Camping and Backpacking GEAR thread

Everclear is often cheaper than Heet and you can add it to your cocoa in the evening.

 

Yellow Heet is bout $1.50 at walmarx.

 

New stainless griddle and cooking accessories for my Partner Steel stove. Can't wait to get it seasoned and ready for camp.

 

How do some of you guys cook so much, or so close to your vehicle/tent yet keep the bears away?

 

And you can produce it yourself.

 

Black bears are skittish and not an issue for me, even when backpacking. Just never been a concern after observing them in nature and seeing that most steer clear. Trouble bears are usually found near campgrounds and populated places where they win an occasional food reward from humans. Never had a cooler, gear bin, vehicle, tent etc harassed by bears with my camp etiquette so far. I do wash my dishes and dump extra food away from immediate camp though. Leave the scents on the perimeters works fine where I go.

Now brown bears I don't trust. But they're thousands of miles away from me so I don't need to worry about them yet.

 

Bears in camp and bear attacks might be one of the rarest but most frequently discussed topics on any outdoors forum.

 

Let me reiterate for both of you guys then.

I have experience camping and backpacking in areas where bears freely roam.

Black bears, as you mentioned, are very skittish; they're almost like dogs and will certainly run away if you shoo them off.

My reason for asking is because I go above and beyond to use unscented items before I head out to the woods, as well as during my stay. On backpacking trips, I limit myself to dry foods and only sometimes do I have freeze-dried foods in which I have to boil water for. I carry a bear canister and keep that stuff secured in the canister, and when I set up camp, I toss that canister and bag over a limb.

While camping, I've always used an ice chest and have stuck to foods like sandwiches, etc. that required no cooking whatsoever. Depending on where I was, I'd have a hotdog or something I'd grill over a fire but that was it.

It was about not introducing any 'unfamiliar' scents and deter any visitors during my stay, especially while I slept. It wasn't so much about getting attacked by a bear, because that is really a very rare case, but I didn't want a bear trying to tear into my vehicle or personal stuff to get at something they smelled.

When I see big grills with burgers going, or camp stoves cooking near a tent, I always wonder what people are doing to keep the bears from breaking into their stuff when no ones either awake or present.

 

When I cook I just make sure to clean my dishes well and generally have a fire to burn the paper towels used to avoid having to keep grease covered bait in camp. Just keep a clean camp like you do now and it won’t be a problem.

When living in Alaska bears weren’t a concern because the ones that wandered into camp got shot and eaten.

 

I guess just looking at Levie125's burgers grilling, I'm thinking "how the hell do you clean all that up and get the grease off to not smell like food, and where do you store the grill" while in bear-country.

 

Do you live in the Appalachians?

 

Downtown Wichita.

 

There are 'new' federal laws allowing distilling for private use under a certain amount.
There is even a forum dedicated to the topic.

https://homedistiller.org/forum/

 

You hang your bear canister? Overkill. Never met a backpacker who does this. Hang a food bag... sure.

Quit living in fear of bears and practice obvious camp etiquette and clean-up. Leave your cooking stuff out and away from unsecured sleeping quarters. If a problem bear comes around, you may get some drool on your grill but big deal. Dont eat snickers bars in your tent. You know, common sense stuff. More time in the outdoors will put your animal fears to rest.

 

I just chunk my canister in a random spot under a tree about 100 feet away from my campsite

 

My first night using my bear can years ago, I put it away from my tent about 100'. Ever since, I've kept it close to camp and put my stove on top of it to make noise if it got played with. Nothing.

 

Black bears, more commonly known in the US as “fat raccoons.”

 

Figured I'd post some pictures of our last trip. Brother and I went to west Texas to spend a night in the Guadalupes.

 

This past labor day was kind to my brother and i.

Not many people up in the backcountry and weather was nice.

Climb to the top was BRUTAL!

Rewarding at best!

 

So I recently joined the hammock gang and finally got a chance to test it out this weekend. A couple months ago I purchased the Kammok Mantis (regular one, not the UL version) because it comes with almost everything you need. It came with a 10 ft. hammock, a rain fly, six stakes, two straps and has a bug net that zips on.

I went camping in the Sierras and being late in the year I was a little nervous how it was going to hold up. The only other thing I bought was the Firebelly 30 degree under quilt and brought along my 20 degree mummy bag. Last year camping in the same spot around the same time, the temp dropped down in the 20's.

After camping for twos night in a hammock for the first time I do have to say I was pretty impress how well everything worked! I checked the temp in the morning and the lowest it got was about 26 degrees and I stayed pretty warm. It has probably been the most comfortable sleep I've ever had camping too.