The Volumetric Calorie Density of Backpacking Food
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 6 ม.ค. 2022
- This video takes a look at the Volumetric Calorie Density of backpacking food. It is intended as a strategic guide for obtaining the most amount of food energy for the least amount of pack space.
This can be particularly useful when faced with hard volume limits like when bear canisters are required.
Index
00:21 Introduction (2 types of Calorie Density)
01:31 Mini-Food Chart of Volumetric Calorie Density
03:24 Scatter Plot of Calorie Density (Weight vs. Volume)
05:16 The Theory of Coarse Particulates
06:55 Stacking Inefficiencies
08:15 Theoretical Bear Canister Capacities
10:37 Competing Priorities (Weight vs. Volume)
11:06 Taking It Too Far
13:48 Deflating Packages
14:51 Conformable Packaging
15:38 7-Day Bear Canister Load Out
16:42 Time-Lapse Unpacking
17:19 Menu Breakdown
19:11 Bear Canister Procedural Considerations
19:48 Summary
Links
Hiker Food Playlist
• Hiker Food
Download the Hiker Food Chart 2.5: (Excel version with Menu Planner and Combo Calculator)
www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/bgwzfi...
PDF Version:
www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/u1vt57...
Google Sheets version (courtesy of Buck Crockett):
www.lengthytravel.com/free-lo...
Your videos are in a league of their own. Excellent research, considerations and commentary. Thank you!
Thanks! That means a lot.
@@GearSkeptic I don't understand how your channel isn't 10x bigger than it is.
I would never be able to respond to all those comments 😋
I am 5 days away from my first 7 day hike/hunt without the ease of parking my truck at camp. Now that I’ve binge watched several of your videos, I realized that my food selection wasn’t as engineered as I assumed it was lol.
Next year I will be more efficiently prepared thanks to you and all of your hard work. I greatly appreciate the video.
5:13 our prophet peace and blessings upon him used to do this to not waste any food
I got into ultralight hiking about an year and a half ago. I've been a casual hiker for some years now and after consuming content from different youtubers on hiking, NOTHING comes even close to your coverage on the topics you did.
I'm literally speechless you have provided all this info for free, and I feel so lucky to live in a reality someone like you exists and go all the way to do this sort of material.
I hope you cover more topics in the future, and get more recognition or even a monetary return for your work. I would 1000% buy a book containing all this information summarized to recommend it to friends who might need something more digested but still informative.
Thank you, thank you and thank you again. I RARELY comment on videos but oh my god I found your channel just about a couple days ago and just wow. Never before a channel blew me away like this.
I'm already a fan and love your sense of humour man, I'll be subbed waiting patiently for whatever comes next from you.
Thank you! Seriously. It is so kind of you to say, and I take it to heart!
I'm feeling the same..... very good work
Only channel on TH-cam that I have to save the video and replay it, sometimes a few times. No way I’m taking in that much information in a one done. 🤯👊
Thanks! I aim for as much information density as calorie density 🥸
This channel is criminally under-rated and under-viewed... Great stuff.
Thanks! I appreciate that.
I'm glad you aren't done! Your previous series was so comprehensive, and the break was so long, that I wondered if you had finished. You produce the most informative videos in backpacking, and I really look forward to any topic you choose to cover.
Plus, I'm a fan of the This Old Tony school of TH-cam presentation
Sorry about the delay! We moved and so I was super busy with that. Hopefully, this year I will be able to produce more consistently.
Thanks very much!
Your words are so articulate, it also has the same cadence and smoothness as Carl Sagan's work. Only you talk a little faster. You're a great speaker and teacher.
That is so kind of you. I thank you very much!
I'm just starting out in the hiking world and I mostly lucked out on finding your youtube channel in a reddit comment. in the course of a couple days i can already tell you've saved me hundreds of dollars, countless hours of trial and error, weeks of hungry nights with a sore back and sour attitude, and possibly my life. thank you so much!
Your are most welcome! I am very glad to help!
I am decidedly hooked on your thoroughness in method for these reviews! Without doing so logically, I had figured on eliminating wasted space Inside the packaging to include variability, palatability and nutrition but your conclusions saved me considerable time and expense! Thank you. You rock, or should I say, you pack a wallop! LOL!
Excellent video, thanks! When it's gonna be cold outside one can melt dark chocolate and mix in M&Ms as it cools to fill all the empty volume between the M&Ms Maybe one will have to work out a way to mold the warm mixture into "bars" or something though. But this is almost like making your own Snickers bars. :) Also adding small particulates and powders (Nido, protein powder, flax meal) to oatmeal and granola simply fills in the air gaps in oatmeal and granola bits so can add calories with no added increase in volume. There is coconut MCT oil powder, too.
Yes! I was thinking to myself while doing the video: all the powdered bumps are looking even more useful!
A silicone mold, like a silicone muffin liner, would work great! They have all different sizes and shapes.
Thank you ThisOldTony, glad to see what's been keeping you busy recently.
Holy shit this video is incredible, this whole series is!! Unrivaled knowledge and thoroughness. Gear Skeptic is way beyond any other source on this topic.
Thanks very much! Very kind of you.
I appreciate the thoroughness of your videos. The science and numbers, and then the reality and applicability.
Great to see another video from you! Excited to watch this one. Thanks a bunch from Australia :))
Hopefully it lives up to expectations 😳
Another super informative video, Mr. Skeptic. Thank you for going to all that effort and then sharing it with us. Much appreciated!
Thank you, and you are most welcome!
I have been backpacking 50 years. I learned more useful backpacking information in these 22 minutes than I have in the last 5 years. Talk about return on density!
Thanks much! Very kind of you to say.
Congratulations on going down this massive rabbit hole, absolutely loved this ❤. Learned so much, thanks for sharing and doing the work!!
these are the absolute best videos, was so excited to see a new one pop up in my feed
I’m glad! Thanks much.
Your videos are incredible! I've watched almost every one, and some multiple times. I thru hiked the AT in 2018 and I wish I had this resource then. I am doing Rae Lakes Loop in the Sierras in June (bear can required) and I am hugely thankful for discovering your channel. I think you could apply your level of research, reasoning, and attention to detail to many other aspects of backpacking and other topics as well. Can't wait to see the future of your channel!
Thanks very much! That is much appreciated, and I’m glad if it can help.
Happy to see another video 🤘
this was the most hilarious one yet, thank you so much for not taking all this too seriously.
Your videos continue to impress. As others have said, you’re in a league of your own in terms of quality. I love diving deep into the dad.
Looking forward to the next one
Thank you! That’s very generous.
Hot damn this answered my questions from like 4 years ago and I'm ecstatic! Thank you for the work!
As always, your presentation is super -awesome and incredibly informative. And, your facts make total sense which tells me I'm on the right track for selecting my food for trail. Thanks so much!
Thank you!
Thank you for making this, I work for an outdoor outfitter and recommend your videos to so many new to thru hiking, dropping the weight while getting great nutrition and saving space really is a big part of getting people on trail who normally wouldn’t be able to. Thanks for doing what you do.
That is very kind of you! Thank you so much!
Top tier study investigation. Backed up with data and practicality. Cheers mate🍻
Thanks! I appreciate that.
Great video! Always happy to see new content from you
Thanks!
Another great addition to what should be considered required viewing for distance hikers. Thanks again, Mr Sceptic, for all your hard work !
Very kind of you to say. Thanks much!
Good to have you back. You make really great videos
Thank you! I appreciate that.
Thanks for your continued research and teaching. The most important part of UL hiking that always gets ignored, simplified for dolts like me.
I was STOKED when I saw you released a new video!
.
I had been thinking about volume as well, but hadn't thought of a good way to measure it. This video is gold! Thank you!
So many gems in this video. "a gross amount of candy bars..." 🤣
🥸
I love the charts! Keep them coming!
Been waiting a long time for this video and loved it!
I’m glad! Sorry about the delay, though.
You’re so helpful thank you so much for all the work you’ve done to help people get into it with relative ease. As a dude who’s relatively new to the whole through hiking deal I really really appreciate it !
Awesome! I hope it helps!
I wish I had the ability to give you a thousand thumbs up for each of your videos. I nerded out about caloric density and volume in a much less precise way before my hike of the JMT, but it allowed me to get 7 days + into my bear can. Too bad I had altitude induced anorexia and had to force feed myself calories much of the time! You can only plan so much, but it was still the best time ever!
Thanks for all your hard work!!!
Thanks much!
It's cool to see you continuing on your quest of "all things backpacking food". I did an approx 500-mile PCT section hike last year and ended up going off-trail because of some health issues that came up. I'm guessing at least some of that was due to not paying enough attention to what I brought for food.
This year I'm planning on doing another 500+ miles this year on even harder sections. So I will be watching - and rewatching - your vids a lot. It's truly remarkable what you've created. Thanks for taking the time to share your expertise and your incredible attention to details.
Thank you! That means a lot, and I’m very glad if it can help!
Again, hitting it out of the ballpark! Excellent.
Thank you very much! I appreciate that.
Thanks for the new video! Love your work. Recently showed my girlfriend your videos and now we nerd out so hard over backpacking meal planning.
That’s great to share with her! My wife comes in while I’m working and says, “how’s it going?” I say, “I’m making scatter plots of calorie density”. She is like “that’s nice, dear”.
I actually thought after seeing the series, nothing more could be added. Boy was I wrong and thank you for all the hard and smart work you put into these videos. Heading for the Sierra mid August so very appreciated!
You are most welcome, thanks, and have a safe trip!
I feel like I just took a college course in hiking food in this series. This was so helpful. Thank you!
You are most welcome! Very glad to help.
Amazing! Been waiting for this video before planning my food for the PCT. I don't see what else can be added to this series. It covers everything!
Thanks! That means a lot!
Fantastic Explanation- great resources from your research!! Thanks a lot.
You are most welcome!
I'm so glad that i found this chanel! Your videos are awesome as someone pointed "in a league of their own"...i hope this chanel grows cause you deserve considering how much effort you put in theese videos! Just keep them comming! Best wishes from a cross the world🇲🇰
Thank you very much! That is truly appreciated, and I'm very glad if any of it helps!
Thank you for all your work. It’s awesome!!!!
Yet, another great video! Keep it up, this is great stuff.
Thanks!
Like always, a great time to information value 🤗
Once again, amazingly helpful information.
Thanks! Very glad to help.
My brain is so excited. Thank you!!!
I'm new sub. I'm finding it hard to believe u don't have more... you sir are awesome
Thanks much!
I just found your channel. That's a lot of info to digest and I just watched this one video. Going to watch the others on this subject. That you for sharing your details.
Was recommended this channel from another vid.
Loved it. SO DENSE.
Will now binge the rest of your vids.
Subscribed
-Northern Ontario Canoeist(s)
Woohoo! Northern Ontario as well
Awesome! Thanks for saying so.
I applaud your efforts, sir! 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
Thanks! 😉
Hooray, another video! This one is very helpful for bikepackers -- bikepacking bags are even more space-constrained than backpacks...
That's where I'm at; repackaging and vacuum sealing the items that are essentially over packaged for esthetics & marketing. Vacuum sealing is a great way to save space.
I have found that the rigidity of vacuum packed foods can make them functionally less densely packable than the same foods packed in a ziplock sandwich or snack bag with the air squeezed out. The ability to squeeze a baggie into an odd shaped space or to squish something hard-sided into it has allowed me to fit more days worth of food into a canister than when I was vacuum sealing everything.
A new GearSkeptic video?! And with a snazzy new intro animation?? I'm excited!
I was so Excited to see you mad a New Video 🤩 Thank You my food planning gets better and better 🍽
Thanks! Glad to hear it!
You videos are fantastic! Please continue. It is incredibly informative while actually being entertaining. I would really enjoy you continuing the series to not just covering hiking foods. A real, full, in depth study of camp stoves and methods of cooking for example. Anyway…. Well done!
Oh, yes. I’m working on a stove series, as well. Santa brought me some new toys to help with that!
Well done, sir. Your videos are very helpful. My thinking about trail food preparation is on a whole other level now.
Thanks! I’m glad to help!
Love the videos. And spreadsheets well Im known to use them when going on vacation.
Thank you for this video, this is exactly what I need for the up coming JMT hike! If you have a Patreon page, I'd love to donate for all the effort you put into making this amazing series.
I don’t, but thank you! Very generous. I’m just glad it could be useful 👍🏼
This is superb and extremely helpful as I’m planning out provisions for an AT through hike.
Awesome! I’m glad to help. Best of luck and have fun!
amazing video! going to try your method out this summer for Yosemite and the Wonderland Trail. thank you!
I’m jealous! I’ve done parts of Wonderland, but would like to do the whole thing.
This is insane. In the best way. I'm so here for it.
So, I''m not the only one in the asylum?
This is good news :)
This has to be one of the most delightfully nerdy conversations on an important topic we’ve all thought about. Thanks for taking the time to do it. One area that hasn’t been addressed in this series is the fact that food packaged together over a prolonged period of time has a tendency to taste and smell like everything else. This is a huge downside for me, because when it starts to shift to everything else, it doesn’t taste good and it is even less welcoming.
A fair point! The heavy duty Mylar pouches for freeze-dried meals should be impervious. I think you’re also okay with any of the foil-line food wrappers.
For anything in paper, or that you repackage, look into odor-proof ziplock bags. LOKSAK is a brand that makes long-term reusable bags. They have a series called OPSAK. Said to be odor proof. They are expensive but should fix the problem. Also, some have pointed out that they serve a purpose in the backcountry, helping to shield food smells from critters!
Great job on this video!
Thanks!
Great video, loving the series! As one of those "large active dudes" mentioned I can report that I only finished maybe 3-4 of those gruel breakfasts the whole JMT, 10 years ago when my metabolism was a lot faster.
Ah, yes. I remember what “10 years ago” was like, as well!
Praise be to the Algorithm. Very well presented and information dense. Kudos.
Thank you!
Thank you sir! And, a very happy and productive new year to you. Great presentation.
Thanks! And to you, as well.
I believe that it was Stephen Wolfram who said that every field of human endeavor and study will be eventually be transformed by the application of math/computer science. For example, in the fields of Archeology, Biology, or Geology will evolve sub-fields of Computational Archeology, Computational Biology, Computational Geology…. I believe that you are pioneering advances into Computational Nutrition, Computational Logistics, and perhaps Computational Backpacking! Ever consider starting a Jnl of Computational (Outdoor) Recreation? All joking aside, I really love the deep dive into the science, and math based analyses and insights you have brought to bear on my pass time. Thanks!
Computational Backpacking…I love it!
Best channel on TH-cam for sure.
Thanks very much!
This was super cool, this is the first video I've seen of yours. I feel happy to know there are other spreadsheet geeks out there. Did exactly that to figure out long Sierra resupplies on the PCT and SHR, as well as other trails I did without a bear canister. I try to eat pretty healthy and was happy to be able to justify some of that in the end (did you know kale chips are 160 cal/oz? They still taste good smashed up, add 'em to dinner if texture gets weird for ya)
Thanks! Glad you enjoyed it.
I will check out Kale Chips. Thanks for the tip!
Thanks for the new video!
Most welcome! Thanks for watching 😁
Great video as always!
Thank you!
Another comment for the algorithm. Great videos man! Keep going.
Thanks again!
Yay! Thank you for this!
Most welcome!
You are so SO good! Dang, man. One thing I'd like to see tested is the effect of placement of heavy items *within* a hiking pack. People say to put the heavy stuff (food, typically) near the middle of the pack and close to your back. However, everyone essentially just puts their food in a "ball" (sack) or cylinder (can). It seems like a more ergonomic arrangement would be to *stack* food right up against the back panel (where a water bladder like Camelbak might go). This would keep the weight closest to the body. This would mean that throughout the course of a trip, one would use less energy in hiking (and therefore require fewer calories), as well as be safer. A bear "canister" could even be devised in a sort of rectangular shape (like a briefcase with some curves).
👍👍Great presentation loved it ☮
Thank you!
Thank you for this video 🌱
Most welcome!
Excellent information
Thank you
You are most welcome!
You are my favourite channel :D
Thank you!
Informative as always, and glad to see the dad/science jokes back 😆
🥸
Love your videos!! A good analogy would be 3 5 gallon buckets, one filled with fist sized rocks, one with gravel & the third with sand, now weigh them :)
Oh, that is a good one! Thanks!
He's BACK !!!!
Excellent information
Thank you!
@4:00 "I made a scatter plot. That's not weird, right? I mean the data's already in a spreadsheet, to make a graph all you've got to do is push a couple of buttons....Stop looking at me like that."
I feel your pain in most of my lectures as I get those looks (or closed eyelids). Now only if mine were as entertaining AND as densely informative as yours, I'd have it made! Thanks for another great video, glad to see you back in action.
Thank you! I appreciate that!
I love this man.
Leaving a comment just so you get the youtube algorithm bump. This content deserves to be seen
Thanks!
Awesome! Thank you!
You’re most welcome!
you, sir, are doing god's work
Another factor to consider: the survivability of the food when crushed and or heated/cooled: if the ramen is crushed it doesn't matter because it will taste just as good. A crushed snickers? Close enough.
Now add heat: the snickers is a melted mess and once it cools down again (returns to a solid state) the taste will have changed. The ramen? Unaffected by both crushing, heating and cooling ;)
Biggest problem is getting it out of the wrapper. Still would taste fine
Great stuff. I use an Ursack rather than my BV450 normally and have yet to really get close to the max volume, but stackability can still be an issue. I hate having foil wrappers and stiff food sacks in my food bag/pockets/trash bag, so I basically repackage almost everything at home before a trip. I unwrap bars and cookies and such into ziplock bags and then each morning put together a couple ziplocks that have a variety of stuff I want to eat, that will fit in my pockets. Stackability is still an issue in a bag of gorp (I like my Fritos uncrushed) - I need a physics phd to figure the ideal mixture of different gorp ingredients to minimize interstitial air space! Meal replacement powders that dissolve well in water would probably be the most efficient volumetrically, but those get old fast on the trail imex.
Great Vid and information. Thank you. I have another category you may like to add. High Blood pressure = lower sodium. I am dehydrating my food and making my own vacuum packed meals for my hikes. I choose to use "freeze dried" meats because "dehydrated" meats due to the fat have a higher potential to go rancid. I had purchased Nutristore Sausage Crumbles before watching your video. Now I am focused on reviewing my ingredients. I found that the kcal/g at 260/40=6.5 this is a higher density than any meat listed on the spreadsheet. I have not looked up any other companies product to compare. For example however the Nutristore Diced beef is 100/24=4.16. Again thank you so much and I hope this information helps. Regards. Jiyuu
Thanks! I will add those crumbles to the next chart update.
Top tier spreadsheet
Love your video
Thank you!
Could you go over a coffee/cream video? Like great powered creamers, instant coffee vs diff brew methods? I have a big trip coming up in a few months and just found your videos. They are incredibly helpful (prob the most helpful I’ve found). All with lightweight, taste, and ease in the field in mind. For example, I can’t have dairy (damn you lactose) and I love coffee. But every hiker suggests “the best coffee system”. It’s all very confusing. Thanks for your time and love these videos
Thanks! Hmmm. That would require research. I’m not actually a coffee drinker myself (except for the occasional iced mocha).
I have looked into some of the equipment to make coffee in the field, though. I sort of compulsively search for the lightest or most compact versions of everything 🤓
Great to have another Gear Skeptic video! I have a few observations. First, Costco in California carries the organic Paleo Bars which are quite inexpensive, calorically dense by weight (230 cal in 38g =172 cal/oz) and volume (230 cal/44.7 cubic cm = 5.1 cal/cm). They are made by El Camino Real Bakery and distributed by Best Express Foods in Stockton, CA. These bars are very tasty and a lot healthier than commercial wafer bars, I believe. Second, a strategy to pack calorically dense energy bars into a bear can is to bake one large circular pie-shaped energy bar with the diameter of your bear can. I've heard of people doing that with their best simulation of a Clif Bar, but if one is skilled in baking a giant, more calorically dense (by weight) energy bar could be made. This is theoretical for me personally; I haven't done it yet myself. But if you do, just wrap the thing in plastic somehow and break off a chunk to eat what you want. This solves the stackability problem. Third, if you're going to all that trouble, a Bearikade is going to be a significantly lighter option than a Bear Vault if you're willing to shell out the extra funds. The regular cylindrical shape of the Bearikade is also advantageous for packing compared to the Bear Vault.
Great idea on the circular bar/cookie. It could be pre-cut into pie slices. Based on your comment, I am going to use my impulse sealer to make some triangular mylar bags (out of rectangular ones) to test in my bear canister. If there are 6 per layer and each layer is offset by 30 degrees, then I think they might actually stack rather flat in the cylinder. Thanks!
I thought about a mold in the shape of a sort of curved brick, to fit the shape of a canister. Also, the idea of lightly warming (microwave) a bar to bend it into that curved shape, for packing.
I’ve had my eye on a Bearikade, as well. Someday! Thanks for the ideas! I will check out Costco.
If it were possible to make peanut butter solid at ambient temperature, you could use to fill gaps created by things like peanut M&Ms.
Could mold them into 'pucks' that fit the circumference of the bear canister.
Yes! One could design a mold for forming bars. Make it sort of like a curved brick to fit the shape of a bear canister, like you say.. Then your stuff would stack in tight with minimal wasted space.
@@GearSkeptic this has got to be a joke
Many thanks for your GREAT videos! Considering the special needs of the "prepper" community, whose bug-out bags may be packed and stored long in advance of possible emergency situations, have you done any research that lists the shelf-life of individual products or product groupings such as freeze-dried, dehydrated, smoked, salt-cured, canned, retort, foil-packed, irradiated, etc.? Understandably, product shelf-life can vary under actual storage conditions. Ideally, such long-term prepper-packs should be stored in environmental conditions that protect the nutrition and safety of food products, and such packs should also be examined on a regular basis, then updated as needed. Thanks again for your dedicated, detailed research!
I have looked into shelf life. Without having all my usual references available, here is my understanding:
Canned foods, if in containers without damage or swelling have extremely long shelf life. I read an article where canned food over 80 years old was found, and it was determined to still be biologically safe (though appearance and consistency may not be original).
For freeze dried food, many claim the 30 years that Mountain House does but only Mountain House has been saving and testing their meals long enough to actually prove it. They seem to be the good standard there. Others don’t use the same gas replacement technology (food is not just sealed, but the oxygen is actually replaced with an inert gas to prevent oxidation).
As far as other foods go, I’ve done some of my own testing. Food bars are pretty universally good for years past their printed date. I’ve eaten them routinely from 3-5 years past expiration and never yet found one that went bad. This has also been true for things like peanut butter.
Hope that helps!
I always crack up with your hand acting! Looking forward to this video😅
Nasa level reserch, backpacking level experiences. Awesome.
My brain when you pricked the bag, let the air out and told us to cover the hole with tape to save space 🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯😜🤪🥳
Big AhHah moment that I wanted to share with you, is that I used an empty honey stinger drink packet as a container for honey, and then sealed it with heat. First I did with a hot butter knife, which worked okay, but then remembered the seal function on my vacuum sealer (which worked well).
I hadn't considered reusing packets before, but this is a cheaper way to pack maple syrup and such, as those are 2 bucks a packet steep.
Got it. Will get a hydraulic press to squish out unnecessary air holes in my bars. If I find some money I would like to invite you to Europe to do a European food chart. I suspect that we have more esoteric food here. Or maybe you could compare these nutrition solutions they hook you up with in hospital. Asking for a friend.
Maybe rig something up with your car? Drive over each food item and then pack the rubble into a canister.
Eat with a chisel and a spoon.