Bear Canister Review & How to use the Bearvault 500

Overview on stowing food in the bear canister, its pros and cons, during an overnight hiking trip in the Olympic national park. Shows the amount of food and utensils the bearvault 500 can hold, along with secondary uses.
Bear canisters weigh more than just hanging your food with a sack and rope but they are also a lot more convenient in areas without high tree branches and the secondary uses such as a camp seat and water container can come in really handy, especially in dry camps.
The park serivce provides them for free (a suggested donation is not required) but that means you need to show up at the station and be there during business hours and worry about returning it. Often stuffing a canister for a long trip can take an hour and that is time you are at the trailhead and not hiking. More info at REI about bear canisters in general: http://www.rei.com/expertadvice/articles/bear+resistant+canisters.html
I got mine for $70 at amazon which is a great price.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0018PFVMS/ref=cm_cr_rev_prod_title
The next day it went up to $80 and I probably wouldn't have splurged at that price point but that all depends on how much money you have and how often you go hiking.
amazon listing: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0019LSGQE/ref=ox_ya_os_product

Category:

Howto & Style

Tags:

• bear canister
• bearvault
• 500
• review
• camping
• hiking
• food
• storage
• stowing

[pabbananna]

@2bigbook yes, the size in the video is the largest size they make, the BV500. congrats on your hike, i'm jealous!

[2bigbook]

I'm Going to have to carry 1 for 100's of miles on the PCT next year. Hoppfully that was the large size?

[pabbananna]

@duanehundley ack - don't beat me to it! for dehydrated foods I prick the containers to get the air out.

[duanehundley]

you are right. Somehow I got the numbers mixed up. Im going to post a video of how to pack it super tight while using mountain house dehydrated food and some tortillas.

[pabbananna]

@duanehundley glad to know people actually watch my stuff, thanks! I actually just consuted my amazon shopping history and it is listed as the BV500, the larger of the two.

Thanks again for commenting!

[duanehundley]

its the 450 model I believe