Let’s start with how I came to be preparing a grocery list for my perfectly capable, but really busy husband. I was helping him get ready for his 4-day passage from Fort Lauderdale to Bradenton, Florida, sure. But, there’s more to it than that.

Far from being a 1950s-style housewife, for me, it took one miserable hike in the Grand Canyon to become an absolute control-freak for food planning. After 10 hours of hiking along the Hermit Trail, I was near delirious with dehydration. Sitting at the bottom of the canyon, wondering if I would ever make it back out, I struggled to keep down the unpalatable “Noodles and Sauce” that was given to me. That was when I let someone else handle the food planning.

Contrast that to my second trip to the Grand Canyon where I did all my own food planning, and understood that you really need to drink a litre of water per hour when hiking in the heat – I had a splendid time. Yes, splendid. Really. Careful food planning made all the difference.

Packing for an outdoor pursuit is something that I think I’m good at. I believe that a happy belly is a happy person. An outdoor activity is not the time to start some lightweight, convenience-food diet.

Because we are just taking possession of SV Aphrodite for the first time, the boat is empty of all food stocks. So, we are starting afresh to load the fridge and pantry.

Grocery list for a 4 day passage (2 people)

Here is the grocery list that I created for their 4-day passage, followed by “Le Menu” below.

Cookies
Granola bars
Crackers

Cereal
Peanut butter
Jam

Instant coffee
Tea

Mayonnaise
Ketchup
Mustard
Salad dressing

Bacon
Sandwich meats (ham and beef)
Cheese
Chicken breasts
Pork chops
Steaks

Chunky soups x3
Spaghetti noodles
Tomato/meat sauce
Creamed corn
Can of peas
Cranberry sauce

Bread x2

Apples
Grapes
Tomato
Lettuce
Baby potatoes
Cucumber
Baby tomatoes
Onions

Milk
Cream
Eggs (x6)
Orange juice
Grapefruit juice
Margarine

Salt
Pepper

Salsa
Nacho chips

The grocery list is organized roughly how you would find these items co-located in the grocery store. Here is the menu as to how they will be putting these groceries to use.

Le Menu

Breakfast
Bread with Jam and/or Peanut butter
Cold cereal
Eggs and bacon

Lunch
Ham or beef sandwiches
Salad (Lettuce and cucumber), salad dressing
Chunky soups and crackers

Supper
Chicken with salad, potatoes and cranberry sauce
Steaks with veg and potatoes
Pork with veg and potatoes
Spaghetti with meat sauce

Drinks
OJ, Grapefruit juice
Coffee and tea

Snacks
Cookies
Granola bars
Nacho chips and salsa
Apples
Grapes
Baby tomatoes

I acknowledge that this is a lot of food, but I think it’s comforting to have more food than less while travelling.