As a hard-charging thru-hiker — when I would hike sunrise-to-sunset, take very few breaks, and cover 30 to 40 miles day after day — food was simply fuel. I carried items that were calorie dense, required minimal or no field preparation, and could be eaten on the go. So I ate a lot of bars back then — energy bars, candy bars, granola bars, cereal bars, and Pemmican bars. And to keep my energy level sustained, I ate precisely on two- to 2.5-hour cycles.
With many more of my backpacking days now in a guided trip setting, my approach has evolved. Our trips are more about smiles over miles, and both clients and guides appreciate a dedicated “lunch,” when there’s enough time to prepare a meal, rest, and maybe tend to things like laundry and bidets.
I’ve found two personal lunch favorites:
- Ham sandwich on a bun with cream cheese, for the first day or two; and,
- Avocado with a salty and crunch carbohydrate, like Pringles or Fritos, for later in the trip when the safety of deli ham is more questionable.
But there are many other options, and I recently asked on Instagram for additional favorites. Here are the responses:
What’s your backpacking lunch? Leave a suggestion below.
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I’ll do any kind of sandwich on the first day or two as well. Have not tried anything with cream cheese but like the idea as it would probably make the sandwich a little less dry without being mushy like other condiments (which I avoid for these sammies).
Also do a lot of salami, pepperoni and slices of hard cheese. I’ll usually take a large block of hard cheese and just slice it straight and use it for lunches and then add it to dinners (beans and rice, et al). I also like to take extra salami or pepperoni and slice that into my dinners too which are usually veggie as my wife is.
PB&J on a tortilla is my standard.
Wondering what the calorie density of an avocado is?
Salami and Cream Cheese is an amazing and high calorie combo.
Big fan of some shelf-stable salami with tortillas with some Rx Bar peanut butter packets as dessert. I’ll also go full hiker trash and squeeze a spicy mustard packet into some tuna or salmon in olive oil and just eat that. After watching Gear Skeptic’s video on endurance nutrition for hiking, I changed up what I eat to focus more on proteins + fats at lunch.
I like to bring smoked salmon, the cold smoked variety. Although its not super calorie dense or cheap its a change from the regular salami and cheese.
BLAvocadoT on the first day. Did a black bean dip with Fritos Scoops that hit the spot.