The idea of gorp is something that is easy to eat and provides energy inbetween meals on the trail.¹ Gorp is the essential food for any backpacking, hiking or camping trip that you may embark on. An old urban myth claimed that gorp was originally an acronym for "good old rasins and peanuts" and was eventually accepted as a real English word by the Oxford English Dictionary. Another theory as to how gorp got its name was from the verb "to gorp," which means to eat greedily. Other words it may have origionated from include gawp, gawk, gowp, gaup, or gauk which all have a meaning close to 'wide open mouth.' Gorp can be made many ways, but it does contain essential items.

• Peanuts² - These are essential to any gorp; and are the main source of protein on the trail.


• M&Ms - Another essential. These taste really good during the hike, and help to provide that extra sugar boost to get to your destination.


• Raisins - These are an essential addition to any gorp because they taste good in the mix and help provide even more sugar.


• Banana Chips - These are slices of bananas that have been cooked in sugar to a very hard consistency, similar to chips.


• Dehydrated Fruit - Good dehydrated fruit is really good for you because of the consentrated vitamins and minerals due to the extraction of the water. You can buy it from most grocery stores. Don't try and dehydrate it yourself unless you know what you're doing. It can be quite difficult.


• Pretzels - These give you the salt you need so you don't lose water too quickly.

Just put all the ingredients in a bag and shake vigorously³ and... Voila! You've got gorp! You can use just about anything in gorpas long as it has protein, sugar, or salt. Also, think light, especially if you are going to be backpacking for a long time; the lighter the food is the better your back will feel.