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Don’t let the name of this Web site scare you away. You won’t have to carry this much weight unless you’re going out for longer than a week or are carrying a load of climbing gear.
My name is Ben Hubbell and I carry this much weight because I like to go out for weeks at a time. A heavy backpack makes me feel good because I love a high-intensity low-impact workout that combines the disciplines of endurance and power. If you want to contact me I would be glad to hear from you.
In 1986 I went backpacking for the first time in 12 years with 50 pounds on my back, the most I’d ever carried. After that 8 day trip I didn’t notice my backpack unless it weighed at least 35 pounds. I took to day hiking with that much weight, and by 1988 the sensation of carrying an 80 pound pack was about the same as with the 50 pound pack 2 years earlier. As of 2000, I grew strong enough to trudge along with a 95 pound pack at altitudes up to 12,000 feet.
Do you fantasize about city food when you go backpacking? I can help you put an end to that. This Web site explains how to plan and prepare tasty and satisfying high-calorie lightweight meals. You’ll need this information in order to keep up your strength and stamina and to stay warm at night. If you want to enjoy superlative meals, you’ll have to expend some extra effort and do some real cooking.
Your favorite recipes can be reproduced in the wilderness by assembling the ingredients in dehydrated and freeze-dried forms. Use several Zip-Loc bags per recipe, and group the ingredients according to their rehydration and cooking time needs. I provide several examples of this technique, complete with instructions for dehydrating the individual ingredients.
Dehydrating your own vegetables for use in backpacking meals means lower prices, and it gives you a wider range of choices than with commercially dried vegetables. On the other hand, commercially dried fruit is usually less expensive than drying your own. This Web site has a page about food dehydrators, in case you’d like to know more.
The recipes on these pages are intended to serve two people. The recipes are presented as nutritionally balanced meals rather than as a la carte items. I’ve provided nutritional information with each recipe, consisting of calorie count and distribution of calories between fat, carbohydrates, and protein. You’ll have to decide for yourself how many calories your appetite demands at each meal.
I hope the information presented here will enhance your backpacking trips. It’s a grand experience to eat ample portions of supremely delicious food while backpacking, and I hope that you relish it as much as I have.