Etiquette for hanging food in shelters (Split from another shelter question)

[Slo-go'en]

at ksc in baxter the ranger made me hang my food, told me thre had been a problem bear around, strongly urged me to make sure i hung not just my food, but my toothpaste,mouthwash, and bug spray. bug spray. i told him i had already bathed in bug spray. where should i hang myself? he smartly replied anywhere you want

Ha! The one time I lost food to a bear was at Chimney pond in Baxter. It was hung from a tree in front of the shelter and the ranger had come by and said it looked safe. Not quite safe enough. The bear came along and was having a hard time getting to the bags, but finally made a desperate lunge and snagged one of bags. One swipe of his paw snapped a 1/4" nylon rope! Since this was right in front of the shelter, we had our flashlights trained on him and watched the whole show in awe - and a little fear.

The next year we went back with a longer, stronger rope. The problem bear was gone, but we did manage to have a moose come along and get tangled up in the rope as it lay on the ground in the morning as we ate breakfist. That was really exciting...

[Seatbelt]

[QUOTE=T.S.Kobzol;1390930]People will hang from the nails in the walls or or from the cross beam exposing bags for better mice success.

QUOTE]
Whaaatt??? I hope I never witness this, if I do, I am definitely moving on....lol

[Fredt4]

I think the most relevant point is that unattended food is a problem. If you hang your food in a shelter and camp elsewhere, then you're expecting the hikers in the shelter to attend to your food. That OK if you ask and the hikers accept, otherwise it's your food and your responsibly. If you hang your food in the shelter then your obviously of the opinion that food doesn't need to be hung from a tree or cables. (I agree with that opinion, and given that few AT thru hikers hang their food towards the end of their hike if fair to say they apparently concur.) But leaving food unattended is a problem, therefore you should keep your food with you or properly hang the food. Now that's the rub, as most hikers that have had their food taken by a bear will know, hanging your food properly is not as easy as most would believe. I only rarely hang my food (usually only when regulations required it) and I've never had my food taken by a bear, but many of times I've seen fellow hikers had their food stolen by a bear because the ever so wisely hung their food as they were properly taught. Whether you believe it's necessary to hang the food or not, at least learn how to do it properly if you do hang the food. Failure hang the food properly will create a problem bear.

[hauptman]

I have a knife and a great throwing arm for someone with limited reach. Was that my food flying off a cliff? Yes, yes it was. Now go to sleep or meet my little friend.

[MuddyWaters]

[QUOTE=Seatbelt;1391282]

People will hang from the nails in the walls or or from the cross beam exposing bags for better mice success.

QUOTE]
Whaaatt??? I hope I never witness this, if I do, I am definitely moving on....lol

This is what occurs at most shelters.

IF there is no reports of problem bear activity. If there is, people will hang the food...mostly.
Usually once several people have shown up, and are getting settled in, they will determine what the consensus is for food handling that night. Go with the flow if you stay in the shelter.

[Lone Wolf]

I have a knife and a great throwing arm for someone with limited reach. Was that my food flying off a cliff? Yes, yes it was. Now go to sleep or meet my little friend.

toughguy.........

[JAK]

A lot of people get this wrong, myself included, but the pinky finger stays in when hanging your food in shelters.

[aficion]

A lot of people get this wrong, myself included, but the pinky finger stays in when hanging your food in shelters.

funny....!

[AngryGerman]

Wow, there are a lot of valid points contained within this thread and while reading, often felt the need to comment with something unoriginal so...

Wait for it...

AG likes it when there is a tough guy around; it makes him feel well, you know, angry!

Yup, and that came in the third person to boot!

[mrgadget921]

i might not be king. but if someone at shelter is doing something stupid, that could put others at risk i will do something about it. if you want to be dumb do it at your own expense, not at the expence of others.
i have zero tolerence for stupidity

AGREED!
BAITING my sleeping shelter {you are not in it!}.... good luck finding, or retrieving your bag..... unless you brought your climbing spikes.....

[Bronk]

Why do some people always think that the way they would like things to be done trumps what other people want to do?

Why does your desire to sleep in a shelter without food hanging in there trump someone else's desire to hang their food in the shelter?

I think its pretty rude to tell others what to do, especially people you don't know.

All you're really guaranteed is that if you don't like what's going on you are free to move along.

Those strings with cans don't work. I've seen mice jump from a sitting position on the floor of the shelter and land on the rafters. And I've watched them jump onto packs and food bags hanging from those strings with cans. Those strings with cans are a great way to avoid having to pack out your trash though.

[Grampie]

Not only food bags but I have seen hikers hang their pack in a shelter and sleep in a tent. Your food bag and pack are your responsibility. Don't make others watch it.

[bfayer]

Not only food bags but I have seen hikers hang their pack in a shelter and sleep in a tent. Your food bag and pack are your responsibility. Don't make others watch it.

I agree, but like I said before, messing with others peoples gear because you don't like what they do with it is wrong.

If you don't like what they are doing, either talk to them about it, or pack up and move on.

Your "right" not to sleep in a shelter with someone else's food does not give you the right to mess with someone else's stuff.

(I use the word "you" as hikers in general, not any specific poster)

[aficion]

Hanging food in a shelter, whether you sleep in it or not, is almost as questionable as choosing to sleep in a shelter in the first place. You are carrying a good shelter. If you use it, you can sleep away from noise, cell phone abusers, snorers, mice, notovirus, drunken dope smoking bonfire building all night partying youngens, naysayers, and smelly privies; and you won't have to stick things in you ears.

[The Old Chief]

Hanging food in a shelter, whether you sleep in it or not, is almost as questionable as choosing to sleep in a shelter in the first place. You are carrying a good shelter. If you use it, you can sleep away from noise, cell phone abusers, snorers, mice, notovirus, drunken dope smoking bonfire building all night partying youngens, naysayers, and smelly privies; and you won't have to stick things in you ears.

Well, all that you mention can happen if you choose to use a shelter on a weekend or long holliday, but I find that there are plenty of sections of the AT you can hike at the right times and not encounter very many people at all. On my last three sections hikes in Va. my hiking partner(s) and I rarely shared a shelter with anyone. We did avoid the shelters on Friday or Saturday nights. I've used a tarp in Va during August and was rewarded with Lyme Disease so health risks are out there no matter what you use for shelter. Twelve years ago hikers used the hanging devices in shelters right from the start and no one was stabbed, shot, or sodomized for doing so. Never saw any hiker brave enough to throw someone's food bag away just because they might have pitched their tent 20 or 30 feet from the shelter and had the audacity to hang their food bag with all the others. At that time the first and only bear cables we encountered before the Smokies was at Low Gap Shelter and everyone used them. Probably because there was a torn up backpack at the shelter and it scared us!

[kayak karl]

shelters attract bears and mice. don't hang out at shelters

[Train Wreck]

shelters attract bears and mice. don't hang out at shelters

"Friends don't let friends sleep in shelters."

especially if it's raining and there's only one space left and both of you are eyeing it

[The Old Chief]

Before there were bear cables at Woodshole Shelter there were no bear problems, therefore, bear cables attract bears, so don't hang out around bear cables.

[CELTIC BUCK]

I have a knife and a great throwing arm for someone with limited reach. Was that my food flying off a cliff? Yes, yes it was. Now go to sleep or meet my little friend.

Tough guy? more like dipstick

[Sarcasm the elf]

It's funny, I've had trouble with people hanging food at shelters on the Internet, but I've never experienced any problems while hiking in real life.