Plan for a Week Long Hike

Food and water (Ben)

Water source and purification

The expedition lasts for about a week, so it is nearly impossible for any people to bring all the necessary water with them. According to the blogs written by past trekkers, the best practice is to treat all water as being contaminated - especially water in the cities. The three main options are to buy bottled water, use the water station along the trek, or use your own water purifiers.

The first option of buying bottled water is not recommended because there is no rubbish disposable system along the trail. And bringing all the empty bottles with you is not sensible since the tour will last at least a week- the space that the bottles occupied will be enormously large and the bottles are also pretty heavy.

So in order to have enough water supply, it will be better to choose the second and the third choices I listed above.

The second choice is to use the water station along the trek. You don’t need to carry all the water or the water purifiers with you; you just need to bring the necessary amount of water between the two continuous stations. The water is completely drinkable although you need to pay some money for the water supply.

The third choice is to use the water purifiers. And of course, you need to bring your own water purifier which weighs about 3.6 ounces.

The filter with a ceramic cartridge should be able to remove anything that is larger than 1 micron in size or a UV treatment system such as a SteriPEN which takes care of any viruses, bacteria and protozoa in relatively clear water.

Although the second and the third choices are all accountable, you may still get a stomachache or stomach infections during hiking. So you may need to bring some medicines or antibiotics with you or you can also get these items in the local pharmaceuticals. If you want to purchase them locally, remember to prepare a lists for bacterial and a script for amoebic infections.

One of the recommended purifiers is the SteriPEN water purifiers. SteriPEN is an ultraviolet, handheld water purifiers.

Weighing in at 3.6 ounces and with the size of a portable USB drive, the lightweight SteriPEN purification system is a practical tool for traveling in hygienically-challenging locations. It can sterilize at least 0.5 liters of water in less than 50 seconds.

It also comes with an optional solar charging case, should you find yourself outdoors in backcountry woods with no way of replacing its batteries.

Bellows are some details about the SteriPEN water filter:

Weight: 105g/3.6 oz. with batteries.

Size: 6.1”high – 4.75 cubic inch volume

Battery: Uses two CR123 batteries

Battery life: Disposable — 100 treatments (16oz./0.5L); Rechargeable — 40-50 treatments (16oz./0.5L)

Also, this trek crosses two different river valleys, so you can get the water needed from the river valley and then use the water purifiers to purify it.

No matter which options you choose, a minimum of 3 liters of water a day is recommended as required to remain healthy in an outdoor environment.

Food

Usually, you can get some food at the villages along the trail. You can buy some eggs or porridge for your breakfast during your stay at the village.

For lunch and dinner, you can consider trying Dahl baht, a traditional meal which is very common in Nepal, India, and Bangladesh. If you don’t want to bring too much food with you, you may stop by some small villages to try it and take a rest. Dahl baht consists of a cooked lentil soup and steamed rice. And baht means boiled rice or steamed rice in local languages such as Nepali.

At the altitude above 6500 feet in Nepal, where rice is not available, other grain such as maize, buckwheat, barley or millet can be used as substitution.

Dal may be cooked with onion, garlic, ginger, chili, tomatoes, or tamarind, in addition to lentils or beans. It always contains herbs and spices such as coriander, garam masala, cumin, and turmeric. Recipes vary by season, locality, ethnic group and family.

Dal bhat is often served with vegetable tarkari or torkari– a mix of available seasonal vegetables. It is also called Dal Bhat Tarkari in Nepali. There may also be yogurt or curry made of chicken, goat meat or fish. A small portion of pickle (called achar) is sometimes included.

But keep in mind that the prices get higher with increased altitude, you have to spend a lot more if you don’t want to bring your own food.

If you don’t want to try Dal bhat during the trip, you can still bring your own food. And here are some food that I would like to bring if I go to this trail:

Number of people = 1

Number of days =7

BREAKFAST

Total weight: 113*6=678g

Lunch and Dinner: Mountain House freeze dried meals( An lightweight and instant, meal in a bag-just add some boiling water, and you can enjoy the meal)

Total weight: 858g

Preparation instructions:

1. Open package at tear notch. Remove and discard oxygen absorber.
2. Carefully add some boiling water.
3. Stir carefully and close zipper.
4. Let stand 8 to 9 minutes. Stir and enjoy right out of the pouch.

Details: (amount per serving)