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  1. #21

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    [QUOTE=Malto;2120554]
    Quote Originally Posted by Tundracamper View Post

    Yeah, I didn't say that! Interesting that a quote could get messed up

    to to your point..... and a bear decides he wants it when your walking then same thing. Neither have happened frequently at all.
    But, I would much rather see a bear coming at me down the trail than wake up when he's breathing on my face. No?

  2. #22
    Registered User Jameson's Avatar
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    Does anyone currently using a canister really like a certain brand and size? I have always used a bear bag and just wonder how well they fit in packs?

  3. #23

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    I have a full size BearVault canister (model BV500) that I use. It weighs in at 3 lb 3 oz and holds about 11.5 liters. It fits in an Osprey Exos 48.

    I tried bear bagging on the AT and it was great for the shelters where there was a bear pole. But where I had to find a suitable tree and actually throw a rope over a branch at a correct height from the ground as well as correct distance from the trunk, I found my success at bear bagging to be too unreliable.

    Good luck!

  4. #24
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    Quote Originally Posted by JustFun View Post
    I have a full size BearVault canister (model BV500) that I use. It weighs in at 3 lb 3 oz and holds about 11.5 liters. It fits in an Osprey Exos 48.

    I tried bear bagging on the AT and it was great for the shelters where there was a bear pole. But where I had to find a suitable tree and actually throw a rope over a branch at a correct height from the ground as well as correct distance from the trunk, I found my success at bear bagging to be too unreliable.

    Good luck!
    Never had that happen. I've had to walk more than 200 or 300 meters off-trail before finding the right hang though...YMMV, I guess...

    When I have to do a hang like that, I just count steps from the tent on the way out with a general compass heading and then retrace and get the dead-on heading so the next morning I've got a darn good idea exactly where in the forest the hang is...yeah, it sucks to go get it in the dark and rain the next morning to retrieve it and have a good brekkie, but I can't stand the weight of a bear can and still don't want the food anywhere near the tent, even in a can..

  5. #25

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    Quote Originally Posted by Jameson View Post
    Does anyone currently using a canister really like a certain brand and size? I have always used a bear bag and just wonder how well they fit in packs?
    Yep
    Bearikade weekender
    Because its the lightest (32 oz) that big enough for about a week, and approved by yosemite, seki, etc. For those that dabble out west or have aspirations too, which u should. $290 + shipping.

    Holds value well because light and $$$, and can resell for virtually what paid. Mainly because ca residents have to pay sales tax for new ones.
    Last edited by MuddyWaters; 01-28-2017 at 21:19.

  6. #26
    Registered User P-N's Avatar
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    I'm using a Bearikade Weekender for my 2017 SOBO Thru hike. On my 2009 Thru turned section hike at Harpers Ferry I hung my food. In 2009 it got really old at the end of the day looking for a suitable tree plus there were the times another hiker came along and tried to use the same limb but just wound up snarling both our lines. I took a three day test hike with the Bearikade on the AT last September and found out I loved it. As others have said it keeps your food dry and away from bears. I would add that it makes a great camp stool/table. Something else I like is it keeps my food safe from all critters not just bears. Mice were my biggest worry in 2009 for getting into my food. Sleep with your food bag and you not only get a hole chewed in your food bag but in your tent as well. No thanks! Then there are squirrels, raccoons, possums, porcupines, coyotes etc. In 2009 I wouldn't have considered hiking with a bearcan but in the years before that I wouldn't have hiked with trekking poles, now you won't catch me without either. Those who think the recommendation for cans has more to do with incompetent newbies than it does with bears should read the bear closure reports at campsites and shelters for last year as well as hiker trail journals. I saw mention of several bears coming into a camp at dinner time and in one instance it took several campers three tries to finally discourage the bears. In NY I read of a couple of thru hikers coming into a shelter area at dinner time and they scared off a bear stealing a pack from a tent while the owner was at the shelter eating. The AT Conservancy site in August 2016 listed 3 AT shelters closed and 4 others with cautions due to bear activity. This was between Daleville, VA and Springer. A good food bag hang will take care of these problems as will a bearcan. You know my choice.
    KC

  7. #27

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    Quote Originally Posted by P-N View Post
    As others have said it keeps your food dry and away from bears. I would add that it makes a great camp stool/table. Something else I like is it keeps my food safe from all critters not just bears.
    Only keeps it dry if you leave it upside down, and not in a puddle.
    The lid does have an O-ring, but the lid bends very easy to where aforementioned O-ring doesnt do squat. Just cramming food in and forcing lid closed with a little pressure bends the lid a hair, and it will never bend back completely in one plane to seal against o-ring again. If it ever did well to start with that is.

  8. #28
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    Quote Originally Posted by MuddyWaters View Post
    Only keeps it dry if you leave it upside down, and not in a puddle.
    The lid does have an O-ring, but the lid bends very easy to where aforementioned O-ring doesnt do squat. Just cramming food in and forcing lid closed with a little pressure bends the lid a hair, and it will never bend back completely in one plane to seal against o-ring again. If it ever did well to start with that is.
    I don't know which particular can you're referring to, but this is not an issue with BearVault brand... quite watertight in any position.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Deadeye View Post
    I don't know which particular can you're referring to, but this is not an issue with BearVault brand... quite watertight in any position.
    Bearikade.

    BearVault has its own set of issues, such as being extremely difficult to open sometimes with pressure or temperature changes, if the threads arent greased a little.

  10. #30
    Registered User Sandy of PA's Avatar
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    I learned real quick to line my Bearicade weekender with a bag, and turn it upside down. I had one fourth of an inch of water in the bottom after a overnight storm. Yes, I too carry a bearcan!

  11. #31
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    ok, so cans will help protect against rodents too right?
    and the previous poster even mentioned the dangers of food in the tent resulting in rodents opening a hole in said tent to get at it...
    so here's a question...
    if the food is in a can, and in the tent..... don't the rodents still smell it and try to get at it?
    i mean it's not like they can tell from outside the tent that it's in a can and then with their little rat brains decide it's not worth the trouble....

    and for the plastic cans.... don't they just chew right through them?

  12. #32

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    Quote Originally Posted by blw2 View Post
    **snip**
    so here's a question...
    if the food is in a can, and in the tent..... don't the rodents still smell it and try to get at it?
    i mean it's not like they can tell from outside the tent that it's in a can and then with their little rat brains decide it's not worth the trouble....

    and for the plastic cans.... don't they just chew right through them?
    Just FYI - correct use of the bear canister is to place it away from your tent. As you pointed out, animals can still smell the food in the can. If it's away from your tent, they can play with it, try to get in it and then give up and go away without harming your tent.

  13. #33
    Some days, it's not worth chewing through the restraints.
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    No, rodents can't chew through the cans... they are essentially oversized nalgene bottles and are tougher than the average bear/mouse/racoon and most aliens, too.

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    Ive seen pics of bearvaults that rodents did damage to lid.
    Given enough time, i would think rodents could get thru the plastic if they can start on a sharp edge or corner.
    Last edited by MuddyWaters; 02-15-2017 at 17:23.

  15. #35
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    Quote Originally Posted by MuddyWaters View Post
    Yep
    Bearikade weekender
    Because its the lightest (32 oz) that big enough for about a week, and approved by yosemite, seki, etc. For those that dabble out west or have aspirations too, which u should. $290 + shipping.

    Holds value well because light and $$$, and can resell for virtually what paid. Mainly because ca residents have to pay sales tax for new ones.
    A BV500 weights 41 ounces, holds 7 days of food and can easy be opened with a knife blade, credit card or stick. Hard to fathom spending an extra $200+ dollars to save 9 ounces.

  16. #36

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    Quote Originally Posted by Hosh View Post
    Hard to fathom spending an extra $200+ dollars to save 9 ounces.
    Plenty do.
    Mainly because they can resell, and net same or less loss than cheaper cannister.


    But 200/9= $22/oz. When people get basewt down under 8- 10, they can spend $30-50/oz saved on cuben fiber or $$$ down, so 22/oz is really a deal sometimes...along that line o thinkin.

    The bv is known to get sticky and hard to turn sometimes. Separate issue from bending tab locks. Ive heard of people not being able to open theirs until it warmed up. Dirty threads and differential contraction of lid and body locked the lid in place when cold so couldnt turn.
    Last edited by MuddyWaters; 02-16-2017 at 02:39.

  17. #37
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    The carbon fiber weekender is 31.1oz according to their website so that's a savings of 9.9 oz getting darn close to a pound at that point. I'm personally going to rent one and leave my camp chair behind to offset the weight.

    http://www.wild-ideas.net/custom-bearikades/

  18. #38

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    Quote Originally Posted by Malto View Post
    No, you don't hang a canister or an ursack.

    and to the OP.... there are options beyond proper hanging and canisters.

    1) sleep with the food. This is what a large number of people do including myself.It is based on the assumption that bears will not challenge you for possession of your food. (this is why don't bears attack walking hikers for their food)
    2) Ursack. Lighter and more pack friendly. It's a bit more work than a canister but less than a hang. Bear won't get food but you could have some prechewed food.
    3) a crappy hang which is what the majority of hanging. If you go this route then learn how to hang properly. The PCT method is what I recommend. IMHO this is the worst route to go. You have lost possession of your food and made it accessible. Bad news for both your food and the bear.
    Point 1) For me personally, that is an assumption I wouldn't want to test, which sleeping with the food seems to be doing. In the event that a bear comes near enough to where I am camped that it can smell the edibles that I have been carrying, then I'd rather the bear spend its time trying to get at my food bag that is properly hung and is a safe distance away from where I am sleeping than to have the bear follow the scent to my tent and have me as the lone deterrent b/w it and my food bag. I know there are arguments on both sides of this fence, so now we all know on which side I reside. My opinion is that sleeping with your food will never be a problem until it is, and when it becomes a problem it becomes one of such magnitude that I don't want it. :-)

    Point 3) I agree that improperly hung food is a likely cause for food-related issues with bears. I also agree that the PCT method, when utilized correctly, is the best method for hanging food if that's your preferred method for storing food at camp. If my choices are to sleep with my food or to hang it properly at a reasonable distance from where I am slumbering then I respectfully disagree that hanging is the worst route to go and I will hang it every time.

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