Beyond Junk Food: Eating While Thru-hiking

Food prep for a 5 month hike is a pretty huge undertaking. At times, I’ve felt quite overwhelmed with the task. Mainly because I don’t want to rely on junk food to sustain my caloric needs, as many thru-hikers do.

First off – I just want to emphasize that food choices are definitely HYOH (hike your own hike) terrain. I do not judge or question what others choose to eat on the trail!

I understand why junk food is appealing: thru-hiking is justified gluttony. Most hikers experience a sustained caloric deficit, making them voraciously hungry. The junk food hiker diet is summed up perfectly in this comment in a Reddit thread on hiking nutrition:

Vitamins and healthy stuff is good but I was really surprised that I could hike 30+ mile days as a 44-year-old woman eating cookies, crackers and candy.

u/sbhikes on reddit.com

I have grown very accustomed to a balanced diet (thanks to Jon) and really don’t enjoy too much processed food. It makes me feel like crap. So, we are going to attempt a different approach on this hike. I’m sure we’ll be sprinkling in junk food throughout the trip, but I hope as little as possible. I will update this post with how my strategy pans out on the trail!

The Resupply Box

A 4-5 day resupply box will contain the following:

• Roughy 8,000 calories of snacks comprised of nuts, chocolate, dried fruit, bars, nut butters, etc.
• Breakfast: muesli, chia, dried fruit and coconut powder.
• Lunches: dehydrated salmon, hummus powder, tortillas, cheese, couscous and kidney beans, salami.
• Dinner: quinoa, black/pinto beans, Israeli couscous, pardina lentils, dried sweet potatoes, chicken, dried veggies, spices.

The idea is to pack the food bag with lots of fats and proteins, since they are more satiating, as well as some sugars from bars and fruit for a quick energy boost.

For dinners, I wanted to plan for variety so we (hopefully) do not tire of our food. So, I created a spice bag with specific flavor profiles!

Each flavor profile can be added to a base meal of quinoa and chicken, or lentils and quinoa.

My favorite things

In my spice bag, there are a couple of knock-out spices that really liven up a backcountry meal.

• Celery seed has a bright, fresh taste and adds big flavor to food.
• Chipotle powder adds heat and lots of flavor to your Mexican inspired meals
• Toasted onion is soooo good. Regular dried onion is also a must, but the toatiness of onion makes plain foods like quinoa and couscous really shine.
• Lemon/lime packets are lightweight and versatile. I use a lot of citrus in cooking at home, so adding lemon or lime to food in the backcountry is such a delight. We bring True Citrus packets.
• Coconut powder is high in fat and calories, and is used for both breakfasts and curries for dinner. I can’t imagine hiking without it! I’ve tried most brands, and found that Native Forest tastes the best.

Shoutout to My Spice Sage, their spices are really fresh and affordable.

For staples, I think a couple swaps in your food bag really make a difference for calories and satiety.

• Quinoa instead of rice Quinoa has more calories and protein than brown rice. Jon, our resident Registered Dietician, writes about the benefits of quinoa. See the hiking nutrition tag for the details.
• Israeli couscous instead of regular couscous This is probably a personal preference, but I like the texture of the larger pearl couscous, and it doesn’t really take that much longer to rehydrate and is more filling.
• Pardina lentils are delicious! Small and easy to soak and cook, once you try them you’ll never go back. They absorb flavors easily. My favorite seasonings to add are toasted onion and paprika.
• Dehydrated sweet potato instead of russet potatoes. A 1/2 cup of dehydrated sweet potatoes has 440 calories, and weighs 3.3 oz. It is high in vitamins A and C, as well as fiber and even some protein. Instant potatoes are around 150 calories per 1/2 cup and weigh about 1.5 oz and do not have a lot of nutritional value. We like Mother Earth Products.

I hope these suggestions spark your culinary creativity out there!