Can man live by sausage alone?
The world’s great philosophers seek to answer some of the notable questions of our time. Does God exist? Are humans innately good or evil? Will the Hurricanes win a Super Rugby title? While the first two questions are easily answered, the third question is doosey. Many a mind greater than mine has tried to examine this issue. However there is a bigger question than needs to be looked into: Can man live by sausage alone? Seeking an answer, I headed for the hills.
I went tramping for the weekend. A pleasant sojourn into the Tararuas. It rained all day Saturday. The five hours into the hut meant no stops as the weather was not conducive to enjoying the ambiance of the bush environment. On Sunday the day dawned cloudy and rainy. While standing on the deck of the hut you could see three spurs coming down from the ridge, they butted tightly. The misty cloud hanging on the steeply bushed hillside looked very picturesque. The solitude and scenery makes you appreciate the grandeur of the New Zealand bush. On the way out the sun shone and a pleasant lunch was had by the river. The great question about living off sausages was being contemplated and digested.
Prior to heading off I cooked up eight kolbaz sausages from Park Rd Butchers. These are a Hungarian sausage that have smoked paprika as the primary flavour. I really like these sausages. I decided to make these morsels of food the main sustenance of my trip. I had these for lunch on Saturday and Sunday, and also for Sunday breakfast. I consider that it is possible to go tramping on sausages alone. However I am not one for an intransigent or doctrinaire stance. So the sausages were supplemented by chocolate biscuits and a curry on Saturday night. On a weekend trip I carry extra weight and the sausages are well worth taking. On a longer trip I take cooked sausages for the first few days.
The kolbaz sausages are quite highly spiced although not as spiced as the sremska made by Park Rd. They make for very good eating. The sausage is ground to a medium consistency. The paprika and smoking comes through strongly. I assume that garlic, salt and pepper are part of the recipe too. This makes for a great tasting sausage. An excellent spicy sausage for everyday consumption and enough to keep you going on the wettest weekend tramp. What more can I say?
Cost per kilo: $18.99
The sausages and chocolate biscuits diet is well proven. A few years ago I went with a friend to Nelson Lakes. We had four 10-11 year old boys with us and on the last day we had to get to the head of the lake for a water taxi. If we were not there at the required time it was another three hours around the lake. We needed to leave the hut shortly after 7am. It had snowed overnight. It was raining steadily as we left just before 8am. We told the boys, it would be nonstop tramping, and if we did not reach the head of the lake for the water taxi the boys would not be keen for another three hours around the lake. The enticement was we would provide sausages and chocolate biscuits for fuel. The boys did well and we reached the water taxi in time, after between 5-6 hours of good paced tramping. Because of the rain there was no sitting, and because of the time factor, no stopping. A sausage followed by a chocolate biscuit, Mint Treats, ensured we got there on time. My advice is to try this diet. The variety of sausage and chocolate biscuit can be changed, but as fuel for tramping you cannot beat it.
And the answer to the question? Only a dedicated process of trial and error will allow a great mind to reach a conclusion over this issue but I think mine is almost made up!
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