Paleo-powered AT section hike

From the freezing peak of Big Bald.

I headed out for the weekend to Sam's Gap along the Appalachian Trail down to Nohlichucky River.  This is a beautiful section of the AT following the border or TN and NC with 360 degree views from Big Bald (even of Mt Mitchell in the distance which is the highest peak east of the Mississippi) along with a moderate to strenuous trail that bumps along ridges and ends near the quaint town of Erwin, TN.  I only wish I could've stayed on top of Big Bald for a while longer but the weather (even though it looks inviting in the picture) was absolutely brutal.  Our hike in Friday night included driving winds and cold rain.  By the time we got to Big Bald the next morning the grass was blown over with a thick layer of ice and 40mph winds on top.  My hands were numb so it took numerous tries to get the phone to even recognize my fingers.  I snagged a couple shots and moved on.  Later we spoke with some thru-hikers mentioning that this was the coldest day they had experienced since beginning.

Soooo...what did I eat on my trip?

Saturday Breakfast

I didn't really change up my formula for breakfast.  I am content with pickled eggs and bacon.  I tried a different formula with my coconutter squares that included cocoa powder, cinnamon, vanilla, and some almonds.  It didn't turn out quite like I expected so I am going to tweak it a bit before publishing the full recipe.  I wanted a chocolate taste as a breakfast "dessert" but between it being hard as a rock from the weather and the cocoa taking over, it was more bitter than I was expecting.  I didn't have time to make another batch before leaving so I just went with it and kind of just chewed and swallowed.

Saturday Lunch

I was kind of proud of my lunch.  I'll call it faux-carribean as that was the flavor I was shooting for.  I made a batch of turkey jerky that utilized salt, pepper, garlic powder, and a local hot sauce.  I managed to screw this up as well since I over-dryed my turkey and it was less of a jerky and more of a crunchy.  So be it.  I then dehydrated a pineapple and tossed in some coconut flakes.  So I had a tangy hot, fruity, coconut mix.  The flavor profile worked wonderfully.  The texture was the only issue.  I have to say that dehydrated pineapple is pretty darn close to candy, so much so that it could be dangerous.  I also ate some more of my choco-coconutter mishap and some more bacon.

Oh and yes if someone wants the recipe/instructions for this I will certainly put it together sans the over-drying part.  Just let me know in the comments section.

Saturday Dinner

I was looking forward to FINALLY eating my Beef Stew from PaleoMealsToGo. I read through the instructions and fired up the JetBoil to heat some water.  The JetBoil dutifully complied with my request for quick boiling water while I opened the package and hunted down the moisture pack hidden within my meal and then shook the ingredients as described by the instruction.  I tossed in the water and let it sit while I made another batch of hot water for some tea.  While my friend was making his own meal he turned and said "That smells wonderful!".  I had to agree.  I was ready to chow down on this thing and once I got everything stirred up it definitely beat the look of what I normally prep for myself.  There are visible chunks of beef, mushrooms, and veggies.  Other freeze dried meals I have eaten in the past are usually just little nubs of colored things that sort of resemble food.  This looked like it came right from the stove top.  So presentation itself is a plus.  I dumped in my packets of Celtic Sea Salt that it came with and I should've mixed that better as I think I ate all the salt in a few bites.  I am a salt fiend, and after having sweated out most of my salt reserves, I wanted more than what was allotted (a minor complaint).  I have to say though this was definitely a very tasty meal.  I could taste all of the ingredients distinctly.  The proportion given was also solid.  I didn't think I was going to be able to eat it all myself but I gobbled it all down and enjoyed every bite.  I was only disappointed when I got to the bottom.  I do think I will definitely try more of these in the future and if you're not into DIY for meals then definitely consider these.  I am considering grabbing some to keep on hand for an emergency supply as well during winter blackouts or if I need to make a quick out of town trip without time to prep meals.  I think the only thing I would want is more fat added (which I know is difficult for meals like this) but I am more low-carb/high fat and the carb count is nearly equal to the fat content.  I'm ready to try their other meals along with their Paleo Bars.  This company definitely gets it right!

Sunday Breakfast

It was mop up time.  I plowed through my eggs, bacon crumbs, and whatever else I had to shuck some weight on the pack.

I'm only about 130 lbs but when moving through the mountains I blast through calories and always need fuel.  I can become a bottomless pit so it is sometimes difficult to gauge what I need, hence the need for higher fat meals.  I still need to conjure up better high fat meals or ingenious ways to add it to my current meals.  I'm all ears for any suggestions.

Testing the Osprey Manta and Dehydrating Trail Foods

As long as the weather holds this weekend I am going to take a day hike out to Stone Mountain Park.  There's a nice loop trail of about 4 miles so it's a pretty easy trek compared to what I am normally doing on my backpacking trips.  Over the holidays I got an Osprey Manta 20 pack for doing some day trips.  I did a bit of research before the purchase.  I looked at Black Diamond and CamelBak.  I really did like the CamelBak packs but the price point compared to Osprey wasn't worth it to me.  The Black Diamond packs were better priced but none of them seem to give me exactly what I wanted.  I am familiar with Osprey with my Atmos 50 (review on my website) and I couldn't be happier and I really like the styling and fit of Osprey packs for me so it was an obvious choice.  Granted Osprey has a number of different day packs to choose from so it came down to styling and the Manta 20 included the Hydraform.  Most of the CamelBaks included a hydration pack as well but for another 50 bucks that I was unwilling to spend.  It didn't hurt that Amazon was running a sale on all Osprey packs at the time of my purchase as well.

Along with my Manta, after a refund from one of my holiday gifts, I picked up a Nesco food dehydrator.  I've been wanting to get a dehydrator for a long time now and finally have one to use.  So I am excited to start putting together recipes to try out and post on my website for others to try.  I think I may do a simple fruit dehydration for this weekend's hike and see how it goes.  Prior to this purchase I was using the Lex Rooker box method for making jerky.  It worked and it was cheap however it wasn't always precise and it depended a lot on the conditions of the air (humidity and coolness) where I was using the box in my basement.  Now I feel like I can control the environment a bit better or at least regulate it enough to better dial in when things should be completely dry.  The other advantage will be the ability of creating a paleo meal and then dehydrating that meal completely to be used on the trail.  No longer will I need to worry about no-cook meals (unless I want to).  Now I just need to convince someone to get me a JetBoil to try out and I will be complete  Ok maybe I should just purchase it myself!

Sourcing Clean Sustainable Foods

One of the most important things to me with Paleo is to source clean foods.  I started out merely as gluten free and the more I read and researched the more I removed from my diet to see if my body, energy levels, and mood responded in kind to the change.  This is how I ended up on the paleo diet in essence.  I was actually leaning towards this way of eating before I knew what it was called.  I wanted to have the most 'organic' food as possible and this also became an important factor when considering what to take on the trail.

I didn't really know where to go to get clean foods at first and Whole Foods Market was about the only thing that popped in my mind.  I knew they were much more expensive than the local markets here but I didn't mind paying extra for better quality food that I knew wasn't a GMO or was not laden with harmful pesticides.  After a little research a whole new world opened around me, literally, in my backyard.

I also started off, and still use, US Wellness for some of my meats.  Sometimes, I cannot find a certain cut or I just want to order a load of sugar free bacon and it's nice to have the option.  The prices are decent for mail-order.  I am quite impressed since they ship quickly and even offer non-frozen fresh-chilled meats once a month, which is awesome if you want to make your own cuts.  So US Wellness was great at first but then I started getting into the local scene and I found quite the treasure trove of local farms around me.  I used the directory on EatWild.com and found a couple small places, then found more by visiting the farmers market, and then even more by either word of mouth or through the local eateries.

I must admit the more research I have done in the Piedmont of North Carolina is that I am pretty lucky to have a lot of resources nearby that offer fresh organic vegetables and fresh grass-fed/finished beef products.  I know others are not so lucky, so US Wellness will definitely help and now Wild Mount Paleo Market is open online to help fill in the gaps as well.  Their pricing is a little bit more expensive but they are a start-up and it may take some time to have competitive pricing.  So, I encourage you to use them if you don't have readily available local sources, just to help them out and show support for this community.

Without clean sources for my trail foods it would almost be useless to even try Paleo while backpacking.  None of the dehydrated food companies have embraced a cleaner style that I have seen just yet.  Many are definitely not geared towards paleo and some are just now using Gluten Free products.  Even then, if it's a mix it often contains some nasty preservatives or chemicals.  My approach lately is to take what I have an invent my own meals.  Once I get a dehydrator I'll be adding more and more things and ditching the idea of ever finding a Mountain House package that fits me.  Instead of can have a dehydrated grass-fed meat with whatever vegetable I want, remain Paleo on the trail, and actually feel comfortable about what I am eating (sans the flatulence involved with dehydrated meals).

For more information follow me on my new website: Alter Auslander and coming soon: PaleoTriad.com