Hiking Food

Hiking Food Is Fuel For Energy

HIKING FOOD FOR ENERGY

You will never look at food quite the same way again

Hiking Food

It’s no longer comfort food; it’s fuel energy. Many people tell me food has never tasted so good; your priorities change. Carrying all the nutrition you need for a multiday hike changes the way you look at eating. This page is part of Prepare For Your Multiday Hike.

Dehydrated food is lighter as you don’t carry the liquid

Whatever you carry in, unless you eat it, you carry it out.

Plan food in easy-to-carry packaging to carry back out; there are no bins, e.g., a vacuum pack is better than tin.

Here are a few essential and inspiring dot points to remember

  • CALORIES – CARBOHYDRATES – PROTEIN are the priority
  • Everything tastes great on the trail
  • Food is fuel
  • Carry in, eat it or carry it out
  • The only way your pack will become lighter is when you eat
  • Dehydrated ingredients weigh less to carry; sauce is heavy; add water at the campsite
  • No tinned foods -They’re way too heavy, don’t have enough calories, and create bulky trash to carry out
  • Eat any heavier meals on day one
  • Fruit – You cannot throw away apples, pear cores, banana peel or any leftover fruit into the bush. There are native animals attracted to the sugar in fruit and will eat it, but sadly, they receive so much of a sugar rush that it will make them very sick and even kill them.

The specific food you need on a hike may depend on the duration of the hike, km’s each day & how/what you usually eat. For instance, on day one, you can carry something.

CALORIES – CARBOHYDRATES – PROTEIN

You cannot compare the food you need at home to what you need on a multiday hike.

You need calories, fats and lots of them. There is no room for low or no-fat foods because they give you no energy. If you are not a big eater, bring smaller quantities you are used to but foods higher in calories.

You need carbohydrates for energy; eat them during your evening meal.

You need protein for muscle recovery. At the end of a long, hard day, your leg muscles must recover for the next day. They will feel amazing with rest, 10 hours of sleep, protein, and calories.

Hiking Food Idea’s

Breakfast

  • Oats or muesli with full cream powder milk
  • Muesli or energy bar

Lunch (cold)

  • Wraps or crackers with, e.g., tuna, peanut butter, Laughing Cow Cheese, Emmental cheese
  • Packaged salads with, e.g., rice, tuna, chicken, beans
  • Hard dried meats

Dinner

  • 2 Minute Noodles with, e.g., dehydrated peas, mushrooms or anything that is light and won’t go off
  • Continental pasta meals – Need milk, so use powdered milk. The meal is low fat; add extra virgin oil
  • On the first night of a hike, you could eat a home-cooked meal that is practical and won’t go off
  • Instant soups
  • Dehydrated mash potato
  • Freeze-dried hiker meals (research online or at an outdoor/hiking store)

On-Trail Snacks (or whenever you feel like eating them)

  • Trail mix – buy it ready or make your own with your favourite nuts, dried fruit, yoghurt drops, seeds, dark chocolate)
  • Muesli bars – but better quality bars; cheaper bars are just full of sugar
  • Protein bars – They tend to be very low in fat.
  • Nuts
  • Dried fruit
  • Jerky
  • Snickers (most eaten food on the trail in the world)
  • Soft lollies – like snakes that are pleasant to chew on as you hike. Sweet, sugary snacks are great for quick energy before a climb or for the last hour of the day
  • Peanut M&M’s (they do not melt)
  • Honey
  • Cheese (Hard cheese like Parmesan or mature cheddar) is not too heavy, it lasts several days.
How To Keep Hydrated
  • Water (campsites have rainwater tanks)
  • Electrolyte drink powders (essential in warmer weather)
  • Dried cuppa soup
  • Chocolate drink with powdered milk (best muscle recovery drink)
  • Hot drinks

 

Packing Your Hiking Food

Plan out your daily meals required on a table or bed in rows of breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks/extra rows.

Helpful Video: Hike Meal Preparation

When I was learning to manage my food for a multi-day hike or my Bibbulmun Track end-to-end, I had a large Ziplock bag for each day; then I marked day one on the front, then so on for the rest of the days. Then you know where to find each day’s food when needed. For instance, the issue with placing all your snacks in one bag is knowing how much you are eating; halfway through the hike, you have run out. During a hike, you can find yourself not wanting to eat at all or wanting to eat continuously; both are normal.

Dehydrating Your Hiking Meals

Dehydrating your hiking meals is not the scary beast you may think.

I never dehydrated my meals for several years because I thought it was too hard.

Do you need a food dehydrator? No, you don’t! It will work if your normal kitchen oven goes down to 25 degrees Celsius or even 50.

Try out this site – Trail Food, and have fun.

 

Scroll to Top