Food for backpack hunts

[Nzrob]

Hi everyone,
This is my first post on the forum but I have been a long time follower. Next weekend I'm off on a scouting mission, looking for Tahr around Twizel (South Island NZ). There will be a lot of walking and climbing so using a lot of energy which means calories. So the question is, what do you pack food wise, how many calories and how much does it weigh and do you portion it out per day?

Cheers Rob

 

[STI]

Hi everyone,
This is my first post on the forum but I have been a long time follower. Next weekend I'm off on a scouting mission, looking for Tahr around Twizel (South Island NZ). There will be a lot of walking and climbing so using a lot of energy which means calories. So the question is, what do you pack food wise, how many calories and how much does it weigh and do you portion it out per day?

Cheers Rob

Backcountry Meals, Double serve ones, light and tasty and all you need to do is boil water. I also take OSM bars and trail mix for snacks on the go

 

[Wyodog]

Nzrob,

A pretty good rule of thumb that a lot of people use is to only carry food that has 100 calories or more per ounce of weight. I put each days meals into a gallon zip lock bag and I put 3000+ calories in each days bag. This has worked pretty well for me. I usually eat 1 0r 2 mountain house meals each day, mostly because they are light and easy. For me it is also important to take something with sugar. I have had a sugar crash before and it is not fun.

 

[NYSHUNTER]

I usually take some candy like airheads for sugar .. As far as food is concern some mountain house , kind bars and trail mix suits me fine ..

 

[Wyodog]

+1 on the kind bars.

 

[FEENIX]

PBJ is my go to energy meal/snack.

 

[Nzrob]

cheers guys,
pretty much the same as I use down here. Double serve dehydrated meals, porridge, musli bars and candy for energy. Anyway the weekend went well, 5hr walk in and out, seen about 15 animals and shot a young bull thar for the freezer.

Rob

 

[Tau]

Here in South Africa dried packed hiking food is a little scares. I would love to have the variety, however cost and getting them is just not easy or budget wise.

So I try and make myself some "meals in a bag". I enjoy some flavor after a hard days walking and hunting. Couscous is real easy and with a packet of dried tomatoes and BBQ mix it is something homely to eat.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Couscous

I have had enough tuna packets when I was a SANPARKS guide to last me a lifetime, however they do pack light and have good proteins.

I tend to not want sugar after a hard day, but rather an orange or a fruit. It is a luxury I carry. If I do shoot an animal, the liver will be on the menu very soon, even some "pofadder". We take the big intestines and wash it and fill it with the chopped liver and kidneys and then you have a great meal.

Breakfast is oats so easy (called oats so simple in Europe) they pack light and is to make with some boiled water.

And then Biltong the main reason we hunt in South Africa.

 

[NYSHUNTER]

Rob,

If you can I would love to see the thar pic

 

[Nzrob]

I never had a camera with me but my friend who I hunt with did, so I'll post a couple of pictures up when I get them off him.

 

[NYSHUNTER]

I'm also put the camera on the list to bring and always forget it then wind up snapping pics with my phone that come out like garbage this year I won't forget

 

[dasbear]

Freeze dried meals, trail mix, candy bars snack size, top raman and homemade beef jerky

 

[Willys46]

If you are looking for a high quality meal without all the junk that most freeze dried food uses, check out Heather's Choice. Heather's Choice

It is dehydrated not freeze dried.

 

[scfam]

Because I don't like to pack more than I need, I leave the fuel, burner, plates, and forks at home. Max out your calories per weight carried. Things like almonds, macadamias, jerky, and even the odd payday or Snickers bar suit me just fine. I don't need double-whipped parfaits or quiche when I'm out hunting. Just calories. About 3000 per day will keep you moving fine. I personally don't pack much in the way of carbs...nuts generally fit the bill...good mix of protein, fat, and carbs. I like to put them into approximately 300-calorie mini-ziplocks so I have an idea of what my burn rate is. Good luck.