Iced Tea in the Wilderness (Sun Tea)

Here in Texas, iced tea is always available – there’s a pitcher of tea in the refrigerator at all times and tall icey glasses are served at every restaurant. And yes, we also drink tea in the backcountry!

For years people in the South have been making sun tea. It’s an easy way to make tea of any variety without the need to turn on the stove and this same no-heat method works well in the wilderness too. Plus it makes for a refreshing change from Tang and Gatorade!

Here’s how you do it:

1. Fill a Nalgene with cool filtered water.
2. Use 2-3 tea bags per quart (32 oz) of water.
3. Remove the paper tags from the tea bags and place the bags into the water-filled Nalgene. Give it a gentle shake to hasten the bags in becoming saturated with water.
4. Place the Nalgene in the sun to brew for at least 2 hours or until water is infused with the color of "tea.".
5. Remove tea bags. Stir in a little honey or sugar if you like your tea sweetened. Chill in a cool stream or enjoy as is!

You can do this with traditional black tea bags, herbal teas - or a mixture of each. One of our favorite blends is Black Tea + Earl Grey + Red Zinger. Sprinkle with a bit of True Lemon or Lime for an additional punch. We usually prep sun tea while we’re setting up camp so that by the time dinner is ready, we have a lovely glass of tea to go with!