This method will work great, if you can jump in a time machine and backpack in the 1980s. Today, this method will work fine if there are no bears around. otherwise, you've lost your food and helped kill a bear.
if you use a prussik poop above the stick or knotles setup then you can hold the weight of the bag with that and a length of cord to your foot, never tried but it seems it might work, and seems the prussik loop without extra cord will slip through the carabiner, just an idea please give me feedback of its effectiveness.
Im not doing this hike without a Pistol in .44caliber and hanging my barrel At least 100 yards away like what some others mentioned. If they dont let you carry a pistol by law through the parks and wildlife areas fuck this. Too many City people dont really understand what could happen....lulz.
I'm planning a thru hike of the AT and have never bear bagged before, so thanks for the easy-to-follow steps! I'll be trying this method on a shakedown at a state park.
Thanks for the instruction. I've only camped in bear country once, and although I hung my stuff, I wasn't completely satisfied with the method I employed. Your idea is a lot better. Thanks.
I would hang anything with a scent in the bear bag. Some hikers will even hang up their sweaty clothes that they hiked in that day in the bear bag. Anything to keep the bears from being attracted to your tent is a good thing.
@CaptainMacNasty Ok, but back to my original question: Does the hanging just prevent the animals from getting it, but they can still smell it, or does hanging somehow prevent them from smelling it. If not, wouldn't it be better to have a bear eat all my food than come in expecting food, and not finding any because wouldn't he just eat you then? Even if you are a little ways from the food. I'd say "here, take the damn food".
The idea is to hang the food bag a good 100-200 yards away from where you camp, so that when the bear is drawn to the smell of the food, the food is far away from you and your tent. Also, when you cook food, you should also cook a good 100-200 yards downwind from your tent, so that the smell of your cooking does not drift back to where you are sleeping. These are just extra precautions and not a guarantee that you won't be visited by a bear. I also sleep with bear pepper spray by my side :-)
Ok, maybe i'm an irresponsible backpacker, because i never hang up my food. Does hanging it keep the bears from smelling it too, becuase it seems like the last thing that you would want would be a hungry bear come in expecting a meal to turn into a pissed off bear that can't get the food he smells, and because he can't get it, then wouldn't he maybe just decide to eat you? I never understood this. In my case i just carry some bear repelant in .357 magnum.
@FieldMarshalB - I learned an additional lesson about having any food in my tent, when a marmot chewed a big hold in my previously watertight tent to reach the food. So, aside from bear danger, there are a lot of other reasons to do the food bag thing. Hopefully, you'll have time to aim and get a brain shot with the .357, otherwise it's just a hungry bear with a painful hole in him.
Oh, by the way, you wouldn't want to shoot a bear in the head, unless you can hit them in the nose or eye. They have thick and sloped foreheads, which cause bullets to glance off them. I'd shoot for the center of mass. A few shots with a .357 should do the job on a black bear, maybe a little light, but the .44 was just so much heavier. I read that the best against bears (especially grizzelies which are almost impervous" is actually 00 buck shot from a 12 gauge.
@FieldMarshalB.. I'm all for bear bagging and never camp without hanging my food but all this discussions of where to shoot em..bear spray, which guns to carry is ridiculous! Some of you guys have been watching way too many movies...LOL..I'm ROTFLMAO...
@CaptainMacNasty People like to splurge info like that all the time....If you shoot a Bear in the head with a .357 its going to DIE. Period. But lol the thing is can you Hit It in the head while an 800Lb furry tank is chargeing you?
@Failedtroothers Bear skulls too thick to rely on a headshot. A good hit in the heart will kill a bear but due to their very low heart rate, it'll take up to a minute to die. During that minute it'll mash you up if it can. A shoulder shot is effective in that it's not well protected and will prevent the bear from coming at you. Use 5 rounds of your .357 concentrated fire to one shoulder. Save the 6th for yourself, lol.
Or get a can of bear spray and live. Half the weight, twice as effective!
After reading non-hysterical and well researched books (can't recall the names right now, darn it!) I agree that bear spray is likely going to be more effective.If used correctly - check the instructions and note the range and duration. Typically, neither is great. But if you were in a confrontation with a bear, you may have only seconds; guns are inaccurate, you will likely panic, and fellow campers can be shot.Spray is not 100% tho.Best to avoid conflict.Plan for confrontation and avoidance
This method will work great, if you can jump in a time machine and backpack in the 1980s. Today, this method will work fine if there are no bears around. otherwise, you've lost your food and helped kill a bear.
BlackKaweah 6 months ago
if you use a prussik poop above the stick or knotles setup then you can hold the weight of the bag with that and a length of cord to your foot, never tried but it seems it might work, and seems the prussik loop without extra cord will slip through the carabiner, just an idea please give me feedback of its effectiveness.
blackbat1339 8 months ago
Im not doing this hike without a Pistol in .44caliber and hanging my barrel At least 100 yards away like what some others mentioned. If they dont let you carry a pistol by law through the parks and wildlife areas fuck this. Too many City people dont really understand what could happen....lulz.
Failedtroothers 10 months ago
I'm planning a thru hike of the AT and have never bear bagged before, so thanks for the easy-to-follow steps! I'll be trying this method on a shakedown at a state park.
triggerhappy6 1 year ago
Thanks for the instruction. I've only camped in bear country once, and although I hung my stuff, I wasn't completely satisfied with the method I employed. Your idea is a lot better. Thanks.
bizzarrogeorge 1 year ago
I would hang anything with a scent in the bear bag. Some hikers will even hang up their sweaty clothes that they hiked in that day in the bear bag. Anything to keep the bears from being attracted to your tent is a good thing.
arthurjll1 1 year ago
Should you hang just food or anything with a scent? like soap and deodorant
3318ryan 1 year ago
my rope always gets torn up from rubbing against the tree branch, so i devised a system using two ropes and a carabiner as a pulley
dtdude42 1 year ago
@dtdude42 I use a little small pulley—because carabiner is too small, it bends the rope in too small a loop, . . .
phillipgaley 1 year ago
@CaptainMacNasty Ok, but back to my original question: Does the hanging just prevent the animals from getting it, but they can still smell it, or does hanging somehow prevent them from smelling it. If not, wouldn't it be better to have a bear eat all my food than come in expecting food, and not finding any because wouldn't he just eat you then? Even if you are a little ways from the food. I'd say "here, take the damn food".
FieldMarshalB 1 year ago
The idea is to hang the food bag a good 100-200 yards away from where you camp, so that when the bear is drawn to the smell of the food, the food is far away from you and your tent. Also, when you cook food, you should also cook a good 100-200 yards downwind from your tent, so that the smell of your cooking does not drift back to where you are sleeping. These are just extra precautions and not a guarantee that you won't be visited by a bear. I also sleep with bear pepper spray by my side :-)
arthurjll1 1 year ago
Ok, maybe i'm an irresponsible backpacker, because i never hang up my food. Does hanging it keep the bears from smelling it too, becuase it seems like the last thing that you would want would be a hungry bear come in expecting a meal to turn into a pissed off bear that can't get the food he smells, and because he can't get it, then wouldn't he maybe just decide to eat you? I never understood this. In my case i just carry some bear repelant in .357 magnum.
FieldMarshalB 1 year ago 2
@FieldMarshalB - I learned an additional lesson about having any food in my tent, when a marmot chewed a big hold in my previously watertight tent to reach the food. So, aside from bear danger, there are a lot of other reasons to do the food bag thing. Hopefully, you'll have time to aim and get a brain shot with the .357, otherwise it's just a hungry bear with a painful hole in him.
CaptainMacNasty 1 year ago
Oh, by the way, you wouldn't want to shoot a bear in the head, unless you can hit them in the nose or eye. They have thick and sloped foreheads, which cause bullets to glance off them. I'd shoot for the center of mass. A few shots with a .357 should do the job on a black bear, maybe a little light, but the .44 was just so much heavier. I read that the best against bears (especially grizzelies which are almost impervous" is actually 00 buck shot from a 12 gauge.
FieldMarshalB 1 year ago
@FieldMarshalB.. I'm all for bear bagging and never camp without hanging my food but all this discussions of where to shoot em..bear spray, which guns to carry is ridiculous! Some of you guys have been watching way too many movies...LOL..I'm ROTFLMAO...
MrEddieg54 1 year ago
@CaptainMacNasty People like to splurge info like that all the time....If you shoot a Bear in the head with a .357 its going to DIE. Period. But lol the thing is can you Hit It in the head while an 800Lb furry tank is chargeing you?
Failedtroothers 10 months ago
@Failedtroothers Bear skulls too thick to rely on a headshot. A good hit in the heart will kill a bear but due to their very low heart rate, it'll take up to a minute to die. During that minute it'll mash you up if it can. A shoulder shot is effective in that it's not well protected and will prevent the bear from coming at you. Use 5 rounds of your .357 concentrated fire to one shoulder. Save the 6th for yourself, lol.
Or get a can of bear spray and live. Half the weight, twice as effective!
WorldClimb 8 months ago
After reading non-hysterical and well researched books (can't recall the names right now, darn it!) I agree that bear spray is likely going to be more effective.If used correctly - check the instructions and note the range and duration. Typically, neither is great. But if you were in a confrontation with a bear, you may have only seconds; guns are inaccurate, you will likely panic, and fellow campers can be shot.Spray is not 100% tho.Best to avoid conflict.Plan for confrontation and avoidance
derekmadge 6 months ago
when you start to lower the bag, the dowel rod will go up and run into the carabiner and will effectively stop the bag from lowering any further.
arthurjll1 1 year ago
what's the purpose of the dow rod?
enjoythewildUSA 1 year ago
very well done, thanks for the simple instructions for a new backpacker!
Heliboss14 1 year ago
well done!
ESX888 1 year ago
are you hanging ur bear bag at your camp? ur hoping to pet a bear or you just like them visiting you in the middle of the night?
bigajosep 1 year ago 2
Good explanation!
Darto501 2 years ago
Good instruction, easy to understand.
koky5150 2 years ago
Thanks for the great video!
beezlebot 2 years ago
Love the little jump at 1:38
hoz49 2 years ago
thanks for posting this how-to video - excellent and informative.
bleedx2 2 years ago