To Save Money Backpacking, Take Food

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And (again) remember that on short trips you can tote heavier food. I know a cook who is famed for her Spaghetti à la Backpack. Her sauce tastes home-canned . . . because it is. In camp, she produces it from the one Mason jar she totes along on each trip. (On other jaunts, the jar might hold a whole deboned chicken.)

HINT 3: NEVER PAY BOUTIQUE PRICES FOR MARKET FOOD

There are two differences between the Mountain Macho Backpacker Blend—type soup mixes sold at camping-specialty outlets and Knorr-type supermarket soup mixes: [1] Knorr tastes better, and [2] Knorr is cheaper. Likewise, no Packer Cracker from the camping boutique is better than Triscuits. (IBM is said to be doing research to determine why Triscuits break so little when slept on.) And no designer—priced Camper Cookies are as tasty as plain—Jane Oreos . . . let alone Pepperidge Farm . . . let alone homemade.

And if circumstances demand that any meat you carry be freeze-dried, you can still save money by buying only the meat and adding your own starches and flavorings.

HINT 4: TREAT YOURSELF KINDLY

When Colin Fletcher ambled the length of Grand Canyon, each of his air-dropped food packets included one gourmet goody. Take a lesson from The Man Who Walked Through Time, and pamper your own wilderness stomach. Remember—almost anything short of caviar is a bargain when compared with freeze-dried grub.

To stave off culinary boredom, carry the best meat you can afford. If I know I'll have to lunch all week on salami, it will be the tastiest Italian variety I can find. And my cheese sure won't be processed American when it can be provolone or New York cheddar.

You can splurge on beverages and still not spend a lot. Instant tea doesn't belong in camp, because it tastes nasty; carrying your favorite bagged tea won't sprain your shoulders. Since brewed coffee is usually too much trouble, treat yourself to good instant coffee—your pet brand, a gourmet type you've been hankering to sample, or even one of the continental-style flavored coffee mixes.

And while you're blending your gorp, why not make it a gorp fit for royalty? (You never know whom you'll meet out there.) At home I eat peanuts When l'm making trail gorp, I buy cashews.

HINT 5: TWO CAUTIONS

Before you hasten off to turn the hood grocery store into your safari supplier, two warnings are in order:

Read labels carefully. Be sure the cookie, time won't take more fuel than you can span And check those "just add" ingredients: Any thing that says "just add two eggs" is a bad ; bet if you're going to be five days from the nearest hen (unless you know for a fact that the eggs aren't essential). Brand difference, matter, too: Some brands of "quick" rice are quicker than others; some gingerbread mixes don't need an egg.

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