What To Bring To Eat & Drink For Your Backpacking & Camping Trip

Updated Mar 2025

Here's a recommended list:

You'll need a lunches and snacks:
  • Snacks are fruits, veggies, trail mixes and separate from your meals, and no, you don't count as a snack. If you bring fresh fruit and veggies, chop 'em up and pack 'em in containers.*
  • Also dried fruit, trailmix or fruity protein bars as alternatives.
You'll need dinners:
  • We recommend preparing your protein and veggies into (pre-seasoned) chunks so you can grill everything over a campfire or boil in aluminum over hot coals.
  • We do not recommend you bring whole steaks to grill. Takes forever to grill over a campfire and it's difficult to eat.
  • Bring your own stoves, grill and/or skewer sticks.*
You'll need breakfasts:
  • Coffee/tea
  • PB&J wraps
  • Overnight oats or fruit bowls

Here are some vegetarian suggestions:

  • Cup o Noodles-style soups.
  • Pasta and red, white or cheese sauce (boil water, dump pasta, put in sauce at the end).
  • Quinoa or Couscous with fresh veggies (boil water, dump grains, cut up veggies).

Additionally:

  • Minimum recommended 2 to 3 liters of potable water (for drinking, washing, rinsing).
  • Adult beverages are OK.* Please drink responsibly.

Plan your meals, snacks and drinks in advance. Don't wait until the night before.

There won't be any cold storage, so try not to bring anything that needs to be stored in a freezer.

IMPORTANT HEADS UP: Since you're bringing your own dishes and towels, we hope that minimizes trash. You'll be able to dispose of your trash in an appropriate trash bin.

As a reminder, kindly take your trash with you, including fruit peels or cores. If it didn't grow there, it doesn't belong there.

Also, please submit the location of any trash bins you see to Trashmap.org. Help us keep parks trash free 🙏