Do It Yourself –dehydrated backpacker’s meals

Face it, whether you are a cyclist, backpacker, or just a compact camper, the commercially prepared freeze dried meals have been along on a trip or two.  Equally as often, you have not been too happy with the meal that resulted, as it failed in quantity, flavor, color, or texture.  I will never forget an experience with some chicken dish, I think it was sweet & sour with rice?  It looked like a puppy had barfed in the container, and the puppy barf might have tasted better.  (No, I have never tasted puppy barf, don’t intend to, and I also gagged at the taste of that stuff.)

Seriously though, on the trail, when you are depending on the meals you have brought along, having something be a total “FAIL” is more than disappointing, it can be a trip ruining disaster or worse.  We have to depend on what we have brought along, and it has been a huge investment in terms of labor and weight to get to the point of adding the boiling water.  Even with the amount of importance that trail food can have, that does not mean we need to have invested our life savings in the food for a two week hike.

Learning to make your own meals has a very steep learning curve.  I’ve tried doing a few things myself, with mixed results.  Then, today I read the most amazing book.  All of that trial and error experimenting has gone out the window, now I have a guide book to get me where I want to go without suspiciously sampling Meal X ever again.  It’s well written, has clear recipes, and solid information.  I’ll admit I have not tried any of the recipes yet (my dehydrator is still packed in a box…somewhere) but I have  no doubts that they are very accurate.

In addition, it allows us to take control of the contents.  My husband and I both need low-sodium meals, and that’s not something that has been addressed by companies such as Mountain House, even though I was told over a  year ago that low sodium meals were in the works.  Unlike many hikers, we no longer need high calorie meals either–due to health problems, we are not physically able to burn off 8,000 calories in a day.  Whether its on a bike or on foot, we now have a much more leisurely approach to the whole process, and our bodies demand we take the time to smell the flowers, experience the moment, and watch the birds flying by a lot more often than we did at twenty-something.  Even with that, we also can’t pack 60 pound packs over mountain tops, and weight is probably more important for us than ever before, as our strength is decreasing as well as our endurance.  Armed with these recipes, we can make the adjustments to the recipes to stick to our medical diets without worries.

So what is this mysteriously wonderful book?  It’s called Backpack Gourmet by Linda Frederick Yaffe.  It’s not new–it’s been out for over a decade, but I just read it via Kindle.  Thankfully, it’s not focused on faddish foods that will make us grimace at the ingredients, but remains just as relevant today as it was when it was initially published.  It’s also the very first book that I can honestly say, hey, here is a really good recipe book to use as a starting point to preparing good, inexpensive packable meals for backpacking, bicycle camping, or any other time we’d want to pack along fast and easy meals.

On that note though, I’m going to leave you taking a look at the book and trying to get your hands on a copy while I go hunt for the location of my dehydrator and vacuum sealer.  I have a feeling that vacuum sealing some of these meals before storing them will make them a lot easier to pack AND store.

The cost of eating while camping

Eating and camping.  It always seems as though more food is consumed by hungrier people when they are out in the Great Outdoors.  When you are car camping, this isn’t much of an issue.  The same foods that are consumed at home can be consumed in camp, courtesy of a cooler, camp stove, and barbecue grill.  (Although I don’t recommend corn dogs as camp food.  They don’t handle the campfire well.)

Backpacking and bicycle camping adds other factors to the food equation though.  In these two scenarios, weight, volume and calories have to be carefully considered, and for those on a tight budget, the cost can become daunting when preparing for even a weekend trip.

Most backpackers typically carry freeze dried or dehydrated meals.  Some people create their own from ingredients they either purchase or dehydrate themselves, but that’s not the answer for a lot of people with limited time, money, space and equipment.  For most, it’s Mountain House or Alpine Aire meals.

At $6-8 for each meal, containing about 400-600 calories, with an average consumption of 2000 calories per day (moderate activity)…it’s easy to do the math for a 3 day trip.  It’s going to cost $60-80 for the weekend’s food.  That’s a good sized chunk of change for many hikers and bikers.

There are several ways to help cut the food costs, but we’re going to look at simple and compact solutions.

Breakfast.

• There is no reason why you NEED nice little foil packaged granola “with milk” to eat.  It’s much easier to dine on cereal or protein bars with a side of hot cocoa, tea, coffee, or merely an electrolyte beverage.  Breakfasts are typically a bit cheaper than the other meals, but they also provide less in terms of calories and volume.  The bars are adaptable to how hungry you are, don’t require boiling water or spoons to consume, and you can have a variety of flavors, if you choose.
• If you want a more traditional style breakfast, you can make your own “instant” oatmeal packages by placing 1 c. of quick oatmeal, 2 tbsp. instant whole milk, 2 tbsp. brown sugar, 2 tbsp. raisins/dates/nuts/dried fruit and cinnamon (if desired) in a zip lock bag.  Simply pour the cereal mixture into your bowl, add 1 c. hot water and let sit for 1-2 minutes and eat!  These servings are also much more substantial than the smaller, commercially prepared instant oatmeal envelopes.
• Tortillas are much easier to pack than bread, and they make a great breakfast wrap when smeared with peanut butter, with or without some jelly.  For a less-gooey fruity addition, how about some raisins?  Peanut  butter can be purchased in small plastic jars, as well as individual serving plastic containers.  (Jars are MUCH cheaper per serving, and can fuel you for an entire weekend on just over $2.)

Lunches & Dinners.

• These are always more substantial meals, and using a prepared meal as the “core” can be a good tactic.  Choose meals you like–not everyone likes every meal available.  (My favorites are the beef stew and the grilled chicken breast with mashed potatoes.)
• As additional side dishes, try adding items such as envelopes of instant mashed potatoes (the just-add-water versions) or ramen noodles.  The ramen noodles can be prepared by just pouring boiling water over them and allowing them to sit for 3-4 minutes, then adding seasonings of your choice.  Those small packages of Parmesan cheese passed out by pizza take-outs are perfect for camping, as well as the pepper packs.  That’s about the right amount of cheese to jazz up a backpack meal!
• Don’t forget the sweet tooth.  Adding a dessert might really make a meal more satisfying, but your choices are not restricted to freeze dried versions.  Packages of cookies, cake, even individual pies are all viable options.  For the chocoholics, only bring along your favorite candy if the temperatures are mild, or you’ll have a mushy and sticky mess in your backpack.  Better choices for candies in hot weather are hard candies, toffee without chocolate, peanut brittle, etc.  Dried or freeze dried fruit is another option to satisfy that sweet tooth.  Nutella spread on a tortilla can also be that chocolate-y treat for dessert.

Snacks.

• Snacks are great for between meal pick me ups, as well as just increasing overall calorie intake when necessary.  This can be almost anything that can be eaten without preparation.  Jerky, nuts, dried fruit, cookies, crackers, bars, GORP, etc. are all good choices.  Just remember…they will take a beating in  your backpack, so choose sturdy versions in minimal packaging.
• Don’t forget the peanut butter and tortillas.  These can fill in many “hollow spots” without costing a lot.  If you bring along Nutella, you may have to beat off your companions to keep them out of your stash!
• Carrying some hard candies in your backpack can be a good idea.  They work wonders for helping to control thirst, are soothing, sweet, and easy to eat without stopping.  I like tightly sealed ones which I then place inside of a freezer bag in one of the outside pouches of my backpack for easy access and protection from weather.

Tough economic times don’t mean you have to cut everything out, but we can cut costs in painless ways that allow us to indulge in our passions without financial pain.  A few adjustments on the menu can easily drop that $80 bill down to a more manageable $20-30 one, leaving more money in your pocket for the next weekend or that new gizmo you’ve been saving for, all without sacrificing quality or safety!

Hammock camping anyone?

Last year, several of the bunch we typically camp with thought that camping in a hammock was the way to go.  I don’t think it worked out for them, but I’m not exactly sure why.  (I’ll have to check into that, I guess!)  But lately, it has been on my mind as an alternative, especially in our hot muggy weather, to sleeping on a tarp under another tarp to keep the dew off.  Tents are just too hot!

The appeal of a hammock system is multi-fold.  First, it’s the ultimate in ultra-light, leave-no-trace camping.  It’s a great stealth camping method.  It packs up small.  It doesn’t require clear ground space (a problem in thick woods that haven’t been burned in the past decade or more.)  It’s quick to set up.  It has maximum ventilation for those hot and muggy summer nights.

At the same time, I will admit I have some concerns.

• Do I want to be in a hammock hanging from two trees during a thunderstorm?
•  How will it be during any kind of a rain storm?
• Can I stay bug free without having that no-see-um netting just inches from my face?  (I’m highly claustrophobic…I can’t even stand a full face motorcycle helmet!)
• Is my back going to kill me?
•  If we’re camping in a campground, would they even ALLOW this form of camping (that do-not-hang-anything-on-trees rule).
• What if the weather turns cold in the fall or spring?  Will I end up freezing?
• How will I handle the dog issue, especially in cold weather?  (We have 3 now, and two of them are old.  They sleep in our tent usually.)

There are a lot of websites and forums that focus on hammock camping, something I had never even heard of until just a year or two ago.  I have to admit…it is attractive in thought!  I like the idea that I can have my bed and tent up in five minutes or less, and take it down just as fast, leaving little sign I was there at all.  With a tent, there is a large area of crushed grass at least, and often far more signs of my stay.

In reading about the concept, I’ve learned that there are specialized hangers to leave little trace on the trees, essentially consisting of web straps and quick connectors.  Great idea.  The overhead protection for rain, sun and dew comes from a tarp, which may be included with your hammock, sold separately, or you may be expected to rig up your own.  Typically, these overhead tarps are supported by a cord or rope ridgeline and then staked outward like the wings of a bird.  The same ridgeline will often support the mosquito netting, which may be secured to the tarp or below the tarp.

For wind, rain and cold protection, the height of the tarp is changed.  Reducing the height of the tarp over the hammock and bringing the sides down lower reduces the amount of wind and rain that can get to the hammock.  Lowering the hammock closer to the ground is also one of the tools used to reduce the amount of wind beneath the hammock.  In addition to these methods, some hammock fans use a cocoon-like sleeping bag sort of arrangement on the outside of the hammock, along with a thermal pad and sleeping bag inside of the hammock to stay warm.  Velcro is typically used to attach these exterior accessories to the sleeping bag, as well as to attach the mosquito netting to the sleeping bag.

Sounds great but…I still wonder, would I have one of my claustrophobic attacks at all of this?

Spring fever and winter’s last hurrah

Spring fever.  That intense urge to get out and go DO something…it’s usually rampant this time of year (or earlier) depending on the weather and where spring arrives in your neck of the woods.  So what makes for a great spring adventure?  Here, we have ten rules for keeping it safe, and ensuring you have a great summer enjoying the natural world we all love.

Spring is a moody season.  You never know for sure what the next few days will bring, although meteorologists try to be accurate in their predictions.  Even so, this is the time of year when you need to really be prepared for that just-in-case spring storm that blows in, carrying freezing rain and drizzle that will suck the warmth right out of your body if you aren’t ready for it.We’ve all seen it…everything starts to bloom, to grow…and then, Old Man Winter comes in for a last blow before giving it up until the next year, coating everything in ice, turning our world into a beautiful crystalline world…that’s slippery and cold as hell.  Sometimes, it’s snow…coating everything in one last snowy dressing, and our world becomes an icy wet one.

Both of these scenarios involve moisture, and they can both be bad when you are caught in the back country.  If you are prepared, with a few extra rations and shelter, you are often better off sitting it out, waiting until the ice is gone and you can safely travel again, especially if your route includes steep, rocky climbs that an icy or wet and icy coating turns into an accident waiting to happen.  If you headed out prepared, with a waterproof tent, sleeping bag, appropriate clothing, and the ability to make fire…you can hang tight and comfortable until its safe to head out.

People may worry, especially if it means you are over due in returning, so stay visible in case of an aerial search.  Stay on your trail too!  Searches start in the area where you are supposed to be!

In the meantime, your primary goal is to stay warm, dry, and hydrated, whether or not you have food.  Most people can survive a week or longer without food, but without enough water, especially in cold conditions, few people last very long.  Eating snow is not a good hydration choice either–it will cause your core body temperature to drop faster, risking your life much quicker.  Melt snow before drinking it, if snow is your source of water.  This can be done by putting a pot of snow in the tent with you or by putting it on your stove or over a fire.

On flat terrain, the traveling isn’t as dangerous, but a fall can still leave you disabled and unable to continue on your route.  Face it, even on flat ground at home, ice is dangerous–right up to being potentially fatal.  All of us, unless we’ve always lived in a no-ice zone, have taken a fall on ice at some point in our lives.  I know I’ve had some that left me with injuries, ranging from a mild concussion to sprained arms or legs.  It hurts, not only our dignity, but also our physical well being.

Being prepared…it’s not just about being prepared at home or about being a good Boy Scout and being prepared.  It’s about using your head, and being capable of adapting to anything that happens, either by the things we are carrying or by our ingenuity.  We have all heard horror stories too, of some hiker who had all of the essentials for survival…and yet froze to death on his journey.  Don’t let it be you.

One of the biggest hazards to the hiker is being a solitary hiker.  When things go badly, two or more brains are much more likely to come up with a solution.  In addition, in the cold, when the body’s core temperature begins to drop, one of the hazards is the reduced brain function.  This is a problem that leads to confusion, drowsiness, and ultimately death because it renders the victim incapable of coherent thought and action to prevent further chilling.

We’ve all had trips that went badly, even when we knew better.  I remember one trip in the Mt. Lemmon region near Tucson, Arizona in January or February.  While both myself and my companion were experienced campers and had plenty of cold weather gear, neither of us were prepared for the sub-freezing temperatures we encountered on that night on the side of that mountain in the campground.

At midnight, I was cold and couldn’t sleep.  At one, it was worse, and I had resorted to sitting inside of my sleeping bag with it wrapped around me, reducing the amount of body that was in contact with the ground.  By three, the shivering was so intense that my teeth were chattering, and I had all of my clothes on, including my coat and hat, and the sleeping bag was wrapped around me as I sat inside of the tent.  At four, when I heard my companion’s tent unzipping, I was already putting my boots on to get into the jeep.  That was his idea too–and we headed into town to try and find a cafe open for a hot drink…and heat.  It took an hour to find one, and then we still had to return, defrost our tents, and pack them up…putting us leaving the campground until very late, as well as leaving us both very out of sorts the entire day.  The lesson?

We already both knew that altitude was everything in Arizona.  We’d driven through snow on our way to Tucson, yet neither of us anticipated sub-freezing temperatures at our mountainside campground.  It was poor planning–neither of us carried our cold weather gear (sleeping pads, extra blanket for liner, etc.)  Without the Jeep to carry us to civilization, we’d have been in trouble–we didn’t have a stove with us, nor anything for a fire.  Neither of us had given it a thought, simply assuming that since Tucson wasn’t that cold…neither would our 4500 ft. campground on the side of the mountain.  It was stupid, and we got off lucky.  Not everyone does get that lucky.

I’ve had downpours that had water literally moving across the landscape in solid sheets, right under my tent.  I’ve had creeks rise, I’ve had tornadoes and violent winds come with little warning.  I’ve seen hail the size of golf balls come sailing at us with little warning too.  We’ve all seen “widow maker” trees, and those that have already fallen.  Some of us have had encounters with bears or mountain lions too.  Most of us have had issues with raccoons, skunks, opossums, and ground squirrels at some point as well.  I’ve even been struck with a marauding blackbird or crow along the way.  Once, it was a pack of feral dogs, probably one of the more terrifying experiences.  I’ve gotten flats and been stuck in the mud.  I’ve stood at looked at a vehicle that was high centered, as the shovels came out, and the digging commenced.  For years, my family and friends were sure I’d fall and break a leg, but that’s one thing that (knock on wood) has never happened, although on one trip, I had my back give me issues that rendered me useless for a whole day, much to my chagrin.

Things go wrong sometimes, and the key factor is to adapt and react when they do.  No one can be prepared for everything just by what they are carrying in their backpack.  Its more about being mentally prepared and well equipped to cope with whatever the Fates, Mother Nature, and Murphy decide to deliver.  It’s about knowing how to react, how to cope, and how to adapt.  It’s also about being willing to make the necessary changes, even when it means calling a halt to the trip and returning early.

It’s a whole lot better to be safe than it is to be sorry, and there’s always another week to do that trip.  It’s one thing to go car camping when the weather is moody and inclined to turn cold, gray and wet…it’s another to let yourself be caught on a mountainside in early spring that way.

1. Avoid solitary hikes if possible.
2. Let someone know where you are going and how long you expect to be gone.
3. Be where you are supposed to be.
4. If you are caught in a storm, stay warm, dry, and hydrated.  Be visible from the air as soon as the storm clears.
5. Don’t take unnecessary risks to travel–it’s much easier to rescue a healthy, able bodied person than to recover a corpse.  It’s also much easier to walk out after the weather has cleared and travel is safe to resume than it is to risk your life during a storm.
6. Always carry basic survival essentials.
7. Carry extra emergency supplies in early spring when late winter storms are possible, such as emergency energy bars, hard candy, etc.  Don’t forget fuel for your stove and fire making necessities.
8. Even in early spring, carry winter gear when going on extended trips.  Weather is unpredictable in spring, especially at high altitudes.
9. If in doubt about which direction to go…stay put.  You are more likely to wander further off course, reducing your chances of being easily found.
10. Don’t head out into the back country when a late winter storm is expected.  You might be ready to die, but what about those who are assigned the job of rescuing your foolish butt?

Spring fever is a horrible disease.  It makes us all want to rush out and get our first dose of the spring weather, but it can be a hazardous time too.  Taking unnecessary risks is not fair to anyone, yourself or those who would be forced to search for you.  Be smart, pay attention, be prepared, and think.  If in doubt about the weather, sometimes the best choice is to end the trip early.  That’s not stupid–that is called thinking ahead.  Nobody enjoys a trip when they are cold and wet anyhow.

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