90 likes | 208 Views
Backcountry Food. presented by Luke Sosnowski January 2000 ( originally by Tom McIntire January 6, 1999 ). Nutrition Requirements in Winter. Plan for 4000+ Calories per day/per person (not a time for dieting)
E N D
Backcountry Food presented by Luke Sosnowski January 2000 (originally by Tom McIntire January 6, 1999)
Nutrition Requirements in Winter • Plan for 4000+ Calories per day/per person (not a time for dieting) • Split equally between Sugar (tinder),Complex Carbohydrates (kindling), and Fats and Proteins (logs). • Many sources of food available at grocery store • Be sure to maintain proper hydration (required to process food). 3% dehydration = 50% loss of strength(source: SOLO Wilderness First Aid Class)If you are not producing clear urine on a regular basis (at least every couple hours) you are dehydrated...
Sample Menu for Winter Camping (1 Day) per person • Breakfast: 4 packs of instant oatmeal, 2-3 cups of Hot Cocoa and/or Juice Concentrate • Lunch: Couscous (1/2 pkg), Pepperoni (1/2 stick), Cheese (4 -5 oz) , Hot Cocoa • Dinner: Couscous (1/2 pkg), Beef Stew or Clam Chowder (1 Can), Hot Cocoa, Ramen... • Evening: Smores over campfire, Hot Cocoa • All Day: Snack on Hard Candy, Chocolates, GORP, cheese, granola bars, etc., Be sure to consume 2 - 3 Quarts Water (keep hydration and blood sugar levels up…)
How to carry Food & Water • Wide mouth bottles (Nalgene) • Hot water in a sock up-side down • Cut into bite-size pieces • Use zip-locks to keep organized • Avoid foods that freeze (Power Bars) Extracting frozen franks (with a corkscrew)
Ways to Make Cooking Easier: • Carry a 0.5 Liter thermos with boiling water. It is nice to have a cup of Hot Cocoa while cooking or taking a break… • When purifying water, do enough at once for all needs for meal and up to next meal. Purify using Iodine tablets or Boiling Method (traditionally 10 Minutes + 1 per 1000 ft altitude, SOLO says if water is brought to a rolling boil it is statistically safe). Purifiers freeze easily in winter, and therefore are useless... • Pre-measure all ingredients at home and store in sealed, labeled bags • Store all food in a separate food bag • Use items like oven bags where possible to minimize cleanup...
Safety (how to not hurt yourself) • Be careful with your knife (people who never cut themselves cooking at home hurt themselves while cooking in the woods) • Don’t cook in your tent. Molten nylon is very bad, as is spilling liquid on your sleeping bag. • Observe proper food storage rules (mice are very good at getting in food bags) There are mice at the cabins... • Establish a separate cooking area, if possible. • Don’t handle pots and pans wearing synthetic gloves. They melt and burn easily. Wool or leather, however, are fine.
Other Interesting things for Food: Fettuccini Alfredo (serves 3 - 4) 1 Stick Butter 1 Pint Heavy Cream 1 Package Cream Cheese 12 oz Can Parmesan Cheese Combine in Pan, heat over low flame until thickened, stirring regularly Serve over 1 lb. of cooked pasta of choice... • GORP (Everyone has a different recipe, the key is to put in what you like…I try to avoid salt (like salty nuts) in my gorp) • granola, cereal • raisins, crasins, dried fruit • nut mix (Harvest or Star market) • gummy bears, yogurt covered rasins, etc... • Mix together and store in resealable container. One quart size zip lock holds about 3000 calories of gorp
Other good Food Items from the Grocery Store (generally serves 2): • Suddenly Salad (are Pasta Salad variants with everything (except oil) in a box) and Kraft Pasta Salad Mixes (contains everything needed) (available only seasonally at some stores) • Fig Newtons (all the nutritional value of PowerBars, and they taste a lot better) • Bagels (excellent durable source of bread) - but bulky • Peanut Butter (excellent source of Fats, Carbs, and Sugars (goes well on bagels). • Hummus and Cheese (such as Jarlsburg) (excellent 1st Lunch. If served on bagels, is well balanced). • Summer Sausage (good meat alternative to Pepperoni)
Food, and Inspiration for why we go into the Backcountry... Pizza Cooked at Zealand Hut (Full Sheet, 5 lb. Cheese, 2 lb. Pepperoni, Tons of Veggies, etc…) Served 8 for dinner, and many more at hut as a “Supplement” to their meal...