Why I Never Hang a Bear Bag and What I Do Instead

When I first started backpacking a number of  years ago, I packed my food in a waterproof   bag that I hung from a tree limb each evening  before going to bed. Now I never hang a food bag. I'm going to share what I do instead and why I  think it is so much better, but first I'd like   to tell you about two bear encounters that I had  in the back country that influenced my decision. The first encounter permanently changed my view of  black bears. Their agility and intelligence simply   astounds me. A group of about six of us planned a  trip in an area that is known for its black bear   population. Overnight campers are required to bring  bear canisters, so that's what we did. On the first   evening we had a black bear come into our camp  to look for treats. We chased her off but each   time we did she would come back in from another  direction. In addition to bringing a bear canister, one of the guys in our group hung a bag that he  wanted to keep safe from bears and other animals. It was probably not more than 10 minutes that  the nuisance bear had climbed the tree and was   reaching for the bag with her claws. She didn't  get the bag but she did manage to tear it open   and damage some of the contents. What's amazing is  that this bear figured out that bags hanging from   trees contain treats. No doubt she had successfully  snatched bear bags in the past. Later that night   the bear managed to find where we stashed our  bear canisters. She didn't get inside them but   she rolled them around and scratched at them for  a while. Because of the persistence of the bear and   our concern for the safety of ourselves and our  gear we packed up and left late that night. Since   that unforgettable trip I had one more encounter  with a black bear. This was a large bear that had   managed to ransack a neighboring campsite. It was  strong enough to tear open a brand new bear bag   that was supposed to be resistant to bears.  This was enough reason for us to pack up and   move to a new site a couple miles away. These  two encounters with bears deepened my respect   and fascination with these amazing creatures. I no  longer presume to think that hanging my food from   a tree limb is going to successfully outsmart a  bear. The process of hanging the bag takes a lot   of time to get it right. Sometimes it's simply  not possible to achieve the right distance from   the ground and from the tree. I know that some of  my hangs were vulnerable to being snatched. The   times that my food managed to make it through the  night untouched is likely because there were no   bears in the area. That's why I'm going to share  the reasons why I always bring a bear canister   on my backpacking trips. I'm also going to mention  a couple things I don't like about bear canisters,   but how these issues can be reduced somewhat.  The first thing I love about bear canisters is   the convenience. Just pack all your food inside and  stash the canister in a secure place at least 100   feet from camp. It's good to choose a spot where  the canister won't fall in a lake or a river   roll down a hill or off a cliff if dislodged by  a curious bear. It's also wise to affix reflective   and day-glow stickers to the outside of the  canister so it is easy to locate day or night. The   second thing I love about bear canisters is the  confidence that I have no knowing that nothing is   going to get at my food—not even smaller animals  such as raccoons and mice. You can't always say   that about a food bag hung from a tree. Finally,  bear canisters are required in many parks now.   This is for good reason. By keeping food in bear  canisters, both bears and people are kept safe. When   bears can't get people food they are less inclined  to associate people with food. This leads to less   dangerous encounters with bears. Bears that seek  out people to obtain treats are considered problem   bears and are at much greater risk of being  euthanized. What don't I love about bear canisters?   Two things: they are heavy, usually between two and  three pounds. I'm a bit of a gram counter when it   comes to my pack weight. However, there are certain  items that I feel are worth the extra weight and   bear canisters are one of them. As an added bonus  bear canisters can double as a camp stool. They   aren't as comfortable as a chair, of course, but  they might replace a camp chair depending on the   type of trip. This helps to offset the extra weight.  The second thing is they are bulky. Some packs are   too tight and confined to carry a bear canister.  Additionally, the volume of a bear canister does   not decrease over the course of a trip. However,  this problem can be mitigated somewhat by putting   other items inside the bear canister as its  contents are consumed. Well there you have   it: three reasons I love bear canisters and two  reasons I don't. Bear canisters are convenient, very   effective, and they keep both humans and bears safe.  Conversely, they're heavy and they are bulky, but   utilizing them as a camp stool in place of a chair  and being creative with pack organization these   drawbacks can be reduced. I hope you enjoyed these  thoughts on using bear canisters. If you have any   experiences or additional tips please share them  in the comments below. If you want to be notified   about future videos about backpacking topics,  please subscribe. As always, thanks for watching.

Channel: Jeff Fowler

Views: 136,680

Keywords: bear bag, backpacking, bear hang, bear canister, bear bags, hanging your food bag, bear safety, bear can, bear country, bear bags vs canisters, bear canister vs hanging, bear bag vs canister, bear bag hanging, bear safety backpacking, bear safety hiking, bear canister weight, bear canister use, bear canister vs bear bag, bear hang food

Id: _-nkyxexDCU

Length: 4min 54sec (294 seconds)

Published: Sat Jul 29 2023