View Full Version : Camp alarms?
Has anyone every used any sort of camp alarm? Either trip wire around tent or pressure release switch activating a light or siren to warn against bears or whatever? Obviously a horrible idea at a shelter but for those who like to set up in out of the way places I can see it having a purpose.
i'm sure someone somewhere has done it. is it something many experienced backpackers do? i'd be surprised to learn it is.
Gambit McCrae
01-21-2019, 12:00
Had to check if this one was in the humor section....I have sat and given it some thought of what would be required to setup a security station around my tent...String and soup cans is all I can imagine in my head. It would also require a great deal more fear of wildlife then I personally have. my short answer is...no.
devoidapop
01-21-2019, 12:11
my cook pot, lid, and mug all go in my food bag at night. If a bear was to mess with my food, maybe the clanging of that stuff would wake me.
Decades ago I had a portable battery powered alarm with a proximity detector as a sensor.
Only once I tried to use it while stealth car camping in a southern country where we didn't feel really safe. Bad idea.
It made too many false alarms throughout the night, obviously detecting moving leaves, small animals or whatever - it robbed us the sleep instead of giving us a safe night.
Several days later we met an old French guy on his pilgrimage to Jerusalem who told us that a thief got some of his stuff the other night, so we were glad to hand him over the alarm device.
Never got to know if he got lucky using it or if it had been a Danean Present.
I haven’t carried claymores since I stopped hiking in the USMC. They did work well for large predators. The biggest threat now is them ticks. They like to sneak up without a sound.
Thom
MuddyWaters
01-21-2019, 14:10
Has anyone every used any sort of camp alarm? Either trip wire around tent or pressure release switch activating a light or siren to warn against bears or whatever? Obviously a horrible idea at a shelter but for those who like to set up in out of the way places I can see it having a purpose.
If you're too scared of bears seriously you need to stay home. You won't have fun.
bears gingerly step over your tent guy lines when they circle your tents sniffing you , trying to figure out how to get it that Snickers bar in your pocket. what makes you think they're going to hit a trip line?
You should camp GSMNP. The bears trying to jingle your food bag off the cables will give you plenty of notice.
lonehiker
01-21-2019, 14:32
Has anyone every used any sort of camp alarm? Either trip wire around tent or pressure release switch activating a light or siren to warn against bears or whatever? Obviously a horrible idea at a shelter but for those who like to set up in out of the way places I can see it having a purpose.
It has no purpose.
Traffic Jam
01-21-2019, 15:27
When staying in shelters, I have been known to lay my hiking pole next to me and extended beyond the platform, hoping that if a bear walks up, it will bump the pole and I will be alerted prior to it taking a bite out of my head.
soumodeler
01-21-2019, 15:28
I can't imagine any place in the US where an alarm would be necessary, save urban camping in Chicago!
Slo-go'en
01-21-2019, 15:32
I've considered making a backpackers electric fence. Wouldn't be all that hard to do. Can probably keep it under a pound.
Decades ago I had a portable battery powered alarm with a proximity detector as a sensor.
Only once I tried to use it while stealth car camping in a southern country where we didn't feel really safe. Bad idea.
It made too many false alarms throughout the night, obviously detecting moving leaves, small animals or whatever - it robbed us the sleep instead of giving us a safe night.
Several days later we met an old French guy on his pilgrimage to Jerusalem who told us that a thief got some of his stuff the other night, so we were glad to hand him over the alarm device.
Never got to know if he got lucky using it or if it had been a Danean Present.
Leo - Danean Present? A present that really isn't a present, wanted or appreciated?
Google doesn't even know.
Puddlefish
01-21-2019, 16:13
One of the two nights I spent in a shelter was sleepless. One guy caused all the drama. Among his gifts to us that night he wore some sort of medical monitoring device, that beeped if certain conditions were met. The problem was, that he was somewhat hard of hearing, the monitor fell off his wrist and beeped for an hour, and he couldn't hear it. He was the only one in the shelter that couldn't hear it.
So, if you do wear some type of medical alarm, be certain it alerts you in a manner that you can actually sense.
Proximity alarm. Hell no. You just know that the owner would hit the wrong button, forget about it, move around themselves, set it off, sleep through it and annoy everyone else within miles. It's like car alarms, they go off, everyone ignores them, gets annoyed, and they prevent zero car thefts, because they're so common.
Gambit McCrae
01-21-2019, 16:38
Leo - Danean Present? A present that really isn't a present, wanted or appreciated?
Google doesn't even know.
I googled it too, came up with nothin
Has anyone every used any sort of camp alarm? Either trip wire around tent or pressure release switch activating a light or siren to warn against bears or whatever? Obviously a horrible idea at a shelter but for those who like to set up in out of the way places I can see it having a purpose.
I only camp in WAY out of the way places. Zero trouble with critters of any size. What tent? I don’t always set up a shelter.
Another question which makes me wonder “Why?”
Whatever floats your boat is fine for you.
Cheers!
Wayne
4eyedbuzzard
01-21-2019, 16:58
Has anyone every used any sort of camp alarm? Either trip wire around tent or pressure release switch activating a light or siren to warn against bears or whatever? Obviously a horrible idea at a shelter but for those who like to set up in out of the way places I can see it having a purpose.
I've considered making a backpackers electric fence. Wouldn't be all that hard to do. Can probably keep it under a pound.
Ultralight electric security fence for bears? About 3.7 lbs https://www.cabelas.com/product/UDAP...ce/1242284.uts (https://www.cabelas.com/product/UDAP-Bear-Electric-Fence/1242284.uts)
It's shocking what people will buy :D
Setting up an NDP (Nightime defense perimeter) for bears is pretty absurd for the AT where ticks are the most dangerous critters and the biggest animal dangers are dogs. Some parts of the western US, especially thinking of Alaska, might warrant such extremes, but if bears are that much of a threat, it becomes a whole different preparedness level - one that should include a 12 gauge loaded with slugs as well.
Worried about "Charlie in the wire". Back in Nam we would run a wire around our position and hook it to a flare that has it's pin half pulled. Don't make it too tight or the wind will set it off, Learned that one the hard way....
Ultralight electric security fence for bears? About 3.7 lbs https://www.cabelas.com/product/UDAP...ce/1242284.uts (https://www.cabelas.com/product/UDAP-Bear-Electric-Fence/1242284.uts)
It's shocking what people will buy :D
Setting up an NDP (Nightime defense perimeter) for bears is pretty absurd for the AT where ticks are the most dangerous critters and the biggest animal dangers are dogs. Some parts of the western US, especially thinking of Alaska, might warrant such extremes, but if bears are that much of a threat, it becomes a whole different preparedness level - one that should include a 12 gauge loaded with slugs as well.
Haven't thought about NDPs in ages. Fortunately I missed VN, we worried about the Russians coming across the IGB.
Kittyslayer
01-21-2019, 18:59
Step 1) Alarm goes off.
Step 2) ????
...activating a light or siren to warn against bears or whatever?
And when the alarm goes off what are you going to do? Are you going to wrestle the bear or bad guy? Do you have an effective weapon? Are you camping with someone who runs slower than you? Do you have a priest on call to give you your last rights? Who you gonna call? 1-800-555-2368 or 867-5309
wordstew
01-21-2019, 19:14
Just put a rock next to you when you go to sleep. It has zero weight penalty
Step 1) Alarm goes off.
Step 2) ????
And when the alarm goes off what are you going to do? Are you going to wrestle the bear or bad guy? Do you have an effective weapon? Are you camping with someone who runs slower than you? Do you have a priest on call to give you your last rights? Who you gonna call? 1-800-555-2368 or 867-5309
Ummm.. same thing a person would do anytime a bear strolls into camp? Throw rocks? make noise?
ETA; assuming the noise/light didn't already run it off.
Probably work for ******* hikers too.
FreeGoldRush
01-21-2019, 19:37
Once I saw trekking poles laying on the ground in a perfect X at the entrance to a tent. Wondered if it was intended to be the bear alarm.
Easier to set up a perimeter alarm system based on motion sensors. Triangulate three sensors with your camp centered in it and connect to an alarm app on your smart phone. I've installed similar motion detectors as part of landscape and ground security protections from deer and the 2 legged animal species. As motion is detected a sprinkler comes on or a dog recording or You Are Now Trespassing: the Police have been Notified audibly engages.
I've seen similar detection systems based on taking photography or a video. It's what traffic LE uses to catch speeders and those who run through red lights. I've seen them sold for about $80+ in Cabelas and Bass Pro Shops marketed to hunters. Legal Cannabis agricultural growers use such systems to protect their outdoor crops. At HD and Lowes you'll find similar based residential security systems.
On several farms(non cannabis) we had perimeter electric fences to contain stock and keep out predators.
imscotty
01-21-2019, 21:10
I've considered making a backpackers electric fence. Wouldn't be all that hard to do. Can probably keep it under a pound.
Them 12 volt car batteries are mighty heavy Slo...
Ultralight electric security fence for bears? About 3.7 lbs https://www.cabelas.com/product/UDAP...ce/1242284.uts (https://www.cabelas.com/product/UDAP-Bear-Electric-Fence/1242284.uts)
It's shocking what people will buy :D
Setting up an NDP (Nightime defense perimeter) for bears is pretty absurd for the AT where ticks are the most dangerous critters and the biggest animal dangers are dogs. Some parts of the western US, especially thinking of Alaska, might warrant such extremes, but if bears are that much of a threat, it becomes a whole different preparedness level - one that should include a 12 gauge loaded with slugs as well.
I think it was a Survivorman episode a bunch of years back. He used something just like this on a horseback adventure. Used the fence for the horses....I think it was bear country and if I'm remembering correctly it was to keep the horses in AND to keep the bears out.
Ummm.. same thing a person would do anytime a bear strolls into camp? Throw rocks? make noise?
ETA; assuming the noise/light didn't already run it off.
Probably work for ******* hikers too.
i have little doubt the odds are fair that one night while i was asleep in my tent a bear may have passed close by, perhaps even stopped and checked it out.
its really best for all parties potentially involved that an alarm didnt go off and wake me up so i could throw rocks at it.
Had to check if this one was in the humor section....I have sat and given it some thought of what would be required to setup a security station around my tent...String and soup cans is all I can imagine in my head. It would also require a great deal more fear of wildlife then I personally have. my short answer is...no.
Ditto!
Hang food...
Don't piss off fellow hikers...
_______________________
Fine!
bighammer
01-22-2019, 02:12
If you're too scared of bears seriously you need to stay home. You won't have fun.
bears gingerly step over your tent guy lines when they circle your tents sniffing you , trying to figure out how to get it that Snickers bar in your pocket. what makes you think they're going to hit a trip line?
I kept my food in a Lok-Sak in my tent. It worked great except for one night when I remembered a partial bag of peanut M&M's and got them out. Very short time later I heard a bear circling my tent so close, I thought it would trip and bring it down.
I googled it too, came up with nothin
it’s all Greek to me.
Leo - Danean Present? A present that really isn't a present, wanted or appreciated?
Google doesn't even know.
Sorry, I've got the word wrong, its called DANAOS in English.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeo_Danaos_et_dona_ferentes
A Danaos Present is a gift that looks good at the first glance, but has some hidden bad points.
Like the Horse of Troy, which gave the name for this.
Traveler
01-22-2019, 08:36
I liked the siren idea, perhaps a nice dual tone, 156 db, omni-directional siren with klaxon horn partition between cycles would suffice for adequate warning of most anything that comes into camp from a chipmunk to a Force 5 tornado. I'm sure those within a 4 mile radius would appreciate your concern for intruders.
As an aside, I didn't know the Trojan Horse was named "Danao". The only "Danao" I had ever heard about was a nebbish in the TV show Hawaii-50 who was unceremoniously handed criminals to book incessantly as Steve McGarrett looked steely eyed into a setting sun, plotting his next move against Wo Fat.
If worried bring a dog .
Thom
bigcranky
01-22-2019, 09:51
My first thought when I read the original post was "Claymore mines." Man, that was a long time ago. I was too young for Viet Nam, we worried more about the Russians and the N Koreans. The more things change....
Traffic Jam
01-22-2019, 10:03
I kept my food in a Lok-Sak in my tent. It worked great except for one night when I remembered a partial bag of peanut M&M's and got them out. Very short time later I heard a bear circling my tent so close, I thought it would trip and bring it down.
What did you do with the M&M’s? Take them out of the Lok-Sak or put them inside? Or maybe you ate them? That’s what I’d have done. :)
TexasBob
01-22-2019, 10:21
I saw a show on TV about some folks who were doing some scientific work in serious polar bear country. They had a wire set up around their camp that would set off shotgun shells to scare off a bear if a bear tried to cross the wire.
Kind of like this : https://www.spitsbergen-svalbard.com/2011/10/05/polar-bear-alarm-fence.html
Gambit McCrae
01-22-2019, 13:42
I was just thinkin, 1 could gather up a handful or two of live rattlesnake. Place them around their campsite and they will wake ya up if there are any issues in the night. tread lightly for bathroom breaks of course
rmitchell
01-22-2019, 14:54
The Rocky Top trail crew that I worked on in 2016 used an electric fence around the kitchen area. It was charged by a 12v marine battery. It didn't encompass the sleeping area. Just the important stuff (food).
We had the luxury of a weekly resupply by horse.
No bear problem the week I was there.
Gambit McCrae
01-22-2019, 16:16
The Rocky Top trail crew that I worked on in 2016 used an electric fence around the kitchen area. It was charged by a 12v marine battery. It didn't encompass the sleeping area. Just the important stuff (food).
We had the luxury of a weekly resupply by horse.
No bear problem the week I was there.
Now that I think about it, they do this in Roan, and the smokies as well I have seen in it Grayson Highlands for tenting, shelters, and food storage locations
MtDoraDave
01-23-2019, 08:07
Has anyone every used any sort of camp alarm? Either trip wire around tent or pressure release switch activating a light or siren to warn against bears or whatever? Obviously a horrible idea at a shelter but for those who like to set up in out of the way places I can see it having a purpose.
When I first started hiking, I hung my food bag with bear bells dangling from the bottom of it. I was more worried about raccoons getting into my food than anything else, and my thought was that I'd hear the bells and wake up, then run off the offending critter.
I slept poorly for the first several trips on the AT, my heightened sense of hearing focusing in on every squirrel jostling leaves, every acorn or branch falling out of a tree, the mysterious sound of trees rubbing together when the breeze kicked up a bit, and other unidentified noises - each time wondering if it was a bear.
Eventually, after reading a LOT about it here and through links, as well as getting some experience out there, I have come to accept that bears aren't really something that I need to lose sleep over... and raccoons only seem to be a problem in busy car camping campgrounds.
peakbagger
01-23-2019, 09:30
An alarm would not work for me very well as I typically sleep with earplugs, otherwise I cant get to sleep and get woken up frequently. On the rare times I stayed in crowded shelters they were a great help.
The electric fence for polar bears and dense grizzly country are used, not always with success, there was artic researcher from Maine several years ago that got severely mauled in the Artic by a polar bear that apparently walked right through the fence. I have run of the mill black bears in my area and they were getting into my berry bushes. I talked to a local expert and he recommended a high voltage fence and training the bears that the fence is there. The trick is to take strips of tin foil with peanut butter on them and wrap them around the fence wires before the berries are ripe and then leave the fence on. The bear will come up and smell the peanut butter and try to lick it off. That trains the bear that there is fence there. After a season or two I didn't need to turn on the fence, as long as the wires were in place they left the berries alone. On the other hand beekeepers have to use two sets of fences plus train the bears with peanut butter and even then they on occasion will get raided.
This discussion reminded me of the book CONGO by Michael Crichton. High tech gizmos in the Wilderness aren’t always effective.
Wayne
HooKooDooKu
01-23-2019, 12:16
I've considered making a backpackers electric fence. Wouldn't be all that hard to do. Can probably keep it under a pound.Them 12 volt car batteries are mighty heavy Slo...
Perhaps that's why he's Slo-go'en
perdidochas
01-23-2019, 14:08
Has anyone every used any sort of camp alarm? Either trip wire around tent or pressure release switch activating a light or siren to warn against bears or whatever? Obviously a horrible idea at a shelter but for those who like to set up in out of the way places I can see it having a purpose.
Go to BushCraft USA and search for that topic. I read something about that there. I don't see it as being all that practical, I think it's better to just learn to face your fears.
If you're too scared of bears seriously you need to stay home. You won't have fun.
bears gingerly step over your tent guy lines when they circle your tents sniffing you , trying to figure out how to get it that Snickers bar in your pocket. what makes you think they're going to hit a trip line?
Yep. Actually, what is needed is a scent scanner that alarms you to any food scents around you. If you're sufficiently human stinky, you're good since they naturally repel bears and other wildlife that don't like humans. However, get some food, or even toiletry scents in the mix and you replace fear instinct for the bear with food instinct.
Step 1) Alarm goes off.
Step 2) ????
Who you gonna call? 1-800-555-2368 or 867-5309
Ghostbusters or Jenny?
This discussion reminded me of the book CONGO by Michael Crichton. High tech gizmos in the Wilderness aren’t always effective.
Good book, terrible movie.
Good book, terrible movie.
Yep! Agreed!
Wayne
evyck da fleet
01-24-2019, 21:30
Ha. I’d forget about the alarm and set it off during a midnight pee break. That would keep me up more than worrying about bears squirrels etc.
My first thought when I read the original post was "Claymore mines." Man, that was a long time ago. I was too young for Viet Nam, we worried more about the Russians and the N Koreans. The more things change....
After not thinking about this stuff for years, today I saw a guy using a Claymore bag for a man purse.
I’ve got a clacker somewhere in my “stuff”, all I need is the rest.
3.5 pounds would be a little bit heavy for the trail. Definitely not LNT if you used it.
Ha. I’d forget about the alarm and set it off during a midnight pee break. That would keep me up more than worrying about bears squirrels etc.
Pee breaks and electric fences don't work well together. Don't ask me how I know that.
Let me guess - when you was a boy, your neighbouring farmer had an electric fence around his property?
We had one case here when young drunks aimed their pee from a footbridge down to the railway powerlines.
One guy hit, and didn't need an alarm any more.
thruseeker
01-28-2019, 12:35
Buy one of your camping lights with a motion sensor and chime. They are cheap and light and small but bright. Good peace of mind. There are also campsite perimeter wireless video with audio monitoring alarms.
Sent from my SM-G892U using Tapatalk
bighammer
01-28-2019, 12:42
I employ a bellowing foghorn that goes off 2 to 3 times per minute.
imscotty
01-28-2019, 13:26
Let me guess - when you was a boy, your neighbouring farmer had an electric fence around his property?
We had one case here when young drunks aimed their pee from a footbridge down to the railway powerlines.
One guy hit, and didn't need an alarm any more.
Yikes! That is horrific.
Motion sensing light did cross my mind but the more I thought about it a battery wired to a small light and buzzer with a normally closed push button switch set in some sort of housing. Probably weigh +/- 2 ounces. Just set the bear keg on top, it would activate when the canister moved off of it.
A simple way to notify a person if something was after their food even if it was just a raccoon or skunk. Might run it off, might give a chance to toss a few rocks or at the very least you get to watch the show.
nsherry61
01-28-2019, 21:31
An alarm would not work for me very well as I typically sleep with earplugs. . .
Then what you do is set up the alarm to shock you instead of the intruder.
MtDoraDave
01-29-2019, 08:02
Though not practical or necessary on the AT, I've seen simple trip wire systems using a clothes pin. Very simple, not heavy, and when the trip wire is pulled, the "alarm" can be an led light that won't make a bunch of noise that would wake up other campers, but would probably scare away a critter.
Google "clothes pin tripwire".
*HOWEVER*
One place online where I was reading about it, a poster suggested that if the authorities were to find your tripwire, the bomb squad would be called in, and it would probably end up being a bad day for you. You see, if a tripwire is found, a prudent person isn't going to walk around looking for the rest of your system, they are going to back up the way they came, not knowing if you have other booby traps set up or how serious your "alarm(s)" are.
So the idea of McGuyvering a trip wire system to alert you of an intruder should probably be left behind.