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Creative ways to backpack with booze
Creative ways to backpack with booze
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mainemountainfriends
Aug 28 2012 at 3:00 PM
There is only one backpack booze. Get a Smartwater bottle. 33.8 ounces. Dump out the water (because that stuff is a fraud). Pour in a quart of Mt. Gay or Goslings Rum. Add two ounces of Rosa'a Lime Juice. Enough glow for every night on a 100 mile trek, and the long, skinny, lightweight bottle fits well in a pack. Much smarter than the Smartwater!
mrfizz
Oct 09 2012 at 2:51 AM
Point well taken. But for beer guzzlers, here's a DIY approach.
If you own a 'still', then you can slowly distill off the liquid from a case (or 2, or 3 or 4) to make your own syrup/concentrate. First, because of its lower vapor pressure, the alcohol will distill. Save it, of course - duuuuhhhhh!!! The water will follow. Careful! The process must be carried out with low temp - low heat to avoid evaporating essential oils 'n essences. So come on, you moonshiners, use a little finesse. Once you're
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down to the syrup or the concentrate, U R N business. Carrying the equivalent of 3-4 cases of brew in your backpack will only occupy a small compartment - well worth the backpack real estate, I can assure you. Don't forget your home made ever-clear. Adding roughly 0.6oz of ethyl alcohol to a 12oz bottle of your concentrate 'n rehydrating will get you part way there. All you need is your trusty FiZZ GiZ to add the bubbles for your sudsy treat. Find the details at http://www.fizzgiz.com for a hand-held portable carbonation tool the size 'n shape of a banana that weighs 3.2-ounces. The FiZZ GiZ carbonator uses 16g beverage grade co2 cartridges. A single bulb will adequately carbonate 4-liters of suds. So, carry on camper community. Don't go 'round thirsty.
brian
Aug 10 2012 at 10:51 AM
has any one seen the portabe carbonater. as well as beer and soda concentrates? on gizmodo.
Todd Penny
Apr 04 2012 at 9:51 AM
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CubanEight
Mar 25 2012 at 8:22 PM
Fill up your camelback with ice and wrap itwith a towel. in its compartment it will stay faily insulated and you should have some ice by the evening when you set up camp. throw in a bottle of soda and some minis. this will make a nice little mini-bar for you and friends. Give them enouph and they will carry your tent.
willheller
Oct 25 2011 at 5:34 PM
I suggest taking KRU 82 Vodka. It is seriously one of the best premium vodkas i have ever had and it comes in a 'trail ready' STAINLESS STEEL bottle. No crappy aluminum, no metal taste, no leeching. Plus it comes in a 200ml and 375ml size with a carabiner already on it. somebody was thinking when they made this stuff...thinking about me! :)
bobtooce
Jul 14 2011 at 7:49 PM
My favorite is the "Mountain Margarita". Tequila, lemon-lime Gatorade powder and snow.
woosterburd
Sep 23 2012 at 10:50 AM
just love the "MOUNTAIN MARGARITA" idea......gonna give it a whirl while treking the Virginia Highlands.................
JimB
Jun 06 2011 at 10:02 AM
I'm can't wait for the cold one (or three) after the daily grind, but when I'm up on the AT or some local mountain, I've got all the stress-relief I need. Find a way to bottle that and you'll get rich !!!
KB
Jun 06 2011 at 8:01 AM
My personal favorite in the mountain regions with springtime snow on the ground is Southern Comfort snow cones
MR.W
Jun 06 2011 at 2:30 AM
Clearly the authors have not backpacked often or developed the taste for distilled beverages. Weight to potency ratio obviously leans towards distillates. We take primo tequilla, Irish whisky, or the like. Not too much--weight is weight--but at least enough to have a lil' pop or 2 every night. This gives us the basic buzz we need and, of course, the courage to confront the lions, tigers and bears after dark, oooohhh...
Guest
Jun 05 2011 at 6:06 PM
I like to mix bourbon with Emergen-c and water for a trail Old Fashion.
RK
Jun 05 2011 at 3:08 PM
what I’ve found…
Relatively speaking, beer is ‘very’ heavy, so it should be next to your body and between the top of your shoulders and the bottom of your ribcage. If it’s at the bottom of your pack it makes vertical climbs extremely laborious. On the other hand, if you place it at the top of your pack it makes you extremely ungainly. It’s much easier to do vertical climbs, but your balance is severely affected. If you tip one way or the other too much, it feels like a rope is attached
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to you, and someone is pulling on it and pulling you over. Having the beer in the middle of your pack and against you places the heaviest items (beer) closest to your center of balance.
Again, beer is extremely heavy, ‘relatively’ speaking. You’ll see other articles that talk about heavier items near or at the top. However, they are talking about cookware and such. The weight of cookware is nothing compared to beer…. This is assuming you’re packing in a 12-pack or a case. A six-pack does not have the same potential to precariously affect your balance as a case of beer.
One more thing… Make sure you distribute the beer evenly from left to right and up and down (next to your body and between the top of your shoulders and the bottom of your ribcage). In fact, you’ll probably be placing lighter items next to the beer (further away from your body). You don’t want a big weight far behind you that could drag your center of balance backward. They key is to have the beer snug against your body so that is becomes a part of you.
BTW: Pick up all your trash and haul it out. Make it look like you have never been there. In fact, make sure to put your cans in a trash bag the entire time you are there. Even if you intend to clean up the entire site by the time you leave, rangers will assume that you are a slob, if they happen upon your site, and there are beer cans lying around everywhere. The cleaner your site is, the less likely it is that they will look for violations to hit you with…. And, while we’re at it…. DON’T ‘park’ your axe in the side of a tree (tree-trunk)! Not only is this uncool, as the tree bleeds sap well after you’re gone, but if a ranger sees it, they will think you are white trash and look for violations. Trees are a living thing that can bleed [sap] just like you and I. And, isn’t that why we backpack and camp… to get into the trees, and get away from the rest of society for an awesome little retreat? It’s the trees that make it possible :-)
common sense
Jun 05 2011 at 12:27 PM
Best not to drink on a hike, for all kinds of reasons (injuries, dehydration, dis-enhancing rather than improving the experience, etc) -- right. Not everybody who does so is a moron. Right. So if you do want to drink on your hike, don't be a moron. Right. And if you pack it in, pack it out. Right. Anybody still on board wants to hear people's ideas about weight-to-proof ratios with optimization for taste.
Red Red Wine
Jun 04 2011 at 6:38 PM
Hike the 14 miles to the bottom of the Grand Canyon, all you need is money and you can buy all the wine in frosted glasses you can drink at Phantom Ranch.
Gabriel
Jun 04 2011 at 5:44 PM
Good proof to weight ratio. It mixes with anything (even Crystal Light) or tastes fine all by itself.
John McMillen
Jun 04 2011 at 1:49 PM
My method is to send my harem in the day before with all the beer & booze I want and have them stage it at selected waypoints. That way the ber, booze and sex are all waiting for me. Cone on guys get with it!
kris
Jun 04 2011 at 1:04 PM
Sad commentary that someone thinks it's a neccessity to have beer or booze on a hike. Exercise some control and stay sober for a change..
dcn8v
Jun 06 2011 at 7:48 AM
Not everyone who likes a drink is "out of control." I've backpacked with and without liquor, and I will say that a little snort of something made one cold winter night more bearable. I'm not saying that getting rip-roaring drunk is a good idea if you're in the back country (safety, health) but wanting to have a drink with dinner doesn't make you a raging alcoholic.
Budda
Jun 04 2011 at 4:29 PM
Lets spark a joint when you get to the top of a mountain, its light, but wait a while before you try to clime back down.
Robert
Jun 04 2011 at 9:12 AM
If you can't make it thru a weekend hike without a drink, maybe it is time to enter rehab. Just a thought.
Jt@AT
Jun 06 2011 at 5:11 PM
If you cant make it thru a comment section without being a sweater vest, maybe its time you enter sweater vest rehab. Just a thought.
Wizardscharter
Jun 04 2011 at 9:01 AM
10 2-3 week trips to the Boundary Waters Canoe area (no engines/electricity - portage ev plus canoe lake to lake) has taught me many things...including that 190 proof is the lightest bang for the buzz. I'd recommend a normal berry flavor or lemonaid. Lime is awful. Kid flavors are bad too. BWCA lake water is crystal clear...and cold.
Kung Fu Grizzlybear
Jun 04 2011 at 2:48 AM
Yes bring some booze into the wilderness so if you happen to stumble upon a cute male Grizzly. Then for your generous offer of whiskey he might let you have wild passionate sex with him.
Jimbo
Jun 03 2011 at 6:36 PM
I'll bring a little flask for a night cap but bringing a 1/8 oz of some high quality grass can't be beat out in the backcountry, plus you don't have to wait until after your hike to enjoy it. Oh yeah and no hangover. Oh yeah and no trash, Oh yeah and it doesn't attract bears like booze. Oh yeah and you won't fall over and break a bone 10 miles from your car. Pretty much 100% better than booze.
Bowser
Jun 03 2011 at 6:05 PM
Don't drink. There's nothing worse for a thru-hiker than to pull into a resort to resupply and have to put up with the folks drinking. Just add a boombox and you can really make life hell for real backpackers.
(They're going to scream their guts out, Bow! Better here than the backcountry.)
Jimbo
Jun 03 2011 at 6:37 PM
Not everyone who has a drink is a moron like the people you speak of. I agree I hate being in the wilderness with idiots close by but it is possible to be responsible have fun with booze/weed and not annoy others. I do it every weekend.
Kent Hartland
Jun 03 2011 at 3:33 PM
Drink it first, before the hike. That way there's nothing to carry. At least I think that's what I do. I remember drinking... and hiking... somewhere... lost my clothes... backpack too... anyway, that's how I do it!
Budda
Jun 04 2011 at 4:32 PM
Remind me not to have you pick me up anywhere, I'm sure you'd show up, just how many days later is question. :)
nc hiker
Jun 03 2011 at 2:12 PM
We have found the best (and lightest) way to have a few drinks on the trail is to take a high quality vodka in one water bottle or whatever you choose. Then when you want a drink, pour however much vodka you wish in another water bottle (a .5 litre is perfect) and mix with water and a small pack of Kool-aid, chrystal Lite, etc. That will do for a 2-3 night trip. CHEERS!
whatguy
Jun 03 2011 at 2:05 PM
I tend to just carry a 2L camelback with gatorade and vodka in it, pretty easy to pack around, plus once you empty it, you have an extra camelback for water on the way out/home if you want. I usually just rinse it out and leave it empty for the return though honestly.
Just make sure when packing, you put your camelback of alcohol away in the packed stuff before filling your camelback of water and getting it ready to carry, otherwise you may be a little tipsy before hitting the camp site.
phunkmeister
Jun 03 2011 at 1:53 PM
I carry the somewhat flat plastic .750's of bourbon. One weighs about 2.5 lbs. and can be re-filled with water or any other liquids. Forget the beer when hiking.
Moped
Jun 03 2011 at 1:38 PM
1) Winopus (Platypus makes a special .75 liter model for wine)
2) The Jim Beam Hiker Bottle (Known on the label as the "Lightweight Traveler") Refill with the spirit of your choice after finishing the Beam.
margarett
May 27 2011 at 3:30 PM
I love these ideas, especially the small bags of wine! Let's enforce Leave no Trace, though. I'm sick of seeing beer cans on the ground.
any other ideas for packing booze?
A toast to the great outdoors
There's something so refreshing about cracking open a cold one at the end of a long hike or unwinding by the campfire with a glass of wine as the sun sets. But as every backpacker knows, bringing alcohol out on the trail has one obvious downside — and it's not a potential hangover in the wilderness. It's weight. Hardcore backpackers may scoff at the idea of weighing down their packs with alcohol, but if you have your heart set on campsite cocktails, check out our helpful guide to backpacking with booze. (Text: Laura Moss)
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