Provisioning for a cruise
- Thread starter Ross
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Ross...Think that it is foolish to not have back-up food. I carry some canned chicken and other rations like that on board because you never know when you will get stuck somewhere for a few extra days (weather can come up quick).
We take what we want to eat
and plan on NOT being able to get much of anything. When we do we have a wider choice. We always have a few days of canned stuff and munchies aboard. Liquids of all sorts are available in quantities and easy to store. We've done this ever since we had our C22 in 1983.
Added: we keep a full medicine cabinet on board at all times, including hygiene material. Gotta wash my hair at least once a week!
and plan on NOT being able to get much of anything. When we do we have a wider choice. We always have a few days of canned stuff and munchies aboard. Liquids of all sorts are available in quantities and easy to store. We've done this ever since we had our C22 in 1983.
Added: we keep a full medicine cabinet on board at all times, including hygiene material. Gotta wash my hair at least once a week!
We carry fresh foods for several days and then back up foods. Meat,eggs, fruit and fresh micl are good for several days when kept iced. The ultra high temperature pastuerized milk tastes pretty good and can keep for months until opened. Canned foods ,dry foods such as tortilla chips and salsa,tuna,chicken etc. I just bought a pressure cooker so that cooking beans etc will be faster on our alcohol stove. Almost anything that does not require refrigeration is good as backup food. We usually carry cases of bottled water ,gatorade/powerade,beer, wine etc eggs do pretty well for several days without refrigeration but better kept iced. Sometimes we get lucky and catch fish to go with rice etc. Potatos don't do so well aftrer a few days. Onions also seem to do poorly after a few days. I have though about C-rations as backup food but they are pretty disgusting to eat and pretty expensive.
You really do need to carry sufficient backup supplies, cause weather windows, light winds, etc, can all act to extend a passage, and it isn't much fun to be hungry and thirsty while waiting to get to where you're going.
Onions & potato storage
Beth Leonard wrote a very good article in a recent Cruising World about going without refrigeration which included a very comprehensive discussion of food storage. I just tried Cruising World's website, which is very clunky in finding material, so i can't post the link, was within the last three or four issues. Perhaps someone can find it. It covered onion and potato longer term storage and how to do it.
Beth Leonard wrote a very good article in a recent Cruising World about going without refrigeration which included a very comprehensive discussion of food storage. I just tried Cruising World's website, which is very clunky in finding material, so i can't post the link, was within the last three or four issues. Perhaps someone can find it. It covered onion and potato longer term storage and how to do it.
Food items that we keep on the boat all the time include flour, corn meal, oat meal, salt, sugar, baking powder, noodles, pasta, spices and herbs. canned goods that will be damaged by freezing come off when we are on the hard for the winter but when the boat is in the water there are canned meats, sauces, veggies and fruits on board all the time.
The boat is an extension of our house. Anything we have at home for personal hygene is kept on board and restocked whenever we run low. That includes vitamins and meds. As for food we have a full galley complete with a fridge and stove/oven that's well stocked with condiments, cookware, silverware, plates, all sort of glasses, you name it. Chips, pretzels and snacks are always on board. The fridge is kept full with beer, water, soda, catsup, mayo, mustard and anything else we feel we want on board. Perishables or those items with a short shelf life are picked up prior to our departure. If we're doing a trip there's always enough left over to get us by should we need it. However being on the Chesapeake, and having endured all sorts of weather, I find it hard to imagine getting caught out more than a day. We keep an eye on the weather and either get into a marina or make the run for home before anything really nasty hits. I'm talking tropical storm kind of weather.
No one covered this part of provisioning.
One can never have enough beer on board. The well equipped yacht should never have less than a reserves case of beer, at least one unopened bottle of Capt. Morgan, and a large bottle of pino grigio. solids are fine, but one can survive a liquids only diet for quit a while.
One can never have enough beer on board. The well equipped yacht should never have less than a reserves case of beer, at least one unopened bottle of Capt. Morgan, and a large bottle of pino grigio. solids are fine, but one can survive a liquids only diet for quit a while.
Higgs , The grape that I buy has been processed by the finest vintners in the country. Some of it has even found its way half way around the world. There is even a bottle or two that has been heat treated and condensed and aged in old barrels and bottled under such labels as Remy Martin, or Louis Martell or Hennesy.
Why, Ross?
As Mike B. says .. "However being on the Chesapeake, and having endured all sorts of weather, I find it hard to imagine getting caught out more than a day. We keep an eye on the weather and either get into a marina or make the run for home before anything really nasty hits. I'm talking tropical storm kind of weather."
We all seem to have this "survivalist" idea... what if I'm stranded on my boat for months .. but, in reality, it is't going to happen.
To each his own, but, I now carry only what I will be reasonably using for the time I plan to be on the boat, and buy whatever else I need while cruising... Unless you're crossing an ocean, you're never far from a grocery store.
I am reminded of the old adgage ... "take half as much stuff and twice as much money".
I, too, used to keep lots of this type of stuff on my boat. But, after throwing much of it out over the years because it was unused or became out dated, I now keep far less on board and bring only what I will need for the time we intend to be cruising.
As Mike B. says .. "However being on the Chesapeake, and having endured all sorts of weather, I find it hard to imagine getting caught out more than a day. We keep an eye on the weather and either get into a marina or make the run for home before anything really nasty hits. I'm talking tropical storm kind of weather."
We all seem to have this "survivalist" idea... what if I'm stranded on my boat for months .. but, in reality, it is't going to happen.
To each his own, but, I now carry only what I will be reasonably using for the time I plan to be on the boat, and buy whatever else I need while cruising... Unless you're crossing an ocean, you're never far from a grocery store.
I am reminded of the old adgage ... "take half as much stuff and twice as much money".
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When cruising for 3-4 days, a lot depends on where you are going and who you are going with. How much time you plan to spend on the hook vs in a marina is also an important factor. While most of the above posts really cover the "input" side of the cruising equation, I await Peggie Hall's comments on the "output" side. Whatever goes in, must come out -- one way or the other.....:dance:
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