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Float Trip Menu Planning Tips |
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When planning for your float trip you must make careful consideration of the types and quantities of food you will take into the field with you. Cooler space, dry storage space, total weight, and food preservation are primary factors. Each meal should be considered carefully. You don't want to take too much and you don't want to go hungry. It is important to carry enough food, calories, to keep you active, healthy and warm for your entire trip. You will be in the wilderness and probably more active than your body is use to. Alaska days are long and can be exhausting. Calories, your energy, are important. This is not a survivalist trip, do not plan to live off the land, eating fish and berries. This is a sure way to jinx your fishing trip and be hungry, tired and miserable the entire time. At one extreme, you can camp like a mountain climber, packing only freeze dried, high energy foods. This is the simplest way to go, but kind of bland and not much fun. At the other extreme you may pack like a glutton with coolers full of ice and five coarse meals. You can also charter a separate plane for the extra coolers, raft, and chef. We've
found
it
best
to
compromise
between
theses
two
extremes,
packing
a
few
fancy
dinners,
i.e.
steaks
and
potatoes,
a
few
simple
freeze
dried
just
add
water
meals
and
a
few
moderate
and
easy
one
pot
meals,
i.e.
pasta
or
rice
based
meals.
Chances
are
there
will
be
some
evenings
when
you
are
tired,
its
cold
and
rainy
and
all
you
want
to
do
is
add
hot
water
to
something
and
go
to
bed.
Likewise
there
will
likely
be
evenings
when
you
have
a
nice
camp
set
up,
a
roaring
fire,
clear
skies
and
you
want
to
kick
back,
grill
steaks
and
enjoy
a
big
feed.
With
any
luck
fresh
fish
can
be
added
to
enhance
any
meal,
but
always
plan
a
separate
food
just
in
case. Cooler
space
is
limited,
you
will
want
to
hard
freeze
all
freezable/perishable
items
to
maximize
cooler
life
and
efficiency.
All
non-perishable
items
will
be
kept
in
dry
storage
containers.
Perishable
frozen
foods
will
be
eaten
first
from
the
cooler
as
they
thaw
and
your
diet
will
switch
towards
the
nonperishable
dried
foods
and
caned
foods
towards
the
end
of
your
trip.
We
supply
56
quart
coolers.
One
of
these
coolers
when
packed
efficiently
should
be
sufficient
for
3
to
4
persons
for
a
week
long
trip.
5
gallon
plastic
buckets
with
water
tight
lids
are
used
as
dried
storage
containers.
Water
proof
and
mesh
bags
are
supplied
as
needed
for
non-crushable
items. Coolers
and
storage
containers
will
be
made
available
to
you
upon
your
arrival
in
Anchorage.
Let
us
know
where
you
will
be
staying
and
when
you
will
arrive.
Be
sure
to
arrive
with
enough
time
in
Anchorage
to
complete
your
shopping
and
packing.
This
can
be
a
time
consuming
task
if
you
have
never
done
it
before.
Having
your
complete
shopping
list
carefully
planned
prior
to
your
arrival
in
Anchorage
will
save
you
lots
of
time
and
money.
Check
that
your
hotel
will
provide
overnight
freezer
space
or
let
us
know
when
your
shopping
is
complete
and
we
will
pick
up
and
hold
freezer
items
for
you
until
your
departure. If
you
desire
we
will
be
happy
to
pre-purchase
all
menu
and
other
items,
freeze
all
perishables
for
you
and
pack
the
storage
boxes
prior
to
your
arrival.
This
service
is
done
at
cost
plus
20%.
Fax
or
email
your
shopping
list,
at
least
two
weeks
prior
to
your
arrival. Canned
foods:
We
recommend
and
use
of
canned
items
on
float
trips.
Stews,
chilly,
beans,
sauces,
lunch
meat,
Spam
…
cans
offer
non
perishable,
crush
proof
food
units,
they
pack
and
carry
easily
and
are
relatively
odor
free
if
you
are
traveling
in
bear
country.
Drawbacks
are
slightly
added
weight
and
unburnable
packaging
that
must
be
packed
out. Dried
foods:
Pasta
and
rice
based
meals
with
dry
mix
sauces
are
great.
They
are
very
light,
pack
easily,
prepare
easily,
clean
up
easily
and
are
full
of
calories
and
carbohydrates.
They
can
be
eaten
as
a
side
dish
to
fish
or
in
large
portions
as
a
main
coarse.
Pack
plenty
of
these. Breakfast
ideas…
A
dozen
fresh
eggs
actually
pack
nicely
and
are
pretty
resilient
when
carefully
placed
at
the
top
of
the
cooler.
Fresh
eggs
start
the
first
few
mornings
of
your
trip
off
nice.
Back
these
up
with
a
few
frozen
containers
of
egg
substitute,
i.e.
egg
beaters,
which
will
help
keep
the
cooler
cold
and
can
be
opened
later
in
the
trip
when
they
have
thawed.
Bacon
and
sausage
link
packages
freeze
solid
and
pack
well.
Dried
hot
cereals
like
oatmeal,
cream
of
wheat
and
grits
are
lightweight
and
offer
high
energy
easy
to
fix
warm
meals.
Pack
plenty
of
pancake
mix
and
syrup.
Pancakes
are
a
belly
filler
and
in
emergency
can
be
eaten
for
any
meal.
Don't
throw
out
those
cold
uneaten
pancakes.
Roll
them
up
with
peanut
butter
&
jelly,
syrup
or
honey
for
a
great
afternoon
snack.
Pancakes
make
a
great
bread
substitute.
If
you
are
unfamiliar
with
how
to
boil
camp
coffee
then
we
suggest
instant
or
flow
through
tea
bag
style
coffee
filters.
These
allow
you
to
mix
drinks
in
your
individual
cups
leaving
the
hot
pot
of
water
available
for
other
uses
like
hot
chocolate,
instant
cereals,
or
washing
dishes. Lunch
ideas...
It's
a
hassle
to
unload
the
rafts
and
dirty
dishes
so
we
prefer
to
keep
the
lunch
menu
quick
and
easy
while
we
are
floating.
Sausage,
cheese,
crackers,
chips
(Pringles
pack
best),
Peanut
butter
and
Jelly.
A
few
packets
of
frozen
lunch
meats
may
be
added
to
the
cooler.
Package
these
in
utilizable
units
to
avoid
waste
and
spoilage.
Pull
them
out
an
hour
before
lunch
if
they
need
to
thaw.
Loaves
of
bread
take
up
a
lot
of
dry
storage
space.
Try
flat
pita
bread
as
a
substitute.
Pack
plenty
of
candy
bars
or
energy
bars
to
snack
on.
We
always
carry
a
large
water
proof
container
of
trail
mix
to
pass
around
the
raft
and
snack
on
throughout
the
trip.
Keep
the
calories
up
during
the
day
to
stay
warm
and
energetic. Dinner
ideas…
For
a
weeks
trip
we
prefer
to
plan
a
couple
of
big
dinners
like
steak
and
potatoes,
barbecued
chicken
and
rice,
burgers
and
beans
…
These
dinners
can
preferably
be
grilled
over
the
fire
but,
in
bad
weather,
can
also
be
fried
on
the
stove
if
need
be.
When
choosing
items
like
chicken,
choose
boned
breasts
instead
of
whole
pieces,
to
save
cooler
space.
Plan
each
meal
and
each
portion
per
person
and
pack
only
that
amount.
Pasta
and
rice
based
meals
with
dry
sauces
travel
great.
There
are
all
kinds
of
these
on
the
market.
Some
of
our
favorites
are
spaghetti,
jambalaya,
beef
stroganoff…,
small
portions
of
chicken,
beef,
sausage
or
fish
can
be
added
to
these
to
make
delicious
and
filling
dinners.
You
can
get
as
fancy
as
you
like
but
if
you
are
new
to
camp
cooking
and
packing
for
extended
trips,
we
suggest
to
keep
things
very
simple. The
other
stuff…
Don't
forget
the
extras
-
salt,
pepper,
oil,
butter,
syrup,
ketchup…
be
sure
you
shopping
list
is
complete
with
all
the
extras
ingredients
you
will
need
to
cook
each
meal
and
pack
only
those
amounts
that
you
will
need. Drinks…
We
will
start
you
on
your
trip
with
a
five
gallon
collapsible
container
of
fresh
water,
per
raft..
This
supply
can
be
replenished
each
evening
with
boiled
water
from
the
river.
Each
person
should
carry
with
them
their
own
refillable
water
bottle
and
should
drink
several
of
these
each
day
to
avoid
dehydration.
Aluminum
cans
of
beer
or
soda
should
be
limited
to
no
more
than
one
case
per
person.
If
you
desire
additional
sweet
drinks,
pack
Cool
Aid
or
Crystal
Lite
mixes.
Pack
hard
alcohol
in
shatter
proof
containers.
Don't
crush
your
cans.
Uncrushed
aluminum
cans
burn
quickly
in
a
hot
camp
fire,
greatly
eliminating
the
amount
of
trash
you
will
have
to
pack
out.
A
mesh
drag
bag
will
be
used
to
cool
canned
drinks
in
the
river. Consider
the
cooking
equipment
you
will
be
provided
with
when
planning
your
meals.
The
following
list
is
of
our
standard
camp
kitchen.
Please
let
us
know
if
you
will
require
additional
items. Standard
Camp
Kitchen Plan carefully, keep things simple, have a great trip. Contact us if you have any questions. |
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Sportsman's
Guide
&
Air
Service
3250
Lake
Park
Circle
Anchorage
Alaska
99517 |
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