Another Fork in the Trail. Laurie Ann March
very cool, be careful when storing food such as rice, as it can develop bacteria that will make you ill. If you have any doubts about the safety of leftover food, it is best to err on the side of caution. Depending on where you travel, you might be able to burn your leftovers. I prefer to pack garbage out as it has less impact on the environment. At night hang the garbage bag in a tree just as you do your food pack.
Packing food for backpacking and paddling trips can have a steep learning curve. Here are some tips that I’ve found helpful:
| • | Plan your menu. |
| • | Take a copy of your menu with you so you can refer to it. I keep mine in my waterproof map case. |
| • | Pack each meal separately in a larger ziplock bag. |
| • | Bring extra ziplock bags in case one of them tears or you have usable leftovers. |
| • | Repackage grocery store finds into ziplock freezer bags. |
| • | Pack the name of the meal, water needed, and other trailside instructions with each meal. (Don’t write it on the outside of the bag in case it wears off.) |
| • | When baking, line your pots with parchment paper to make cleanup easier. |
| • | Store liquids in leak-proof containers, and put these in a ziplock bag just in case. |
Hygiene
Good practices surrounding hygiene are essential both at home and in the backcountry. More often than not, when a person gets ill in the wilderness, it is due to poor hygiene practices, food-borne illness, or contaminated water. Proper hand washing is imperative both on and off the trail. You should always wash your hands before handling food. If water is limited and you are using an alcohol-based hand sanitizer to disinfect your hands, be extremely careful and wait a few minutes for the alcohol to evaporate before lighting a stove or cooking fire. Keep your body clean as well, as bacteria can travel. Water should be treated and you should be careful not to contaminate water containers or other utensils with untreated water. This can put you at risk of contact illnesses from bacteria such as giardia and cryptosporidium.
Keep It Personal
I like to have my own personal water bottle for drinking, and I expect my campmates to do the same. This can prevent me from getting ill if someone else’s hygiene is lacking or if they contract a cold. I also feel that it is a good idea for each person to have his or her own eating utensils, plate, cup, and bowl. Don’t share foods such as GORP. Give each person his or her own personal snack bag or have each bring a container for the mix. I also like to divide the GORP into daily portions as opposed to a larger bag, even if it is my own personal bag. Why? This can prevent issues with bacteria because you are taking a handful of GORP, putting your hand to your mouth, and then putting your hand back in the bag each time.
Cleanup
When dishwashing be sure to use a soap product that is specifically geared for wilderness camping. These camp soaps are generally concentrated so you don’t need a lot. Use camp soap with care and keep it out of lakes and streams. Be aware of any environmental impacts it could have. Steer clear of sponges—they harbor bacteria. When disposing of dishwater, ensure you follow LEAVE NO TRACE guidelines. Take any pieces of food out of the water and then scatter the water well away from camp and water sources so it is spread over a larger area.
If you drop food on the ground, pick up as much as possible. Put the food in your garbage bag to be packed out and rinse the area well. Always keep a very clean camp kitchen so that you don’t attract rodents or, even worse, a bear.
Meal Disasters
While I am an experienced cook both at home and in the wilds, I am not infallible. I have had my share of meal disasters and I’ve witnessed a few that others have had. I try to learn from my mistakes and hopefully so can you.
Watch the Water
One of my first experiences with dehydration and rehydration was spaghetti sauce. I wrote “2 cups” on a sticky note for a total measurement that was to include the dried ingredients. When I got to camp, I added 2 cups of water to the ingredients rather than putting the ingredients in first and adding enough water to bring it up to my required measurement. Oops.
When rehydrating your meals, it is always best to err on the side of caution until you get the hang of it. Less is more when it comes to water. If you use too much water, you’ll not only have a runny dish but you’ll also lose flavor if you try to drain some of the water off. Don’t rely on the measurements preprinted on water bottles, as I’ve found they aren’t always accurate. Use a folding spoon with measuring increments marked on it, or mark a cup or bottle with measuring increments before your trip. As good as my memory is, I still write measurements on a sticky note. While you think you won’t forget, it can happen, especially if you are drying a lot of meals.
Don’t panic if you end up with tomato water instead of spaghetti sauce. You can use potato starch or cornstarch to thicken it or you can cook your pasta in the sauce. The pasta will soak up the extra water. You can do the same with sauces for rice dishes. Another alternative is to reduce the water by simmering your sauce, but this can increase fuel consumption.
Prevent the Burnt Offering
If you are baking with an Outback Oven, it is important to remember to put the riser in place. It only takes a few moments for the baked item to scorch and burn if the riser has been forgotten. I remember making a cinnamon-swirl coffee cake from a mix, and it smelled delicious for about 30 seconds before the smoke started billowing out of the oven. I forgot the riser and there is no way to recover from that mistake.
If you burn something like chili to the bottom of your pot, you might be able to rescue it. Don’t stir it! Transfer the unstuck portion to another pot or your bowl and then clean out the burnt pot. However, if you stir it, you will also stir the burnt flavor through the entire dish.
Keep It Level
A level spot for your stove is of great importance. If the stove and your meal aren’t somewhat level, they can teeter and the next thing you know, you are faced with a dinner disaster. If your food happens to land on a rock, it’s easy enough to recover most of it; however, ground covered in pine needles is quite problematic. This happened to my husband on one of our trips. Thankfully it wasn’t too big of an issue because it was a dessert that was lost. That brings me to another lesson learned.
Keeping a stove level is also an important safety issue when it comes to using an alcohol stove. Because these stoves use fuel in an uncontained manner, unlike their white gas and compressed gas counterparts, the fuel can spill and continue to burn. This could cause a fire, damage to gear, and personal injury. The flame on an alcohol stove is sometimes very difficult to see. I’d like to say that we’ve never had an issue but we have. Thankfully it had just rained and we were in a car campground. The stove was on a picnic table that was saturated with water and contained about 2 ounces of denatured alcohol. The pot wasn’t centered on the stove properly and the works toppled. The entire table was aflame. As luck would have it, the water stopped any damage from occurring, but had we been on a wilderness trip, this could have had serious consequences. This is also why I tend to lean toward using white gas stoves. It isn’t advisable to use an alcohol stove on trips where you will be with small children.
Eat Clean
A male friend dropped a noodle on the ground when serving his pasta. Partway through his meal he was playing a gentle tug-of-war with a deer mouse who had wandered over to munch on the spillage. My friend thought this was adorable until the mouse climbed the rock beside him and proceeded to leap toward the plate. The mouse missed and landed on the fellow’s shoulder. He screamed and the plate of noodles was airborne. Cleanup, of course, was crucial and not just because we were in bear country; little critters such as mice can be destructive—though the