Repackaging packit gourmet foods?

[Jennifer Mitol]

I belatedly discovered the awesome food from pack it gourmet…but wow those bags are huge and heavy!! I usually put my home dehydrated foods in freezer ziplocs for my freezer bag cooking…is there any reason I can't do the same for the packit gourmet foods??

Seems like I could save quite a bit of weight and volume for that 10-day MTR resupply…..

[Richard Cullip]

I also love Packit Gourmet. They have some awesome meals for backpacking. I repackage them into quart sized Ziploc freezer bags for my FBC. I just write rehydration instructions and the meal name on the freezer bag with a sharpie. This makes them much lighter and easier to pack away in a bear canister.

[Philip Tschersich]

Packitgourmet has fueled all the dinners on my trips for the past few years. [On a side note, I have tried the lunch and a few breakfast items, but they don't fit my style as well as the dinners, which I cannot live without at this point.] The standard double-portion cook-in-bag bag plus the instruction sheet weighs about 18 grams. A quart freezer ziplock weighs about 7 grams.

To me, the supplied cook-in-bag packaging is worth the extra weight and bulk because I would not want to rehydrate my dinner in my pot, or in a quart ziplock. In fact, I doubt a double portion would even fit in a quart bag or my 0.8 L pot (yes, I have caloric needs). I could take a single cook-in-bag baggie and just reuse it each time, but the mess and smell are a nonstarter for me since I spend all my time in some of the most serious bear country on the planet. The pleated bottom, stand-up capable bag the dinner comes in is really handy for processing, and I burn my trash at every opportunity. I do, however, make a pinhole in the top of the bag and squeeze all the extra air out, and then reseal it with some good tape to reduce the volume. I also fold the bag down and put some electrical tape around to minimize the shape.

I admit it's not the most minimalist packaging imaginable, but the savings from repackaging do come with some tradeoffs. Also, a lot of my long trips are in a sea kayak where weight and volume are less of a consideration. If I did a backpacking trip much over a week, maybe I would reconsider. But given where I live, I sort of doubt it. ;^)

Confession: I am NOT an UL hiker. Just a 'light' hiker.

[Stephen M]

Jen,

I use Pack IT gourmet on most trips, just before I leave I open each one and cut down the paper inner to just show the instructions and remove the clay pack and any condiments I won't be using, for 3 days food it saves 2-3oz.

[Sarah Kirkconnell]

Yep, you can repackage them! The real difference between their bags and freezer bags is they are a heavier Mil. That just means they are thicker/heavier. If you liek FBC method and know how, just do it :-)

[Jennifer Mitol]

Thanks everyone…I thought so but wanted to make sure I wasn't missing something. For short weekend jaunts it's not a big deal, but trying to cram 10 days of food into a bearikade weekender I need all the space I can get!

Do I leave the desiccant packet in there? Especially if this is going in my resupply packages………

[Jim W.]

I haven't seen any Packit items…

But I suggest leaving the packages sealed with oxygen absorbers or dessicants in for your Reds, MTR, and later supply packs. Adjust packaging when you resupply. Things can get stale pretty quick.

[Jennifer Mitol]

Oh that's an awesome idea!! I could just put a bunch of my ziplocs in with the big packages in the reds and the MTR resupply…then as you say just redo the packaging for my bear can right there.

I'm worried about the trash tho…I don't suppose MTR has disposal? I'd hate to leave that much extra crap in my wake

By the way – how far in advance should I ship to reds and MTR?? Is 2 weeks adequate?

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