Hitchhiker's Guide To Actuality | Part 4 | Preparation - Food & Drink

In the previous part of this series we looked at the basic necessities for your hitchhiking journey when it comes to clothing and apparel. If you want to catch up you can do so here

In the next few parts we will dive a bit further into the other helpful items, gear and gizmos you can bring along to make your life on the road a whole lot easier and to minimize the mental impact you will have to withstand when things don't go your way. Let's begin with all things food- and drink-related.

Drinking bottle

One of the things you really want with you at all times is a simple bottle of some kind - to always have water on you wherever you go. Some like to get high-grade drinking bottles, others like me just use any plastic bottle I happen to have with me (most commonly one from the festival I just went to, sentimental value).

Generally you always want the option to quench your thirst along the way and to have some way of refilling your travel water-source for the next leg of the journey. A bottle is essential, but of course easy to get along the way as well. I always take at least 1.5 liters of water with me, anything less always seems to be too little to feel good about.

On thermos flasks and coffee supply

There is something to be said about having some kind of thermos flask with you, even if it is a small one (in addition to your simple water bottle, not instead of it!)

Not only would this allow you to prepare some hot tea (or Chai) before you depart, you could also use it for taking some hot coffee with you which can really make or break your hitchhiking experience. Since there will inevitably be low points along any journey, a small cup of coffee and (more importantly) caffeeine can greatly pull you out of the hole with a hefty energy boost. It helps the mind surrender more easily I find, especially when worry and doubt have gotten the better of you. Take a coffee break - it will all work out, I promise!

If you normally never drink coffee this is entirely optional but it will help keep you awake along the way and give you something to look forward to on your next rest stop. Coffee breaks also make for unexpected meetups with people you may have otherwise missed, but that's jumping ahead a bit too much ;)

Coffee from gas stations is generally very expensive and often not that good, but still worth the caffeeine boost and hot temperature, especially if you can get a strong coffee and save it for later using your thermos flask and/or thinning it down. Drivers have often invited me to a cup of coffee at a rest stop as well but on my first journeys I really wished I would have had a small thermos flask with me for the whole journey.

If you want to go full-deluxe mode, you can bring coffee brewing equipment with you - a small portable gas stove (also good for cooking), ground coffee and simply using your water bottle to make hot water. A slightly less deluxe but rather effective way is to have some horrible instant coffee with you and either boil the water or try and get some from a gas station. If you can live without fine coffee taste but are "merely" looking for its effects the instant coffee version might be ideal for you.

Although it is stating the obvious, I do want to point out that coffee is probably the most legal and useful psychoactive substance to have with you on hitchhiking journeys and hence the single one with no risk to you in regards to arbitrary drug laws.

But then, to most people coffee is no drug - just thought I'd mention that consideration here. Having coffee on you will never get you in trouble with anyone ever since it got legalized and since it has become a major tool to keep people busy in their system roles. Might as well make use of its qualities for your own purposes.

Food

Depending on the length of your journey you will want a few basic necessities in terms of food with you - nuts work well, bread and peanut butter (fat) or any "topping" in a glass to put on your bread will work well also. Fruits are often suboptimal unless they can resist being squished which can easily happen on longer journeys. A few fruits might be good but they will most likely not get you the calories and fat you need to sustain yourself over longer stretches. When it comes to food it really pays to be creative and try out different things. I always like to prepare some food for the first day at least, most often a bag full of sandwhiches with something I like on them.

Snacking will take up the majority of my remaining travel days after they prepared food bag is empty.

Of course you should pick some fresh fruits if you happen to come by any amazing fruit trees along the way, please do! Just know that stocking up on them may not be the best idea unless you have some sort of plastic container with you or they can take a few hits without messing up your whole backpack..

You will often find that your drivers and people along your journey help you out with food items of all sorts, but you always want some kind of basic nutrition with you, especially if you are going for longer rides. Food at gas stations is ridiculously expensive and you have to remember that you really don't have the option of visiting supermarkets along the way either, unless you want to bail on the highway and "lose" at least half a day by visiting a major city just to get some food necessities. Better to take a few light and energy-dense foods with you in reasonable quantities and to have something to snack on until you reach a place where you can restock as a natural part of your journey.

Hitchhiking can be quite demanding on your body, like a workout or a long day at the office, even if you don't move around all that much, so anythign energy-dense will be totally amazing to have with you when you are hungry. Obviously, pick any food you dig here that is easily transportable and energy-rich. It's quite amazing how easily food-comfort can be let go of on the road, and how awesome that first real meal is after you've arrived at your destination.

On the road - snack is king.

Many non-vegan hitchhikers I've met swear by preboiling some organic egss at home which will stay good for a few days in your backpack and are densely packed energy bombs. If you are vegan you can try things like peanut butter, nuts or good old coconut oil in... your coffee.^^

If you want to enable yourself to eat something hot along the way without carrying all sorts of cooking gear just for that one meal I can highly recommend checking out the "Canned Tuna & Toilet Paper Travel Hack" I recently shared. It can do wonders for your spirit on long journeys and is a great freeing experience considering how little you need to prepare it and how easy it is to do it literally anywhere out in nature.

Food related tools

I found it beneficial to take a fork and a dull knife with me along my journeys, a small spoon optionally. They don't take up much space and will come in rather handy. I say "dull knife" because you do not want to cut yourself going through your bag, you could also take some sort of knife casing with you of course, like a small leather case. Plain old silverware always did the trick for me.

I also found it helpful to have a small plastic box with me like tupperware. Not only can you use it as a storage box for squishier foods, but you can also use it as a sort of plate for hot foods should you be invited to some. A plastic box with a sealable lid is a really good multipurpose thing to have with you and will not take away any space in your backpack as you can fill it up with all sorts of luggage like socks when it's clean. Any old tupperware or lunch box should do if it's not too heavy.

To be continued...

In the next part of this series we'll go into other things you may want with you, as well as helpful tools that can make your hitchhiking experience a whole lot more enjoyable .

Come read other parts of this series:The Prospect & The Challenge - Foreword
Part 1 | Preparation - Tackling Fears & Hugging The Unexpected
Part 2 | Preparation - Time, Distance & Availability
Part 3 | Preparation - Clothing & Apparel

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