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

Are you wasting food calories by not chewing properly? Spotting undigested food such as corn, seeds, or nuts in your stool often indicates poor chewing. Proper chewing is an important yet often overlooked way to absorb the most nutrients from your trail food. Speaking of bad eating habits, we discuss a few others you don’t want to adopt here.

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 a multivitamin if you eat poorly in the long term.

Replenishing Electrolytes

More Energy & Less Fatigue on the Trail: Vitamin B12
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 )