Food on the hill

[diymom]

But a cold peanut butter sandwich in a ziplock that got smushed is also a favorite on the ski lift.

Sourdough helps a bit with this, it's firmer and doesn't smush as much.

 

[skibum4ever]

I just carry a protein bar and drink a lot of water.

 

[Jilly]

As a kid the options at the hill were limited to hot dogs. So Mom would do a thermos of Tomato soup and beef bouillon. Liquid enough to drink out of a mug and hot too. Used it so much that 1 thermos was noted for that mixture and no coffee allowed in it.

 

[Christy]

I wonder if Whistler has a secret place on the hill where a person can stash something like a thermos or really any food. As many times as I've skied there, I've never seen lockers or a bag room or rack where people hang backpacks, and looking at the website, there are only lockers down in the village or Blackcomb/Creekside base (and it would take forever to get down then back up). But maybe locals know something I don't.

 

[Trailside Trixie]

We have this place at magic called the Tbar. It's a shack that serves beer, other beverages, hot dogs, chilli, basic stuff. It's right where 2 trails meet and it's a great place to stop. Then you just ski down to the chair and keep going. I like this option on colder days because often times once I go into the lodge it's hard to come back out. I'm really not one who can go back to the condo and eat like many. I like to stay outside as long as possible. Sitting at the tbar near the fire having a chilli dog and a beer is a nice way to keep it going. I've also been known to eat a PB and J on the chair.

 

[AJM]

@Trailside Trixie you had me at chilli dog and beer !!!!

 

[Amplify]

I do a mix of the following things depending on what the day is like and where we are:
- thermos with something substantial but very easy in it (ramen made that morning; mac/cheese; rice/beans; leftovers heated up that morning; etc)
- Uncrustables. I don't know why they are so much better than any PBJ I make with my own hands, I just know they are, and they are small enough that I throw one in each kid's snow suit plus two in my own jacket pockets for lift snacks. I finally caved and started buying Uncrustables versus insisting on making my own last year and idk, everybody is just happier somehow (me since I'm not making 4 sandwiches every morning that I then have to cajole everybody to eat, everybody because they are super yummy)
- clif bars
- candy bars (snickers is best!)
- peanut butter pretzels - like those little pretzel pockets filled with PB. I first started bringing these for winter/snowshoe ascents of Adirondacks peaks and I noticed I always felt SO MUCH better after eating a handful of them a few hours into the hike
- If I have the ability to bring a sturdy bag or leave things in the car: grapes. something about the sugar and the water just really feels super refreshing when I'm drained
- hot chocolate in a thermos - some hills, I bring packets and a thermos and use the hot water dispenser for free, others I make ahead and just bring in the thermos from home
- tea bag to hopefully make tea in the same thermos for the drive home
- these energy gummies called Stinger that I rely on when I really feel myself flagging, or if I'm facing the drive home and just feeling that dreadful fatigue
- gatorade for my kids, electrolyte packets (liquid IV or Nuun or similar) mixed into my water bottle for me
- buy a side of super hot fries in the lodge as my concession to luxury - something freshly hot and full of carbs really goes a long way sometimes, and if I keep it to just fries it is often financially manageable

 

[diymom]

My latest byo warm lodge food since the last time we had a thread like this is a baked sweet potato. The bags of small ones are perfect for this. Just stab a few holes and toss it in the microwave while I’m doing other things, split it open just enough for a small pat of salted butter, wrap it in foil and then into a small thermos. The foil isn’t really necessary, but that way I don’t need a fork just in case it’s one of those days I don’t eat until I’m back in my car. I guess if I were to forgo the butter the foil wouldn’t be needed then either.

 

[Trailside Trixie]

Love those uncrustables, PB & J is a big yum!

 

[teppaz]

I carry a bag of trail mix from our local food coop. I doctor it with dried banana slices, which are an amazing pick-me-up. You get the banana hit without the mushy mess and having to discard a peel. I stash a baggie of trail mix in a pocket and munch on it throughout the day (for some reason it also helps with the occasional nausea due to altitude sickness).

 

[SallyCat]

I can vouch for this Stanley soup thermos, by the way. If you pre-heat it with hot water, it keeps food really hot even in the car in the winter. It's absolutely bomber. Comes in other colors, too.
I have no affiliation with Stanley, just a 10/10 recommendation.

 

[Alyssm]

Last year I saw some woman in the lift line grab a foil wrapped bagel sandwich from her pocket and start munching. I must have been hungry bc I thought it looked so delicious and the next time at the hill, I put half an egg, ham, cheese bagel sandwich in foil in my jacket having eaten the other half on the way to the slopes. It was delicious even cold and ate it when I was waiting for my snowboard son to walk himself across the flat area and get himself strapped back in. Mood changer for me. The bagel doesn’t get too mushy as I dislike mushed bread sandwiches. I like Kind mini’s in my inside pockets. They get cold but not frozen (yet anyway) and have a good balance of sugar, fat and protein to keep me satisfied for a while.

I love the bagel idea. Harder to crush than a regular sandwich too. I'd go with cream cheese, if my cats allow me to have any. I swear one of my cats can hear the sound of the cream cheese block coming out of the fridge from anywhere in the house and she instantly appears at my feet for her share.

 

[Christy]

There's a new book from Mountaineers Press called Ski Snacks: Easy, Tasty Recipes for Powder Days and Mountain Adventures. I just saw an article about it in this month's Mountaineers Magazine, and I just placed a hold on it at the library (#18 in line!), so I can't vouch for the recipes yet, but it looks promising. Not sure if they are all meant to fit in your pocket or not. The onigiri recipes they had in the magazine certainly would.

 

[snoWYmonkey]

@Christy they are the most adorable local young couple who wrote it. I think part of it is also about being budget friendly.

 

[GladeDuchess]

If I stop mid-day to eat a regular size meal, I tend to feel tired and sluggish the latter half of the day, so I tend to graze throughout the day. Nuts, protein waffles, a PB&J, and biscuits, are all things I can keep in my back pack, and eat bits of when I take a break.
I usually keep Gatorade with me as it takes a lot for it to freeze and I'm encouraged to drink then so I can keep lightening my bag. : )
Back at the car, some hard boiled, deviled, or Scotch eggs are always a good protein for me at the end of the day.

 

[Taryn]

+1 for the Stanley thermos. I have had hot meals such as chilli, chicken and rice, and spaghetti with a protein last up to 8 hours still piping hot. You could also wrap up some breakfast sandwiches in foil and store them in a insulated bag.

 

[MelanieIsABeginner]

I keep yogurt pouches in my pocket!

 

[Aerlind]

What worked well for us last year was to grab a high-protein breakfast on the way to the hill (burritos, bagel sandwiches, etc). I usually eat all of mine, but have stashed some for later in a pocket. Typically then we’d ski until we’re tired, about 2:30 or so, then head to the lodge for a beer before going home. Bridger we’ll buy the beer because we don’t mind supporting them: they’re a non profit ski area and give loads back to the local community. Big Sky, well, we have some feelings about their lack of local support (they’re alllll about the tourists) so aside from the lift ticket (typically through Ikon/Mountain Collective anyway), we don’t support them and bring our own beer. Fortunately there are free cubbies in the lodge and a lunchbox is a lunchbox, so….

I typically stash some Packaroons in my camelback pack for midday snacks. If you like coconut, they’re amazing and don’t freeze. I dehydrate easily so I ski with a CamelBak of water, the Zoid pack has yet to freeze on the hill as long as you remember to blow the water from the hose back into the reservoir after you take a drink! I have electrolyte water waiting in the car for the ride home. Sometimes we stop for dinner, sometimes not, it depends on what’s in my fridge at any given time.

 

[Skiernomad]

Whistler is extra tough as there's no place to stash anything on mountain or in a base lodge (what base lodge?. And if you've driven, your car sure is not convenient, it takes forever to get down then back up. Instead of leaving your sandwich in the car can you put it in a pocket? That's what I do. I'll also do a Peanut Butter Clif Bar, which is the only bar I can stomach. It's not hot, but I don't know how you pull off hot there.

There IS a place to store lunch at Blackcomb. I have put my lunch in an old backpack (unattractive) and hung it on the hooks to the right of the Snowschool lunch room (bottom of stairs to the left). Go down the stairs and look right ...there is a row of hooks there. I have never had anything stolen. Just don't ski down to the bottom at the end of the day and forget to pick it up....I've done it..not fun. Enjoy!

 

[pinto]

One of my favorite pocket snacks is a Scotch egg.

Growing up, it was always tuna sandwiches (with chopped apple and pecans in the salad) that ended up cold and smashed but delicious, and on the way home, that spiced tea with Tang in the mix. I can just feel my cold toes now.