Hiking the Good Hike

For those that know me, you know how much I love to eat. Like my father-n-law, when I'm eating lunch, I'm thinking about what's for dinner. When I'm working out, I'm thinking about all the extra calories that I get to eat for the day. I just love food.

Out here on the trail, my love for food is 10x worse than it ever was at home. Now, I don't just love food, I'm obsessed with food; it's all I think about (well, not all the time but a good chunk of the time). Amongst thru-hikers, this thought process is considered completely normal; everyone is obsessed with food. I'd venture to say that food is one of the most talked about topics on the whole AT.

Now, food is essential for several reasons, first and foremost being survival via nutrition and sustenance. On average, an AT thru-hiker will consume about 3,000-5,000 calories per day--a rough estimate, please don't quote me; each thru-hiker's diet varies per preference, caloric need, finances, and food availability. Whatever the caloric intake, I think every thru-hiker can agree on the fact that whatever we eat, it is never enough. All you can eat (AYCE) buffets are always a big hit when we roll into town--sometimes freshly showered and bathed, and sometimes not so fresh right off the trail; I apologize in advance to any unsuspecting patrons. Clean or not, a trip into town is always a much needed and wanted break from the trail. Sometimes you just need/crave "real" food. Plus, the extra calories are needed for the trail.

The average thru-hiker will lose 10-20 pounds, sometimes within the first few weeks i.e. Chris; others may lose more depending on how much expendable weight a hiker has from the beginning. No matter what a thru-hikers starting weight, food, and lots of it, is always a necessity for the trail. To give you a better idea of what Chris and I eat when on the trail, here's an example of a typical day.

Breakfast:
- oatmeal, 160 calories per packet, x 2
- carnation breakfast essentials, 130 calories per packet; we also like to add some instant coffee and protein powder to complete our breakfast smoothie concoction.

Snack:
- pop tart, 200 calories per serving

Lunch:
- tortilla, 110 calories each
Option A:
- pepperoni, 7ish calories per slice
- cheese, 110 calories per 1 oz
Option B:
- peanut butter, 190 calories per 2 Tbsp
- strawberry fruit spread, 50 calories

Snack:
- Snickers, 250 calories per bar
or
- Milky Way, 240 calories per bar
or
- another Pop Tart, 200 calories per serving

Dinner:
- mashed potatoes, 220 calories (per person, we share)
- macaroni and cheese, 375 calories per person/serving
or
- pasta sides, 320 calories per person/serving

Dessert:
- Nutella, 200 calories per 2 Tbsp

Extra/essential:
- Powerade, 130 calories per bottle, 20 fl oz; if coming from a resupply in town and happen to need a new bottle, the Powerade, or Gatorade, makes for an added bonus.
or
- electrolyte replacement drink mixes

The list above is just an example of a typical food day for the 2 of us. However, eating the same thing everyday gets kind of boring and old so you get creative and try to combine things that sometimes work and sometimes don't. For example, I've learned that ramen noodles, peanut butter, and hot sauce actually combine fairly well to make a rustic Pad Thai. So that was a good combination, we won't get into some of the not so good combinations I've observed being eaten on the trail.

Well, I could go on and on about food; if you couldn't tell, food is one of my favorite subjects. And now, thanks to the trail, I am happy to say that my stomach is rarely ever full. I eat and eat and after an hour I'm hungry all over again but never gain weight. It's pretty awesome; I still read labels and count calories but in reverse-the more calories the better. Hope I made you hungry, please eat something good for me :-)

Cassandra

For additional information on thru-hikers and food, check out this article, or not, but here it is anyway:
http://www.appalachiantrail.com/advice/food-and-water/planning-meals-for-a-thru-hike.html

"If most of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold it would be a merrier world."
J.R.R. Tolkien