This brings up a key question. Is it a bad idea to have food in the car? I was hoping not to have to buy every meal at a restaurant. I expect to spend quite a bit of time at RV parks, some of which will be unattended, some of which I'll be sleeping in the back. Is it a must to keep all food smells out of the car to prevent bears from trying to pry it open?
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I've only camped in relatively developed campsites in bear country and they were equipped with bear proof food lockers which we always used. We also carefully washed all our cookware after using it and never left any trash around the campsite. We've heard bears walking though the camp at night, but were never really disturbed by them. To be fair though, these were Black Bears, I have no experience with Grizzleys.
I saw a trunk that was broken into by bears after the food in it and a cooler that was roped under a heavy table ripped apart by bears after bacon. They do seem to recognize coolers by sight and can certainly smell food quite a ways off. In the two cases I've seen, the bears weren't very considerate when they went after the food.
I saw a trunk that was broken into by bears after the food in it and a cooler that was roped under a heavy table ripped apart by bears after bacon. They do seem to recognize coolers by sight and can certainly smell food quite a ways off. In the two cases I've seen, the bears weren't very considerate when they went after the food.
bsd
Member
When car camping, we always lock food (and toothpaste!) in the car. Just never, ever have food in the tents.
green1
Active Member
In the back country bear lockers or "hangs" are in every site, However I've never seen a drive in site with any food storage facilities. As a result you generally have little choice but to leave it in the car (NEVER put it in a cooler or similar outside, that's just asking for trouble!). I'd probably recommend the frunk just in case. Additionally there's value to limiting the odours emitted, ziplock bags and such aren't as well sealed as you'd think, and an animal can still smell your food for a ways off, but it will be better than leaving it in more open containers where the smell could travel for miles.
And a good point about toothpaste too. the same rules apply for everything with any odour, so that includes all toothpaste, deodorant, soap, sun screen, bug spray, etc as well as food.
And a good point about toothpaste too. the same rules apply for everything with any odour, so that includes all toothpaste, deodorant, soap, sun screen, bug spray, etc as well as food.
AC1K
Member
OK, so there are two votes for leaving sealed up food inside the car. I still have this angst that bears are very willing peel open my pretty little aluminum Tesla. I don't have a great concern for losing my cooler of food but thousands of dollars in car repairs in case they get a wiff of good is another matter.
You should check out the Mythbusters episode on that one. That'll settle it for you.
I know we have a lot of forum members invested in TSLA, but we really need to stop demonizing the shorts so much. I mean, seriously, attacking people while camping, stealing their food, and now damaging their Teslas? That's a bit much.
Which episode are you thinking of? I found one on bear repellants, which was useful. Is there another episode that you are thinking about?
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The problem of bears prying open cars exists with all cars with costly results. I'd be asking the same question if I were driving my Ford expedition.
green1
Active Member
Unfortunately that is a very short-sighted view. If your food is in the car, a bear is highly unlikely to get at it. If it's in a cooler outside they WILLget at it. But that's not even the problem. The problem is that the bear, usually afraid of humans, is now trained that humans = easy food. The bear then becomes a problem and attacks humans and their belongings as a matter of routine. So by worrying about your car over your cooler, you are more likely to have a bear problem yourself, and exponentially more likely to cause a problem for many other people. Not to mention the fact that the bear that becomes a problem will have to be destroyed.
Keep your food in the car, or other proper animal proof food storage facilities. Don't put other people and bears at risk. If you absolutely refuse to leave food in the car, then buy a specially designed bear proof container for it. These are available at some US outdoors stores as there are some back country trails that require them.
I have done lots of backpacking and tent camping in Alaskan and Canadian grizzly country. I make sure to go vegan as far as my eating habits. This lessens hugely the danger of food odors attracting bears. I have been around plenty of black bear and grizzly bears with never the feeling that I needed a gun. Like the poster on the previous page, it is the cougars (mountain lions) that make me nervous!
Attachments
I did but a bear proof container, wasn't metal but a round ~5 gallon plastic container from REI. REI folks said to put it outside. Bears won't be successful with it as it rolls around. Not sure if this is the right approach either.
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Gene, great photo!
bsd
Member
Sounds suspect to me. Your food should not be near your campsite. One of my sister's best friends died from a bear mauling in Ontario; it came into their tent. A bear play toy seems irresponsible.
If you don't want to leave your food in your car then hang it out of reach from a tree *away* from your campsite. Buy a cloth bag and a rope. Bag all your food and anything that comes into contact with food, tie up the bag with one end of the rope and toss the other end over a branch and hoist the bag up high.
Cottonwood
Roadster#433, Model S#S37
Throwing a rope over a limb is harder than you think. If you really want to use this technique, get a Throw Weight and Line like this one and practice at home before you leave on the trip.
Amazon.com : 16 oz. Throw Weight & Line Combo
Peter_M
Member
Funny (and great) how a Tesla forum wanders into all kinds of topics...
I've always assumed food in a car was safe from animals, although we did have a resourceful mouse in our trunk once. Anywhere I've been that you can get to in a car, there aren't likely to be bears around anyway.
When we do back-country canoe camping in Ontario, where there are Black Bears, we carry our food and kitchen stuff in barrels, and hang them from trees. The barrels are waterproof (necessary for whitewater trips anyway), and although I wouldn't say they are totally smell-proof, they're close. 2 barrels can weigh over 100 pounds, so I use a 3 to 1 pulley setup to haul them up into a tree, and then pull them off to one side so that they are about 10' or more off the ground and 6' or more away from any tree.
And one tip I learned from an arborist: To get the rope over a high branch, tie a weight about 3' from the end of the rope, and then swing it between your legs and throw it forward and up. You can aim much more accurately than with the weight on the end of the rope.
Once you get the weight over a sturdy branch, fling the rope to position it and get the weight to fall. Then tie on your carabiners/pulleys, pull them up with the short end and tie that off, then use the long end to lift the packs and pull them to the side. There are many ways to do it, but this is our technique.
I've always assumed food in a car was safe from animals, although we did have a resourceful mouse in our trunk once. Anywhere I've been that you can get to in a car, there aren't likely to be bears around anyway.
When we do back-country canoe camping in Ontario, where there are Black Bears, we carry our food and kitchen stuff in barrels, and hang them from trees. The barrels are waterproof (necessary for whitewater trips anyway), and although I wouldn't say they are totally smell-proof, they're close. 2 barrels can weigh over 100 pounds, so I use a 3 to 1 pulley setup to haul them up into a tree, and then pull them off to one side so that they are about 10' or more off the ground and 6' or more away from any tree.
And one tip I learned from an arborist: To get the rope over a high branch, tie a weight about 3' from the end of the rope, and then swing it between your legs and throw it forward and up. You can aim much more accurately than with the weight on the end of the rope.
Once you get the weight over a sturdy branch, fling the rope to position it and get the weight to fall. Then tie on your carabiners/pulleys, pull them up with the short end and tie that off, then use the long end to lift the packs and pull them to the side. There are many ways to do it, but this is our technique.
green1
Active Member
Hanging food in trees is one of the normal ways of doing things, it is however loosing favour as bears are becoming more resourceful, some have been known to be smart enough to cut the rope to get the food down, and there have been anecdotes of mothers throwing cubs in to the air to slice in to bags hanging aloft. For these reason many campgrounds are changing to bear proof lockers instead. (that said, I still carry rope and caribiners to fashion a hang as needed when I'm in the back country. Front country I sleep in the vehicle, and the food does too)
Another downside to hanging food is that you need to find the right trees, they need long, sturdy branches that are out over open ground. This can be difficult to find. Additionally, if you are really heading NORTH, you run out of trees altogether at a certain point... (and that point is before you run out of bears!)
Another downside to hanging food is that you need to find the right trees, they need long, sturdy branches that are out over open ground. This can be difficult to find. Additionally, if you are really heading NORTH, you run out of trees altogether at a certain point... (and that point is before you run out of bears!)
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