Duke of Edinburgh expedition - Food ideas

aliasojo

Horace wrote: »

Strap the sleeping bag to the top of the rucksack and to keep it dry cover it with a bin bag.

We did this and daughter was not allowed to leave the starting premises until she'd repacked her rucksack and put the sleeping bag inside.

They were very strict about not having anything other than the sleeping mat attached to the outside. They said it was to do with safety and that it would either snag on something or that the weight would become unbalanced if it got wet and pose a potential risk to her if she had to cross a stream for instance.

OP, I strongly advise you to get some luggage scales similar to this kind of thing - http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/partNumber/1071502.htm and weigh everything. We were shocked to realise just how heavy the rucksack had become once it was packed and had to take certain things out and substitute lighter things in their place. The usual guidelines are that they shouldn't carry more than one quarter of their own bodyweight.

Food (despite individual items being reasonably light) actually weighs a fair bit once totalled together and loaded. 1 litre of water itself weighs around a kilo. Weight is much more important than having nicer things to eat. She'll survive as long as she has any kind of calorie intake but she'll suffer hugely if she's weighed down too much and has to walk for miles with a heavy rucksack. Think basic and dried wherever you can. Pasta is a staple. It's light and cooks quickly. Daughter's group never had enough time for cooking, it was always a huge rush especially if the weather was bad so quick and easy is important.

I'd avoid cheese and eggs tbh, cheese sweats, raw eggs are too fragile, cooked eggs can turn quickly and become smelly and unpleasant.

For a first expedition, the pre packaged dried meals are a fairly safe bet for ease of use and low weight so consider them too.

Another useful thing is hydration tablets - example: http://www.amazon.co.uk/NUUN-Tri-Berry-Active-Hydration-tablets/dp/B004RSBJ24/ref=sr_1_9?s=sports&ie=UTF8&qid=1411287087&sr=1-9&keywords=hydration+tablets

Some kids are happy drinking plain water, others not so much. You don't need loads, but a few tabs carried in a ziplock bag means that a bottle of water can be used for cooking and what's left can be turned into a juice drink that gives a wee bit of flavour and also helps them stay well hydrated.

skogar

That sounds sad Mrs Lurcher walker. Either it was a child who had left behind essential kit or an assessor who wasnt sensible. Most things on the kit list are needed but there is no way I would expect them to take 2 fleece tops for a 1 week expedition in mild conditions. I take one for 2 weeks. Usually it gets washed half way through but not always. I used to take d of e groups and used to pick up the rucksack and if I thought it was too heavy I'd ask them to take the stuff out and give them some advice on what could be left behind.

Sorry just reread your post. Sun hat. Probably advisable but I think unlikely that would be a fail with most assessors. Ie. Did they have the warm hat with them? Could also easily be improvised if needed though from another item of clothing. I supose I'm lucky to have worked with sensible assessors who would have probably asked the kid what they would do if they needed a sunhat and see if they came out with something sensible. Also would depend on time of year. I still remember helping on a bitterly cold bronze practice i March. Definately we wouldnt have expected sun hats. An extra layer would have been far more useful. We did advise bring extra warm stuff on that one. I can vouch for the fact that sunhats were not needed but the extra layers certainly were!!!!!!

We used to give the kids advice on where they could cut down sensibly an given the expected conditions and we knew our assessors well which helped. All our assessors were keen backpackers and therefore had a lot of common sense.

skogar

Agree about weighing everything but use your kitchen scales for individual items. Getting on the bathroom scales with and without the rucksack will give enough of an idea of the weight without buying luggage scales.

You do have to be very careful if taking eggs but it can be done. As proved by the kid who (foolishly) my friend thought brought eggs on a gold expedition. My friend and I were converted and have both done it regularly since. Amazing what you learn from the kids too. :j

Horace

aliasojo wrote: »

We did this and daughter was not allowed to leave the starting premises until she'd repacked her rucksack and put the sleeping bag inside.

They were very strict about not having anything other than the sleeping mat attached to the outside. They said it was to do with safety and that it would either snag on something or that the weight would become unbalanced if it got wet and pose a potential risk to her if she had to cross a stream for instance.

OP, I strongly advise you to get some luggage scales similar to this kind of thing - http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/partNumber/1071502.htm and weigh everything. We were shocked to realise just how heavy the rucksack had become once it was packed and had to take certain things out and substitute lighter things in their place. The usual guidelines are that they shouldn't carry more than one quarter of their own bodyweight.

Food (despite individual items being reasonably light) actually weighs a fair bit once totalled together and loaded. 1 litre of water itself weighs around a kilo. Weight is much more important than having nicer things to eat. She'll survive as long as she has any kind of calorie intake but she'll suffer hugely if she's weighed down too much and has to walk for miles with a heavy rucksack. Think basic and dried wherever you can. Pasta is a staple. It's light and cooks quickly. Daughter's group never had enough time for cooking, it was always a huge rush especially if the weather was bad so quick and easy is important.

I'd avoid cheese and eggs tbh, cheese sweats, raw eggs are too fragile, cooked eggs can turn quickly and become smelly and unpleasant.

For a first expedition, the pre packaged dried meals are a fairly safe bet for ease of use and low weight so consider them too.

Another useful thing is hydration tablets - example: http://www.amazon.co.uk/NUUN-Tri-Berry-Active-Hydration-tablets/dp/B004RSBJ24/ref=sr_1_9?s=sports&ie=UTF8&qid=1411287087&sr=1-9&keywords=hydration+tablets

Some kids are happy drinking plain water, others not so much. You don't need loads, but a few tabs carried in a ziplock bag means that a bottle of water can be used for cooking and what's left can be turned into a juice drink that gives a wee bit of flavour and also helps them stay well hydrated.

Times have changed then because when I did my DofE we could strap the sleeping bag on the top of the rucksack. These days sleeping bags are much smaller - I have one which packs up really small into a stuff sack (I also have a winter weight one that does not pack so small but I don't use it for hiking). I would put a space blanket under the sleep mat then lay my sleeping bag on top with another space blanket over the top to keep me warm. Hopefully the OP's daughter has a sleeping bag that packs up small into a stuff sack.

Seakay

previous threads about food for DoE expeditions:

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/2311313

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/4977187

Nellie_the_Viking

Hi there. I'm a D of E manager at my school and work with some pretty tough assessors. They aren't all like that, but if you work on the basis that they will be extremely particular, you won't go wrong. Kids carrying packs over the 13 or so km for bronze will need a good number of calories (about 3000 as Mrs LW says), but "empty" calories are often frowned upon, so Kendal Mint Cake etc is fine, but not great.

They'll need a packed lunch (rolls/sandwiches with non-perishable fillings like peanut butter/marmite/jam can be used on both days and made at home beforehand), cake/biscuits are good and give them something to snack on quickly when they get to camp - I encourage a couple to get the tents up while a couple more make tea/biscuits - its a real mood booster for tired kids..

Their evening meal needs to be "substantial" to meet the requirements of D of E. I recommend my kids to use either quick cook pasta (5 minute macaroni) or couscous which doesn't need cooking, just the addition of boiling water and a stir (weighed out in portions). Jars of sauce are heavy, but if you can afford the investment, the little plastic stir through pots/sachets are good and allow individuals to personalise their meal. A sachet of tuna can add protein, or for bronze some grated cheese will survive a day on the hill. Good ziplock bags can be used to carry the correct portion of homemade sauce, but make sure they travel inside something else like a mug in the backpack to prevent bursting incidents :-/ . Don't be tempted to use pot noodles or similar as they don't have much nutritional value and some assessors are dead against them!

My team of assessors recommend porridge for breakfast (weighed out in portions for the team for each day - on Bronze, only one day so you would be looking at approx 40g per person (or even instant porridge pots, which are expensive but save washing up anything but a spoon in the morning). Maybe some chocolate raisins to add to it for energy and tastiness. Hot chocolate in sachets or teabags and milk powder. They also insist on something hot at breakfast time, so if the kids don't like porridge they could have some flapjack (same ingredients, different format!) or muesli pre-mixed with milk powder (just add water), or malt loaf but they'll still need to make a hot drink.

On top of this most of my teams carry a "trail mix" of sweeties, fruit and nuts in a bag - the favoured combo is a family sized bag of m&ms, chocolate peanuts/raisins (or the yoghurt version), dried apricots, little cubes of fudge, skittles etc - all stuff that is unwrapped so they can't litter (it's hard to keep track of things when wearing a massive rucksack).

In terms of water - bottles of water from the supermarket (cheapest brand) weigh less than "nalgene" type bottles. 2l should be ample for Bronze and they'll certainly last the 4 days total (practice and assessed).

Our rule on equipment is that they must have waterproof tops and bottoms (and I've had to save the day a couple of times by "couriering" stuff very quickly), quick drying non-cotton clothing to wear to walk in, and a change of clothes in a proper dry-bag. The change of clothes should still be in the drybag at the end of the expediiton - it just gives them something warm to wear in the tent in case they get wet. Hat is necessary, change of underwear, and minimal washkit - my groups usually share a small tube of toothpaste, take a toothbrush each, some antibacterial hand gel, and just have a good shower when they get home. This applies to Gold too - they are sometimes a little fragrant on return, but it saves them carrying lots of weight.

A headtorch is essential and should be easily accessible in its own "home" in the rucksack so it can be found quickly in the evening. I insist on a compass. Most of the rest of the kit list falls into the "suggested" category. Everything but the roll mat has to go inside the rucksack, including the group kit (trangia or gas stove, fuel (don't forget matches!), tents, first aid kit etc). This is both to keep kit dry (comfort) and ensure it arrives (safety).

Seakay

I'm beginning to wonder why it's the kids who get the awards - from the discussions on here it's the parents who do all the research and information gathering! If the awards are supposed to test young people isn't it cheating to do all the work for them?

quidsy

Starbrsts are the name of opal fruits now.

Dolmio dio the stir in sauces for one, and pasta sachets for one, these are supposed to be microwaved but can heated int he packet in boiling water, the sauces have meatballs or vegetarian & with a few slices of ham chopped into it & a roll with cheese triangle will be a hearty dinner.

Snacks, nuts, lots of, mini pretzels mixed with raisings, chocolate chips, dried fruit chopped up makes a great handy trail mix, and can be carried in a food bag in pocket. Cereal bars for snacks & energy boost, again get ones with honey & nuts rather than the chocolate or yogurt ones are best, more protein less sugar. Bread sticks are good for quick carb boost, cup a soups, hot chocolate sachets with powdered milk included. And I would personally carry a couple of tins of ham or other meat protein like corned beef or fish like mackerel or tuna, not too much but enough to add some extra to the daily diet.

Hope she enjoys herself, can't wait for my ds (7) to reach that stage, he is in beavers atm & DoE is the natural progression imo from the cubs & scouts.

lhead123

wow D of E has changed a lot since I did mine! (though that was 10 years ago now!) We could take whatever we thought we would need and pack it however we wanted to!

One food I loved was crackers with primula cheese in a tube as you didn't need a knife and the cheese was fine outside a fridge for a couple of days.

Also the single serving hot chocolates and cereal bars for breakfast. The best dinners were those tins of beans with sausages in, though I used to re-pack them in plastic tubs to save weight.

I tried the just add water meals that you can get from camping shops and they were disgusting!

A lightweight tent and sleeping bag were essentials. Also a camelbak or similar water pack

L xx

quidsy

Seakay wrote: »

I'm beginning to wonder why it's the kids who get the awards - from the discussions on here it's the parents who do all the research and information gathering! If the awards are supposed to test young people isn't it cheating to do all the work for them?

There's always one :wall::D