SummitPost.org

these are all some good ideas! I think I'm going to hit the grocery store now with these ideas in mind before I take off on a hike tomorrow.

I haven't tried it myself yet, but friends who do long, technical ridge traverses or absurdly long dayhikes of 40 or more miles swear by simply mixing a carbohydrate like maltodextrin into a bladder of water with some flavoring. If you need to move quickly all day and to eliminate unnecessary weight like packaging, water weight in food, and useless fiber, this seems like a decent choice. Carbs are also a much more potent energy source than fat or protein, of which there is way too much in most of the other suggestions. On 10000+ ft days in the past I've just taken lots of soft bread (for ease of chewing)--2000 to 4000 kcal of it--along with something sweet and energy-rich like M&M's.

Working on a Guatemalan income, cost is #1 priority, so dried fruit, granola bars, jerkey, any kind of meat, etc., is out of the question for hiking. However, I find hard boiled eggs work quite well (leave them in the shell until eating them), refried beans - black, red, or pinto, and oranges and apples, as fruit is enjoyable, but neither oranges or apples run the risk of getting crushed like bananas, strawberries, etc. Tortillas or whole wheat bread of course are good choices... refried beans with a bit of fresh onion and a bit of hot sauce on a corn tortilla or whole wheat bread is surprisingly tasty and very cheap.
And peanuts. Just don't eat a 1/2 pound in a day...

Darija wrote: There are limitations with the food you can pack, because you want to go as light as possible.

Saltine crackers have been proven to beat off the effects of
nausea at higher elevations.

You can purchase crackers having been "pre-smeared" in peanut
butter. Also, a six-pack of beer can be "cached" in a nearby
stream or snowbank.

Whatever you do, don't leave any beer sitting out for this guy :