One of the things I love so much about hiking is that it throws you back to focusing on the bare essential: being safe from harm, having safe shelter, staying on the right track, keeping the right body temperature and having enough water and food. Jordan is a country famous for its amazing food and I will definitely have some amazing food when I’m in Amman and Aqaba and maybe even on the trail, but I am planning for a largely self-supported hike of the Southern part of the Jordan Trail. So here’s my plan for food on the Jordan Trail.
Also, read my posts on my favorite food on the trail (for example for the Jordan Trail) and preparing food on the trail.
Table of Contents
What food you need
On a tough trek like the Jordan Trail, you’ll burn so many calories and you’ll need so many nutrients that pretty much anything you can get your hands on is perfect – you’ll probably burn it anyway. But that doesn’t mean you can’t be smart (obviously, bringing a pile of Big Macs on the trail isn’t the best solution) in planning a mix of nutrients and calories you need with some great local food.
Calculating daily calorie intake – Food on the Jordan Trail
I know from tracking my hikes that on long days (e.g. Nijmegen Four Days Marches or 40-kilometer-days on the Laugavegur trail) I burn up to 4000 kcals per day. Although there is no need to fully cover for each and every calorie, it is essential to get enough calories, salts and other nutrients in every day (something that was reconfirmed by the story of another thru-hiker).
My food on the Jordan Trail – self-supported
Also, read my posts on the best food on the trail: my favorite food while hiking, how I prepare my food on hikes and what gear I use for cooking. For more hiking tips or packing lists, see the appropriate categories.
Although it is difficult to exactly match these to take in 4000+ calories every day with just trail food, my daily food intake does add up to an acceptable amount:
| Adventure Food meals Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner | 3* 600 kcal |
| Extra Adventure Food Vegetables | 1* 150 kcal |
| Adventure Food Dessert | 1* 300 kcal |
| Bifi sausage | 2* 128 kcal |
| Powergel | 3* 425 kcal |
| Total | 3500-4000 kcal |
It is a quite ok balance of nutrients and is heavy on protein and salts and electrolytes.
On top of that, I take
- Fruit. Anything I can get my hands on. I’ll probably bring some fruit from Amman and then try and restock in Wadi Musa, Rum and Humeima.
- Davitamon Energy Forte vitamin tablets (2 per day)
- Norit ORS (2 per day) – Oral Rehydration Solutions is a mix of salts and electrolytes that is often used when people lose a lot of fluids (through diarrhea or perspiration).
- I do have pain killers with me, but try to limit use to a minimum.
My food on the Jordan Trail – enjoying the best of local
I do like my Adventure Food meals – it’s part of my favorite food while hiking – but after close to a week of hiking, it start to be a bit monotonous. On top of that, I will try and enjoy some of the amazing local food (also see my full day planning for my hike).
- Al Arabi in Wadi Musa (in Wadi Musa near Petra) is a hiker favorite. I also loved the Al Wadi restaurant on the corner, which has the best fresh bread I ever had.
- Near the village of Shakriya, I will be staying at the Bait Ali Lodge, enjoying some local dinner and breakfast.
- I am doubting whether I will make food stops in Humeima and Rum Village.
- And I hope I will have the time and opportunity to enjoy a quick bite with one of the Bedouin families on the trail.
So, what is your food plan for your Jordan Trail hike?
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