Mint-Lime Trail Tonic
Dried mint, lime crystals, and a honey packet stirred into a cold bottle. Fixes water that has gone flat in your pack.
- calories
- 70
- weight
- 0.7 oz
- cal / oz
- 100
- protein
- 0 g
- serves
- 1, scales
- prep
- 2 min
- cook
- 0 min
- total time
- 2 min
- water
- 700 ml cold
- cost
- $
Calorie and protein figures are my own estimates, good enough for planning a food bag and not meant as precise nutrition data.
- Drink
- No cook
- Backpacking
- Day hike
- Thru-hike
- Bikepacking
- Car camping
- Vegetarian
- Gluten free
- Dairy free
- Nut free
- Eat in the bag
- Pre-mix at home
- Shelf stable
- Dump and stir
Ingredients
| Dried mint | 1 tsp | crushed leaf, not powder |
|---|---|---|
| Lime juice crystals | 1 packet | True Lime or equivalent; 1 tbsp bottled lime juice if you are car camping |
| Honey | 1 tbsp | single-serve packet or a small squeeze tube |
| Salt | a pinch | optional, but it is the part that actually helps on a hot day |
Method
- Fill a bottle with 700 ml of cold water.
- Drop in the mint, lime crystals, salt, and honey.
- Cap it and shake for fifteen seconds. Honey is stubborn in cold water and will sit on the bottom otherwise.
- Let it stand five minutes so the mint opens up, then shake once more before drinking.
The source made this with fresh mint, a cut lime, and ice, which is a cooler recipe, not a trail one. Dried mint and lime crystals do the same job at a fraction of the weight and survive a week in a pack. Honey keeps indefinitely and squeezes out of a tube in any weather above freezing.
The point is not flavor for its own sake. Water that has been sitting in a bladder or a scratched bottle picks up a flat plastic taste, and people drink less of it than they should. Acid and mint cover that, the sugar gives you something to absorb, and the pinch of salt replaces what you sweated out. Mix it in the bottle you are already carrying and there is nothing to wash.
Packing
Mint, lime crystals, and salt go into one small bag per bottle. Honey rides separately in a squeeze tube, or use packets and pack the empties out.
Variations
- Swap the honey for a spoon of sugar or a drink-mix packet to make it vegan.
- Add a pinch of potassium-containing salt substitute if you are sweating hard for several hours.
- On a cold morning, mix the same thing into hot water and drink it as tea.
https://camprecipes.com/backcountry-mint-lime-hydration-tonic