Canisters - what holds up best? or better?

What is suggested or found to be the better canisters? I know that many peaks have PVC canisters but I don’t plan on going to that extent. But is a glass jar better than a plastic bottle? A glass jar with a plastic lid verses a metal lid seems a good one to me. I have found metal lids rusted and very difficult to open. On Mt. Blue an couple years back I found a broken beer (?) bottle (on the ground) with a small note paper roll in it so I replaced it with a rinsed out Gatorade bottle (all I had at the time) and clean ziplock and retied it to a leather strap. From reports its sounds like it is still there. But someone told me moose tend to chew through these. And peanut butter jars tend to keep their smell.

I presently have two jars available in case I find the need. One is a ‘Fluff’ jar (clear) with plastic lid and the other a Lipton Ice Tea jar (brown) with plastic lid. Good or bad idea?

And what works best to keep them attached?

I don't mean to be impertinent here, but have to ask: Why any canister at all?

Yeah, I know it's something of a "tradition."

And I confess to having been pretty upset and vocal about canisters being removed from the "trailless" peaks on the Adirondack 46 list when that happened. But I've calmed down now, accepted the canister removal, recognize that in the long view it probably did more good than bad ... .

And so, the question.

G.

Grumpy: Not impertinent but a good question, maybe for another thread though? But I would counter, why not canisters? I don’t see canisters as drawing people to trailless summits but rather lists do. And if they are already there, and people enjoy reading others comments why not preserve them for the next visitor?

carole said:

Grumpy: Not impertinent but a good question, maybe for another thread though? But I would counter, why not canisters? I don’t see canisters as drawing people to trailless summits but rather lists do. And if they are already there, and people enjoy reading others comments why not preserve them for the next visitor?

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Good arguments for canisters. Without intending to hijack your thread, I'll note that I was thinking more in terms of litter than in terms of increased traffic on any given mountainside or summit.

G.

carole said:

On Mt. Blue an couple years back I found a broken beer (?) bottle (on the ground) with a small note paper roll in it so I replaced it with a rinsed out Gatorade bottle (all I had at the time) and clean ziplock and retied it to a leather strap.

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I can confirm that there is still a Gatorade bottle on the summit, with a few bits of paper in it. We were very happy to find it.

I would think plastic would be better only because the glass ones break. I'm not all that big on bushwhacking, so I'm not an authority... but the glass containers have never been intact on the few peaks I've been to. Perhaps they last longer on the less popular peaks though.

- Ivy

I'm no expert on cannisters but I do know that the bottles and jars don't seem to last very long. The PVC pipes with pipe-end lids and double ziplock bags inside seem to work best. However, the mode of attachement to the tree is also quite important. I have heard of PVC cans being found on the ground only months after being put up. Then there is the risk of the tree being blown down.

(Reply to sub-theme: I have whacked to summits both with and without "stuff" on top and have also left "stuff". Recently, after more than a little discussion with friends and thinking about it a lot I have decided that I prefer a summit that has absolutely nothing on it, nothing but the wind and whatever head space I take up there with me. I dunno why but the nothingness prolongs the experience.)

poison ivy said:

I would think plastic would be better only because the glass ones break.

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Many kinds of plastic does not withstand UV. Covers can have a problem with extreme cold. Your basic mayonaise jar was not designed to be out in the sun for years.