sticks hanging from string.

[Roughin' It]

I was doing a day hike in the Three Ridges Wilderness of the G.W. National Forest and I stopped by the Maupin Field shelter to check it out and read the trail notebook and such, when i stood up and my head hit something... a stick hung from a piece of string with half of a plastic soda bottle around the top of the string, and there were about 10 of them hung from the ceiling.
I am just wondering what's the deal with this, why people do it, and is it common in all of the shelters?

[Walkie Talkie]

They are there to hang your food bag from. The 1/2 soda can is to defeat the mice from climbing down the string.

[deadhorsejoe]

Could it be to keep the mice from getting into you food bag?

[deadhorsejoe]

Beat me to it Walkie.

[Lyle]

They are very common in most shelters.

[Roughin' It]

gotcha... makes sense now. thanks guys.

[4eyedbuzzard]

It all makes sense except for the little part about hanging food where you camp/sleep. Something about bears and bear bagging comes to mind.

But it's hard to find a shelter anywhere that doesn't have them. Whatever...

[squeeze]

Mouse Hanger: A 12”-18” length of cord run through a tin can with a small stick tied to the end. Hung from a beam in the shelter, a hiker will hang his/her pack on the stick. Mice, attempting to climb down the rope to get into the pack are deterred by the tin can.

http://www.rmghadventures.com/trailterms.htm

[squeeze]

Also called a Mouse Trapeze.

[Bearpaw]

It all makes sense except for the little part about hanging food where you camp/sleep. Something about bears and bear bagging comes to mind.

But it's hard to find a shelter anywhere that doesn't have them. Whatever...

And yet we never hear stories about bears wandering up and molesting those low-hanging food bags. In this day and age of world-wide communications, it seems like there would be more of that thing if the bears in the east really were such a problem.

FWIW, I used to think the same thing before I thru-hiked. But typically, if bears really ARE a problem in a certain region, the local trail maintaining organization arranges some better system - cables, poles, boxes, etc.

[Lone Wolf]

it's a shelter weenie thing

[Fat Man Walking]

with the sole purpose of making Lone Wolf make a snide comment about shelters and the people who use them during a hike. Be it of the section or thru variety.

Also, Lee Harvey Oswald did not act alone.

[Lone Wolf]

with the sole purpose of making Lone Wolf make a snide comment about shelters and the people who use them during a hike. Be it of the section or thru variety.

Also, Lee Harvey Oswald did not act alone.

sometimes you gotta be snide to get the point across. 22 years on the AT and witnessing the dog thing, i know w t f i'm talking about

[Blissful]

Found out the food hanging in the shelter really attracts mice though. They are much more active at night. When we hung our food outside the shelter, much less problems.

[Appalachian Tater]

Pick the person who snores the loudest or smells the worst and put peanut butter on their face after they fall asleep and the mice won't bother your food bag.

[Darwin again]

The hanging sticks are for drying your delicate underthings.

[River Runner]

We always bear bag our food, but the mouse hangers are nice to hang packs.

[RadioFreq]

I was doing a day hike in the Three Ridges Wilderness of the G.W. National Forest and I stopped by the Maupin Field shelter to check it out and read the trail notebook and such, when i stood up and my head hit something... a stick hung from a piece of string with half of a plastic soda bottle around the top of the string, and there were about 10 of them hung from the ceiling.
I am just wondering what's the deal with this, why people do it, and is it common in all of the shelters?

Blair Witch recycling.