Of Mice and Men or the boldness of shelter mice.

[Hopping John]

I know that most, if not all, shelters have mice but has anyone ever known of a mouse crawling inside an occupied sleeping bag in the middle of the night to get an energy bar?

[juma]

I heard it happened to another guy and the mouse also sh#t in the bag before leaving.

[Old Hiker]

Only time I stayed in shelters was in the Smokies and I never saw a mouse. Not one.

Maybe leave the food OUT of the sleeping bag?

[johnnybgood]

Of Mice and Men was a better book.

[Hopping John]

When get hungry in the middle of the night I'd rather not exit the bag for a snack. But maybe you're right.

[rafe]

I heard it happened to another guy and the mouse also sh#t in the bag before leaving.

Mice sh#t continuously, wherever they go.

[slbirdnerd]

I reluctantly slept in 2 Georgia shelters this past week... Yes, there were mice, but: First I checked the sleeping platform for poop and there was none. I swept when I got there, hung my food, snacks, trash and toothpaste/brush on the bear cables. And with that, the mice stayed up in the rafters. you could hear them scratching and chattering primarily around dusk and dawn. In both shelters, not one mouse bothered anyone. I was pleasantly surprised and not messing with my tent in the morning was quite nice.

[Miner]

When I hiked the AT through Vermont, there were plenty of mice in the shelters there that October. I was using an Ursack Minor food sack which is rodent proof. I'd leave it against the wall about a foot from my head at night. Most nights, I'd hear a mouse playing with it for several minutes before giving up and moving on with no damag to the bag or my food. Having the bag that close meant that I could grab a snack if I wanted to without getting up.

I would not sleep with food in your sleeping bag. I heard a hiker talk about how a mouse chewed a hole in their sleeping bag once. It doesn't seem to be something common, but I would not do something that would increase the chances of it.

Speaking of mice poop. In Maine, I was camping outside by a shelter and was going to goto bed early while it was still light. I pulled up my quilt and found mouse poop on my sleeping pad and when I pulled it up more, I saw the mouse further down. I was not a happy camper and yanked the quilt hard and sent the mouse flying about 10feet in the air. After seeing him run into a hole nearby, I decided to move further away from the shelter.

[Old Hiker]

I reluctantly slept in 2 Georgia shelters this past week... Yes, there were mice, but: First I checked the sleeping platform for poop and there was none. I swept when I got there, hung my food, snacks, trash and toothpaste/brush on the bear cables. And with that, the mice stayed up in the rafters. you could hear them scratching and chattering primarily around dusk and dawn. In both shelters, not one mouse bothered anyone. I was pleasantly surprised and not messing with my tent in the morning was quite nice.

Sounds more like bats to me. I didn't know mice made noises. This sounds like what happened in the eaves of my house before I was able to bat-proof them. Did you actually see the mice?

[Foresight]

They make a helluva racket when my cat crunches down on them.

[elray]

IMGP2465.jpgI think this was Iron Mountain Tn. a couple of years ago, there was a mouse watching from every crevice until dark then all hell broke loose! First time I ever had a mouse launch off my sleeping head!

[July]

I know that most, if not all, shelters have mice but has anyone ever known of a mouse crawling inside an occupied sleeping bag in the middle of the night to get an energy bar?

The mouse will not "crawl" inside your bag. He will gnaw directly through where the food lies.

[QiWiz]

I know that most, if not all, shelters have mice but has anyone ever known of a mouse crawling inside an occupied sleeping bag in the middle of the night to get an energy bar?

More likely a mouse would chew through the sleeping bag to get to the energy bar.

[juma]

I was at gravel springs in january one year and those b#stards kept me awake all nite. I finally got up and 4am and threw a big fit beating on the roof of the shelter and yelling. then, I made coffee, ate a honeybun, and hiked the ***** out of there never to return. postholed 10 miles in the snow and was glad to do it. If its only you or a few in the shelter, they will drive you nuts. If you have a full shelter, they are more likely to stay in the eaves.

[Hopping John]

Thanks for all the input. I'm taking the pledge! No food in the sleeping bag.

[Bronk]

A good tip for sleeping in shelters is that the first person to fall asleep gets peanut butter smeared on their pack. This way the mice will all congregate around one area and stay away from everyone else's stuff. In the morning just tell the dude that the first guy who already left the shelter is the one who did it.

[slbirdnerd]

Sounds more like bats to me. I didn't know mice made noises. This sounds like what happened in the eaves of my house before I was able to bat-proof them. Did you actually see the mice?

Yes, I heard them making scritchy noises, munchy noises and running around. At one point they were messing around in a piece of Tyvek someone had left there and I had rolled up and put on the shelf. They never did come down onto the sleeping platform though, at either shelter. I actually saw one at Tray Mtn shelter before dark, it was on the ground under the shelter. I'm used to field mice at home and didn't realize the shelter mice are so tiny.

[kidchill]

I think I slept in shelters like 3 nights in the whole of my 2012 thru-hike (damn GSMNP rules). First night, mouse pooh in my shoes. Second night, bandana on my pack shredded. Third night, mouse pooh ON my water filter! Yes, the device I use to clean my water for drinking! Bastards! Those mice are crazy bold! The worst was at a hut in the Whites. I can't remember the name, but it's the first one you come to when traveling south. It must be one of the older ones to, 'cause it was ghetto. One of our "jobs" was to set like 10 or 15 mouse traps in the kitchen before bed, that should've been an indicator that something was amiss! Literally seconds after the lights were out, we could hear rattling, rumbling, scurrying, and weird tinkling noises coming from the kitchen...then "BAM, POOF, POW" like the old-school batman series, the traps were chiming off. Same craziness of traps being sprung through-out the night. I seriously missed my hammock those nights.

[bamboo bob]

On the occasions I've slept in shelters I have never had a problem. Zero mice. Hung food with mouse catcher can lid. It's mainly an early spring issue when there is not much natural food around. I have heard them from time to time. I must be lucky.

[rafe]

On the occasions I've slept in shelters I have never had a problem. Zero mice. Hung food with mouse catcher can lid. It's mainly an early spring issue when there is not much natural food around. I have heard them from time to time. I must be lucky.

Same here pretty much. Hiking in August-September between PA and southern VA, I spent plenty of nights in shelters and had no (almost) problem with mice.

One exception: at Calf Mtn. shelter in SNP, some kind of critter chewed through one of my hiking pole straps and made off with a sock. Maybe not a mouse but something bigger...

I figured it was mostly because the shelters were empty and unused that time of year -- so there just weren't too many hiker crumbs for the critters to feast on.