By Kacee Saturay, Donor Stewardship & Social Media Manager
If you’re like me, you’re a little obsessed and overly excited about planning for a trip to one of Washington’s national parks. Aside from packing the 10 essentials and coordinating plans with your hiking buddies, one of the most important parts of planning a park outing is your food!
Our staff have spent hours preparing, packing, planning, and playing in Mount Rainier, North Cascades, and Olympic National Parks. Below you’ll find a few of our favorite treats and meals that you might want to pack for your next trip. There’s nothing worse than eating a snack that you’re not looking forward to after hiking uphill for hours!
Alex, our Director of Marketing, says “I’m a sucker for a salty and sweet combo, so my go-tos are peanut M&Ms and salt and vinegar potato chips.” On a recent volunteer day to clean up the Gorge Falls Overlook in North Cascades National Park, Alex brought a bag of peanut butter M&Ms and I immediately added that to my list of snacks!
Kristen, our Events & Partnerships Manager, spends her days on a bike saddle or in trail running shoes in the alpine. Here are some of her favorite snacks:
“Spring Energy Gels are my favorite because they are real food, no questionable ingredients, it’s instant energy, and the Awesome Sauce flavor is the perfect boost of energy for when I’m cycling up to Paradise at Mount Rainier. Dark chocolate is my favorite summit treat and Muir Energy Gels’ cacao almond flavor tastes like chocolate icing!”
Feeling inspired by Krsten’s cycling adventures? Check out her write-up on biking the North Cascades Highway!
Brianna, our Administrative Coordinator, listed peanut butter and jelly Uncrustables as her all-time favorite and I couldn’t agree more! She said, “I probably ate my weight in them while I was summiting Mount Rainier.” There’s something about a circular PB&J sandwich while taking a break on a glacier that sounds like a dream right about now…
Is summitting Mount Rainier on your bucket list? Check out our Climb for a Cause program. You might just find yourself snacking on these treats on a glacier this summer!
If you’re looking for even more calories, here are some of our favorite meals to have outside:
Alex’s first dinner on a backpacking trip is usually “a big bagel sandwich with lots of crunchy veggies, and then I’m looking to optimize weight for the rest of my meals.” She also adds that “instant oatmeal and peanut butter bagels are easy and quick to make, and keep me full for a while.”
I think I’m sensing a peanut butter theme with Alex’s trail treats!
To follow the bagel recommendation, Kristen loves taking a gluten-free everything bagel with vegan cream cheese on her trips to the backcountry. It’s a staple meal for her and she’s taken it on some epic backpacking trips to all three parks!
Looking to backpack in the parks? Check out our “Backcountry Beginner” blogs on securing permits in Mount Rainier, North Cascades, and Olympic National Parks.
For me, I look forward to firing up my backpacking stove and cooking my favorite dehydrated meals once we reach camp. Backpacker’s Pantry’s Pad Thai has fueled many of my recent trips. I ate it three times on my 5-day Olympic National Park trip and never got tired of it. It was that good!
Speaking of Olympic National Park Backpacking trips! Check out Trek for the Trails – a new program we’re launching this summer where participants take a guided trip through the Enchanted Valley, all while supporting the park you’re in. Find out more about Trek for the Trails here.
We hope you found a few new treats to try on your next adventure in the parks. If you’re looking for more tips or park recommendations for the summer, we think you’ll enjoy these blogs:
Washington’s National Park Fund is the official philanthropic partner to Mount Rainier, North Cascades, and Olympic National Parks. We raise private support to preserve and protect Washington’s national parks by funding scientific research, youth and family experiences, and projects that will keep these parks strong and vital now and forever, for everyone.
Cover photo by Nick Danielson, WNPF Creative Partner. Blog photos by WNPF staff.