What we ate on a five day backpacking trip in the Wind River Range
Family backpacking is a team effort, and as we’ve taken more trips over the last few years, my husband and I have divided the backpacking planning duties. John is the lead planner. He conceptualizes the trip and does all the trip planning. He spends hours studying maps, reading about trails, watching backpacking videos on YouTube, choosing our routes, researching gear, . and adding to our gear collection as necessary. It’s very time-consuming, but I think he genuinely loves it. The kids do less planning, but they are excellent at packing their own gear, and they’ve grown into fantastic hikers who can carry out most of the chores in camp. I take care of the pre-trip whining about the route and potential bad weather and also the food planning, which is what I will share in this post.
When planning the food for a family backpacking trip, I make a chart for all the meals we will eat while we are on the trail and plan breakfast, lunch, and dinner each day, as well as two snacks that we will eat on the trail. The challenge is to plan food that is satisfying and nourishing as well as lightweight and easily packable. Another challenge is to guess how hungry people will be. You obviously can’t have leftovers, but I also don’t want my people to go to bed hungry.
Because there are brown bears in the Wyoming, for this trip we needed to be able to fit all our food in bearproof containers. We used Ursacks, large bags made of Kevlar which are lighter and less bulky than bear cans, and organized our meals in scent-proof plastic bags made of Mylar.
The best backpacking food advice that I have found on the web is from Aaron Owens Mayhew, a dietician and thru-hiker also known as the Backcountry Foodie, and Andrew Skurka (one of the most accomplished backpackers in the world), who offers a fantastic free backpacking cookbook and a ton of other great advice on his website.
We like premade freeze-dried backpacking meals, too, but these tend to be more expensive and less smooshable than homemade food, especially for a family of six. Our favorite brands include Mountain House (which you can buy anywhere) and Peak Refuel. Garage Grown Gear sells a lovely assortment of meals made by smaller companies. We often eat these once on a trip. A nice bonus is that there are fewer dishes to do on these nights.
I have lost my meal planning notes for this trip, so this post is going to be a more general overview of the food we ate during our trip, rather than a detailed list of what we actually ate at each meal. For our next trip, I will try to share those details, as I think it could be helpful to have a more accurate picture of how many calories a family of six actually consumes on a backpacking trip.
On this trip, we hiked the northern half of the Dixon Wind River High Route, starting at the Green River Lakes in the north. We camped at Three Forks Park the first day, and then hiked across Cube Rock Pass to camp at Peak Lake. From Peak Lake we crossed Knapsack Col into Titcomb Basin, where we spent our third night. We camped at Hobbs Lake on the fourth night and hiked out to our car at Elkhart Park after breakfast on the fifth day. In total, we hiked about 35 miles and ate four lunches, four dinners, and four breakfasts on the trail, as well as at least 10 snacks each.
Breakfasts:
Peanut Butter Shakes: A mix of dried whole milk powder (Nido), peanut butter powder, and Carnation Breakfast Essentials, this is my go-to breakfast for the kids. They usually mix half a serving with water in their mugs, and the hungrier hikers among us usually eat a bar with their shake.
Granola with dried milk and dried berries: This is my favorite breakfast, and it’s also good with dried coconut milk powder. The Backcountry Foodie servings are hearty, and I usually eat a half serving. Costco’s Ancient Grains Granola is a solid choice.
Andrew Skurka’s oatmeal: We made one hot breakfast on this trip, Coconut Chia Oatmeal, and it was delicious.
Protein bars like Kind Bars, IQ Bars, and Cliff Bars. I usually buy a couple boxes of whatever Costco and bring a variety for breakfast and trail snacks because everyone has their own favorite. My favorite is Kind Bars. Bars are the quickest breakfast for mornings when you need to get hiking quickly.
Coffee: Coffee at camp is very important to John and me, and this is where I confess what a spoiled hiking wife I am because I never crawl out from my cozy quilt until John has boiled water for coffee. On a shorter trip we will bring a little titanium French press, but the easiest way to make coffee in the back country are those instant single serve packs like the ones from Starbucks Via, Black Rifle, and Alpine Start. We always add a little bit of whole milk powder for creamer.
Lunches:
Pitas, summer sausage, and hard cheese like Romano. Bell peppers or apple slices for early in the trip.
Tortillas, tuna packets, and dried fruit.
Pitas and a small jar of Nutella or peanut butter.
Dinners:
Andrew Skurka’s beans and rice is our favorite. It’s minute rice with dehydrated refried beans, taco seasoning, cheddar cheese, and Fritos.
Pesto Ramen: Another winner with ramen noodles, parmesan, sun-dried tomatoes, and basil.
Sun-dried Tomato Couscous: I love this, but it’s not everyone’s favorite, so we often supplement it with instant mashed potatoes.
Desserts: We often have herbal tea after dinner. It’s just satisfying to fill your belly with warmth. I always pack something sweet to end the meal like chocolate or Backcountry Foodie’s Strawberry Cheesecake, which is messy but delicious.
Favorite Snacks:
Aloha Trail Mix: trail mix with coconut, macadamia nuts, and white chocolate chips.
Don’t Knock It Til You Try It: trail mix with yogurt-covered raisins, pecans, pretzels, and wheat thins.
Dried Mangos
Trader Joe’s Powerberries
Trader Joe’s Sour Scandinavian Swimmers
Dark Chocolate Covered Almonds
Honey Stingers
Peanut M&Ms
Liquid IV and LMNT hydration packets
Meat sticks like Chomps
Almonds and other dried fruit and nuts
Bars
Trader Joe’s is a great source of yummy candy, nuts, and dried fruit. There’s nothing like a little candy or a favorite snack to boost morale when the hike is getting long or the weather is crummy.
Eating in the backcountry reminds me that food is never just about calories. Fueling our bodies for a physical challenge is crucial, but the fact that food tastes good, warms our bellies, and “gladdens our hearts” is evidence of the kindness and generosity of God. The simplicity of backpacking is an opportunity for gratitude, highlighting the true pleasure of a sour gummy candy, a salty, crunchy trail mix, or a hot cup of herbal tea after dinner shared with the people you love.
