bears/bear canister

[Jim Adams]

On the AT your biggest food problem is mice not bears. The cannister would solve that problem for sure but I wouldn't carry mine on the AT...I hated using it on the PCT where you actually needed it.

geek

[Jim Adams]

BTW, Had a local man mauled by a bear tonight about 4 miles from the station I am working in. Had to fly him to Pittsburgh.

geek

[blitz1]

BTW, Had a local man mauled by a bear tonight about 4 miles from the station I am working in. Had to fly him to Pittsburgh.

geek

was he sleeping in a tent with his food at the time?

[daddytwosticks]

I use an Ursak Minor bag and hang my food to keep it away from mice and other critters. The bag weighs about 3 or 4 ounces.

[Sterling]

glad hear some good feedback. i guess the canister is a bit overkill for most people hiking the AT. Though it does seem reasonable for at least a few parts of the trail based on some of the responses. All in all I guess it comes down to personal preference, and what kinds of experiences you have had with bears. At this point im pretty sure im still gonna carry it, but that may change. It was great to hear everyones input and experiences regarding bears.

[TACKLE]

Leave the canister at home and learn the PCT method. No worries...

http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-...technique.html

Thanks for the link. I always wondered how to do the PCT method. Like you said,it looks easier. I'm gonna go try it now. Although I'll miss that after dinner sport of hanging my food bag.

[RichardD]

I am hiking the AT right now, zero in Franklin today. There have been a LOT of people this year who have lost their food to bears. I don't know how well they hung their food but it was taken. The report is that some were even lost from bear cables at shelters.
We have hung food from trees twice, the rest of the time from cables, we took a lot of trouble to hang food between two trees rather than from a branch and have had no problems. That said, if I knew at the start of the hike that so many were losing food I would have brought my cannister with me, I would feel a lot more comfortable knowing I would have food in the morning.
Many hikers have resorted to sleeping with their food, I know that MOST of the time you are secure doing this, but its not for me.
I have only seen one person using a cannister and he is very happy that he has it.

[ChinMusic]

I am hiking the AT right now, zero in Franklin today. There have been a LOT of people this year who have lost their food to bears. I don't know how well they hung their food but it was taken. The report is that some were even lost from bear cables at shelters.

Aside from the problems of lost food for the hikers, that creates problem bears which often leads to their death.

I didn't know bears were defeating some cables for crying out loud. Those things are installed by folks that know a thing or two about bears. I don't know how the bears would do that. If that becomes commonplace I'll quit using those too.

If I were not comfortable with food in my tent I might consider the can.

[mountainboogey]

Just wanted to see what kind of unfortunate/nightmarish encounters people have had throughout various states along the AT with bears. I have hiked a good number of miles on the AT in PA, NJ, NH, and ME. I have never had an encounter in ME,NH, or PA, but I have had a food bag ripped down from solid hang in NJ (near catfish pond).

I have also had two hellacious experiences in the high peaks of the Adirondacks with some of the most evolved black bears you would ever care to see. I have never been back to the high peaks because you literally have to run a gauntlet of bears and rangers for the duration of your trip. I hope someone can back me on that one.

Anyway, shortly after the last daks trip i bought a bear canister, and have had zero issues. It is bulky, kind of expensive, and adds 2-3 pounds to your load. Let me tell you none of that matters to me. Here is why:

-no stress when you get into camp having to throw a hang.
-no stress going to sleep wondering if you will have food in the morning
-the bear canister is also a seat
-did i mention no stress

Also wanted to see who will have a bear canister on the AT.

Going SOBO mid june.

I always (and have to) use it in the ADKs. No issues so far, but it looks like a curious fella took a bite. Ive never seen a bear in the ADKs but plenty of prints and scat.
Im not sure about the AT though. Im planning a NOBO next year and will at least be using an Ursack. If there was a lighter option than my Garcia canister, I would deff consider it though. Just for peace of mind anyway...

[ScottP]

Bears will eventually learn to get food down from most cable systems. It sounds like bear boxes are going to have to be installed in problem areas and more land is going to have to be opened up to bear hunting.

[ChinMusic]

Bears will eventually learn to get food down from most cable systems. It sounds like bear boxes are going to have to be installed in problem areas and more land is going to have to be opened up to bear hunting.

Why was there a decision to go with bear cables over bear boxes in the first place? Is it a cost issue? logistics?

[WingedMonkey]

Why was there a decision to go with bear cables over bear boxes in the first place? Is it a cost issue? logistics?

Probably because they become trash boxes instead of food boxes. They also require almost as much construction and hauling of materials as a miniature shelter.

[LDog]

Leave the canister at home and learn the PCT method. No worries...

Not Miss Janet's recent experience:
http://whiteblaze.net/forum/showthread.php?t=71251

[WingedMonkey]

more land is going to have to be opened up to bear hunting.

I'm not against hunting about every one in my family hunts. Bear hunting is allowed on almost all public lands in North Georgia and hundreds of bears are harvested. It will never be allowed in SMNP.
Most bears killed in North Georgia are killed by deer hunters who are a bit on the lazy side and sitting in tree stands when they spot a bear by accident.
Most hunters are not going to walk miles into the woods and up ridges to kill a bear that weighs 200 to 300 pounds they have to drag or cary back to the truck. They don't drag easy.
It's not a bear problem on the trail, it's a people problem.

[vamelungeon]

It's actually a problem of bears not being afraid of people. That's the crux of the issue.

[ChinMusic]

It's actually a problem of bears not being afraid of people. That's the crux of the issue.

IMO they only become less afraid once they gain success at stealing poorly hung food and nothing bad happens to them.

IMO, without the reward of poorly hung food they remain afraid.

[ScottP]

I believe that cables are far cheaper than getting bearboxes into the backcountry.

I can't really speak on wildlife and hunting issues with any sort of expertise, but from a hiker perspective, animal behavior is significantly different in areas where hunting is allowed, hunting dog training is allowed, and the wildlife is 'protected.'

The idea of 'natural and uninterfered processes' is pretty much a joke. I'm not sure why our parks are categorically closed to hunting, but I don't think that they should be. IMO the function of allowing/expanding hunting is more to change animal behavior than it is to change animal populations.

[RichardD]

The story from those who lost their food off the bear cables, apparently the bear shook the cables until the food packs fell off the hooks. Many shelters have bear lines with carabiners on the food end as well as the securing end but some only have hooks at the food end. Carabiners both ends would likely be a cheap and easy fix that should work.
One hiker watched as one bear pushed the tree while the second bear grabbed the food bag, if his tale is true then my guess is that cannisters are likely going to be required sometime in the future as they are in the Sierras.
Another hiker watched as a bear walked up to his line and with one swipe cut the line at the attachment point and the bags fell to the ground.
Another story a bear crawled out along the limb to which the line was attached and swiped the line, cutting it and the food fell to the ground (PCT method would not have helped here).

[TIDE-HSV]

The Big Creek ranger used to have a photo of a bear stretched out along the cable. One back paw was at the tree. The other back paw was on top of the cable as was one front paw, while he reached for the bag. The bear baffle didn't faze him. They have modified the cables as they've gained more experience. One drawback to the cables is the mice climb the cable from the tree. I have a hole in the bottom of a new pack now. I'd left the unused cables hanging. One of my friends, being a neat and tidy engineer didn't like that, and, after I'd gone to bed, he hooked up the empty one, snugging it up against the bottom of my pack and forming a mouse highway...