Backpack hunting food

[Rob]

What all do you guys like to take for extended backpack trips to the high country? How often do you eat? How much weight does your food add to your pack for everyday you're gone? When do you eat your biggest meal of the day? What has not worked for you?

I know you've got your Mountain Houses and BackPackers Pantry etc., but what else have some of you found that has good as far as packability, needed calories, and are quick and easy. I've been looking at those tuna and salmon packets that they sell these days and they're not too bad with crackers or bagels for lunches. Cereal bars in the morning are quick, easy and small. And course energy bars or granola bar, jerky, trailmix in bewteen.

So who's got this down to a science?

 

[huntfishall1]

Everyone has their own preferences. You seem to be a good start with the stuff you mentioned. Here is what I like. I hate to cook anything in the morning (too lazy to heat water - haha) so its usually a good portion of granola in water, with a scoop of powdered protein, and some dry milk (if I can find a small box). Throughout the day I snack on everything from trailmix (with lots of nuts), protein bars, snickers, chips or crackers, pepperoni, chocolate cover almonds, and basically anything high calorie for the weight and volume. For dinner its usually a double mountain house meal I cook when I get back to my campsite. I figure about 2000 calories per day minimum. I wish I could eat more, but usually am too tire to eat a lot. Weight it typically 1 to 1.5 pounds of food per day if its high calorie stuff.

One thing I tried and didnt care for was bagels with peanut butter. Lots of calories, but they became unbearable to continue eating after a couple days. Variety is usally good so you eat and maintain caloric intake. Plan to still loose some weight on your trip if you are backpacking.

 

[HiMtnHntr]

The stuff you mention is good. Not much in the way of calories in the salmon or tuna, but it's packed with protein and light enough and would be a good addition to a dehydrated meal in the evening. I have gone with mountain house meals simply because, for the price, it's hard to match the nutritional value in a lighter package. The cheaper one's, such as the eggs and ham are a mainstay in my pack. I eat my biggest meal in the evening, but you should be snacking throughout the day to maintain your energy level.

 

[ELKOHUNTER]

Lets see.

Breakfast
2 Packs of oat meal

Snacking
JERKY
Oat's and honey granola bars or fig type bars

Lunch
1-2 packs of Top roman and some jerky

Dinner
Bear Creek Soups
Idaho-in Mashed potato's

All of it can be bought for really cheap at walmart!

Comes out to around 1.3 LBS of food a day

("For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. Ephesians 2:8-9")

 

[DirtyTough]

I always look for the highest calorie content food I can find. Usually its around 130 cals per ounce. I only eat cold food. That way it saves weight on a stove, pan, spoon, and fuel. And I go to hunt/scout not make food. I just go to the store and buy what looks good that day.

Some of the pretty regular items I get are:
Poptarts
Candybars
Different kinds of crackers
Pretty much anything that is calorie dense for the weight and tastes good.

I used to do the bagel thing also but most of them don't even make 100 calories per ounce which should be the minimum a guy brings.

 

[nickman]

MRE's.

Tear down the packages and sort out what you like. The ability to heat with the chemical packets is way simple, quick and no mess to clean up.

 

[Bates7]

>MRE's.
>
> Tear down the packages and
>sort out what you like.
>The ability to heat with
>the chemical packets is way
>simple, quick and no mess
>to clean up.


+1 nickman

http://img1.jurko.net/avatar_13010.jpg[/img][/url]

 

[Phantom Hunter]

LAST EDITED ON Jun-17-10 AT 10:42AM (MST)[p]Due to fairly severe dietary restrictions I have had a hard time finding foods to carry with me in the back country. What I have found is foil packaged chicken and tuna/salmon. Bagged rice that can be heated in water over a backpack stove. Zone Bars, they have about the same calories as a Snickers but lots better nutrition. Cliff bars work well too. As well as the usual dried fruits/nuts type trail-mix. I am finding that proper nutrition helps me with staying focused and not letting weather or other problems get me down.

Phantom Hunter

 

[BuckSnort]

I like MRE's for short stays but for trips longer than a couple days they are to damn heavy....

Disclaimer:
The poster does not take any responsibility for any hurt or bad feelings. Reading threads poses inherent risks. The poster would like to remind readers to make sure they have a functional sense of humor before they visit any discussion board.

 

[trophyhunter]

We choose our foods depending on the specific type and duration of the hunt. Are we packing in up hill heavy, or down hill or both is factor #1. If there is a water source that you can filter with MRS quality pump filters. Then I would stay with the dehydrated foods. They have so many choices in breakfasts and dinners. If limited water is a factor. We then carry in water for drinking only and purchase M.R.E.'s meals ready to eat that have there own heating source built in per meal. The MRE's weigh more initally adding to pack weight but now we do not need to use any of the packed in water for food @ 8oz. min. per meal or any backpack stove and fuel. On the dehydrated food we double the meal stated on the package. Meals for 2 will feed only one at dinner. Cook and eat it right out of the bag with long a handled plastic spoon that you can pick up at REI. We found that if we eat the better dinner we actually take less packing in overall and wait for the dinner meal. We hunt hard all day everyday, dark to dark.

We make dinner our main meal. We eat things like Nature Valley "Oat's and Honey" bars for Breakfast, & Trail Mix Bars Lunch, snacks are dehydrated fruit packs, and for a treet we each pack in a couple of Snickers bars.

If you are a serious hunter and want to maintain staying scent free to your game. You need to stay away from any type of foods that give off odors or leave odors on your hands or breath in the backcountry. Leave those Salmon and Tuna odors back at the truck. If you do eat those items out of your hunting area. Make sure you use Scent-Killer or Wildlife Reaserch de-scenting wash cloths and some type of breath de-centing. Spearmint gums have worked for us on Archery Elk hunts. Make sure you garbage bag all finished food containers to reduce emitting odors into the area. Unwrap all snacks at backpack camp and put them into zip-lok bags to reduce unwrapping noises and store them in an outside pocket of your backpack each night before to take on your next days hunt. This will reduce movement and noise that will alert/spook game something is NOT RIGHT in the area. Prepare food (lunch and snacks) for the next day hunt at night after dinner. It is too hard to not miss/forget something at O" Dark 30AM after several days in the backcountry.

No camp fires, noise etc. for cooking. Use GRABBER MEGA WARMER 12 hour heat packs in shirt pockets if you get into low temps. You can get all these items on-line at Cabela's. Quality gear will keep you warmer than the less expensive ones. Take a good REI quality LED type head lamp and one set of backup batteries for the headlamp and GPS. When you think gear. Use waterproof Scent-Lok garments washed in Scent-Killer type products (follow the directions and bag'm) after drying and wear Smartwool Socks. Expensive but very warm and they breath and wick moisture away from your feet better that any other sock on the market. The mid-weight socks will keep you warm when the temps are down into the low 20F's if you have good boots.

This will help reduce your overall pack weight.

 

[Deuce]

>MRE's.
>
> Tear down the packages and
>sort out what you like.
>The ability to heat with
>the chemical packets is way
>simple, quick and no mess
>to clean up.


+2

 

[Huntnfever]

youwill find nothing better then a mre, especially if you field strip them. 1 MRE has over 20 thousand callories in it if you eat everything your supposed to. If you have been in the military you dont even have to heat most them, cause you have ate them before cold. Maybe someone should make a video how to properly field strip a MRE. I actually still like them after 2 deployments and countless field opps...

has anyone seen my kittie

 

[juliusvatalaro]

Make sure to chew the gum that comes with the MRE. It is a laxative. MRE's will plug you up.

 

[Huntnfever]

Depends i never had that problem, but for alot yes they do...plug you up tighter then a rubber plug. Forgot to mention that.

has anyone seen my kittie

 

[BuckSnort]

I like the MRE's too for short trips...But for extended trips they are to heavy because they already have the liquid in them...Even stripped they are heavy when your talking about staying over 3 nights...I usually choose a variety of meals between Mountain House and Backpackers Pantry...

Y'all ever notice that it doesn't matter which MRE meal you ate...The burps all taste the same no matter what entree you ate...lol

Disclaimer:
The poster does not take any responsibility for any hurt or bad feelings. Reading threads poses inherent risks. The poster would like to remind readers to make sure they have a functional sense of humor before they visit any discussion board.

 

[powellpounder]

Mre and Mountain house. I also through in the cliff bars and I take two pre made sandwiches of toasted wheat bread peanut butter bacon and honey sandwiches. they stay good for a couple of days. Its a good mixer upper from what is mentioned above.

 

[zekers]

+5 on the MRE's. You're right Snort, all the burps taste like that damn bread. I also throw in a few tortillas with pb&j and plenty of the folgers single's packets for the mornings.

There are plenty of backpacking forums, and the alaskan forums for the sheep freaks have the food thing to a science. You might check there.

 

[NMPaul]

If I am really busting my hump, I spoil myself and take the good stuff (most likely why I am overweight).

Chocolate covered coffee beans (eliminates caffeine withdrawals if your not brewing coffee.

trail mix with lots of M&Ms

Jerky

Candy bars

Some expensive cheese. I like it sharp and strong.

Maybe some good quality salami.

Not your standard stuff, but, you asked.

 

[superglide]

you guys are brave,after 20 yrs in the army i cant eat another mre unless im hurting.thems things plug ya up tight and that just sucks.i aways carry some laxitive when eating them.