I clip a mini biner to pack handle and hang it from the RL.Originally Posted by grizzly bear 336
Last year while hiking a section in the Shenandoah National Park, a large group of hikers stop to overnight at Bearfence Mtn Hut; several were tenting. At about 5pm a bear came into the camp and took one hikers food bag, he hung it on a low limb while setting up his tent. He chased the bear and was able to retrieve about half of his food. He and his friend came down to the shelter and we talked about the bear encounter, when they returned to their tent sites the bear had destroyed their tents-broken poles and torn tent flies. The bear circle our shelter the reminder of the night and was still present the following morning. I do not believe he was a threat to us but was certainly looking for another opportunity to run in and grab our food. He destroyed another tent the following night.
Depends on the weather.
I once saw a guy hang his food about 2 feet above his tent, I am not sure what he thought he was accomplishing. Maybe it was an elaborate bear trap. A few people walked by and swatted at it pretending to be bears until he moved it.
If you hang your whole backpack you will probably get alot of morning dew on it, making for a wet morning pack. Mine always goes in my tent and my food always gets hung. If you have to hang your backpack it would be better to put it in a pack liner as a previous poster suggested.
Whatever you do, DO NOT hide your food in your underwear.
..so pretty much. If someone conflicts your point..just call them a liar?
"Not all who wander are lost"
Not a liar per se... but that story does seem extremely far fetched. Never heard of a bear charging anyone that was not in between the mana and her cub. This story may be the inspiration for the new Yogi 3-D movie though~ Wonder how long it would take to teach a bear to pilot a 2 engine flyer?
Live your life and I'll live mine, perhaps one day they will intertwine. SEMPER FI! 2013 SOBO
Ummm....ya.....no.
What I meant to infer is that the people who told you that story are more likely pod-people from the 3rd planet from Altair who came to earth as an advance scouting team to determine the best way to steal the world's supply of Twinkies.
Do you think the recent news that Hostess (the divine makers of Twinkies, Holy Guardians of creme filling) was nearing bankruptcy was somehow unrelated to this diabolical 3rd planet plot?
And no, I wasn't calling anyone a liar. Pod-people or not.
It depends on what you are protecting your food from. I do one of three things.
1) PCT bear hang in bear country.
2) Hang off bushes to offer some protection from small critters.
3) Use it as a pillow, below my bivy.
I would not store my food in either a tent or a pack. Its a good way to have small critters eat holes in your gear.
I met a thru-hiker in PA last summer who told me about a bear at bearfence shelter that had to be removed. She said they shouldn't have much trouble catching it, it came running when she opened a can of sardines!
Generally bears are not the problem, it depends on where you are. The parks will offer the most problems because the bears are not hunted and loose their fear on humans. The GSMP has a cable system to hang your pack and food. Mice will be a problem most places and can eat through a pack in minutes. If you do not hang your pack or put it in your tent, be sure to open every zipper, give them free access and you may wake up with a pack full of nuts.
Always hang your food, on a provided cable system, in a shelter or using proper methods in bear areas. They can destroy you pack in seconds. A few years back a bear became a problem at the Walnut Mtn Shelter near Hot Springs. It would come in the shelter in the day time with hikers in the shelter. One guy hid his food in the privy (what an idiot). The bear knocked the top of the privy off to get the food.
I use a hammock and I hang my pack on the end of my hammock under the fly along with my food bag.
I am not young enough to know everything.
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