On the day before heading out I prefer to keep things relatively simple in so far as cleanup and preparation goes. Also, I also keep the carb level high to help keep glycogen stores up - this includes pastas and rice. Preparing as much as you can at home helps alot such as cooking the rice and pasta dishes which also keeps the perishables down in the ice chest. The Horseshoe Meadows campgrounds is walk-in so one must haul everything from your vehicle and store the foodstuffs in the bear boxes so keeping the loads to a minimum is helpful especially with early morning starts.
As far as dayhiking goes, my personal choices are Cliff Bars (chocolate chip), tropical blend trailmix form Walmart, Goo, and Snickers (if weather is cool). Gatorade makes small packets to add to your water which helps make it more appealing without adding too much sweetness. For lunch, I've yet to find anything better than PB&J. Altitude is a factor that really messes with my food preferences. Certain foods that taste great at home such as sunflowers seeds, pistachios, and beef jerky I can't stomach above 10k and interestingly enough some things I seem to like more like PB&J (rarely eat at home) and Cliff Bars. Just have to keep trying things and see what works for you.
