Brad - they advertise the bars as a meal replacement - "stoveless backpack meals".
As to the trip, my wife, and by extension me, is trying to hike all 900+ miles of trails in the Smokys. We have remote pieces of the AT left and a few longer hikes on the Carolina side. We are getting close. The only ones that remain are longer than I want to day hike - and we've done several 20+ mile days in the last 2 years. At 55, my feet don't want to function after 20 miles. So, I hatched the idea of backpacking to get the rest. Bought her an Osprey pack (Aerial I think) and working through things to make it as comfortable as possible for her. I foresee a few long days and A. don't want to cook much, B. want something that is good. Plus, I'm thinking this works for my elk trips.
We haven't settled on an AT route yet but am leaning toward 2 trips. Start in the middle (Newfound Gap) and hike to Fontana Dam (~ 35 miles) on trip 1. Trip 2 starts at Newfound Gap and hike towards Davenport gap, also ~ 35 miles. Thinking those are 3 day trips each. Starting at Fontana means a 3000+ foot elevation gain over about 6 miles but the first 2 miles or so is the bulk of the climb. The Smokys aren't high but they do get steep. We have a hike or two on the Carolina side that likely involve a backpack and a boat ride across Fontana.
Don't tell my wife but I may use her hiking goals as elk season prep. We are headed to Colorado in 2 weeks on a hiking vacation. There might be a bit of elk scouting, or I mean hiking, that week. <G>
Thanks for the food ideas - I'll check them out.
