Bear containers are coming to ADKs

It was inevitable, the bear proof containers are going to be mandatory next year. It's just a matter of the law makers putting their J.Hancock on it. During my weekend stay at Ore Bed Brook LT, I talked with an EnCon officer and a Wildlife Mngt. officer, who both told me that the bear problem was out of hand, because people were not hanging their food properly. I met a couple of young men who lost all of their food because they didn't have time to hang it, so they cached it somewhere. I saw the remnants of a bear bag hanging next to the Johns Brook trail, at the Big Slide intersection. The bag was in the crotch of a branch, hung with yellow cord, and the claw marks of the bear climbing up the tree were very obvious. It was interesting to see a plastic jar of what looked like peanut butter, pierced with teeth marks, and all the PB licked out. The only thing the bear didn't eat were some baby carrots and the toothbrush.

We met the Wildlife officer at the Garden, told him of the incident and showed him the size of the paw print. He said it was probably a 350 lber that he has tagged and collared, and it is not afraid of people. The sad thing was that he said if the bear got too comfortable with people, and started rummaging through tents and campsites with people present, he would be required to put the animal down. That would be such a tragedy!

My question is one that has probably been put forth earlier, but how do you folks pack that thing? I'm not sure it would fit inside my pack, if it did I could fill it with food and other things. If I strapped it to the outside of the pack, how would I attach it? There doesn't appear to be any attachment points on it. Any thoughts?

DON'T FEED THE BEARS!

Tom,

I just bought a bear canister from campmor. I also bought a carry bag for it that has loops on it. With the carry sack I can attach the canister to the outside of my backpack. I carry the canister on the outside of my pack on the bottom where there are compression straps. I think most backpacks have this feature.

ADAM

I rented the Garcia cannister on my last trip and it fit right inside my pack. I have a 70 litre pack and usually have lots of room in it since the rest of my gear is fairly lightweight.

The Garcia models seem to be the most popular, they're the ones on the bear cannister signs in the ADK's and they are also the ones recommended by Yosemite where they are also mandatory.

At 2.8lbs I'm hoping the designers can build a more lightweight version out of carbon fibre or something. As more and more parks make these mandatory I'm sure we'll see more designs hit the market. I've seen ones that are slightly larger with more room inside, not sure why they don't get the nod.

I can rent one for $5 per weekend so that is probably what I'll do for a while as they are $80CDN to purchase.


S.

If they make the cannisters mandatory, will they be mandatory in winter season as well?

S.

No. I am pretty sure you can travel bear container free from Dec. 1 to April 1.

-percious

>>>>>The Garcia models seem to be the most popular, they're the ones on the bear cannister signs in the ADK's and they are also the ones recommended by Yosemite where they are also mandatory.

At 2.8lbs I'm hoping the designers can build a more lightweight version out of carbon fibre or something. As more and more parks make these mandatory I'm sure we'll see more designs hit the market. I've seen ones that are slightly larger with more room inside, not sure why they don't get the nod.
+++++++++++++++++++++++

It would be nice if a smaller size container were to produced, as well...I find the Garcia's size to be overkill for 1 or 2 person overnights.

There ia a canister called a bear vault , little lighter than a garcia w/ a wider mouth for loading, they have a web site. They are not yet certified but have been tested on black bears w/ good results. As to size, when i use one i fill it w/ other items to save space.

I was doing a 2 night 2 1/2 day trip with 3 of us and we had to eat like crazy the first day to be able to fit it all in.

You're right, probably to big for 1 person overnight, but you can stuff other things in there if space is a concern in your pack.

I do hope the selection broadens as the demand for these things inevitably increases.


S.

My container fits perfectly in the bottom pocket of my Kelty pack. It's almost as if the pocket were made to fit a bear canister.

Bear Vault's website is: http://www.bearvault.com/bearvault_details.php

They compare theirs with the Garcia model. Only thing that really jumped out at me was the waterproofness. It's a little lighter too, but bigger so might be harder to shove in your pack.

S.

Check a post over on thru-hiker.com that describes a bear in Yosemite opening a cannister by repeatedly banging it against a rock. I recently hiked with a member of this board who has a cannister bag. It has several ways of attaching easliy to a pack.

Post

Here is the guys post from thru-hiker.com

Last week, we returned from a vacation in Yosemite. While there, a ranger described to us how a female black bear broke into a sealed, approved hard-sided bear cannister in the region of Nevada Fall. The ranger reports that the bear smashed the side of the cannister onto a hard object for 45 minutes until it broke.
This same bear was shot to death, along with her cub, in late July or early August after "false charging" (running at hikers until they dropped their food-laden packs), and after the cub climbed onto the back of a Boy Scout while trying to tear the pack off his back.

It would appear that a hard-sided cannister should most properly be described as "bear resistant", not "bear proof". If so, perhaps the performance gap (if any) between the Ursack TKO and a hard sided cannister is illusory.

Might it be time for the the appropriate regulatory body to consider adding the Ursack TKO to its list of approved containers?

Found this off the thru-hiker.com website

http://www.wild-ideas.net/products.html

The weekender version weights less than 2 lbs, and they used carbon fibre! Pretty pricey though at $195.

Definitely gonna wait a while before I purchase a cannister as it looks like there is a lot of R&D going into this stuff now.


S.

I have used the Garcia Machine canister for 3 years and I love it despite the extra weight.
It fits perfectly inside the top portion of my Osprey Crescent 90 pack.

There ia a canister called a bear vault , little lighter than a garcia w/ a wider mouth for loading, they have a web site. They are not yet certified but have been tested on black bears w/ good results. As to size, when i use one i fill it w/ other items to save space.

We used to rent the Garcia. It fit into my (Kelty) pack, barely, and not where I wanted it to be. We've since bought the BearVault. Someone pointed out that it's lighter but bigger, and it won't fit into my pack. It straps on the outside with no problem, as there are plastic bumps on each side for strap guides, though I wish the bumps were a little bigger. My thought about putting other things besides food in them is that those things could pick up food odors and thus have to remain in the canister overnight. I've also wondered why not a smaller sized one, when someone reminded me that a smaller size may make it less bear proof. It is indeed a challege to pack, but see this site:

www.pcta.org/planning/ before_trip/health/canistercare.doc

The problem with me with those things, is that I'll have a hard time fitting one night's food in it.... Let's see.. My trip in a couple days.. A squash, a couple zucchinis, onion, pepper, a few tomatoes.. Things like that fill them up fast.

The other things i put in are things that dont really maater on odor and you just keep them in the vault at night, like your cookware,stove,utensils,fuel canister, etc.

Like an earlier poster, I have been to Yosemite a couple times. Many of the popular areas have steel bear lockers installed. These are permanent fixed installations and are very convenient. They are completely bearPROOF when properly closed, big (like a refrigerator) so several groups could share them, and cheap. I asked the DEC (I can't remember a name) why we don't install some of them at popular bear problem sites like Lake Colden. I was told that our hiking population wasn't educated enough, and might put trash in the lockers.

(The only drawback I can see to the Yosemite locker design is that they are dangerous to children, becasue they can't be opened from the inside (like an old refrigerator at a landfill). I would modify the design to include a latch on the inside.)

TCD

They really have to come up with a smaller cannister before I will consider carrying one. I don't even mind the weight, its the ridiculous bulk. Might as well put a pair of straps on it and use it as you day pack.

How 'bout a half size can?

Holdstrong said:

They really have to come up with a smaller cannister before I will consider carrying one. I don't even mind the weight, its the ridiculous bulk. Might as well put a pair of straps on it and use it as you day pack.

How 'bout a half size can?

Click to expand...

Holdstrong,

They make carry pouches for them which I have and make all the difference in the world! I just attach the canister to the bottom of my pack where you would attach a tent. I even still have room for a tent and a sleeping bag.

ADAM