If you are a novice hiker or never set foot on a trail but have a hankering to get up and above the madding crowd this summer, why not consider a back country survival course?

There is a thriving industry loaded with experienced back country trip organizers who have scheduled courses ranging from 1 day to four or five, where you will learn the basics of back country hiking and survival skills.

If you haven’t visited Yosemite National Park before, or have but never got much further than the gift shops and hotel bar, but are ready to get on the trail, try Adventure Out.  This San Francisco-based company  organizes trips focused on how to backpack using what they call the “no-trace” method, taking hikers deep into the wilderness for views of the majestic Sierra Nevada range, the clearest lakes on the planet, and some of the best trout fishing around.

Food is important when you’re on a backcountry trip.  Alpineaire makes fantastic survival food kits.

Here’s a list of what’s inside the company’s 5-day Meal Kit food pouch:
1 Pouch Each of:

• All American Roast Beef Hash
• Alpine Minestrone Soup
• Apple Almond Crisp
• Bananas Foster
• Beef Rotini
• Blueberry Honey Granola w/ Milk
• Cheese and Cracker Lunch
• Chicken & Almond Salad w/ Crackers
• Chocolate Mud Slide
• Hash Browns Reds & Greens
• Mountain Chili
• Pasta Roma
• Peanut Butter and Cracker Lunch
• Santa Fe Black Beans & Rice
• Split Pea Soup
• Strawberry Honey Granola w/ Milk
• Western Style tamale Pie w/ Beef

This kit retails for $102.85 at Preparedplanet.com.   Don’t forget: if you know someone who is planning a back country trip, you can give food kits, or other emergency preparedness gifts.

This entry was posted on Sunday, February 1st, 2009 at 11:48 pm and is filed under Education. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.