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What is the best way going about hanging up a bear bag on a thru hike??
Is it even necessary?
Will any old bag (compression bag or so) work? Or would a bear canister be advised??
I know bears arent very prominent. And I will be protecting against rodents and other critters more.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you!
Cya out there!
~ClassY
Google the PCT Method
I prefer the ease of the Ursack. It weighs a bit more than a stuff sack, but it's so quick to tie up and remove.
Here's a pretty good video of the PCT method (http://thebackpacker.tv/2010/03/24/the-pct-method-hanging-a-bear-bag)and second alternative.
Or check out this webpage (http://www.wildernesstrip.com/Articles/default.asp?id=10) for two additional methods.
As far as the bags themselves, I used a Sea-to-Summit Ultra-Sil Dry 20 Sack on last years thru and loved it. A bear canister on the AT is overkill to me.
I really liked this article (http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/bear_bag_hanging_technique.html)explaining how to do it.
garlic08
11-29-2010, 10:39
I agree that food should be hung and I always do it. 40' of paracord or similar (good to have anyway for emergency gear repair) and a silnylon food sack are all you need. If (big if) you have a good throwing arm, it's a two-minute chore.
If you can't throw a rock, you might reconsider. There are some who say there's no need to hang, just as some (like me) say there's no need to treat your water (usually). If (big if) you stay well away from shelters and crowded camping/cooking areas, there's probably no need to hang.
Big Dawg
11-29-2010, 11:01
I sleep w/ my food, and have never had a problem.
Here's a recent Whiteblaze thread regarding similar topic.... http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/showthread.php?t=66797&highlight=bear+bag
rip waverly
11-29-2010, 12:08
If hanging, +1 on the PCT method. I use 50ft. Dynaglide.
Hey!
Thanks for the replies!
very helpful and informative.
hopefully thin and light cord will be able to hold 10-12lbs max of food after a resupply.
Thanks again!
~ClassY
bigcranky
11-29-2010, 12:35
Be careful about what cord you use -- some very thin cords can cut into the tree branch and get stuck -- and having your food stuck in a tree is suboptimal. When I am required to hang, I like the fat Spectra cord from BPL.
I switched to an Ursack six years ago. It's a couple of ounces heavier than the lightest bear bag/hanging line combo, but the convenience and total rodent-proof-ness is well worth it to me. Just makes life a lot easier.
Be careful about what cord you use -- some very thin cords can cut into the tree branch and get stuck
That would suck. Is this rope a good choice? http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/aircore_pro_ursalite_bear_bag_hanging_cord
I just bought a ZPacks food bag. Weighs less than an oz. This from ZPacks.com (http://www.zpacks.com/accessories/stuff_sacks.shtml):
"The material is even rodent resistant-
'On several occasions I've seen mice check out my Blast food bag and eventually give up. I let one persistent mouse chew on it for the entire night- by morning he had done some minor damage but did not get into my food.'"
And I tried the PCT method. Hate it. I just pull it up and tie it off at the nearest tree. I had a bad experience with the PCT method, once. My carabiner actually clipped itself to my food bag, 10 feet up in the air. I spent over 20 mins pulling and yanking until the carabiner finally bent enough to free itself. Nope, no PCT for me.
I got that Zpacks food too. Very nice. Cuben fiber is amazing stuff.
bigcranky
11-29-2010, 22:42
That would suck. Is this rope a good choice? http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/aircore_pro_ursalite_bear_bag_hanging_cord
That's the stuff I use when I need to hang. Expensive, but very slippery (good) and thick enough that it's easy to pull a heavy food bag up into a tree (also good.)
But I prefer the Ursack.
I hung my food most nights and used about 40 ft. of paracord. Sometimes I'd tie the rope around a rock to throw over a branch and other times used a small stuff sack of rocks. I had a carabiner tied to the other end of the rope which I used to hook my food bag onto the cord. Pull it up (I think the rule is something like 10 feet off the ground, 5 feet from the trunk and 5 feet from the branch it's hanging from) and tie the other end around a separate tree than what your food is hung from.
I (knowingly) had a bear try to get my hanging food once. It was not successful. Mice, however, in the 100 mile wilderness, did get to my food that was hung from a tree.
www.mountainfitter.com has a really light bear bag hanging kit for sale under $30. Cuben fiber rock and food bags, dyneema cord and Nite-ize #1 biner.
"What is the best way going about hanging up a bear bag on a thru hike??
Is it even necessary?
Will any old bag (compression bag or so) work? Or would a bear canister be advised??"
I guess I'm going to go against the so-far consensus a bit here. I assume it's the AT you're thru-hiking, BTW. In that context, my opinion is that while you should have cord and perhaps a very light 'biner to allow for bear bagging, you might never need to actually do it. Yes, do practice the PCT method, and/or maybe counter-balance if you hike with a partner, certainly know how to do it, and hang if you get word on the trail of bear activity in particular areas. FWIW, I didn't hang for the entire AT this year, other than on fixed bear poles or cables.
In the national parks --- where most bear interactions occur --- there are bear poles. Or at least I think there are in the Smokies (maybe cables?), I went through when it was cold enough that bears were at lower elevations or asleep, but there definitely are in the Shenendoah N.P. So use those. Other places there are bear lockers, and I did see cables a time or two as well. If you deem the risk from rodents low enough, use the lockers. Otherwise just "hang" your food sufficient to prevent rodents from eating into whatever bag you bring (definitely no canister needed on the AT).
I used the 2.7 oz Ursack Minor (http://www.ursack.com/ursack-minor.htm) as my bear bag this year, and liked it, generally didn't bother to hang the bag at all, which was nice for the occasional midnight snack. Sometimes bear lockers and bear poles serve to just collect food for a rodent buffet, so having a more rodent resistant container generally means that either the mice/squirrels/whatever don't get any food, of if they do that they get someone else's food. I lost no food to rodents.
bigcranky
12-02-2010, 14:52
Sometimes bear lockers and bear poles serve to just collect food for a rodent buffet, so having a more rodent resistant container generally means that either the mice/squirrels/whatever don't get any food, of if they do that they get someone else's food. I lost no food to rodents.
Our first family section hike was Georgia in 2003. We hung our food bags on the bear cables, and the mice feasted on our food every night. And left little gifts in our gorp. (Ick.)
Got a pair of Ursacks the following year. I've watched mice and raccoons trying to get inside, and none have ever been successful.