Drop camp food

[Ihunt4food]

For those of you that have packed
Into a drop camp with an outfitter
In the past, what kinds of food do you
Pack in? I am planning on a drop camp
Next fall and just wondering what
You all usually take for meals in camp.
Thanks in advance

 

[Conrad101st]

Depends on the weight allowance. But we still mainly take mountain house meals but a bunch so we can eat up to 2+ per day. It’s just easier to deal with than actually cooking.

For breakfast we take Kodak pancake mix and or instant oatmeal as all you need is water.

Also take a boatload of VIA coffee, cocoa, and Gatorade mix.

Lots of nuts, and other snacks like kind bars.

Take some olive oil and spices in case you acquire some elk meat, trout or grouse.

 

[Ihunt4food]

Thank you . I was looking at Mountain
House stuff.

 

[Indian Summer]

Early in the hunt you could eat fresh food. You could take 1 cooler in. Eat that stuff before it spoils AND while you have the energy to prepare it and clean up. I like starting off with a steak dinner as a celebration that we are finally on the mountain. But a few days into the hunt it’ll be all about how long you can stay awake at the end of the day. That means Mountain House. Their eggs SUCK. So for breakfast I go with biscuits and gravy. Dinners are a matter of personal preference. I stay away from the hot/spicy stuff like chili mac. My partner loves that stuff.

You should start buying them now as they are going out of stock everywhere including the Mountain House website itself. Maybe even try a couple to see what you like.

Other things I like that don’t go bad are jerky, nuts, cheese, granola bars, trail mix, vac sealed tuna packs. Mountain House chicken salad is really good and is made with cold water instead of hot. Good luck!

 

[Billy Goat]

You can make a meal and freeze it in vaccume seal. Then dunk in hot water to reheat. Good meals with no prep. Works when you can have a cooler, doesn't need to even stay frozen before use, just 40 degrees or so. Later season hunt should be good all week.

Steak and grilled chicken along with mashed potatoes are pretty good.

 

[Indian Summer]

I’ve heard that these egs are pretty good. Haven’t tried them yet.

OvaEasy Egg White Protein & Powdered Egg Products

Made with 100% real eggs, OvaEasy Egg Crystals help support your nutrition goals & offer long-term food storage options.

ovaeasy.com

 

[P&Y3times]

Mountain House for dinner. I would suggest taking a couple bags of egg noodles with you and cook them in the boiling water and then add to the Mountain House bag. The bags says 2 servings, I don't think it is really enough for one full meal.
Breakfast, instant oatmeal.
Mid day, cliff bars, trail mix, beef jerky and kind bars

 

[BigAntlerGetter]

Ok so as an outfitter I see everything that comes through. This all depends on the outfitter, weight allowance and how they operate but for me and my hunters the most common and easiest way for meals is pre made vacuum sealed frozen. My outfit has a 150lb allowance per hunter and an extra 150lb of food, then mid week we offer a resupply.

Typically for 4 hunters I can get everything loaded on 3-4 mules total. Some guys need up taking all their food in, I prefer the resupply day but if it all fits that’s their choice. Next I can throw their food in the freezer and grab it when I leave, fresh food is tougher to deal with over the week. These guys then have 1 cooler in camp with their food grab what they want and have a ton of snacks for during the day. They will usually pack in pb&j for lunches, snacks and maybe some fresh stuff to go with dinners.


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[Indian Summer]

Ok so as an outfitter I see everything that comes through. This all depends on the outfitter, weight allowance and how they operate but for me and my hunters the most common and easiest way for meals is pre made vacuum sealed frozen. My outfit has a 150lb allowance per hunter and an extra 150lb of food, then mid week we offer a resupply.

Typically for 4 hunters I can get everything loaded on 3-4 mules total. Some guys need up taking all their food in, I prefer the resupply day but if it all fits that’s their choice. Next I can throw their food in the freezer and grab it when I leave, fresh food is tougher to deal with over the week. These guys then have 1 cooler in camp with their food grab what they want and have a ton of snacks for during the day. They will usually pack in pb&j for lunches, snacks and maybe some fresh stuff to go with dinners.


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150 lbs per hunter means 1 mule per hunter at 75lbs per side. So if you have 4 hunters plus 150 lbs of food how can you make it on 3-4 critters? I used to give my hunters an 80 lb limit. 150 is a lot!

 

[erle1139]

We've done several drop camps. For 4 or less people we usually cook some type of stew, chili, pasta dish etc and freeze them flat in gallon ziplock bags, enough for 4 people, for the first two nights. After that, or when hunting season starts we eat Mountain House. Not a big fan of hunting all day, getting back after dark, having to cook and clean. For breakfasts we bring mountain house and/or the frozen breakfast sandwiches and breakfast tacos, either homemade or store bought. we pack them in frozen in a yeti soft side cooler with yeti ice packs that we can refreeze at night when temps get in the 20s. The frozen breakfast sandwiches/tacos can easily be heated on a skillet on a propane stove with the lid on (kind of like you're microwaving it). Bring some tortillas for the Mountain House Egg breakfasts and make some quick breakfast tacos. We pack picante sauce and Cholula sauce...makes everything taste better. For lunches we bring a bunch of lunchmeat, cheese, bread, tortillas for sandwiches. Cans of pringles, or the single lunch size cans, pack really well and don't get crushed like potato chips. We do bring some cooking oil, fry mix, instant mashed potatoes, cream gravy mix just in case we get an opportunity to fry up some back strap on the last night. When we get up to 5 people, like this year, we don't make "community meals" anymore, everyone bring Mountain House for the whole trip, or you can cook whatever you want on your own. We try to make it as simple as possible and eliminate as much work as possible.

 

[Mighty Mouse]

I've done a variety of things over the years from pre-packaged freeze dried meals to pre-cooked & frozen "real" food to raw ingredients prepared in camp.

Freeze dried meal pouches (Mountain House, Alpine Aire, Peak Refuel, etc) are the lightest and simplest option but not the best tasting or most nutritious.

Preparing meals in the field from raw ingredients isn't worth the time and hassle in my opinion.

Cooking meals in advance at home and freezing them in ziplock bags is a good compromise between convenience and quality. Chili, spaghetti, and pulled pork are some of my go-to's. Keeping the food cold until consumption can be a challenge. I transfer the meal bags from the deep freezer to a soft-sided cooler when I leave the house, toss in a few pounds of dry ice on my way out of town, then nest the soft cooler inside a hard cooler and keep everything closed up tight until I get to the trailhead. The soft cooler goes on the pack animal then gets stored in the shade at camp. Even during early archery season, I've had the dry ice last until mid-week and the food stay cold all week. The meals may not still be frozen completely solid by end of the week, but they're cold enough to not give me any qualms about eating them.

 

[SBAHunts]

You can make a meal and freeze it in vaccume seal. Then dunk in hot water to reheat. Good meals with no prep. Works when you can have a cooler, doesn't need to even stay frozen before use, just 40 degrees or so. Later season hunt should be good all week.

Steak and grilled chicken along with mashed potatoes are pretty good.

this is my favorite method of bringing quality food which I know I will enjoy & appreciate

 

[dmc]

I did one this year and it was pretty awesome. We packed mostly frozen meals in ziplocks/vacuum seal bags with dry ice on top. I would only recommend vacuum seal bags now as they did better when in the pot the outfitter had. Also packed some mountain house for breakfasts and extra late nights out. Sandwiches for lunch. All the typical snacks.

Spaghetti w/meat sauce, elk chili, chicken salsa tacos, elk tacos, steak with a potato casserole, sloppy joes, pulled pork. Did eat some brookies too.

Was glad I brought: extra meds (smoke messed with my sinuses), mouse traps, and a 6L MSR water bag & sawyer filter.

 

[Ihunt4food]

Thanks for the info. All sound like good options

 

[HoneyDew]

I did one this year and it was pretty awesome. We packed mostly frozen meals in ziplocks/vacuum seal bags with dry ice on top. I would only recommend vacuum seal bags now as they did better when in the pot the outfitter had. Also packed some mountain house for breakfasts and extra late nights out. Sandwiches for lunch. All the typical snacks.

Spaghetti w/meat sauce, elk chili, chicken salsa tacos, elk tacos, steak with a potato casserole, sloppy joes, pulled pork. Did eat some brookies too.

Was glad I brought: extra meds (smoke messed with my sinuses), mouse traps, and a 6L MSR water bag & sawyer filter.

Mouse traps...? Please elaborate.

 

[dmc]

There was a bunch of mice all over our camp - outfitter told us about it and actually gave us the two mouse traps. Basically ran a trap line every night. ha.

 

[Doc Holliday]

I like Mtn house for breakfast, snack bars/nuts during the day, Ramen Noodle for lunch, and Mtn house for dinner.

 

[Tobe_B]

All depends on your outfitter and the weight limit. Packed in three guys with one pack mule loaded at 165 lbs. They were pros at loading light weight gear and prepping dehydrated meals. They stayed out for a week and didn’t require any resupply. Same week I packed in a group of five and they needed 7 pack animals to get in to camp. They wanted for nothing and had food to spare. But one guy at the end of the week was suffering from food poisoning from some bacon that had gotten a little rancid. So depending on the season and how long you’ll be out really dictates your food options. The colder the outdoor temp the longer fresh food will last. Your hunt style and how long you’re out each day will also dictate your meals. Mix a little of the dehydrated meals with some fresh options. Mid week it would be good to resupply your body with a solid warm meal that replenishes depleted nutrients. I really like the instant mashed potatoes. Sausage that is pre-cooked keeps really well. Pack in a few canned goods as well. They’re a few extra pounds but the sodium and the nutrition will go a long way.


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[trophyhill]

if talking feeze dried, I'd be looking at the Peak Refuel meals over Mt House. they taste better, use less water, and are packed with powerful protein and less salt. i tried the bison mashers and elk pasta this year. the chili mac aint bad neither. the breakfast skillet for breakfast will fill you up too. i won't be going back to Mountain House anytime soon