The Best Healthy Snacks For Backpacking
Backpacking is a lot of work. It burns a lot of calories and can put quite a bit of strain on the body. When you do an activity like that, you need to make sure you are fueling your body consistently to supply it with the energy it needs. That’s why you need plenty of delicious, healthy snacks for backpacking.
Whether or not you are a snacker in your typical daily life, you certainly should be one when backpacking. Your body needs more food than usual. So much so that it can be incredibly difficult to consume enough in just 3 meals to make up for everything you’re burning.
That doesn’t mean you should go crazy and chow down snickers bars all day… though feel free to treat yourself to one or two!
It does mean you get to eat a lot more than usual, which is awesome news if you love food! But choosing the right foods is key. For backpacking, this means foods that pack well and have a big nutritional punch.
Below are some great rules-of-thumb for picking out the best healthy snacks for backpacking.
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Why Backpacking Snacks Are Important
Bringing along snacks for backpacking is necessary. There are a couple of main reasons for this. You’re burning a lot of calories that need to be refueled and you’re going to have a hard time packing those in to 3 square meals.
Burning Calories
You burn a lot of calories while backpacking. Though the exact count varies widely, people can expect to use between 300-700 calories per hour. That is a huge range that may not seem incredibly helpful to you, but there is a lot that goes into play when calculating this.
Your weight, your backpack’s weight, your sex, the terrain, the elevation, your mileage, the speed at which you’re moving, and more will determine exactly how many calories you are burning. There are a lot of different calculators out there if you want to get a more accurate range for yourself.
Investigating these for myself (a 5’9” female in her mid-twenties) I might range between 400-550 calories per hour of backpacking (roughly). Meanwhile, one of my male friends on the same trip will likely burn at least an additional 100-200 calories an hour…maybe a little more if I make him carry the tent!
When you’re on a backpacking trip, you are putting in serious time. Many people will go for 5-8 hours a day depending on their goals. That means you might be burning between 2,500-4,000 calories a day from hiking! That doesn’t even take into account the base calories your body burns every day.
Eating Between Meals
Finding an extra two or three thousand calories a day might be easy if you were swinging by restaurants along your journey, but most backpackers are not. A vast majority of the time you will be carrying, storing, and preparing all the food you have for the journey.
Sometimes this comes in the form of store-bought freeze-dried meals, other times it is homemade dehydrated concoctions. Either way, most people are bringing a meal for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
While homemade meals can be as hearty as you desire, it’s pretty typical for store bought meals to run around 500-900 calories for a large size, 2-serving package. If you eat 3 of these in a day, you’re not going to make up for all the calories burned on your hike. You’d be under-fueling your body tremendously, leaving yourself feeling low energy and hungry.
Eating two backpacking meals in a sitting probably isn’t wise either. Consuming that much food in a short amount of time could leave you feeling sick, stuffed, and slow. Not to mention the extra weight and bulk that is added to your pack if you carry 4 or 5 meals for each day!
What To Look For In Backpacking Snacks
Pack-Able
You’re going to want snacks that can be smashed, twisted and tossed without becoming inedible. Bananas, for example, are not ideal….Neither are potato chips or other easily-crushed items. You’ll be stuck licking your pulverized snacks out of the corners of your snack bag. Pick items that are sturdier or that you don’t mind eating in crumbled form.
Foods should also be relatively compact and put in a lightweight container. If it is packaged in something bulky, transfer it over to a baggie. Make sure the packaging is re-sealable if it isn’t single serve or put it in a ziplock bag to avoid a messy pack.
Convenient
Snacks on the trail should require minimal preparation and utensils. Reserve those foods for meals that you will have longer breaks to consume.
Snacks, for this purpose, are foods that can be eaten during a short rest stop or when you need to quickly refuel on the trail. These should be simple to pull out, and eat as-is. Foods such as mac-n-cheese or oatmeal are wonderful, but should be reserved for mealtime due to the preperation they require.
Nutritious
Your body is doing a lot of work out there. Be sure to fuel it! Make sure you have plenty of snacks that are nutritious and full of the vitamins, proteins, fats and carbs that you need to perform your best. Though a candy bar might be a fun treat for the hike, a bag of mixed nuts will give you lasting energy to help you power through the day. You can add a few M&Ms in there, too, if you have a sweet tooth.
The Best Healthy Snacks For Backpacking
Now that you understand the importance of having the right snacks for the trail, here are some excellent choices to look for:
- Beef or Turkey Jerky
- Dried meats and sausages
- Tuna Snack Packs
- Applesauce Squeeze Packs
- Nuts or Seeds
- Granola Clusters and Oats
- Peanut Butter
- Granola Bars
- Dried Fruits and Fruit Leather
- Pretzels, Triscuits, Other Sturdy Crackers
- Trail Mix and Homemade Snack Mix
- Protein Bars or Powders
- Tortillas or Pita Bread
You can certainly get creative with your snacks by making your own protein bites or granola bars. If you’re tight on time, the list above are excellent store-bought options. Be sure to bring a variety of snack options, especially during your first few trips. That way you can satisfy any of your cravings and determine what does or doesn’t work for you on the trails.
Our Favorite Snacks For Backpacking
If you’re looking for some specific recommendations for snacks we love to bring on the trail, check out these!
- Epic Jerky Bites – Epic offers some of the best meat snacks you can find. They have a good variety, the beef is 100% grass-fed, they’re high in protein, and low in sugar. What more can you ask for?
- MOKU Mushroom Jerky – Those of you who are vegan or vegetarian can enjoy jerky, too! We love MOKU’s variety of delicious mushroom jerkies. They are lower in protein than most traditional jerky, however.
- RXBars – These granola bars are made with only a handful of healthy, nutritious ingredients. Unlike many other bars that have a long list of add-ins. They also offer 12 grams of protein!
- KIND Healthy Grains Vanilla Blueberry Clusters – With blueberries, flax seed, and amaranth, these clusters are packed with nutrition your body needs. A great source of fiber, low in sugar, and delicious!
- Bare Baked Crunchy Apple Chips – So many dried fruit brands add a bunch of extra ingredients. Not Bare. These apple chips are just… dried apples. It’s like having an apple in your backpack, but without the bruising!
- Planters Nut-rition Omega 3 Mix – This nut mix is low sodium and is a great source of ALA Omega-3s. With some raisins, apple pieces, cashews, and walnuts, it’s one of the healthiest trail mixes you can find! Buy in the big tub and transfer to reusable baggies to reduce waste!
Conclusion
Having the right snacks on the trail can keep you feeling energized and satisfied as you cover those miles. Snacks that are nutrient-packed, sturdy, and easy to eat are your best options when you’re backpacking.
If you want some ideas for easy, homemade backpacking meals, check out our 5 cheap and easy backpacking meal ideas! Whatever food you bring along, make sure you are storing it properly each night and packing out any trash that comes with it!
Cover photo by Matteo Di Iorio on Unsplash
