Ain't it funny how we never eat breakfast at home in the a.m. but we always do camping. I'm the same way.

I started off borrowing a home made 4H steel trailer from a friend. My 1st trailer that I owned was a 3H with small DR.  Then I made the plunge into a 3H GN that also had a DR. I spent a lot of nights at CTR rides in that GN.  After 5 years of that I bought a 3H with a weekend package. No gas, No fridge, but it did have a simple bathroom.

Since I have 5 daughters, I thought maybe I'd keep their interest if I provided some creature comforts. So I bought a 4H with a 9' LQ.  It was nice. I really enjoyed the fridge and furnace.  But it really didn't get any more attention from my wife, who only joined us once.  she is not into camping or riding.  So after a couple of years, I decided that was a waste of my money. I keep tearing off holding tanks while traveling Forest Service roads.  So I sold that trailer and bought a 4H GN with a small DR.  It is easier to get down rough roads that the bigger LQ.  I can sleep in the GN for short trips and everything stays dry.  If my daughters come, We put a tent for them. Gives them some privacy, and I don't have to listen to the talk all night.

Now understand, I never camp at a Rodeo or Fairground. Everything we do is into remote forest or desert areas.  I never need any A/C But I frequently appreciate some heat.  I'm too nervous to use anykind of combustable heat in the trailer like a propane heater. So we just use quality sleeping bags.

I bring a Colman Stove, Dutch Ovens, I usually carry a generator in the back of the truck and keep a George Foreman type of small grill. With it I can quickly cook a chicken breast, hamburger, pork chop or piece of salmon. On the stove I cook bacon, eggs, pancakes, hash browns etc for breakfast. Lunch is usually on the mountain. Either sandwiches or often, jerky, apples, nuts, granola bars etc.

I bring one or two ice chest to keep perishibles in.  Any meat I bring, I freeze before it goes in the cooler. That way it keeps longer. sometimes I will freeze a second gallon of  Milk or a jug of Orange juice, Which I will use after the 1st jug is gone.

Having done a lot of River Rafting on western rapids. I've learned to live out of an ice chest for up to a week. The trick is to NOT OPEN it. So everything for Day 1-2 and maybe 3 goes in Cooler 1, everything for Days 3-4-5 goes in  cooler 2.  Tape the lid shut and don't open it until you absolutely have to get into it.

I like to have a bath everyday. So I heat up a pan of water in the morning on the colman stove or over the fire pit.  Once warm, I dumps some water over my head. Shampoo my hair, shave, sponge bath the rest of me.  Warmer weather I do it in the morning when I first get up. In October durning Elk and Deer hunts when it's 10*, I may wait for mid day.

Speaking of Fall hunts. We pack in and set up a Wall tent.  In it we sleep on cots, have a cyclinder wood burning stove for heat.  Since we are packing in, we do not bring in coolers or any perishible foods.  So we eat more of canned stews, chili, stuff like that. I like the Bear Canyon  powdered soups especially the Brocholli Cheese. You bring a a quart or two of water to a boil. (If we are taking the water out of the stream, we boil it a little longer to kill any germs) Add the powder, Let it thicken and serve. We pack in some bread bowls and it makes a great supper.  We bring in a lot of hard rolls or potato rolls. Even if they get smashed in the horses packs, they are still good to dip in the soup.

Wow!  For me from the kinda  civilized East Coast, that sounds GREAT.  Have a friend in New Mexico who rides and hunts/camps/outfits and reminds me so much of how he does it.  Sounds beautiful, rugged, real.  Many thanks for sharing that.  FIVE daughters that's a LOT of hauling  even if you leave the horses at home!  Good thing your wife doesn't want to come ~~

Like the idea about sealing up a cooler or so.  I have those thick insulated packs from people sending steaks -- could easily use them with stuff for later in the trip.

E

LOL Painted Horse, you value being clean more than I. lol  A cold outdoor shower in the *Everglades* is about my limit! lol

Yours was an interesting post - sometime you'll lhave to share your favorite Utah trails/horse camping areas.  For many years, our Spring backpacking trip was to Grand Gulch, not too far from Lake Powell.  It was pretty remote and primitive way back when.  The last time we went, it wasn't so remote anymore, but "progress" happens.

Well two of the daughters have moved to California, so they rarely ever ride any more. And never have time for a weekend camp out.  One daughters off to college, and she has brought home her room mates a couple of times for rides. And they have enjoyed a weekend  of camping when their jobs and schools allow the time. Usually once a summer.  My two youngest are still in high school.  And they do like to come with me. But they are getting more involved in school and jobs, so they have not been able to come as often and it 's become more of an afternoon ride for them vs a weekend.

Hence, I'm back to the simple trailer. No need to pay for creature comforts for the women in my life, when they don't come and stay over night.

When we float white water rivers. We often take 3-5 rafts. Each raft gets one cooler. Each cooler has a days worth of food for the group. Freeze as much of the food as possible before putting it in the cooler and tape them shut. We open each cooler as we go through the trip. We are still eating steaks and having ice cream on day four of the trip. Now horses can't carry as much stuff as we do on a white water raft. ( not unless you bring several pack horses per person) So we have to pack a little lighter.

We still bring in real food on pack trips vs the freeze dried stuff that back packers take. We bring  onions, some potatos and carrots and some canned chicken to make some chicken stew with. The hard vegetables and canned meat are pretty hard to smash in a pannier. I pack my eggs in a tupperware bowl full of grain. I get the eggs and the horses get the grain.