Your expertise, please. How big is your food bag & what size should I get?

[LucyInColor]

I'm organizing a six day section hike & am planning to hang my food & pack at night, (our packs probably won't fit inside our 2 man tent). I'm splurging on food & eating mostly freeze dried. I could wait until all my food is arranged on the floor at home & then figure out what to stuff it in, or ... you see where I'm going? I'm a complete newbie at bear bag hanging. Never done it before. I'll learn & practice before I leave, but I wonder about the actual bag I'll be hoisting.

How large a bag do I need for six days? How many cubic inches? Do you leave extra room for your stove, toothpaste & other smellables in your bear bag? Is a Ursack necessary if I'm hanging from a tree? Will any waterproof stuff sack do? I like the idea of a lightweight or ultra light bag that is rodent proof but not necessarily bear proof. What bag do YOU use?

[BuckeyeBill]

I went through several waterproof bags used as bear sacs all from 550 to 650 cubic inches. I finally bought a Ursack All-Mitty. It offers protection from both bears and critters. I know it is a little pricey but it has held up very well and still looks new if I wash it. If you seal the seams, the bag is waterproof. I line it with a Large Opsak. It is 650 cubic inches and will hold your 6 days worth of food.

[egilbe]

I went through several waterproof bags used as bear sacs all from 550 to 650 cubic inches. I finally bought a Ursack All-Mitty. It offers protection from both bears and critters. I know it is a little pricey but it has held up very well and still looks new if I wash it. If you seal the seams, the bag is waterproof. I line it with a Large Opsak. It is 650 cubic inches and will hold your 6 days worth of food.

Whats an all-mitty? Never heard of it.

6 days of food in an Ursack all-white S29 is pushing it. More like 4 or 5 days. You should be able to put 6 days of food in a 20 liter dry sack. I put 10 days worth of food in an Ursack and 20 liter OR dry bag. Mice chewed a hole in my dry sack, but at that point it was relegated to trash, so...

[BuckeyeBill]

Sorry, Should have said All-Mitey. Again you should be just fine on size if you are using only freeze dried food.

[TrappedInsideACube]

I'm organizing a six day section hike & am planning to hang my food & pack at night, (our packs probably won't fit inside our 2 man tent). I'm splurging on food & eating mostly freeze dried. I could wait until all my food is arranged on the floor at home & then figure out what to stuff it in, or ... you see where I'm going? I'm a complete newbie at bear bag hanging. Never done it before. I'll learn & practice before I leave, but I wonder about the actual bag I'll be hoisting.

How large a bag do I need for six days? How many cubic inches? Do you leave extra room for your stove, toothpaste & other smellables in your bear bag? Is a Ursack necessary if I'm hanging from a tree? Will any waterproof stuff sack do? I like the idea of a lightweight or ultra light bag that is rodent proof but not necessarily bear proof. What bag do YOU use?

It really depends on the type of food you're bringing. If you have any bathroom trash bags handy, they're usually around 4 gallons (15L) and could be used as an estimate.

I put used cookware and all smellables in my food bag.

If you're hanging from a tree, then you don't need an ursack.

Any stuff sack will do. The only rodent proof food bags I am aware of are the ones made by ursack.

I personally use an ursack all white. It's heavier than a regular stuff sack, but I like the protection from bears and mini bears.

[bigcranky]

I hang food, but not cookware. Look for the "PCT Method" on Youtube -- it's a little trickier than the more common bear hang methods, but it's more secure.

We have two of the Zpacks roll top cuben fiber food bags. They are large enough for one person for six days of food (which is really 5+ days since you'll eat breakfast on the road on day 1 and dinner at the end on day 6). The Zpacks stuff is a little pricey ($50 for the full kit), really all you need is a stuff sack, about 40 feet of a slick, no-stretch Spectra cord (not too thin, you don't want it to cut into the branch and get stuck), and a tiny bag for a rock to throw the line over a branch. A mini carabiner and a small stick (I use my spare tent stake) are required for the PCT Hang, too. And it's helpful to be able to tie a clove hitch

Have fun on your hike.

[Venchka]

In round numbers, laid flat on a table, my stuff sack for 7 days in Colorado measured 8"x18". Single serving Mountain House meals for 6 days. Lots of no cook trail food. The bag wasn't crammed full. When I returned from the trip I bought an Ursack Major. It's larger than the sack I used last year. A 15 liter REI dry sack is similar in size to the stuff sack I used.
I selected my stuff sack and Ursack after reading a lot of weeping and whaling from folks who could only get 5 days food in the original Ursack.
7 days food on half of a picnic table.

I couldn't find dimensions for the new Mitey thing. If it's the same size as the original....be careful.
Wayne


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[Heliotrope]

I prefer using multiple bags that I sew myself from silicon nylon. I waterproof the seams. They are roughly 400 cu in. I like having multiple bags. I can organize food into snacks versus meals, etc. It can be a challenge to hoist a heavy food bag - like 6 days of food x 2 people. Speaking from experience bear cord can get snagged in trees and food bags can tear. It's nice to have some extra cord. I highly recommend practicing before your trip. Use a small stuff sack to place a round stone into to throw your line over a branch. Try not to get hit when the stone comes back down


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[LucyInColor]

You guys are great! Thank you for all this info. I think REI is having a members sale in June & I'll pick up my bag then. Meanwhile, I'll practice, practice, practice that bear bag hang
!

[Ethesis]

Ratsack does pretty good against critters.

Weight for volume is good for large volumes.

[rocketsocks]

15 liters give or take a Twinkie or two.

[globetruck]

I've got 5.5 days of food in a 20L sack, occupying about 65% of that volume. Plenty of extra room. My opinion is that having a slightly larger bag makes it more squishy and easier to fit into my backpack. I could probably cram all that food into a 12L sack but then it would be a rigid cement-like brick and wouldn't conform to the nooks and crannies inside my pack.

[Deacon]

I went through several waterproof bags used as bear sacs all from 550 to 650 cubic inches. I finally bought a Ursack All-Mitty. It offers protection from both bears and critters. I know it is a little pricey but it has held up very well and still looks new if I wash it. If you seal the seams, the bag is waterproof. I line it with a Large Opsak. It is 650 cubic inches and will hold your 6 days worth of food.

I would not be able to fit 6 days of food into a 650 cu. in. bag. That's only 10.7 liters. Others here have suggested 15 L which seems more correct. I use an 18 L Granite Gear CTF bag (0.7 oz), and is not too large by any means.

[MuddyWaters]

Id say 2-2.5 L per day.
If you like lotsa mountainhouse, youll need more

[BuckeyeBill]

Wayne, The All-Mitey's inner bag will hold the same as their S29.3 All White about 664 cubic inches. the bag is basically a combination of the S29.3 All White and the Ursack Minor. The out bear offers protection from bear teeth and claws and the inner bag, which is made of Kevlar, is laminated to the outer bag and offers protection from the little critters, mice, raccoons and other sharp tooth thieves. The All-Mitey also has a little extra storage area above where the inner bag seals. It is heavier that the other Ursack bags but lighter than canisters.

[BuckeyeBill]

Deacon, I apologize for a small misstatement. I should have said it will hold 6 days worth of food for 2 people if they are only using freeze dried food, which the OP said they were using. Again sorry for any misinformation.

[lonehiker]

I'm organizing a six day section hike & am planning to hang my food & pack at night, (our packs probably won't fit inside our 2 man tent). I'm splurging on food & eating mostly freeze dried. I could wait until all my food is arranged on the floor at home & then figure out what to stuff it in, or ... you see where I'm going? I'm a complete newbie at bear bag hanging. Never done it before. I'll learn & practice before I leave, but I wonder about the actual bag I'll be hoisting.

How large a bag do I need for six days? How many cubic inches? Do you leave extra room for your stove, toothpaste & other smellables in your bear bag? Is a Ursack necessary if I'm hanging from a tree? Will any waterproof stuff sack do? I like the idea of a lightweight or ultra light bag that is rodent proof but not necessarily bear proof. What bag do YOU use?

Too many variables on this. My days worth of food could be half the volume as yours, or visa versa. Take your own advice and wait until you have all your food arranged on the floor at home....... To answer a couple of questions in your second paragraph. My stove is stored separately from my food bag but my cozy is stored in food bag (I only FBC). Next, I keep my personal hygiene kit (toothpaste, sunscreen, smellables as you put it) in my food bag. Ya, any waterproof stuff sack will work. I've used several different ones over the years and they have all worked. Currently using a cuben fiber model and it works well enough. Although it hasn't proven as durable as some others that I've used.

[jimmyjam]

15"x20" for up to five days of food and never big enough

[Venchka]

Wayne, The All-Mitey's inner bag will hold the same as their S29.3 All White about 664 cubic inches. the bag is basically a combination of the S29.3 All White and the Ursack Minor. The out bear offers protection from bear teeth and claws and the inner bag, which is made of Kevlar, is laminated to the outer bag and offers protection from the little critters, mice, raccoons and other sharp tooth thieves. The All-Mitey also has a little extra storage area above where the inner bag seals. It is heavier that the other Ursack bags but lighter than canisters.

Thanks. I still have time to exchange my Major for the new Ursack but I think I'll keep the Major for the volume. I bought it to use in the Rockies where camping above tree line is always a possibility.
Definitely get your food together first or buy from REI with their 1 year exchange policy. Memorial Day should bring a new 20% off coupon.
I have got to get out and use this stuff!
Wayne


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[Alligator]

My bag is a solution bag that came with a coat I bought. It's slightly larger than the size of 3 season synthetic sleeping bag. Stove, pot, cup and food all fit in that but I have a snack bag too. I dehydrate my dinners but sometimes have bulky food like bread so it has a little extra volume than needed perhaps. I'd rather not fuss with packing a too small food bag for the extra ounce or so on the bag.