Long-distance hikers can easily consume 4000 to more than 6000 calories in a day. Its freeing to know that at any given moment you have everything you need on your back.
4 Day 3 Night Backpacking Food List Backpacking Food Hiking Food Hiking Snacks
My on-trail diet generally consists of a core group of healthyish items eg.

Thru hiking food. We pack up our entire homesbedroom kitchen and pantry etcinto a backpack and travel anywhere from five to 10 days at a time. And most trail foods rank as processed low-nutrient junk. Gear on this list could be used on a thru-hike on any of the big three trails or in areas with similar conditions.
Dry foods like rice instant noodles and soup mixes are some of the best lightweight hiking foods and take up very little space in your pack. About 500550 calories per recipe which includes protein and healthy carbs. Spam Snickers bars and ramen noodles are popular because theyre readily available at convenience stores where thru-hikers resupply.
As you sweat on a hike your body loses potassium. Are all popular staples. How much food should I pack for a thru-hike.
Thru-Hiking the Te Araroa. For most people walking 15 or 20 miles on a day hike merits a big. Thru-hiking is the ultimate form of minimalism.
I adopt a similar approach whilst hiking. In that way a thru-hike is like a series of back-to-back backpacking trips. We also have dried fruit in a different baggie so we can always add it to the oatmeal mixes once on the trail.
Plan to consume about 70 grams of carbohydrates per hour while hiking and roughly 5 to 7 grams of protein per pound of body weight. Consume 15 to 20 grams of protein at night for recovery. Throw some granola and fruit on top of your favorite protein rich greek yogurt.
It isnt uncommon for weekend hikers to consume 3000 to 4000 calories a day. Sprinkle trail mix pieces of snickers and gummies on to one then bring the two Pop Tarts together to make a sandwich. These easy-to-make foods can also become creative meals when combined with dried vegetables beans or spices.
Dried fruit nuts organic energy bars natural cereals full cream milk powder and legumes supplemented with the occasional chocolate bar and tub of peanut butter to boost my fat intake. We bagged the dried fruit separately from the dry ingredients so. First lets get this out of the way.
The plastic jars it comes in also make good containers to rehydrate no-cook foods in while you hike. Needing food that is lightweight high in calories resistant to spoiling and fast and easy to cook peanut butter noodles canned tuna fish sardines nuts instant oatmeal coffee and tea gorp etc. This change in how thru-hikers think about food can take some getting used to.
Fiber intake is also important as it can help with sustainable energy and reduce the risk of constipation on the trail. That said your nutritional needs will be greater than on a typical day on a backpacking trip. Granola is a light and healthy carbohydrate that helps to maintain your glycogen stores and keep you fueled while hiking.
The amount of food you need depends upon your body weight backpack weight distance you hike and personal requirements. Thru-hikers typically dont carry more than 10 days of food at a time if that. Strawberry Pop Tarts peanut butter Nutella trail mix Snickers bar gummy candies.
In a normal sedentary life a diet consisting almost solely of junk food could be downright dangerous. The gear I used on my Sierra trip is similar to what I used on the Appalachian Trail the Continental Divide Trail. Use our food library below to explore your options and take a look at our hiking food tips to learn more about calorie and weight considerations.
On average hikers usually burn between 3000-4000 calories per day but thru-hikers hiking 20-30 mile days can easily burn 5000-6000 calories. But for thru-hikers covering 25 miles or more a day over some of the most challenging terrain in America food is consumed as fuel first and for health second. The majority of hikers will buy half the food theyll be consuming along the way and theyll have the other half mail-dropped to them.
If you experience loss of appetite on hiking trips Nutella might be a good antidote. Peanut butter banana and honey bagel. The safest bet for backcountry food storage is an Ursack or Bear Canister.
Take two strawberry Pop Tarts and spread peanut butter on one Nutella on the other. You will likely need to eat more while thru-hiking than at home. Its a great backpacking food because once you start eating it its difficult to make yourself stop.
This is a down and dirty thru-hike gear list covering everything used on my 2019 adventure in the High Sierra. CALORIE INTAKE - Backpackers burn a lot of calories on the trail.
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