You could also use dry ice. It's common enough to get at the grocery store. We never use it for it intended purpose though.

We always got a couple blocks of ice (one 5lbs and one 10lbs). Kept 5-7 people's worth of food edible for a full 5 days no problem. Dry is is probably overkill

A cooler and keeping it well iced will generally do ok. But if you want to do that you can also just front load the eating schedule. Eat the shrimp the first night and the eggplant parmesan the last.

You can buy vacuum packed milk and egg product if you find the right store. (Powdered milk is also generally good enough for camp cooking; powdered eggs not so much especially since it is easy to keep them for a long weekend trip.)

There're also some stores somewhat available so you can get certain fresh ingredients (at a significant markup).

For space, consider repacking your dry ingredients in ziploc bags to reduce wasted packaging space. Dried fruits and vegetables are good as well.

Dry ice has added benefits for ghost story night. Who is bringing the hook?

I guess I am too used to camping with kids (3-7) and dry ice is avoided. Also, when traditional ice is used and it melts, you don't drain the water - it helps to keep things cooler and for longer than if you do drain it.

I've never had problems with food going bad using a cooler and standard ice. We tend to have separate coolers for drinks (opened frequently) and food (opened infrequently).

Oh, and I'm willing to be on the hook for providing a communal meal (dinner please, I don't generally eat breakfast) but with my meat restrictions I'm going to just assume that I may have to make my own dinner on any other nights.

Plus, since I frequently only eat once a day I tend to eat very large dinners so I don't really want to have to worry about portion size and fairness to the larger group.

Kevy, can you add your name to the Wiki with the date you will be camping, please?

When we go camping, I make lots of stuff before hand that gets sealed up in boil bags and then frozen. It does double duty as cold-making accessory until it's chow time, when it goes in the pot o' boiling water.

oh, duh. I hadnt thought of that.

ok...so Capt Jacks world famous Tomato Alfredo is on the menu. (ok, maybe not world famous but its pretty durn good, even if I do say so myself)

Well, there goes my farfalle with chicken & asparagus in vodka sauce plans...