Hanging food bags
This may be a stupid question, but do you have to worry about hanging your food in a bear bag in all states along the AT?
I have had numerous bear encounters in GA, so I hang my food.
I have friends that use their food bag for a pillow and they have never seen a bear...what's up with that?
Hanging food Bag
All states along the AT have a bear population. Also racoons, skunks and every other critter would like to feed on what you bring to eat.
Better safe than sorry.
Grampie-N->2001
No, sometimes there are bear cables, poles, or boxes provided.
i don't worry. i never hang food in any state but you do what you feel you need to do.Originally Posted by insider2185
Some will say yes, some will say no...if staying at/near a shelter, I'll use the mouse hangars. If tenting away from shelter, I'll probably put it in a tree (better safe than sorry...) Incidentally, NJ shelters have metal boxes.
At any rate, a sil-nylon stuff sack is sufficient for food. Also, be sure to place 'all' aromatic items within your food bag (incl tooth paste, soap, etc) prior to hanging. Double check all pockets for that stray candy bar, if you don't a mouse will find it and probably leave a nice, new hole where the candy used to be.
See you on the trail,
mt squid
Only if you don't want to worry about having nightime visitors to your food ranging from mice to bears. 'Course I hear the mice can sometimes get to the food even if it is properly bear-bagged.
From experience, I would say definitely learn how to do a proper bear bag hang. It certainly gave us peace of mind a couple of times this fall when we heard bears in our camp snooping around to know that they would not be looking in our tent for food.
It was also nice to still have our food the next morning.
Last edited by River Runner; 01-14-2008 at 18:18. Reason: spelling
The only people I've seen that lost thier food were those who bear bagged.
If you stay in shelters I'd mouse bag my food though!
I hang food in the Smokies; Shenandoah National Park; and New Jersey, and have never had a problem anywhere else.
I hang the food because I feel I should be the one to enjoy my food, not the bear.
One time while tent camping on the beach of Grand Island I woke up to find bear footprints in the sand. It walked by the tent (10-feet away) sometime in the night. I was glad I used the bear poles they provided.
Actually, I should stress that in many places, it's probably a really good idea to hang your food.
My partner Mountain Dew left his pack unattended briefly in Shenandoah in order to go get an ice cream and call his Mom.
What a bear did to his tent, gear, and foodbag in the interim was a sight to see. In fact, what the Vandals did to Rome in the year 455 A.D. suffers in comparison.
Pretty funny in retrospect, but Dew was not a happy camper.
Plus I had to feed him.
first night out at springer mountain shelter. used the bear cables provided. had a hole the next day in my food anyways. could have been that there were like 20 bags hanging so provided a large areas for critters to land. either way my GORP was toast.
that being said, if at a shelter i use the mouse hangers things. if tenting i'll hang from a tree. if its raining i don't worry too much about it.
He who dies with the most toys, still dies.
I've got a question along these lines. I can see where picking a limb that would not support a bear and hanging your food might keep away the bears. But I know here at home we have squirrels that will shimmy down the rope to a bird feeder and rape the feeder. What do you folks do to keep this from happening to your food bag? How do you keep out those pesky squirrels.
On a related note we were car camping in a state park one time and had our food in one of those rubbermaid boxes. You know, one of those that the lid snaps on. I assumed it was safe (no bears in this area). Those darned squirrels chewed the entire lid rim off the box all the way around, took the lid all the way off, and ate everything in the box while we were away hiking (2 hours). I know it was squirrels because they jumped out of the box at me when we got back.
Okay, a bear's not going to come near a food bag that's hanging on a mouse hook in a shelter? Sounds like easy pickings to me. I could be wrong.
Actually, bears very rarely come near occupied shelters, except in places where they've gotten bold, or been accustomed to getting fed (The National Parks, New Jersey).
And if you're camped with someone who has a dog, forget about it.
In over 20,000 miles, I cannot recall ever witnessing or hearing about a bear going after food in an occupied shelter outside of these areas.
The only creature that's gonna go to town eating hiker food that was left hanging on a mouse hook is a mouse.
I always played it safe and hung my food. If not for bears then for mice and the nasty red squirrels in the great North.
You know a lot of things that happen to me are funny later, but they sure were not funny at the time. My friends thought they were funny at the time, but not me…
I don't worry about it much, I just do it. Some places have bear boxes (eg. some shelters in NJ) and in SNP they have "bear poles" to make it easier.
I had used bear cables in the Smokeys and I had mice climb the bear cables down the line and had a banquet by nibbling at a variety of food and defficating in them!!! I lost HALF my food to nibbling/poop luckily they did not go after my prepackaged freeze dried stuff...interestingly was my other half of the food.
Does anyone use bear canisters on the AT....though heavy I am beginning to see the convienance of having them. Can keeep them down and away and easier access.... more secure? Any thoughts?
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