Review: Best Bars for the Backcountry
If you’re anything like me, your favorite source of energy is whole food: real, delicious, plant-based (and occasionally meat-based) foods that only contain ingredients you know and can pronounce.
And also if you’re anything like me, you LOVE spending long days on the trail with friends by your side and nothing more than the essentials in your pack.
Unfortunately, long days on the trail don’t mix very well with big, dense foods like fruits and veggies (believe me, I’ve tried) and bringing along a whole grass-fed hamburger on a sourdough bun with homemade ketchup would just be too messy (but on some hikes I’ve certainly thought it would be worth it).
Thankfully, these days trail food is finally being taken seriously, and we now have many incredible options to choose from when it comes to packable snacks and meals that not only energize us but nourish us as well.
Last weekend, I decided to test out one of the most popular forms of outdoor fuel around: bars. Besides one backpacking meal and some nuts and seeds I had packed, these bars were my only source of energy on my 21 mile backpacking trip, so they were really being put to the test. Below, I review the bars based on nutrition, flavor and texture, and ability to satiate. Here we go!
Bar #1: Larabar Fruits and Greens - Strawberry Spinach Cashew
Nutrition: Any bar that only has - count ‘em - FIVE ingredients is pretty much an automatic win in my book; it’s made even better by the fact that it’s all fruits, veggies, and nuts. Yup, that’s right - the fine folks at Larabar managed to sneak a fourth cup of spinach into this bar. Since the one thing I really crave but can’t get in the backcountry is greens, this bar had me psyched that I was at least getting some leaves in my diet, even if it wasn’t a big salad.
Taste and texture: If you’ve got a sweet tooth and a strong craving for fruit, Larabars are for you! Personally, I love sweet things every once and awhile, so Larabars give me that fix. That said, since their bars have no added sugar, it’s not at all overly sweet and is especially nice on hot summer hikes when the temp is perfect for fruity flavors.
Ability to satiate: Don’t get me wrong - Larabars curb my hunger when my stomach’s growling and I’m still an hour away from making camp. However, the ‘fruits and greens’ bars in particular are small enough that they’re usually gone in about three bites, and they don’t quite have enough fat or protein to really fill me up for the long haul.
The bottom line: On a big backcountry trip, make sure to throw in a couple Larabar Fruits and Greens bars if you know you’ll miss fruits and greens, but don’t expect them to fill you up for more than an hour.
Bar #2: Primal Kitchen Coconut Cashew Bar
Nutrition: Amongst other things, this bar boasts seeds, nuts, honey, plenty of coconut, and SALT! Heck yes. This bar seemed to have all the bases covered when it came to ingredients. Plus, it contains 7,800 milligrams of collagen from grass-fed cows - more than what’s in an average cup of bone broth, which is super awesome! For my paleo readers out there, this bar checks out.
Taste and texture: The texture of this bar is definitely a bit chewier than most, which could pose a problem in really cold temps, but for hot summer days, this is definitely an advantage as it doesn’t get all gross and goopy. This bar was a perfect blend of sweet and savory - the ingredients (like coconut) were naturally sweet, but since it only has three grams of sugar AND it also has 65 milligrams of salt, it proved to satisfy both my sweet and salty tooth.
Ability to satiate: This bar tided me over for HOURS before I even thought about food again. The high amount of both fat and protein filled me up, and the low amount of carbs didn’t send my blood sugar level soaring like most bars on the market.
The bottom line: If you have hours to go before your next meal and can only eat one bar, eat this one. It tastes delicious, fills you up, and helps your muscles as you continue to exert yourself.
Bar #3: Epic Bar - Lamb Currant Mint
Nutrition: Grass-fed lamb, organic currants, and a blend of spices and herbs: in other words, this bar is more of a small meal than a snack. Sure, jerkies have always been popular in the backcountry, but Epic seems to take it a step further by sourcing quality meat and combining it with only ingredients that are real, not made in a lab.
Taste and texture: YUM. I’ll be honest, I’m not the biggest meat eater, so eating a bar mainly comprised of meat made me a bit squeamish at first. However, after devouring the whole bar in one go, I realized that Epic worked a miracle by making meat bars a very delicious reality. If someday I can pair herbs and spices with the meat I cook at home as well as Epic does with their bars, I’ll be winning.
Ability to satiate: This bar is as close to a full meal as you can get. If you need to bring lunch on the go with you in bar form, this is the one to bring. Trust me, you’ll be good to go for several hours after enjoying it.
The bottom line: After you’ve been hiking for a few hours and you really need something ‘real’ to tide you over til dinner, eat this bar. This is the one that will finally make you feel rejuvenated after you’ve been eating nothing but the same old combo of nuts, seeds, and dried fruit all day.
Bars #4 and #5: Rx Bar - Chocolate Sea Salt & Rx Bar - Maple Sea Salt
Nutrition: For having just a few ingredients (eight and seven, respectively), these bars pack a surprising amount of healthy fats and protein. Plus, even though they’re vegetarian-friendly, they contain a respectable amount of salt (240 and 250 milligrams), which the body craves after miles of sweating on the trail.
Taste and texture: Was I eating energy bars, or was I eating dessert?! Both of these bars made me feel like I was cheating with the tastiest snack around. The bars themselves tasted like they were baked by grandma herself - they weren’t too tough or chewy, and almost had the texture of a perfectly baked brownie.
Ability to satiate: I’ll be honest, I didn’t expect these sweet bars to fill me up for as long as they did, but I got a least a couple solid hours of hiking out of each of them. I wouldn’t rely solely on them as a breakfast or lunch replacement in the backcountry, but when paired with some extra nuts and seeds, they go a long way.
The bottom line: These bars are delicious, and I would even recommend the chocolate one as a dessert for two while backpacking. Definitely pack at least a couple on longer trips - they’re clean eating and just plain good for the soul.
Bar #6: Skratch Labs - Ginger Miso
Nutrition: Admittedly, this bar had the most ingredients (nineteen) of any I tried on the trip, and though it had a few things in it that can’t be classified as ‘whole foods,’ everything is at least very clearly derived from whole foods - no GMO ingredients here. Generally, the bar is an oat, nut, and seed blend - aka, the O.G. energy bar mix.
Taste and texture: When I first tasted this bar, all I could think was: FINALLY, a savory energy bar! We all know that most bars tend to either be fruity or chocolatey, so eating a bar that was neither was a huge relief. Plus, surprisingly enough, the ginger and miso combination totally works for a bar - why hasn’t anyone thought of this before? The texture of the bar is a bit reminiscent of a Chewy bar - not the most natural texture, but the almonds in the bar help to make it feel a bit more real.
Ability to satiate: The savory aspect of the bar certainly helped to make me feel fuller longer, but after about 90 minutes I was definitely ready for another snack. This bar would be great to bring on a shorter power hike, but probably shouldn’t be relied on for hours of energy.
The bottom line: If you need a savory, vegan (and gluten free) energy bar, this one is for you! Rely on it for hikes shorter than 2.5 hours, or bring a couple of ‘em for longer outings.
The Overall Consensus
All the bars I tried were quite different from other another, and all seemed to have their specific purpose and place in my trip. I greatly appreciated the bars that filled me up the longest, but there’s also a lot to be said for bars that make your palate really happy. After all, while some bars are best for nutrition, others are just plain necessary to satisfy those backcountry cravings!
Do you have a go-to bar that you didn't see on this list? Leave me your recommendations in the comments below!
