so i haven't actually began any food prep yet. i have a dehydrator ready to fire up, and a plan i am working on to make resupply as efficient and stress free as possible. thankfully there are plenty of blogs, you-tube v-logs, articles, and books all about resupply. the logistics are pretty much easy to follow. for me, i will be sending the majority of my food to me on the trail. i am hiking on a SMALL budget. i don't plan to be able to stay in many hotels, unless costs are split with other hikers, and it is a low price. i also don't plan to spend TOO much money in town. i do plan on eating fresh meals here and there, but i do not plan on getting the majority of my resupplies from the trail stores and towns. i know what i like to eat, i know i can make the majority of it quickly, fast, and at a much lower cost if i buy the supplies in bulk from Winco and Costco now, as opposed to while hiking. so basically, i need to make a bag of food, for as many days i plan to be out on the trail. and i plan to be out for roughly 150 days. so i am planning 150 bags of food before i go so when i need resupply, i can ask erica to send me 5 bags here, or 6 bags there, and so on however i need. this should make it easy for her, as then all she has to do is box up my bags, add my maps for the next section, tape it up, and when i can have packages mailed to a post office, they will come and pick up my resupply box from my house. priority mail really is worth its cost when it comes to making sure your food for survival is on time.
here is how the bags of food sort of break down...
150 food bags
1 food bag = 1 day of food
1 bag = 3000-5000 calories
1 bag =
breakfast 500-750 calories
lunch 750-1000 calories
dinner 750-1000 calories
snacks 750-1000 calories
drinks 300-500 calories
*extra unknown calories
total 3050-4250 calories a day
*extra is anything i get in care packages: cookies, jerky, candy, home-baked goods, really anything my lovely family, friends and followers would like to send me to keep my spirits up along the way. keep in mind, any care packages that are sent to me are extra weight i will be carrying out of town, along with the food supply i already have sent to myself. it is also wise to give me a heads up that you may be sending me something. i know this sort of spoils the surprise, but you don't have to tell me what it is, just a heads up so that i know to look for/ask for extra packages waiting for me other than my resupply box.
also, anything that i will have to carry, and can not eat, sent to me in a care package, has the chance of being left behind or sent back. i can not be adding a TON of extra weight once i start. specific gear and what i actually carry with me in my pack is a painstakingly detailed process. i am not as much of a 'gear head' as most thru-hikers, but it is not uncommon for hikers to stress about their base pack weight down to the ounce.
some good care package items that are not food, that would great, would be batteries (AA & AAA) but really i only need a few at a time, so 2-4 max. energy shots. stamps so i can send you guys post cards and letters. and as always i am sure we can barter some stickers or future artwork, real work, or anything really for donations....
