Suggestions for camping in bear country

[larry2c]

Quite a few years ago we camped in Kings Canyon in a tent and there were plenty of bears there. We used the bear box for all our food and tried to maintain a pristine tent and mini van (hard to do with a small child but we did our best. We had no issues that trip but we saw plenty of pictures of destroyed tents and vehicles with some that had captions that said "only a stick of gum" attracted the bear.

Now we are planning to visit a national park or two this summer where they state that there are bears in the area. I have read conflicting information that goes from "just keep everything in your TT/MH and you'll be fine" to others that say "keep all food in the campsite bear box and don't even cook in the TT/MH!" So what is the general consensus of folks here experienced with camping in bear country? We want to enjoy our days in the NP's, not be on pins & needles every night

[CNYCamper]

We camp every summer in the Adirondacks (NY DEC parks) and as far as I know, they all have black bears in the area. Only one park we visit has actual bear boxes at each site. We've never had an issue although one park had a problem bear running around while we were there (a camper had been feeding him and he got used to the easy meals - young male, likely first year away from mama).
Years ago a ranger told me, in addition to keeping a clean site, to keep my cooler covered or stored inside, even if it only contains beer or water as bears, being very intelligent, learn to recognize the shape as a potential food source. The idea is to have the bear pass by your site without actually entering it. We love to cook outside, but we set up our outside kitchen on the far end of the site and take the trash to the dump station every night. We have a hybrid so we're cognizant of odors that can leach out through the canvas, but the fridge (so far), seems to contain any food smells.

[formerFR]

leaving food out is really more of a problem when you are NOT there to monitor it - a bear doesn't just walk up to occupied campsites and knock on doors to find out who's at home or not,....(or, maybe they do!)

boxes are for those tent camping and without any real means to safely contain food stuffs that might be an attractant... but there's no 'real' way to keep bears from sniffing out goodies, only the ability to help keep them from getting to it.

Unless you are gone from your 'camper' for days on end, it's doubtful that a bear is going to try to break in, especially in a campground where others are around. It's also doubtful a bear is going to knock on your door, or just come on in, at night, while you are there.

If it was really that bad, you would have few folks camping in the national parks - I assure you that these parks are FULL all during the season!

[larry2c]

Thank you both for the insight! I didn't think that the "raid your RV for gum" was a real concern but I did want to hear from folks that camp where there's bears how they camp.

[BradJB]

I have camped quite a bit in Pennsylvania and there are lots of bears. They will absolutely come into a campground and go after your food when people are around. One trip to Poe Paddy State Park a bear raided half a dozen campsites at dawn. It didn’t bother my food since it was locked in the tow vehicle. The bear even slashed into a screened in awning where people had left their cooler. This is just one of my many many run ins with the furry fellows.

[bikendan]

The rangers at Glacier, Yellowstone and Yosemite all told us that food in the fridge and freezer were fine .
Open/unsealed food in cabinets should go in bear box.

[NoviBill]

A big difference between black bear and grizzly/brown bear.
Black Bears generally fear humans and avoid them (unless they have been fed) .
Grizzly/Browns don't fear humans and are willing to challenge you for food (or think you are food).

With a hard-sided camper you are generally safe with food inside.

Leaving food, garbage or anything that smells like food (bbq) outside will attract animals, once those animals are accustomed to getting food from humans they become a danger and the must be killed - you cause the problem, the bears get killed.

In Grizzly territory carry bear spray when hiking (and have it in camp). If you must use it, it "conditions" the bear to avoid humans which will save the bear and you.

A good read - https://www.nps.gov/yell/planyourvis...earcountry.htm

[PSU Turf]

NoviBill's advice is right on.

In addition to not leaving anything out that humans would eat or drink do not leave any garbage with food residue. Any wrappers or food containers should be disposed of in bear proof trash containers. A greasy grill will attract bears. Don't throw any food scraps into the woods. If you are in grizzly country keep bear spray at your side when eating outside.

[Rvdixie]

Originally Posted by larry2c

Quite a few years ago we camped in Kings Canyon in a tent and there were plenty of bears there. We used the bear box for all our food and tried to maintain a pristine tent and mini van (hard to do with a small child but we did our best. We had no issues that trip but we saw plenty of pictures of destroyed tents and vehicles with some that had captions that said "only a stick of gum" attracted the bear.

Now we are planning to visit a national park or two this summer where they state that there are bears in the area. I have read conflicting information that goes from "just keep everything in your TT/MH and you'll be fine" to others that say "keep all food in the campsite bear box and don't even cook in the TT/MH!" So what is the general consensus of folks here experienced with camping in bear country? We want to enjoy our days in the NP's, not be on pins & needles every night

Just don't go there. Problem solved.

[67L48]

Keep a tidy campsite. Done. In fact, it's good practice even when not in bear country.

In CO, we have an unhealthy obsession with bears, as the entire state is bear country (black bears, only). I'm more a fan of protecting against probable issues with bears and the state is more of a fan of protecting against possible issues with bears.

So, it can get fairly militant. In some places, having coolers in sight, even if empty, is a no-no. Bears know what coolers are and the mere sight of them might draw them in. Probable? Definitely not. Possible? Well, anything's possible, right?

Two years ago a ranger woke me up at midnight because I had left a bag of skittles on my picnic table. That's CO.

I don't get too wound up about hermetically sealing food in bear boxes. I just keep things tidy, don't leave food lying about (particularly aromatic foods, meats, and other things that have been cooked), and don't leave trash about. Can a bear be drawn in by the smell of a can of beer? Maybe. Can a bear be drawn in by the smell of a Hershey bar? I suppose. I'm less worried about those things, though.

Again, just keep things tidy.

Good luck.

[2rad4u]

Originally Posted by NoviBill

A big difference between black bear and grizzly/brown bear.

HUGE difference.

I've hammock camped(bear taco) many times in Pisgah National Forest (black bear country) and never worried about bears.

Grizzleys are a WHOLE other animal! Know where you are and what's out there.

[Reverse_snowbird]

Originally Posted by larry2c

So what is the general consensus of folks here experienced with camping in bear country? We want to enjoy our days in the NP's, not be on pins & needles every night

You've got a hard sided camper, so you should be fine keeping food inside the rig. Just don't leave the door open with only the screen door between your food and the bears when you're not around.

As a precaution, pick up any food wrappers you find that someone may have left behind at the campsite. Don't throw out any dishwashing water or soapy water near your campsite that might attract a bear to your area.

We've camped in lots of areas where there are bear warnings and haven't had any problem.

[pdqparalegal1]

Originally Posted by Rvdixie

Just don't go there. Problem solved.

X-2

[Vince and Charlette]

My preference would be a .357, but I'd probably settle on 40 hollow points. Seriously, if you're a dedicated hiker, you probably already have a preferred caliber.

[D W]

Originally Posted by larry2c

Thank you both for the insight! I didn't think that the "raid your RV for gum" was a real concern but I did want to hear from folks that camp where there's bears how they camp.

Reality check here. It is a concern. Typically, bears do not want to be around humans, and generally will run away, except if you get between a sow and here cubs or surprise one while feeding. However, humans have turned these "nature" animals into garbage bears by not policing their garbage at the campsites. In Alaska, anywhere there's a known bear population the parks are equipped with bear-proof dumpsters, but it only takes one person to illegally dump one bag of trash along the road. Once you turn a bear into a garbage bear you have a problem. Bears also have an incredible sense of smell that can range up to a mile. In my neck of the woods bears have been known to destroy an automobile just to get a French fry that has dropped down between the seats, or a half consumed pop left in the cup holder. Someone suggested not to cook? Sorry, that's unacceptable. Just police your garbage and make lots of noise where you are camped. Bears do not like noise. Of course you may encounter one that ventures in. In that case, up here, is why we don't leave home without it.

[TheWolfPaq82]

Tenting in the wilderness in Montana, we did A LOT of freeze dried food, some can goods. Kept everything locked in the vehicle and cleanup was BURN everything that would burn. Cans were tossed into fire until all remaining contents were burnt away. Cans were removed, left out to cool then put in garbage bag that was also locked in vehicle. A good can of Bear Spray is also nice to have on hand.

[ncebeemer]

Bears can be a problem, but usually as most of the above posts state is the cleanliness of the camp that causes the problem. When I was about 8 years old my family was camping in Kings Canyon. My mother, god bless her, was not one to worry about cleaning cooking pots etc right after the meal! I was awakened by a loud banging. I looked out of the tent and saw a bear doing my mothers job, though using its tongue, about six feet away on the table. A couple of year ago, I was in my tt in Dunsmuir, Ca and across the road my son and his family were tent camping. About 2am a bear came to visit, tearing up his campsite, dragging coolers off up the hill. They slept right through the whole thing. This bear was a problem only to messy tent campers, and the dumpster for a few weeks. Eventually he was put down one night. Keep your camp clean and neat, coolers out of sight and you generally will have no problems and the bears will check in and then move along. (my apologies for long post but I had to share)

[Kf4mnc]

Originally Posted by 67L48

Keep a tidy campsite. Done. In fact, it's good practice even when not in bear country.

In CO, we have an unhealthy obsession with bears, as the entire state is bear country (black bears, only). I'm more a fan of protecting against probable issues with bears and the state is more of a fan of protecting against possible issues with bears.

So, it can get fairly militant. In some places, having coolers in sight, even if empty, is a no-no. Bears know what coolers are and the mere sight of them might draw them in. Probable? Definitely not. Possible? Well, anything's possible, right?

Two years ago a ranger woke me up at midnight because I had left a bag of skittles on my picnic table. That's CO.

I don't get too wound up about hermetically sealing food in bear boxes. I just keep things tidy, don't leave food lying about (particularly aromatic foods, meats, and other things that have been cooked), and don't leave trash about. Can a bear be drawn in by the smell of a can of beer? Maybe. Can a bear be drawn in by the smell of a Hershey bar? I suppose. I'm less worried about those things, though.

Again, just keep things tidy.

Good luck.

This is the correct answer! If you are a good steward of nature and the wilderness you will have few if any issues. Of course there are exceptions, but being you are in a hard sided camper you should be just fine. That doesn't mean be a slob and leave things laying out. Just clean up after yourself.

That said, if you are in a soft sided structure (hammock/tent/popup/etc) then you need to be more diligent. When we backpacked we utilized a the triangle method. That is, fire/cooking area, sump area and bear bag area. You never camp within this area as that is where the animals were going to circulate.

Originally Posted by Vince and Charlette

My preference would be a .357, but I'd probably settle on 40 hollow points. Seriously, if you're a dedicated hiker, you probably already have a preferred caliber.

Bear Spray is much more effective than nearly all handguns in bear country. Bear Spray is also much safer in nearly all situations. There is no concern of a stray bullet traveling miles and striking someone or something and it is extremely rare for Bear Spray to be fatal.
Bear Spray does not require any special permit(s) and is also not illegal in most public lands/parks.

Link to some research.

Note: This isn't anti-gun, this is simply best tool for the job. If legally allowed I'd have both.

[larry2c]

Thanks to all for the information and comments! One bit of feedback I have to give to those who suggested "just don't go there". That's not really how I want to live life - be it fearing nature or not so civil humans. I always try to be aware of what's going on around me (walking in the woods or on a city street) and be prepared for the possibilities. Nuff said on that topic :-)

I was planning on buying some bear spray and according to the Lassen NP website, black bears are what is common there. I've also read a couple articles on how to behave during a bear encounter - as the saying goes, fore warned is fore armed. We saw quite a few black bears during our trip to Kings Canyon many years ago and we survived that in a tent. I think we do a good job of keeping our site & vehicles free of debris so we will up our game in that respect and keep our eyes open.

[67L48]

Originally Posted by Kf4mnc

[...] Bear Spray is much more effective than nearly all handguns in bear country. Bear Spray is also much safer in nearly all situations. There is no concern of a stray bullet traveling miles and striking someone or something and it is extremely rare for Bear Spray to be fatal.
Bear Spray does not require any special permit(s) and is also not illegal in most public lands/parks.

Link to some research.

Note: This isn't anti-gun, this is simply best tool for the job. If legally allowed I'd have both.

First of all, that's not research. That's an opinion paper published by the US Fish & Wildlife service. It's nothing more than an anecdotal summary of various field agents' recollections, no data, and no citations. It might be accurate, but there's no way to know.

This paper is much more of a legitimate research paper. Here is another one.

The research is inconclusive to many due to the nature of the incidents that are compared. Incidents that contain guns are almost always on a charging bear. Incidents that contain bear spray are rarely on a charging bear and are usually on curious or otherwise non-aggressive bears. And a bear who is not aggravated to the point of charging is much more easily dispersed/deterred than one who has begun its charge. So, it's an apples-to-oranges comparison.

Also, there aren't any public lands where carrying firearms is illegal, since the national park system rescinded that restriction a few years ago. Carrying is the operative word, though. Discharging a firearm is illegal in many of these places ... and you'd better be "lucky enough" to have a chunk of your leg missing to prove to the rangers that your discharge was warranted. Otherwise, the following conversations you have will probably be even more unpleasant than the bear scare you had.

That's not pro-gun or anti-gun. It's just a summary of the situational truths. Research is scant, the conclusions are debatable, and there can be a massive difference between carrying on public lands and discharging on public lands.

And, maybe that's the real point. Guns, for myriad reasons, can only be used as a last resort and, at the point, might be too late. Spray can be used as a first or second resort and, therefore, are more effective at prevention.

I think bear spray is probably the better option, but I sometimes carry a firearm. I already have a firearm and can't be bothered to buy bear spray. If someone were giving away bear spray free, I'd leave my gun and carry the spray.

However, I'm in black bear country (CO has no brown bears). So, I don't even usually carry a firearm. I would in brown bear places.

Good luck.