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I’ve sectioned about 400 miles over the years. I step off springer early March for my 2020 thru. I’ve never carried a canister or honestly even seen one in 15 years of trips. But I keep reading about more people using them?
Are any of you using one ?
I carried one in NY. The only site in NY that had a bear box was Wildcat. As I hiked shelter to shelter, every shelter in New Jersey had a large bear box.
Only where required. Learn how to hang a bag and practice.
I carry one and so does my wife. I will be hiking for a week with my friend who is a NOBO hopeful and I will have my canister.
Thanks @hikermiker. Been at this for 15 years so I’ve got the hanging part down.
I've carried an Ursack for years. Despite many tries, I resigned myself to the fact that I couldn't do a proper bear hang if my life depended on it.
Bear encounters in the back-country are becoming increasingly problematic.
http://www.appalachiantrail.org/home...ail-updates#GA
I may well just buy a canister in advance of them becoming mandatory where I'll be hiking.
Quote:
Originally Posted by hikermiker
And this is why people are starting to switch to bear canisters.Quote:
Originally Posted by GoldenBear
It's a little more weight, but bear canisters are pretty dang easy to deal with, and it doesn't matter the types of trees you are around or if bear boxes or bear cables might be around.
I loved how easy a Bearikaid bear canister made dealing with food while on the JMT. The only thing I didn't like was the challenge of squeezing your calories in a fixed amount of space
Yes. Using the BV-500 for my 2020 thru-hike, beginning late Feb. For more, see my post here on WhiteBlaze on choosing between the larger v smaller canister. Also, check out my gear list (including a post of my deco can) on my Instagram acct: @utahonthetrailQuote:
Originally Posted by Tabasco
While 4X the cost, anyone considering the BV500 should consider the Bearikade Expedition.
The Expedition has almost 30% more storage space (900ci v 700 ci) and still lighter.
The Bearikades open up much easier with the 1/4 turn screws compared to the BV500's Pill Bottle "safety cap" feel.
The entire space of the Bearikade is directly accessible from the opening compared to the BV500's "neck".
Having resigned myself to getting a canister of some sort to meet the requirements of VT, I am still disappointed that my trust Ursack will not met the requirements. I liked the ease of use. find a tree and tie it up. So simple even I can do it. I have had something play tether-ball with it during the night and while the poptarts may be crumbs everything stayed out of the critters mouth. The thought of 3 extra pounds in the pack is painful. While not an ultra or even light weight backpacker this is a noticeable increase. I put the "blame" not on the critters but on the people that could not be clean and neat in their camping. I have camped for decades in the same areas and never had a problem with animals unless I am in a frequently used site that I can see human edible trash around, then if there is not time to move on I know what I am in for that night. Something tells me a canister will not make the pillow the ursack would in off trail, out of the way sites.
I've used both sizes of bear vault for years. They do their job well. I'm learning to pack (and re-package) things with a lot less air space - makes it easier to fit plenty of food. Even if bears aren't a particular problem where you're hiking, things stay dry and whole, and protected from mice and all the other smaller-than-a-bear critters.
What bear canister are you looking at?Quote:
Originally Posted by rdljr
I would argue that the most common bear canister people purchase for themselves is the BV500, and it's only 1oz over 2.5#.
If you're willing to spend the $$$, you can get that weight much closer to 2# (less than 2# depending upon the size you need).
Even the old-school Garcia is only 2.75#
I own both the BV 500 and BV 450. Because of my heart issues over the last year, I'm likely to hike with more than a few days between resupply points so I'm using the 450. I've gotten better at packing it efficiently. Haven't tried a cold weather backpack yet where I'd need to stuff more warm clothes around it in the pack.
https://bearvault.com/product-info/
BV500 spec weight is 41 oz, mine weighs 42.75 oz.
Just a data point.
I carried one on the JMT due to regulations in the national parks. I used the Lighter 1 Big Daddy. The lid of the Big Daddy doubles as a cook pot that you can cook or boil water in. In hindsight, I would not have left my real cook pot home for a couple reasons: 1. when you are using the cook pot lid, you can't sit on your bear can like the other brands, and; 2. While cooking in the lid would be fine, trying to tip water out of it into a mountain house or ziplock freezer bag using the pot arm was not ideal. I definitely would not carry a bear can without a regulation requiring me to. I am pretty efficient at hanging my food properly and would rather do that.
I started carrying a BV500 a few years ago (after several initial years of PCT hanging and then several years of using my food as a pillow) and so far I’m a fan. It’s stupidly easy to use, takes almost all the planning and human error out of food storage, and is more convenient than previous storage techniques. It packs well with my setup and I have found the “bulk” arguments rather unfounded in my case. As far as the agument that it’s too heavy, my pack with canister is still about 10lbs lighter than my pack was nine years ago, so it certainly doesn’t feel too heavy to me.
Take some sand paper... perhaps 220 or 300 grit. Sand the entire canister and lid, inside and out. I'm sure you'll be able to drop that extra 1.75 oz off in no time.;)Quote:
Originally Posted by JC13
Lol! You have me thinking about a Bearikade again... Weighing out what I want to purchase for next year.Quote:
Originally Posted by HooKooDooKu