If you are one of those people who prefer active, albeit not complicated, recreation, the question of what to take for food on a 2-day hike is always relevant for you. After all, it only seems at first glance that for a small hike it is not necessary to plan a menu. But when a backpack weighing 20 kg is assembled from small items weighing 100-300 grams, you will have to carry all this.

The success of any hike largely depends on how you plan it. Even if you want to spend a weekend in nature, making a list of the necessary products and planning a menu will make your hike much easier.

food for hiking

 

Types of products for hiking

Since the hike is not planned to be very long, you can still afford to take some extras. The main thing is that as a result your backpack has a weight that will make you comfortable walking. So, 2-day hiking food — what to take:

  1. To restore strength during the hike, you will need hot food: soup, porridge and other dishes. To prepare them, you will need 2-3 cans of stew (they can be added to soups, seasoned with porridge or used as an independent dish), cereals (usually cereals are consumed 2 times a day), flakes (for example, oatmeal or rice for breakfast), vegetables (onions, carrots - since such products are quite heavy, they are not the main ingredient), dry soups and noodles.
  2. Water and drinks. Before going on a hike, study the map to see where you will find springs. This way you will know where you can replenish your water supplies. The most acceptable option is to take 1 liter of water in a bottle. Then you will draw water from the springs into it. In addition to water, also take tea and coffee. Hot drinks should be present in the tourist's diet. If the area you are walking through is rich in berries, you can make compote in a cauldron.
  3. Snacks. Dry food is needed not only as a snack, but also in cases where the weather does not allow you to cook something on a fire. Such cold food includes: cereal bars (they are also suitable as a supplement to tea), dried fruits and nuts (to your taste), cookies (choose cookies that will not crumble during the hike), sweets (chocolate, kozinaki, etc.), sausage and hard cheese (for sandwiches), bread.
  4. Additional products: salt, sugar, spices.

The rest of the products that are not included in the list can be taken at will. Food on a 2-day summer hike and not only should not include low-calorie and perishable foods.

Food list for 2 days

After you have decided what products you will take on the hike, you need to make a menu. We offer you 3 menus that you can use on a hike.

Menu 1

Day 1

Breakfast: oatmeal, cocoa.

Snack: cereal bar.

Lunch: dry soup, tea, half a chocolate bar.

Dinner: rice with stew, dried apricots and prunes.

Day 2

Breakfast: cocoa, sandwiches with sausage.

Snack: prunes with nuts.

Lunch: porridge with stew, tea with cookies.

Dinner: dry soup, tea, half a chocolate bar.

Since freeze-dried products are gaining popularity among domestic tourists, food for a 2-day hike can easily consist of such products. Even if the hike is not planned to be long, such products will significantly save space in your backpack, thereby facilitating the trekking process. At the same time, freeze-dried products retain all the beneficial substances of fresh products. Therefore, they saturate the body, which spends a lot of strength and energy during the hike.

Menu 2

Day 1

First meal: couscous, coffee with dried fruits.

Snack: bar.

Second meal: rice with pork, hot drink (tea, coffee).

Third meal: borscht with pork, nuts with raisins with tea.

Day 2

First meal: oatmeal with dried apricots, coffee with nuts and raisins.

Snack: bar (flavor of your choice).

Second meal: naval noodles, tea Carpathian.

Third meal: pea soup with pork, bar with tea.

Menu 3 (vegetarian)

Day 1

First meal: omelette with bell pepper, coffee.

Snack: bar (flavor of your choice).

Second meal: bulgur with vegetables, tea.

Third meal: soup –mushroom puree, nuts with raisins and tea.

Day 2

First meal: banana porridge, coffee.

Snack: energy bar.

Second meal: risotto with mushrooms, tea.

Third meal: pea puree with sesame, tea with bar.

The influence of seasonality on the choice of products for the hike

When making a menu for two days, you should take care not only of the nutritional value and taste of each meal, but also take into account seasonality, which dictates its own rules regarding the storage of products and their effect on the human body. In addition, it is worth taking care of products that can provide food on the go, when there is no time or opportunity to build a fire.

So, what to take with you on a trip from food?

In spring and autumn

Features of the season:

  • It is often damp, cool, and light frosts are possible.
  • The probability of food spoilage is moderate.
  • The body spends more energy during physical exertion and sleep. 

What to include in the diet:

  1. Cereals, pasta, instant porridge.
  2. Light and high-calorie freeze-dried dishes.
  3. On the first day, boiled eggs.
  4. Dried fruits and nuts.
  5. Energy bars.
  6. Chocolate.
  7. Herbal tea, coffee, water.

Summer

Features of the season:

  • Heat and high humidity, which leads to rapid spoilage of products.
  • Need to maintain water balance. 
  • More rapid fatigue, so you need light, easier to carry meals. 

Food options:

  1. Freeze-dried soups and main courses.
  2. Dry cereals.
  3. Nuts and dried fruits.
  4. Energy bars.
  5. Cheeses like parmesan.
  6. Plenty of water and water purification products (filters, tablets).
  7. Electrolytes and isotonics, which are essential to maintain the balance of minerals in the body.

In winter 

Features of the period:

  • Low temperature.
  • Snowdrifts.
  • Foods do not spoil, but they can freeze and lose their usefulness, taste, and texture.

What to take on a hike to ensure full meals:

  1. High-calorie foods: lard, canned meat, butter, chocolate.
  2. Freeze-dried hot, quick-cooking meals designed for one meal (soups, borscht, porridge, mashed potatoes, etc.).
  3. Tea, cocoa, coffee.
  4. Dried fruits, nuts, cookies, halva.
  5. A lot of fuel for cooking and filtration equipment, because in winter, water on a hike is obtained only from snow, and each meal should include a sufficient amount of warm liquid.

It is worth remembering the conditions for storing food on a trip so as not to lose food due to precipitation, wild animals, insects, etc.