Lightweight groceries for camping

Huckster79

Huckster79

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Huckster79
Going camping next weekend. After crunching numbers I have about 5 lbs of useful load for food for two for a day n a half...

Yes I know jerky and jiffy pop...looking for some creative ideas as it’s also a date :)

potable water available so I don’t need to bring water...
 
Look up something called the Ramen Bomb. I cringed at the idea until I tried it after a fairly grueling hike and I chowed down the whole thing easily.
 
How many meals? Look for backcountry menus on places like backpacker.com. Single serve wine box for dinner.

Is your hearing source and lots/pans etc. accounted for?
 
Mountain House freeze dried meals. Tasty and filling, at least the ones I've tried. Use the remaining available weight for a water purifier, a butane stove (to heat water), and the aforementioned box of wine. And chocolate. Bring chocolate if it's a date. :)
 
Cheez doodles. ;)
 
My Dad and I would go fishing for days with only Summer sausage, Ritz crackers, canned fish and canned fruit.

I discovered cheese grits on my own and they are a great field food. Substitute Mac 'n cheese if you are one of those people...
 
Second the Mountain House brand - just add water,......and heat, of course.
A multi fuel camp stove will run on 100LL.
 
Woah, that is cutting it close. Best not risk it by putting more weight in the plane. Man up, eat squirrel, bugs, earthworms. Google which plants in the area are edible in case you can't catch any of these things. :D
 
That's a 140? You actually don't fly at more than the manufacturers suggested gross weight?
(I'm not suggesting IGNORING it, but...)
 
Go back and completely review what you are taking. Do you absolutely need everything on the list? What’s in the emergency airplane kit that you can do without? Can you get by with one 1 qt of oil instead of 2? Are there lighter options of your gear? Since there’s water onsite, is there a small town nearby or is this completely backcountry-boonies? How much is your date bringing along? Make them go thru the same - do you really need this with you?

Dried fruits and nuts and chips to start with. Pick up at most grocery stores. Favorite cereal for breakfast - put into ziploc bags. Make sandwiches for lunch. Foil packages of salmon. Any dried pasta (altho I prefer angel hair) and a double ziplock of your favorite italian sauce. Bring a chunk of parm or a baggie of shredded parm for topping. Pot big enough to boil the pasta. Penne pasta works well for this
 
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When we're really skimping on weight, we use luggage by Ziplock. The big 40 quart "storage" bags. They weigh nothing, fit into any space, and keep your stuff dry if it rains. Compared to suitcases and/or duffels, you can save several lbs...
 
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My favorite meal in the field is Pineapple Chicken over Rice. In a pot make boil-in-bag rice. Open a small can of chicken on a plate and break it up. Tuna can be substituted. When the rice is done, pour it over the chicken and let it heat the chicken. Open a can of pineapple rings and distribute them around the pile of rice. Enjoy. The hot water (with a little rice milk) can be used for a hot drink or for the first rinse on the dishes.
 
When I camped at Oshkosh a few years back, I used a surplus military gas stove that used the same mogas I had in the plane. Since then I've become a isobutane fan with a tiny stove to screw into it. Enjoy your trip whatever you take.
 
Capt. Geoffrey Thorpe said:
That's a 140? You actually don't fly at more than the manufacturers suggested gross weight?
(I'm not suggesting IGNORING it, but...)
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never .... ;)

but even if one was willing to fudge it a bit, I don’t have a lot of weight left over...

it’s also been viscously hot lately here so that adds to the need to be lighter than heavier...
 
Huckster79 said:
the Two Hearted River airstrip in Upper Penninsula :)
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Been there before? Careful that runway is pretty freaking rough. Well not rough as much as "undulating". Pretty massive hills in the runway at short intervals... it looks like an absolutely perfect runway until about 30 feet up on final.

That being said, I've seen two cherokees go in/out of there... but I'm not convinced they didn't have prop strikes.
 
You might be able to fill the plane up with bags of Cheeto's and thereby improve your useful load by their airiness and lifting power. LOL
 
Mtns2Skies said:
Been there before? Careful that runway is pretty freaking rough. Well not rough as much as "undulating". Pretty massive hills in the runway at short intervals... it looks like an absolutely perfect runway until about 30 feet up on final.

That being said, I've seen two cherokees go in/out of there... but I'm not convinced they didn't have prop strikes.
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So you are saying there's a chance? LOL
 
murphey said:
Go back and completely review what you are taking. Do you absolutely need everything on the list? What’s in the emergency airplane kit that you can do without? Can you get by with one 1 qt of oil instead of 2? Are there lighter options of your gear? Since there’s water onsite, is there a small town nearby or is this completely backcountry-boonies? How much is your date bringing along? Make them go thru the same - do you really need this with you?

Dried fruits and nuts and chips to start with. Pick up at most grocery stores. Favorite cereal for breakfast - put into ziploc bags. Make sandwiches for lunch. Foil packages of salmon. Any dried pasta (altho I prefer angel hair) and a double ziplock of your favorite italian sauce. Bring a chunk of parm or a baggie of shredded parm for topping. Pot big enough to boil the pasta. Penne pasta works well for this
Click to expand...

Nearest store is 30 miles... but a state campground has a hand pump of potable water nearby. oh yea already packing light...
 
Mtns2Skies said:
Been there before? Careful that runway is pretty freaking rough. Well not rough as much as "undulating". Pretty massive hills in the runway at short intervals... it looks like an absolutely perfect runway until about 30 feet up on final.

That being said, I've seen two cherokees go in/out of there... but I'm not convinced they didn't have prop strikes.
Click to expand...

I’ve been told to be ready for 3 loggable landings per full stop! I also spoke with one of the RAF guys who said to use the pole barn as an unofficial displaced threshold when landing from one direction to avoid the worst...
 
Huckster79 said:
I’ve been told to be ready for 3 loggable landings per full stop! I also spoke with one of the RAF guys who said to use the pole barn as an unofficial displaced threshold when landing from one direction to avoid the worst...
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When my plane is fixed let's plan a PoA trip to N fox Island.
 
Something I’ve been waiting for my entire backpacking life - dehydrated beer. An attempt to market such a thing a few years back was a commercial failure (Pat’s Backcountry Beverages)
I still wait. A flask of Jack has to suffice.
 
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Been backpacking for years, almost never take freeze dried meals or MREs unless maybe for the last day of a multi day trip... there are so many better options. Some of my standards include:

Stove top stuffing, canned chicken, dried cranberries... cook it all together per the stuffing directions.

Pasta, sun dried tomatoes, olive oil, and garlic. Add hard Italian sausage (salami, sopressata, etc.) chopped into small chunks if you want meat in it, or canned shrimp.

For the first night you can bring a small cooler bag, shrimp tacos (again, canned shrimp), served cold.

Also for the first night, anything you can freeze solid and reheat... soup, spaghetti, you name it.

Hard sausage, cheese, crackers, for lunch. Oatmeal or similar for breakfast.

And Scotch weighs a lot less than beer or wine...
 
rtk11 said:
Mountain House freeze dried meals. Tasty and filling, at least the ones I've tried. Use the remaining available weight for a water purifier, a butane stove (to heat water), and the aforementioned box of wine. And chocolate. Bring chocolate if it's a date. :)
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wrbix said:
Second the Mountain House brand - just add water,......and heat, of course.
A multi fuel camp stove will run on 100LL.
Click to expand...

I'll third the Mountain House brand. We used this heavily when our son was in Boy Scouts and I was a leader in the late 1980s / early 1990s. Works great.

Did you do your calculations before, or after, taking the runway for departure? If it's a long taxi you can add a few pounds to the load and still be OK.

And, yes, bring chocolate. :D
 
A woman I used to date had a friend who did through hikes, subsisting on squeeze Parkay and multivitamins.
 
FormerHangie said:
A woman I used to date had a friend who did through hikes, subsisting on squeeze Parkay and multivitamins.
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I read about a guy years ago who had started on the Appalachian Trail, intending to carry Snickers bars as his sole food source (his logic was that they were extremely calorie-dense so he could travel light, and he liked them).

I've no idea how far he got...
 
Dana said:
Been backpacking for years, almost never take freeze dried meals or MREs unless maybe for the last day of a multi day trip... there are so many better options. Some of my standards include:

Stove top stuffing, canned chicken, dried cranberries... cook it all together per the stuffing directions.

Pasta, sun dried tomatoes, olive oil, and garlic. Add hard Italian sausage (salami, sopressata, etc.) chopped into small chunks if you want meat in it, or canned shrimp.

For the first night you can bring a small cooler bag, shrimp tacos (again, canned shrimp), served cold.

Also for the first night, anything you can freeze solid and reheat... soup, spaghetti, you name it.

Hard sausage, cheese, crackers, for lunch. Oatmeal or similar for breakfast.

And Scotch weighs a lot less than beer or wine...
Click to expand...

I like these ideas!!! I took a lil bottle of crown to Johnson creek last year for a sip before bed at night- so peaceful- but those food ideas are fantastic!
 
kyleb said:
When we're really skimping on weight, we use luggage by Ziplock. The big 40 quart "storage" bags. They weigh nothing, fit into any space, and keep your stuff dry if it rains. Compared to suitcases and/or duffels, you can save several lbs...
Click to expand...

Sea to Summit lightweight dry bags do well, too. You can really squeeze them down to get air out and they stay squished when you roll the seal down on top. Make sure you use the lightweight ones, not the heavy duty ones that are made out of heavy rubbery plastic.
 
I had pics of that event on my phone the day it happened.
 
Capt. Geoffrey Thorpe said:
Mr. @Huckster79 I assume this wasn't you...
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nope not me- thanks for checking...

I fly a 47 Cessna 140... we ended up at 5d5 Woosley Memorial just for Sat night... we flew over the Manitou islands n took in some shipwrecks from the air and hit North Fox island....

That was the most water I’d flown over, I’d do it again... going to cross lake MI in a couple weeks on my way to Johnson Creek- realized I’d I’ll fly over that terrain with zero options how is the lake different...
 
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