Food Storage

It is important to store food so animals don't get to your food.  One, you don't want to have animals steal or contaminate your food.  Two, you don't want animals, especially bears, coming in to camp for your food.  Three, it's bad for the animals to get used to you and your food.

Disclaimer

The following information includes common products and practices used by backpackers. 

These products and practices may violate food handling practices or expose the handler or consumer to pathogens or chemicals that may be unhealthy.

Basic Rules

NEVER sleep with food in your tent!  Mice will chew through your tent to get to your food.  Worse - a bear may do the same.  You don't want a hungry bear in your tent.

Rules

• Hang food 12 feet up in a tree, 6 feet away from the trunk and 200 feet from camp.

• When needed or required - use a bear canister.  These make for a great seat in your kitchen

• If car, bike, wagon or canoe camping, buckets or barrels can protect against animals smaller than you

Hang Bags

The traditional way of storing food is hanging it from a tree branch.  Use the PCT method, since bears in the Pacific Northwest have figured out how to take down bags tied down to trunks of trees.

You don't need a fancy bag, but fancy options are available:

• Zpacks Bagging Kit - Dyneema

• Hilltop Packs - Dyneema
  
  

Rope:

• You'll need 50'

• Ideally Dyneema Composite Fabric (laminated Ultra High Molecular Weight Polyethylene)

  • Doesn't get hung up as much as polyester or nylon (550 cord)

  • Hydrophobic

  • Static

  • Slick stuff

  • Notch Acculine - 2.2mm Throw Line - Dyneema

  • Z-Line 2.0mm Slick Cord - Dyneema

  • DynaGlide

  • Ultraglide-Bear-Line - uncoated

  • Zing-It!

Other Ropes:

• Paracord - polyester of nylon

  • Easy to find

  • Heavier than other ropes

• Nylon paracord

  • hangs up a lot

  • stretches

• Nylon Accessory Cord

  • More static than papacord

  • Heavy compared to other ropes

  • Braids will get caught up

• Polypropylene

  • Braided ones hang up a lot

  • 3 strand is painful to work with

Video: PCT Method to Hang a Bear Bag

Bear Canisters

These can often be rented where you register for the trail or by an outdoor outfitters

Many places require the use of a bear canister - if it is required, use it.

Example:

• Bear Vault

Bear Bag

"Bearproof" bags don't allow bears to rip into your food bag.  This is a lightweight option to a bear canister.

NOTE

• Rodents can still chew through these

• Smells still permeate through fabric

• Bears can and will still chew bag and crush everything in it

• Consider using a smellproof bag inside bear bag to reduce animal interest

Example:

• Ursack Major

Barrels and Buckets

These are great waterproof options for storing food and it protecting against rodents.  Use for canoe, bike and car camping.

Square buckets can be used an panniers on bikes.

Smell Proofing

Smellproofing will reduce interest in your bag.  Some hikers use these as stand alone system without hanging or bear proofing - this technique is NOT recommended.

Example:

• OPSAK