Why Beef Jerky is the Essential Travel Snack

The Season of Planes, Trains & Automobiles

The song’s lyric chimes, “It’s the most wonderful time of the year” through the loudspeaker at most shopping malls, superstores, and grocery stores. It is a popular lyric that holds true so long as you don’t count the woes and worries associated with the holidays, like traveling.

Traveling can be a hassle whether you move by land, sea, or air, private or commercial. Dealing with it all can be made worse on an empty stomach. Thankfully, among the seemingly endless options of snacks there’s one that’s essential when it comes to traveling: beef jerky. 

A good travel snacks helps avoid the fast food menus or waste time waiting in understaffed restaurants with the ambient noise of people trying to talk over one another. It keeps you moving! Recently, Old Trapper sent me ¼ pound of their old fashioned recipe beef jerky for me to try it on the open road.

Every journey requires supplies, and among the list of essentials should be beef jerky. Today, you can fill an entire aisle in the supermarket with the variety and flavors of cured meats. However, the origins of this dry, salted source of protein date back thousands of years. It is said to have been created by the southwestern Quechan Indian tribe to preserve meat. Beef jerky dates back as far as 1550.

It’s the food of travelers. 

Old Trapper Old Fashioned Beef Jerky

Timing was on my side when the package from Old Trapper arrived. I was gearing up for a solo road trip that would require at least 4 hours of driving. In Texas, we measure the distance between cities by the number of hours instead of miles. So, any trip taking longer than an hour means adding a snack to the bill at the gas station. Usually, beef jerky is my go-to when traveling on the road. Why? Because it’s tasty, filling, convenient, and easy to eat with one hand. 

A travel snack can be a lifesaver in avoiding the drive-thru temptations of fast food at every rest stop. In addition to helping your eyes stay open. Beef jerky is a source of protein that’ll keep hunger at bay when you’re on the go. Chewing on a thick piece of Teriyaki or Peppered jerky can help you stay awake and stave off white line fever.

On the road, Old Trapper’s beef jerky goes down easy with tender cuts of well-seasoned meat that won’t leave your mouth feeling dry. It’s savory and delicious. More importantly, opening a bag doesn’t fill the cabin with a beef jerky aroma that other passengers may not enjoy. During my road trip, munching on bits of Old Trapper jerky allowed me to focus on making time and not waste it looking for a place to eat.

Bliss of Passing Mile Makers

Road trip, grand tour, excursion, escapism, whatever term you prefer, there’s nothing like pointing your car at a horizon and driving. Granted, not everyone feels the same way. Some find it tedious, tiresome, and torturous if there’s isn’t Wi-Fi or a charging port. But they can stay home or fall asleep in the back seat. Those who enjoy the open road and the freedom it represents understand the bliss of passing mile markers at 75(ish) mph. 

A good long drive can be therapeutic. In the moments between A and B, everything else is just waiting. It must.

View the full savory line of products Old Trapper offers here. Check out their range of flavors like Hot and Spicy, Peppered, Old Fashion, Teriyaki, and Zero Sugar.