Food and bears .. What's your strategy?

[exv]

Curious what everyone is doing with there base style camps/vehicle camping in bear country, specifically cooking in wall tents ect. Where do you keep your cooler, cookware, snacks ect ..?

I've always backpack hunted/camped (in HEAVY bear county too) and was taught early on to hang your food and keep a clean camp, never had a problem to date.

Showed a friend from Alberta around the kootenays and we spent a few nights in different provincial park camps. One night we spent around Duncan lake and despite being a regulated camp that is some nice bear country!, lots of sign in the immidiate area. My buddy had to full on "Alberta" setup .. 5 star .. coffee maker and furnace was on at 5am, hence the fancy camp ground :razz: . I just popped my msr 1 man tent up beside him and took the funny looks from our neighours (one couple thought my tent was a dog shelter haha). Long story short i was surprised how NOBODY seemed even remotely aware of bears. One fella had a wall tent, had a full on kitchen inside and had a fish cleaning station right outside his front door lol.



Anyways, while having a beer around the fire i brought up the topic and the consensus was I'm overly paranoid and the bears wouldn't bother use .. with the grizzly hunting bans and this mentality ... just sayin ... only takes one time ...

[whitlers]

When we are in moose camp we don't really worry about bears. Wall tent with kitchen, a couple campers 6-8 guys we have never had a problem. The odd one will poke around near camp but never bothered us. Having a couple dogs helps.

Now when backpacking we are more carefull and hang food or store it 100 yard from camp.

[happyhunter]

Yup people are reckless. Duncan area is huge bear country. See 2 or 3 just on the mainline each time I’m out that way. Don’t forget to take 1 or 2 home with you

[caddisguy]

I've never had my cooler, garbage or cooking stuff messed with by bear as far as I know. I've had some garbage messed with by critters, but bears I don't think so. I've had lots of bears wander through my camp because it's a travel route between food and cover, but never even sniffed at food or garbage. Zero interest in my stuff what so ever. Well behaved in that regard, even asshole bear.

If I'm car camping I like to keep my food and garbage close. I put pots and pans on stuff so I'll wake up if something messes with it. I'd rather know a bear is in my camp messing with my stuff, than not knowing it's there 50 or 100 yards away.

Tenting in a remote area, I'm not cooking, eating or leaving food anywhere near camp. No thanks.

Fish gutting station by a tent? Also a big no thanks on that one LOL

[exv]

Yeah, really enjoy everyone's perspective. I agree with caddisguy .. rather know what your dealing with than a surprise 100ft away!, good point.

I remember I took note of somebody on here mentioning they always where a white shirt to bed when back country camping (and anybody else in camp) ... while haven't actually put that into place this makes alot of sense to me too for many reasons .. visabitlity, adrenaline and no pain but blood on shirt = problem ect ..

[jtred]

Backpack hunting food/toiletries are hung in a tree downwind at least 50m, fire ring/cooking area also away from tents. I do boil water for breakfast in the tent, I set up my little cooker in the vestibule and tie the inner door open, really warms the tent and me on those frosty alpine mornings. Truck camping food gets stored in cooler/totes, locked in canopy. Horse camp with wall tent, food and stove are in wall tent, I don't know why it's not my camp. My best friends dad has been sheep hunting the Wilmore Wilderness the past thirty years and that's just how he does it. There have been bears in camp, but with horses, dog, and a few well armed guys, it's never been a real issue. That much scent/noise might turn a bear.

[mpotzold]

Never had a problem with bears when on hunting trips at camp even when 1+ moose, deer has been hanging for some time.
Maybe it’s because of the always burning campfire, the dog or the noise we make. We see bears even grizz not that far from the camp but they always shy away.

As seen in the photo some of our food/drinks are stored under the tarp in 2+ coolers & cardboard boxes. This is E-CAMP named after Eve. It's between Gang & Ward Creek.
One night after a fresh snowfall 2 huge wolves walked right through our camp & didn't touch a thing


https://oi1305.photobucket.com/albums/s558/land51/pd17fqfr_zpsvklnayez.png~original



I tented out for 4 seasons in the Yukon wilderness in the 60’s & never had a bear problem. A wolverine had to be shot one late night.
Re: food storage we took no extra precautions.

[HarryToolips]

When back pack camping I too store food away from my main camp...I only ever had one problem bear coming into our camp and taking food, lol and he came right into our camp and this was hunting season so I shot him lol...

[Squamch]

Back packing- food gets hung up away from camp.
Camping- we usually have enough dogs and beer piss around camp that nothing bigger than a mouse comes in.

[mpotzold]

Squamish-Not securing food cost a camper a $230 ticket.

Under the Wildlife Act(Sec. 33.1), the man was charged with attracting dangerous wildlife.

https://www.princegeorgematters.com/local-news/bear-accesses-food-rips-bc-campers-tent-in-the-process-2430870

https://www.castanet.net/content/2020/6/eaqjamsueaal_ff._p3463673.jpg

[RackStar]

Il usually slide the cooler closer to my buddy’s tent at night. Seems to work.

[srupp]

Hmm nothing ever in tent..no food..no coffee no brushing teeth..nada.
game animals hung 100 feet from tent
Food hung high between trees if possible in 2 separate caches..if one is hit. .50 % survives..
One spring in Kwatna guides brand new $1500 wall tent plus contents distorted by just Chocolat bars under a pillow..by 800 pound nightmare ..fortunately it was day time they were out checking for bears.
srupp

[fearnodeer]

I always vacuum pack all the meats I bring to help stop any smell from them, and yes leave the coolers away from were we sleep.

[madcalfe]

sheep/goat hunting i usually only hang my food 25-50 yards away in plain sight that my head lamp can light up and sleep with one in the tube. if we have a boned out goat that usually gets thrown in contractor bags and submerged in a lake/ creek if possible
elk hunting never really had a problem with bears yet with cooking at a fire close by and hanging elk quarters maybe 20 yards away but i also dont tent it for elk.
just clean up your garbage. use common sense and you should be fine.

[Big Lew]

When I used to do a lot of backpacking I always kept my cooking area away from my sleeping area
and hung anything resembling food up as high as I could. Same when bicycle touring up north, including
doing the Alaskan Hwy. Never had a problem. When hunting, never cook in or near my tent. As many
have said, they haven't had issues, but it only takes one time. I know of people that have had bears come
right inside their tent, and even a tent trailer while they were sleeping...places that they had both food stored
and had cooked inside. I will say though that those incidents were all near park campsites where it can be assumed
bears were familiar with human food and garbage and were not afraid of humans.