Trail Thoughts: Food

First of all a couple of PSA announcements. I have realized while writing in my blog in town that every time I am about to start typing any idea in my head disappears and all I end up writing about is "Well I hike really far this week..." Well for me that is boring to type, and if I am bored you probably are too. To fix this I am starting a new segment called Trail Thoughts. For some unknown reason when you are hiking for 8-10 hours a days you seem to have time to think. So now when I think of a topic that gives insight to life on the trail, I  jot it down.

The second announcement is I am no longer trying to have movie quotes for all my blog titles...it's too much work. I may throw in nonsensical quotes for trail progress reports, but that's it.

Food,

At the best of times we humans are quite fond of food. It almost seems like if we don't consume it we would die or something. Well when you are on trail food becomes an obsession.  Conversation almost always reverts back to food. As you hike you often think about your next break so you can eat more food. Food is what allows you to climb, be happy, and warm. On trail there are two types of food: trail food and town food.

Trail food is what keeps you alive and going to the next town. Often it is light, dehydrated, and lackluster. The amount of Knorrs, mac-n-cheese, and oatmeal you eat is rather sad. Quickly you dream of fresh veggies, burgers, butter, and more. In groups hikers talk about favorite restaurants and every item discussed sounds better then the last. That brings me to town food.

In town it is very easy to spend too much money. One reason for this is the fantastic food items you can grab. It is rather a cool experience, normally when you see the caloric value on a menu, you shy away from big numbers, but on a through hike..."What the fajita salad is 1600 calories?!? I'll take that and a milkshake!" the body wants food and you are eager to provide. When we were in Big Bear there was a restaurant called the Grizzly Manor. The food actually was epic in a true sense of the word. The meal I got was called the Blob. Here is what this gut bomb entailed: A platter of biscuits and gravy topped with bacon, two goose sized eggs, and probably a pound of cheese. I am positive this thing was 2000-3000 calories. Not only did I clean my plate, but I helped take on some platter sized pancakes from another epic breakfast.

Food is one of my favorite things and I kind of feel like the main reason why I hike is so I can eat things that normally make America obese. Without it you don't function and I rue the day when i have to start paying attention to what I consume.