I'm going on a trip to the Smokey mountains with a buddy during mid may. I was mostly wondering on what the best way to handle food? My buddy and I were thinking of doing MRE's but they are kinda expensive and I'm kinda worried when doing google searches for buying cause alot of the sites are shady and sell old relief meals etc. Anyone know where to get this stuff? Or what is a better alternative? Also for gear I have the following. Please tell me what else I need. Backpack 4000 square inches Katadyn hiker pro water filter rain jacket mummy bag night clothes smart wool socks /w liner socks hat/gloves flashlight spade (for cathole digging) whisltle multi-tool lighter/matches knife What else will I need? Thanks guys, me and my buddy are newbies so all the help we can get will be great.
make sure you bring something warm for night. It can get down in the low 40's but it will be hot during the day. bug repellent What part of the smokies?
Don't try fornicating with the bears. They don't like it and it will only end in someone getting hurt.
Just about anything else, including boiling bark you've stripped off of trees will be a better alternative. MRE's are a last resort, and because they pack easily, you should carry one if you're going places where your plans may go to hell. Otherwise, I'd eat gorp for two weeks before breaking out an MRE. Get some gatorade mix and drink it a 1 to4 or 1 to 3 ratio with water. Here's some more info, including some good suggestions for food... http://www.backpacking.net/27-pound.html#food
rimrocker: MRE's are that bad? Hmm thanks for the site, It has some really out of the box ideas. Thanks for the advice guys, definitely heard to break in my boots and got a trail map and a compass now. Only thing is food.
If you are backpacking, then I would go with the dehydrated/freeze dried meals from REI and Academy because they are light. Don't bring lots of canned foods because you will want to throw them away after a few miles. I usually bring some jerky and some tuna fish also to break up the monotony. The dehydrated eggs tastes pretty good also. Here are some of the things I bring. Freeze dried foods from REI dehydrated eggs Jerky Tuna in the soft pouch oatmeal energy bars chocolate bars instant hummus and pita bread instant black beans
The most important thing is get a water purifier you can live with. GPS's are inexpensive now so might want to get one of those also. Its definitely a nice to have.
