It's not just the weight but the ease of use that I find the Bearikade to be worth it.
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Just got my Bare Boxer. Amazingly light and packable. It’s supposed to be for one person for three days but I put two days in and it’s not even half full. Also easy to open and lock. I carry it in an arc haul zip.
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This article has some nice tables comparing the bear canister various options.
What brand of canister did that bear at Thomas Knob open? Anyone recall?
I very much wonder if user error was involved, especially if it were a BV, as it’s easy enough to imagine someone a accidentally or intentionally storing it without the lid fully screwed down into the locked position. I’ve found it tempting to be lazy and not screw the lid of mine fully into the locking tab from time to time (especially if I think I’m going to access it again soon), which is a bad ha it that I’ve had to force myself not to get into.
No idea about Thomas Knob. The bears in Eastern High Peaks use a claw to break the locking tab. They actually saw Yellow-Yellow do it, the second or third time they captured her. (Her name comes from the fact that she wore two sets of yellow ear tags.) The DEC won't mention the BV by name but simply states that bear canisters made of transparent plastic are not recommended. Yellow-Yellow has long since been turned into stew, but she taught her cubs and the problem is worse than ever. But only in that one little area. Canisters are still optional (officially recommended, but not required) in High Peaks west of the MacNaughton-Street-Nye ridge.
For the Bearikade, a human needs a screwdriver, but I bet that one of these years some bear will develop a trick to open it with his bear hands.
Since no one uses a canister down in this area I highly doubt the bear at Thomas Knob figured out how to open a Bear Vault. It was likely user error or the bear got lucky...or maybe he and one of the ponies were in cahoots and the pony kicked it open for him :D
User error is highly probable as is user misuse. Though I have never met anyone who's done it I have seen hikers suggest in other popular online chit-char formats the removal of the locking tabs on the BV. Seems some are too lazy and/or weak to both press and twist the lid.
I own the Garcia, BV, and a Bearikade. Purchased in that order. The first 2 collect dust now.
Optimistic, but still able to sell at good value assuming its not artfully decorated (like my BV is).
So, I am all too familiar with that cold morning circumstance with the BV. Still, its something you learn and move forward from, so its not like every outing is like this. I'm prepared for cold weather with a tool to press the tab, and the fact that I will need some tack/pressure to turn while pressing. Its just not that bad. It is bad, though, when you're not prepared for that sort of thing, especially in the a.m. when coffee is necessary!
I would imagine that the unscrewing and screwing the Bearikade top open and closed is somewhat conducive to leaving it open for longer periods. Maybe that's just "not that bad" either... HYOH.
If you leave it out, I'm pretty sure that's how they would do it. Gosh, I'd love to see that.
Not really, because it's only 3 screws, and they each only require 1/4 turn (90º) to go from "open" to "lock" (they are more like the locks found on most double-hung windows that a "screw", but they use the slot like a screw to prevent bear claws from being able to turn them).
So with a Bearikade, you wind up spending more time looking for your 'screw driver' (coin) that you spend locking/unlocking the lid.
The lid is also attached (like the lid of a Nalgene bottle is, except it's attached to the lid from the inside rather than the outside).
After reading post after post, viewing videos and comparing canisters, I decided to bite the bullet and buy the Bearikade Wilderness.
I live in a remote, off-grid area where I not only backpack, but also hunt. Unfortunately, all our trees this far north are all pine or tamarack...no branches for throwing a PCT-style hang.
For next years AT hike, I have gotten my base weight to 17lbs...so the additional almost 2 lbs adds a bit more for sure. But I know coming into camp at night after hiking 15-20 miles, will be nice not having to hang my food.
No doubt, but once I’ve received it, going to take out with me on some backwoods overnighters to test it.
Also thinking I have time to re-evaluate my tent situation. Current tent setup is 1643g (3lbs10oz). If I could find the best tent that suits me, I could get my base weight down even with the canister.
I’ve looked at Zpacks, TarpTent, Six Moon and Lightheart...not sure which.
You just need to pull the trigger. Figure out what you can budget for a tent and what features are important to you, then make a decision. You can't really go wrong with any of those companies. And, if you insist on carrying the bear canister, the new tent should about offset the weight costs of carrying it.