The Ultimate Campsite Snack

February 19, 2016

Everyone who knows me, knows I love of ice cream. It’s my preferred fuel on a long summer bike trip. But ice cream is not an option for a remote campsite treat. Unless you carry a cooler with dry ice, or you enjoy lukewarm, sweet soup.

So my “go to” campsite junk food is Nutella — the chocolate hazelnut spread, laced with sugar and fat. I was introduced to the stuff as a kid at my best friend’s house, whose parents were from Germany. I came home and announced, “Mom. You won’t believe this. The Schroeders put chocolate on their toast!” This was the most exciting discovery of my first nine years on the planet.

If you dig deep down in my panniers, you will likely find a jar of the stuff. It doesn’t melt. It doesn’t spoil. It never let’s you down. Spread it on bread. Spread it on crackers. Spread it on your finger. It’s all good.

Take a bag of summer fresh cherries and dip them. No, completely encase them, one-by-one, in this product, and you have the ultimate campsite snack.

Caution: Using a small pocketknife as a surrogate fork is not recommended.

Now, I’m not crazy. I rarely, if ever, touch the stuff outside of a long-distance bike journey. If I kept my cupboard at home stocked with this stuff, I’d weigh 600 lbs. This guilty pleasure is reserved for when I’m pedaling 5 to 8 hours a day, when my body’s engine can never get enough fuel.

So that’s my ultimate campsite snack ... now it’s time for a nap.

Photos by Willie Weir

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SIGHTS AND SOUNDS is posted every other Friday.

Willie Weir is a contributor for Adventure Cyclist magazine. His books, Travels with Willie and Spokesongs, will inspire you to hit the road and might change the way you approach bicycle travel. He lives in Seattle with his wife Kat. You can also find him at WillieWeir.com, Facebook, and Instagram.