Camping is pretty much what I do for any backyard or beach bbq, noting that I would be storing food in ice chests or areas out of direct sunlight that I do not have to actually carry on me.


Backpacking i've kind of done it all and think that its dependent on the trip purpose, length and your age. Younger would have a case of beer and beef jerky for an overnight 10 miler. Then I found MRE's good but bulky and heavy. Switched to Mountain House (et al) and some are hit and miss but the most part are tasty and cover all meals.

The year after I decided to not carry the kitchen sink into the back country I went as Ultralight as i could and did a 10 day Yosemite trip with very boring but UL food and a white box stove. Took instant oatmeal packs, Starbucks via, dehydrated re-fried beans and minute rice. I did ziplock cooking with the beans and rice using a homemade Reflectix cozy. okay, I brought a liter of brandy too.

Now I have gone back to mountain house but depending on the speed of the adventure I may not cook it. I learned a tip from Adventure racing to add cold water to the meal bag, seal it up, shake it and wait an hour to eat. its cold but it works and it gets 600 calories in you tasting better than dehydrated beans and Uncle Bens. A lot better than gels and chews.

I also pack a couple payday candy bars for the harder days. They don't melt in extreme heat (trust me) and they have lots of fat, sugar and salt.