We have discovered that Lipton has a great assortment of pastas and sauces that in most cases just need butter and water (some require milk, but we avoid those). Our butter supply for these delights are the little packets that you see in restaurants (how you get those is up to you) or in a bulk food store or restaurant supplier. Pack them in a hard container otherwise you may have a big buttery mess later on. If you need to take milk, try powdered milk and figure out the measurements required before hand.
ADVANTAGES:lightweight;
easy to carry; convenient packaging; many varieties
DISADVANTAGES:you may
get sick of them if this is your ONLY means of food
NOTEWORTHY:Lipton also
has rice available in the same sort of packets
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If you're a meat and potatoes kind of person then you're sitting pretty! Plan on having any meat you want on the first night of camping. That way, you can stick the completely frozen meat in your pack and by the time supper rolls around it should be thawed. Keep the meat in it's original package and wrap it completely in paper and tinfoil. This keeps it from unthawing too quickly and the paper can be used to start the fire. If you decide not to have it on the first night, then we don't recommend eating the meat at all. As a suggestion, we tend to avoid chicken. You can bring seasonings in little containers.
ADVANTAGES:good
eatin'!
DISADVANTAGES:that whole
bacteria thing
NOTEWORTHY:if you prefer
fish, the same instructions could apply
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Potatoes can be literally thrown into your pack and are good space stuffers! If you can cook a potato on a BBQ then you can cook one at Algonquin! Wrap the potato in the tinfoil that was used for storing the meat. Poke holes in the potato and put it on the fire! Some have suggested that slicing the potato in half or even several times before wrapping it up will ensure fast and even cooking. It seems to make sense, however, we have never tested this theory. You can also have mashed potatoes if you are so inclined to buy the dried flakes which just need water.
ADVANTAGES:easy
to carry
DISADVANTAGES:tend to
require a little more cooking time
NOTEWORTHY:when obtaining
butter for your pasta supply, remember an extra few for your potato!
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The instructions do call for a little bit of milk and if you brought powdered milk for the other pastas, then you're all set! If you didn't bring any don't fret, it'll taste the same without it OR you can add a little more butter.
ADVANTAGES:lightweight;
convenient packaging; filling
DISADVANTAGES:don't leave
it in your pot or plate overnight, it'll be hard to clean
NOTEWORTHY:we can eat
a whole box in one sitting, but if you can't, then one box can feed up to four
members of your party.
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Frozen pizza's work out pretty well too of you can find a place in your pack to stick them, so you don't want to get the family size! Be wary of letting these things sit too long if they (and they usually do) have cheese on them. We personally have had no problems with this but you may. If you plan on having some time to kill, you can buy all the ingredients separately (pita crust, tomato sauce, cheese, pepperoni, etc.) and prepare the pizza at your camp.
ADVANTAGES:easy
to prepare
DISADVANTAGES:may be somewhat
difficult to pack
NOTEWORTHY:you may want
to bring extra tinfoil with you to place on the grill before placing your pizza
on top, unless you like black, crunchy crusts!
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Paul loves to have his oatmeal in the morning! These instant packets from Quaker come in a variety of flavours and couldn't be any simpler to make...you just add boiling water! The downside is that one packet won't go very far so plan on using two for one meal. Make sure to wash your bowl or plate before the oatmeal hardens on it!
ADVANTAGES:out
of all the foods that require some prep, this is, by far, the easiest; easy
to carry; convenient packaging
DISADVANTAGES:individual
packets are too small for hearty appetites
NOTEWORTHY:you could substitute
this with porridge or cream of wheat
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Jeff always brings Mr. Noodles soups, which are the packets you dump into boiling water and then watch them grow, but to this date has never eaten one! He claims he likes them, but "just never got around to them." These soups are a little on the flavourless side, but will fill you up!
ADVANTAGES:easy
to carry; filling; different varieties
DISADVANTAGES:lack of
flavour
NOTEWORTHY:if choosing
Mr. Noodles, be sure to get the packets and not the styrofoam cup ones --- these
won't last a day in your pack
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These things are perfect for a snack, especially when you're breaking in the middle of a portage. Aside from the many variety of granola bars, you can also buy fruit bars. A good idea which we do, is for each person to buy a different box (which usually comes with 12) and swap flavours so we get 4 of each. That way one person doesn't get sick of eating the same kind over and over.
ADVANTAGES:make
excellent in between snacks; variety of flavours
DISADVANTAGES:do not be
alarmed but these will tend to go soft on you from sitting in your pack, however,
they are still edible
NOTEWORTHY:carry the bars
in the same box as they came in, or another hard shell container, otherwise
you many be left with crumbs
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Muffins have only made one appearance in our Algonquin adventures thus far. Overall, they were good to eat, but kinda a pain otherwise. They were hard to pack and very dry resulting in excess consumption of your liquids. Be sure to get the "mini" muffins if you do decide to take them as they are easier to pack.
ADVANTAGES:lightweight;
something different i suppose
DISADVANTAGES:hard to
pack; very dry
NOTEWORTHY: grab a few
more butters; the "crumble factor" (see granola bars)
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Fruits are easy to pack much like the potatoes, but keep in mind that they are perishable, so it's best not to leave them around to long. Almost any type of fruit is good except bananas. Unless you absolutely love them, avoid bananas as their scent (on you) will attract bugs. On the other hand, burning orange peels will keep the bugs at bay. Go figure. Back to the fruit! Dried fruit is ideal for packing and carrying and in most circumstances, is very tasty. Paul's brother (Sean) once dried some fruit for us with his home food dehydrator and it was quite good. If you have access to one of these devices, take advantage of it!
ADVANTAGES:lightweight;
easy to pack; good snack
DISADVANTAGES: fruits,
unless dried, can be squished. Inside your pack, that is not a good thing
NOTEWORTHY:if you don't
have access to a dehydrator then check out your local bulk food store;
some dried fruits go well with trail mix
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Jerky is the bane of Dave's existence. It comes in many varieties including beef and turkey and a little can go a long way. Jerky can be used much like chewing tobacco in the sense that it can be tucked under the tongue or in the side of the cheek. This gives the jerky extended flavour and life. Jerky tends to be expensive though, especially as you approach the park, so it's a better idea to buy it from where you live. Another drawback of any type of jerky is that once you've had exclusive use of it over the course of your Algonquin trip, you may not want to see another piece of it for about a year.
ADVANTAGES:convenient;
lightweight; tasty
DISADVANTAGES:may contain
large amounts of salt which contributes to dehydration; easy to O.D. on jerky
NOTEWORTHY:you will not
want to sleep in the same tent as, or even within 15 feet of, the person who
eats excessive amounts of jerky. For example, Dave
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Juice crystals are a campers best friend as there aren't many drinks that you can't find in powdered form. Kool-Aid is probably the most popular selection with us, however, there is a catch. Not referring to flavours, Kool-Aid comes in two different ways. You can either get sweetened or unsweetened. Unless you plan on taking sugar for some other reason, you'll want to take the sweetened so all you have to worry about is adding the water.
ADVANTAGES:easy
to carry; many varieties; cheap
DISADVANTAGES: the crystals
in the Kool-Aid will more than likely attract bugs if spilt
NOTEWORTHY:a good place
to buy fruit crystals is at your local bulk food store
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Similar to the juice crystals, hot chocolate is easy to make and is a good hot beverage if the nights grow chilly. If you need to have your coffee it's just as easy to make but depending on what you take in it, there may be a little more packing involved. Sugar can be obtained in the little packets which shouldn't be hard to find. Unless you happen to be bringing powdered milk for the pastas, you'll want some whitener. There are various cappuccino's which just require hot water out on the market if you prefer those.
ADVANTAGES:hot
beverage, easy to carry
DISADVANTAGES:the coffee
is a little more of a hassle, unless you drink it black, but you may appreciate
it in the long run
NOTEWORTHY: there are
various cappuccino's out on the market if you prefer those. All they require
is water and make a good substitute for coffee
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First off, let's just note once again that cans and glass are not allowed in the park. It is also important to remember that all alcohol must be consumed within the area of your campsite. So, that means if you get drunk, you'll only be annoying to each other, not the other campers. Use your best judgment as to why or why not you would want to bring alcohol, we're not your mother.
ADVANTAGES:artificial
warmth, disinfectant
DISADVANTAGES:alcohol
will dehydrate you
NOTEWORTHY:lots of things
can go wrong if alcohol is consumed carelessly. Algonquin Park is not
the best place to have impaired judgment
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Here are some other food (or food related) items that you might want to bring...
Trail mix, dishcloth, pot scrubber
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