Expedition food

competitionscafe

Bananas are good - get a banana guard to protect it (pink ones are best for amusement value)
http://www.bananaguards.co.uk/eshop/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=6

Melt plain dark or milk chocolate and stir-in dried fruit and chopped mixed nuts, then put teaspoonfuls onto some greaseproof paper to set. Tasty and you get an instant energy boost from the chocolate + a longer term one from the dried fruit and nuts.

If you ask on OutdoorsMagic.com forums you will get some good advice too, there are quite afew threads there on backpacking foods and a bargian thread for cheap gear.
http://www.outdoorsmagic.com/forum/forum.asp?sp=&v=8

Also try GoOutdoors for cheap gear, sometimes Lidl and Aldi have stuff to but quality varies.
http://www.gooutdoors.co.uk/

Three_Dancing_Dragons

Take oats, powdered milk and loads of dried fruit to make porridge for breakfast. Will keep you going all day so you only have to cook dinner and is inexpensive.

spiddy100

Second the porridge suggestion - DH and I lived on this when we were 'tramping' in NZ. We also ate loads of trail mix, you could mix your own using nuts and fruit from a weigh-and-save type shop, though I have to say it only took two days for us to get *really* sick of it!

Flapjacks are a great idea for slow release energy.

I'd try asking on Freecycle for kit. I gave a trek towel away only yesterday Otherwise you could have had it. I bet there are others with camping kit they don't use - even if they want it back they might well lend it to you. Otherwise try the local free ads, though any cheap camping stuff will probably be popular this time of year.

tumbleweed261

Thank you all for your very helpful suggestions - I'll let you know how we get on (if we survive!)

reverie - I'd die of happiness if we got to eat fish and chips and bacon sarnies on expedition, you lucky thing! I know what you mean about Mars bars - on my last expedition I was really light headed and my friend plunked me down, unwrapped a mars bar and shoved it in my mouth - did the trick though! We're off to the Peaks, Lakes and Snowdonia - well, assuming I survive the first practice one :rotfl:

competitionscafe - I might buy one of those purely to cheer us up when we've a chuffing great mountain ahead of us!

lydia.42 - Ziplock bags are already on the list, I absolutely love them! Not sure what's worse though - being 8 months pregnant or walking 200km in 10 days, want to swap?!

thirzah - I think I'm going to brave the Lakeland diy bags, there are 4 of us to split the cost and so we'll probably need about that many, thank you for finding them for me!

any further thoughts anyone?

rach

cous cous is light and easy but might not be high enough cal content. if you got the packets of flavoured stuff you can just add boiling water.

my 99p shop has microfibre mini towels which are great for camping/ trekking.

mel123

What about malt loaf? its really cheap and easy to eat while walking. Best of luck to you and enjoy the experience.

carol_a_3

I'm trying to lose weight so I'm thinking about all the things that are banned for me which would be good for you. Aside from Mars bars what about coconut ice, chocolate covered brazil nuts, etc. My son is doing his dOE gold at the moment too. He's off to Dartmoor at Easter and half term and then the Lake district in the summer so I shall be watching this thread with interest. Good luck.

Penelope_Penguin

Hello, hope someone can help :A My DD (who will be 15 this week) is doing a Duke of Edinburgh expidition practice this weekend. She's with a group of 5 other girls, and she's the only one who has any experience of camping. They're setting off on Saturday, walking 13 miles to the campsite, camping overnight then walking another 13 miles. They need to carry all their food for the 2 days, in rucksacks. The other girls aren't helping with planning the food :rolleyes:

Our question is this, can anyone recommend what they can take for their evening meal They need it to not leak, and be as light as possible. Good OS cooking isn't a priority, here DD's thinking pasta and some sauce. Can you recommend a packet sauce that she can take? She's also been recommended dried soup; again any recommendations? What about a pudding - instant custard, perhaps, and what with it?

Any ideas for calorie-filled snacks will go down well, too.

TIA, Penny. x

JailhouseBabe

Aldi do a low-fat vegetable soup that, IMO, is very nice. Supermarket value-brand swiss roll with instant custard? DD used to love that when she was younger (I'm sure she'd still eat it now, I just haven't thought to buy it for years!).

Miss_Ladybird

When I did D of E we used to take Supernoodles for our tea! very light to carry and just need to heat up some water on your little stove! If you are feeling extravagent and very NOT OS you can buy foil sachets in the camping shop with a meal inside!
Breakfast - cereal bars, apples, may a sachet of hot choc
Lunch - pitta bread, squeezy tube of cheese, hula hoops, more apples
Snacks - chocolate galore!
Hmm don't know how I went for 4 day hikes eating that lot but it was fine at the time!
I hope she has a great time! x