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By all means, go light. Trade the silverware for a Titanium Spoon, and ditch the tent for a sil-nylon tarp. But you must draw the line somewhere. What’s the point in going into the backcountry if you can’t knock back a few drinks around the campfire? Since it’s tough to strap a keg to your backpack—and here in Utah, kegs are illegal—we’ve come up with some alternatives.

My introduction to backcountry bartending was rough. My girlfriend and I hiked into Porcupine National Forest with another couple, and we decided to break out the cocktails before setting up camp. We had the luxury of a short hike in, so about the only thing we didn’t bring was firewood. I gathered some before it got dark, and we got the fire stoked up by the time the sun had fully set.

We packed Nalgenes and were well into them by the time the fire got roaring. Packing in glass bottles is no good—you can’t reuse the bottle after you finish it, you have to pack it out, and you run the risk of breaking the glass around camp. Some better choices are plastic “child safe” bottles that you can crush when you’re done, GSI flasks, or Nalgene bottles.

My friend planned ahead and packed some dry ice that he picked up at the drug store before we left. Some people use dry ice to pack steaks for backpacking, but it also works wonderfully with GSI’s Cocktail Shaker. It has the benefit of being extremely light, though you do need to exercise some caution so it won’t turn into a backpack bomb. We’d packed in some titanium mugs and were soon having ice-cold vodka martinis in the middle of the national forest. Choose a spot close to spring runoff or a glacier fed stream and you can cool the alcohol in a Platypus stashed in the water.

After a couple of martinis, my friend and I pitched his Sierra Designs Hyperlight AST Tent. Sierra Designs made it with only two poles so—even in our alcohol-addled state of mind—we got it up in the pitch black without any headlamps. Back at the campfire my girlfriend, who was nodding off, said she didn’t know where my buddy’s girlfriend was.

Assuming she’d wandered off to go to the bathroom, we navigated from martinis to White Russians. Vodka, Kahula, and some non-dairy creamers we’d grabbed at a gas station on the drive up in the morning. The GSI Outdoor Adventure Travel Bar is crucial to making these mixed drinks. It’s not a bad idea to throw some freeze-dried orange juice in too, so you can add some mixing options.

After a few of our White Russians, his girlfriend had still not returned. Our camp was in fairly dense woods, so we shouted her name in case she couldn’t see the fire. No response—we put on some Petzl Tikka Headlamps and started beating through the trees. The headlamps cast a bright enough light for mixing drinks but they proved a little dim for search and rescue. As dawn loomed we walked back to camp to see if she’d returned. My buddy opened his tent door to see if she was there but found only an enormous lump under the floor. He lifted up the tent and there she was. It seems she had passed out early in the evening, and we unwittingly pitched his tent in the dark—right on top of her.

Since our first trip was such a brilliant success, two weeks later we packed up for a canoe trip with the same group. Canoe trips are ideal because you can get away from everyone but still bring tons of stuff. We filled up our canoes with a couple Slumberjack Camp Chairs, some TRAVELCHAIRs, and a Slumberjack Camp Table.

Two items critical to a successful canoe trip, besides life jackets so you don’t drown, are growlers of beer from a brewpub and GSI’s Vortex Blender. Brewpub growlers are great because you get good beer and you don’t have to deal with packing out cans and bottles. GSI’s Vortex Blender clamps right to your table, so you can hand crank out some wilderness margaritas. GSI also makes Lexan Margarita Glasses; gone are the days of drinking out of your pots and pans. This time we made sure everyone got to their tent and no one ended up under our beached canoe.

Happy trails backcountry bartenders. Remember not to pack your dry ice in an airtight container and to always wear your headlamp when you’re setting up camp.