Actually, I take canned food caving with me on most long caving
trips, especially when the conditions are wet and cold. Nothing beats
a real meal when you're 8 hours into a long, wet caving trip that may
last more than 12 hours.
You don't have to heat the food, but you can heat the contents of the
can using a pellet stove--they are sold at REI (as the Esbit pocket
stove, $9.95 includes a foldable stove and 6 pellets) and at some
Army surplus stores (often for less money). The pellets are typically
made of hexamine and the burn time is approximately 15 minutes. The
pellets leave little residue and burn really hot, so you can easily
heat a can of ravioli or clam chowder and still have enough burn time
to allow your jealous buddy to heat his can of food. The stove weighs
3.25 ounces but you don't need to take it along, you can always use a
few rocks to balance your can above the burning pellet. You do need
to take a cigarette lighter with you to light the pellet, but you
should have this along with you anyway as part of your safety
equipment (best way to check for bad air).
No need for a can opener--just choose a canned meal with a pop-top.
When the can is empty, simply smash it into a flat can with a rock or
your boot.
Pack your crackers into a little Ziplock bag and place them into the
1-liter Nalgene bottle that you use to store your spoon, cigarette
lighter, spare batteries, candy bars and other essential items. Use
small crackers like Wheat Thins or Triscuits so they fit into the
bottle. Or buy a larger Nalgene bottle if you need to carry more items.
Eating well on a long caving trip is well worth the "trouble," as you
need the energy to keep going and to stay warm.
Diana
On Apr 20, 2007, at 1:56 PM, David Locklear wrote:
I know Scott is trying to be funny.
That is not the first time somebody poked fun at my postings in
that manner.
On a really long caving trip or overnight trip, it is a good idea to
carry some food with you. Clam Chowder is pretty good, but you
would need a can opener
and then you would be stuck with the empty can. It would be
better to freeze
it first and then vaccuum pack it in a Foodsaver pouch. But you
would need
some crackers. There is the dilema. Do you pack Ritz or
Saltines? And
how do you pack the crackers without getting them soggy or
smushed? And you
would need a spoon and a sterno can, and a bowl to heat it.
That is a lot
of trouble for a caving trip. But you could rap the pouch in foil
and leave it out
in the sun near the entrance of the cave.
Mountain House makes a freeze dried seafood chowder.
http://www.mountainhouse.com/
Here is the order form:
http://www.mountainhouse.com/pdf/print_prdlst.pdf
It is item # 52143 at the bottom. But you would need a stove for
that. There
is no reason to drag a stove along, unless you have several cavers
that plan to
overnight in the cave or in the entrance.
David Locklear
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Diana R. Tomchick
Associate Professor
University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center
Department of Biochemistry
5323 Harry Hines Blvd.
Rm. ND10.214B
Dallas, TX 75390-8816, U.S.A.
Email: diana.tomch...@utsouthwestern.edu
214-645-6383 (phone)
214-645-6353 (fax)
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