Jet Boil storage

[garminator]

OK here's the deal, I'm only planning on using my jet boil to heat water for my MH meals and for my morning coffee so with that said, can I store my jet boil in my pack which will be in my tent? My concern is any scent of coffee and a curious critter

[nsherry61]

. . . can I store my jet boil in my pack which will be in my tent?

I would. Or, leave it outside. But then, I've also been know to sleep with my food.

Really, there should be no problems with a clean stove and critters.

[rafe]

Seems to me if it's properly cleaned up and with the lid on, you should be fine. If you're nervous, leave it in the vestibule of your tent.

[HooKooDooKu]

Don't be concerned about food smells on your stove. There should be a much higher level of residual food smell on your cloths that doesn't seem to cause people problems.

[soumodeler]

Always leave mine under the vestibule. That way if a critter gets curious, they don't have to chew through a layer of tent or backpack to get to it. Not worried about bears, just the little stuff.

[garminator]

Good deal, thanks a bunch guys!

[Don H]

On the AT I sleep with my food so.....

But I also teach Boy Scouts when they're preparing to go to Philmont Scout ranch in NM. Philmont has very strict rules for food handling and storage due to the occasional bear problem but probably mostly because of legal liability.

Some of the rules:

No food in tents!

Never get in your tent with the clothes you wear during the day. Scouts have to have "sleeping clothes" which are different then their hiking clothes. This reduces food odors in the tent.

Packs go under the dining fly which is in a separate area then the tenting area. Packs are not allowed in the tents. This prevents food smells from the packs in the sleeping area.

All "smellables" go up the bear bag. This includes food, trash, drinking bottles that have had flavored drinks in them, clothes that have had food spilled on them, toiletries, dish cleaning supplies, etc.

Cleaned pots and pans and stoves are left in the cooking area which is separate from the sleeping area.

[MtDoraDave]

I don't know how well "cleaned" my cook set gets, so I put it in my food bag at night and hang it with the food.
If I don't have my food, I don't need my stove... so why take chances of having a possible food scent that may attract critters?

Then again, up until now I sleep with my hiking clothes in my tent...

In sub freezing temperatures, I do keep the can of fuel for the stove in my sleeping bag with me...

I met a hiker on the AT a year or so ago who had a bear come into her tent. She wasn't in the tent at the time - she was in the shelter with other hikers - and she said she never has food in her tent; the bear had already learned to associate the tent with food from other people.

While there may be perfect ways to prevent food smells inside your tent/ vestibule, it seems that most of us don't follow all the "rules" perfectly. Perhaps the human smell does more to keep the bears away than anything else we may do.

[dgoggins]

The boil water only jetboil should be just fine to store in the vestibule or in your pack.....I don't like heavy bear bags (PCT method) so the lighter the better.