Meal Ideas for Long Distance Bike Trips

By Megan Maxwell



When cycling long distances, food is your fuel. It is important to get enough to eat and try to have a healthy diet. It’s also a good idea to eat a variety of different foods. You don’t have to only eat power bars the whole time you are bike touring. First of all, find a decent camp stove for yourself. I have had a MSR Pocket Rocket for several years now and it still works great. Get a cooking pot too. You don’t have to spend a lot of money on one. Wal-Mart has “grease pots” for about $10. Most camp stoves run off of fuel canisters, which can be found in hardware stores or outfitters. Having breakfast is the best way to set yourself up for a good day of biking.





Breakfast Ideas:

• Toss in some dried fruit, brown sugar, dehydrated milk, a scoop of peanut butter, or whatever else you like.
• Egg sandwiches. When you are on the road all day, it’s easy to find grocery stores. Pick up a half dozen eggs in the evening, so you can have a breakfast sandwich in the morning.
• Load them up with goodies, like peanut butter, Nutella, cream cheese, and jelly.

  As far as lunch goes, I would often stop at restaurants to get burgers or go to grocery stores and get hot food from the deli. Other times, I would just stop for a snack every hour or so.



Snack Ideas:

• Fresh fruit. I usually picked up fresh fruit from the grocery store every few days. I also biked by farm stands occasionally. My favorites include bananas, peaches, and avocados.
• Carrots and snap peas make great snacks. They are refreshing, but they don’t fill you up too much.
• Bars of various sorts. Most grocery stores have an isle where you can select individual snack bars, without committing to an entire box of the same thing. While I have grown tired of Clif bars, I do alright if I get to pick all different brands and flavors.
• Dried meats. These can get spendy if you eat too much, but it is always good to add a little extra protein to your diet.

Dinner Ideas:

• Make a meal with a pasta or rice base. You can add either dehydrated or fresh veggies to it. You can also add a packet of tuna or salmon. Raman and Pasta Sides are a cheap option to start with.
• Tortilla based meals are great too. Add some beans and rice to the tortilla. You can also do peanut butter and jelly. Do cheese and sandwich meat. You can also just make a combination of whatever food you have.