Food storage in Bear Country

[macuaig]

It’s weird how so many discussions (elsewhere, anyway), freely confuse the two reasons for securing food - preventing loss of your food vs avoiding attracting a bear. I guess since neither is 100% effective, you just try anything you can. But when it gets to “he beat it up but couldn’t open it”, well, that’s just a more pissed-off bear.

 

[Flyelk1]

Just a hint on the bear cans. If you go that route, I highly recommend getting stick on reflectors or some bright tape to put on them.

Don’t ask how I know that this helps immensely when trying to locate the cans after a bear has batted them around and moved them to who knows where at night.

 

[stevo_pct]

It’s weird how so many discussions (elsewhere, anyway), freely confuse the two reasons for securing food - preventing loss of your food vs avoiding attracting a bear. I guess since neither is 100% effective, you just try anything you can. But when it gets to “he beat it up but couldn’t open it”, well, that’s just a more pissed-off bear.

I think the emphasis should be on preventing the bear from getting your food. That and making sure there is no food where you are sleeping for obvious reasons. With respect to attracting a bear, the bear knows you're there. If you're having a camp fire, cooking bacon, doing whatever and you're 50 yards away from your camp, the bear will put two and two together. And if you're in a Forest Service campground you have no choice - it's all happening in the same place and you can't help it. It's obvious to the bear where the people are and that they have food. Your clothes will smell of food even if you cook away from camp. Everything around your camp will smell of food and humans.

The better approach (IMO) is to keep a really clean camp and make sure everything is put away and locked. That way, if a bear does decide to come check out your camp, he doesn't find anything and moves on. And more importantly he doesn't become habituated for the next campers.

When I was backpacking a lot, a good trick I used was to stop and make dinner (which when backpacking was usually very simple rehydrated food, mac and cheese, etc), and then hike a couple more miles before making camp for the night. That way there was no cooking anywhere near my camp.

 

[aknightinak]

On wild creatures entering vehicles.... decades ago a buddy left the door open. On returning he saw a Cougar IN his car.... He slammed the door.... big mistake by the time Park Rangers let the cat out his car was a write off...

One of my coworkers shot these (slideshow at bottom of story) a few years ago at the most visited trailhead in the city. IIRC the soft cooler the bear was after had a forgotten PB&J that had been warming in the sun for some time.

 

[Skinny06]

PNW based here: I use a surplus hardigg case for my dry goods, and a cooler for things that need to be kept cool. I try to keep both containers some distance away from the tent, usually just in the truck bed. Now with a RTT I'll be re-thinking where they are kept.

At night my trash and recycle bags get tied up and put on the floor of the truck (on waterproof floor mats)

Zero issues so far, with pests or bears. You can sometimes find great condition hardiggs for about $100, though I haven't looked since I bought mine a couple years ago.

 

[Lmg]

I am glad that the importance of locking your vehicle has been mentioned above, probably at least twice. But in areas where bears are used to raiding camper's food, they can now operate the door handle, or worse yet, just tear off the door.

Google Search

 

[Jeepncj7]

I think the emphasis should be on preventing the bear from getting your food. That and making sure there is no food where you are sleeping for obvious reasons.

That is where my head is at as well. All I keep reading about is that bears can smell the contents in a cooler that is inside a car. I would have to imagine inside a car it does lessen it to some extent, but they have to know we are there. I'm going to focus on lessoning the smells from items in the cooler (bagging things up), and keep a clean and tidy separate cooking area and site.

Now with a RTT I'll be re-thinking where they are kept.

Yeah that's where this has gotten more complicated for me. Vehicle based camping has its perks, but now the decision is if you want to use your vehicle as storage and concentrate food smells there, or keep it separate. I'm personally going separate to try and avoid my vehicle as the area with the concentrated food smells. All of this is out of an abundance of caution. Like you no issues so far, but with a kiddo now I worry about everything haha.

 

[Lmg]

The Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee does the certifications for bear resistant products.
This looks like the latest list.

https://igbconline.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/221214_Certified_Products_List.pdf

If you watch the video, you will see that the testers are actually bears.

 

[AbleGuy]

Just a hint on the bear cans. If you go that route, I highly recommend getting stick on reflectors or some bright tape to put on them.

Don’t ask how I know that this helps immensely when trying to locate the cans after a bear has batted them around and moved them to who knows where at night.

Sounds like some good advice, based on personal experience!

But I dunno,for me?

If it’s pitch black outside and a big, hungry bear has been in my camp and knocked my food storage bins off into the woods nearby, and that bruin is now frustratedly pissed off (per one above member’s caution), I’m certainly not gonna go out and start wandering around in the dark with my flashlight looking for those food bins….that definitely is gonna wait until sunrise!

 

[Jeepncj7]

The Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee does the certifications for bear resistant products.
This looks like the latest list.

https://igbconline.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/221214_Certified_Products_List.pdf

If you watch the video, you will see that the testers are actually bears.

That's a great resource. I looked at that yesterday and saw the cheaper lifetime cooler actually did really well. That is what I am referencing for my search right now. It's tough to get through the marketing fluff from some of the companies, and this is much better.

 

[Lmg]

Most of the certified products are expensive. The attached document tells you how to modify a military storage box for use as a bear resistant container. There are 2 versions, and they are already tested and approved.

 

[AbleGuy]

With so many of the homeless living dispersed in the woods and leaving their huge piles of garage around their abandoned camps

creating a higher risk of habituated bears, it’s a good idea to scout any area you plan to camp in for signs of that activity nearby.

Picture is of a ‘living wild’ camp near Durango that attracted bears resulting at least one attack.

 

[Jeepncj7]

Most of the certified products are expensive. The attached document tells you how to modify a military storage box for use as a bear resistant container. There are 2 versions, and they are already tested and approved.

Yeah they are pretty spendy. I'm looking the used route, but will take a look at this.

For anyone interested in a chemical deterrent, pine sol or other ammonia based (non sweet smelling) or bleach based cleaners does apparently help (but not a primary deterrent). May be worth using as part of a cleanup process or around trash/coolers as part of your kit.

https://www.bearbiology.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Miller_Gary_D_Vol_7.pdf

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&sou...oQFnoECBYQBg&usg=AOvVaw2uJzB7yE_2fNwEfvClr6Gc

[/URL]

 

[driveby]

A habituated bear will rip into your vehicle if it wants to. Period. I think ultimately doing your best and keeping yourself as separated as you can is the best you can realistically do. For those curious, the West Yellowstone Grizzly and Wolf center is one of the places they test. I've personally seen the damage those bears can do. Stuff you'd think is impossible is ripped open like tinfoil. https://grizzlyctr.givecloud.co/product-testing

 

[DCH109]

Lots of bear country in BC

For those who are not from BC (I grew up there), that is a BC'ers way of saying "All of BC is bear country" LOL.

When I was in Wyoming and Montana last year, I knew I would be in bear country I ended up getting a Zarges case for dry storage Zarges K470 # 40568 - IGBC Certification No. 5398. Locked with either a padlock (there are ones that fit) or the Zarges locks are great.
Cold storage, I have a Cabelas Polar Cap cooler with a pad lock, I have had for a few years that is bear proof and on the IGBC list.