Portable Fridge in Bear Country

Trust me, bears know what a ice chest is and what's in it!

 

Going camping this weekend, guess the cooler gets put on the far side of site. Will also be bring a 12ga. Just in case..if the 4 caddy horns dont scare it, then we have the mossberg.

 

From what I camp in and size of bears. Me thinks a long rifle isn’t the best for such small quarters.

 

Pistol grip on the mossberg.

 

If a bear really wants inside the car to get food they can rip the doors off the hinges, or pull the glass out of the windshield to get inside. Food needs to be stored in a bear proof box or hung so they can't get to it.

https://www.google.com/search?q=bea...kAhXuUt8KHQkODnAQsAR6BAgFEAE&biw=1366&bih=657

You don't have room to maneuver that shotgun. Bring a handgun with the right bullets. The newer heavy for caliber hardcast bullets are proving very effective on large animals. The 9mm loads will penetrate right at 6 FEET and shoot all the way though most bear from any angle. They make it in most popular cartridges

https://www.buffalobore.com/index.php?l=product_detail&p=388

https://www.wideopenspaces.com/alaska-man-kills-charging-brown-bear-with-a-9mm-pistol/

And don't believe the old wives tale that handguns aren't effective on large animals. The research and facts prove otherwise

https://www.ammoland.com/2019/08/ha...r-attack-73-cases-96-effective/#axzz5xltGjMa2

 

I’m assuming you guys are joking because you could just make noise and scare it off. Unless you’re going out of California these are black bears not polar bears or grizzlies lol. I’ve only had one bear encounter coming back from backpacking in Yosemite and the park rangers took care of that one. Should’ve seen that little guy run.

 

I encounter bears weekly, dog lets me know there in the yard and goes after them, I have a shotgun at the front door with bean bag rounds in them and I get within 25-30 feet of them and proceed to put rounds into them by the 2nd hit they are off and the dog is biting them as they run off, last time one came around he got the dog on the nose with a swipe. They average 200 -350 lbs.

 

Let me solve this: don't risk puting your food in the fridge and having a bear ruin the fridge. Send the fridge to me, it won't get ruined.

 

Tried the long gun dealio for a few months when I was super into camping a couple years ago. found it to be overall, too bulky. Switched to my glock 22 and never looked back..... lost some firepower with the switch, but it fit conveniently in certain places and could keep it on me at all times without getting in the way. Also have the bear spray close by at all times as well.

 

Oh, im a firm believer in handguns. If it was just me, I'd just bring my 1911 and be good. But wife is bringing friends. They're not gun friendly. And we're sleeping in ive got room to swing a pistol gripped shotgun. Growing up, a handgun was for fighting your way to a long gun..but im comfortable with just a .45, hell even a 9mm. I dont forsee a bear encounter, but just in case I'll be prepared.

 

Yup, i will dispose of those fridges for you guys.i can get you a nice, safe cooler...lol

 

Realistically, its probably gonna sit in its case. Til i find a nice safe spot and let loose some spare ammo. Really want to bring my over/under 20. But that thing is long. My wifes never shot the 12, so will bring her .22 .

 

Thats why my truck has 4 caddy horns. Works for bears, pedestrians, asshole drivers, etc. If that dont scare a bear, it needs to be a rug.cause its not afraid of people.

 

When I first got my ARB I was loaded up with bacon, sausages, and all type of good smelling stuff on a trip up by North Cascades NP. I was searching for disbursed camping when it occured to me I was on borderline griz territory. I chickened out and found a developed site.

I was like .65 short of the $14 or whatever the site cost and the fucking asshole campsite attendant would not give me a pass. He wanted me to drive 40 miles or whatever to an ATM. I just asked another camper for some charity. Seriously, $.65! What a raging dick. Anyway, I didn't get eaten. It rained.

 

That's impressive that 4 of 5 incidents with a 22 were successful!

 

You're probably more likely to encounter a bear there than at a dispersed site where there hasn't been all sorts of tasty smells for weeks.

 

Bear country? I hunt the Sierras...black bear the size of Tom cruise are all you “might” encounter. Especially around grassy meadows and spreader canopy of trees in the woods. Just bring a gun, you’ll be alright.

Separate your trash away from your camp. Ideally, and especially in certain wilderness where it’s mandatory, there are like childproof air sealed containers you can use for your trash, and maybe another one for non-refrigerated food. I wouldn’t worry about the food in the fridge.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pl-dcr0Zc4A

 

there is no way i would leave an ice chest in my truck. in some national parks, you get a ticket.

i think a bear shredding my ice chest is a no brainer, vs..my truck AND the ice chest. last time i bow hunted, i put my entire ice chest into the bear box by the parking lot. it was full of salami and beer. we hiked out and got back to truck at 9:00 am. we were on the June Lake loop..hiking up to Gem lake. at the truck i cracked up the coldest and most delicious budlight of my life. another hiker asked if i was an alcoholic....hahhahah.. i slammed that beer in one gulp. maybe not the best visual for the guys very young kids.

 

Okay so general consensus is there is no consensus. There is nothing written in any of the websites about vehicle refrigerators and I'm not sure but I'm guessing a call to the local ranger stations will give you varying answers.

This doesn't really help the fridge discussion but here are the national forest websites on bears.

From my research Yosemite seems to be the strictest place that requires you to remove all food/coolers from your vehicle at night. However, they state that hard sided RV's are fine to leave food in as long as you close the windows. IMO this would be the same as a cooler/fridge under a hard tonneau/camper/backseat.
https://www.nps.gov/yose/learn/nature/bears.htm

Los Padres National Forest says to Hang it and I think they're the only one that recommends that:
https://www.fs.usda.gov/detailfull/lpnf/learning/safety-ethics/?cid=STELPRDB5097674

Sierra National Forest, Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Park, and Eldorado National Forest* say it's okay to keep it in your trunk.
https://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/sierra/home/?cid=stelprdb5324172
https://www.nps.gov/seki/planyourvisit/bears.htm
https://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/eldorado/learning/safety-ethics/?cid=stelprdb5259636
*ElDorado says if you're sleeping near your vehicle*

Tahoe, Inyo, and Stanislaus National Forests say to remove any food from your vehicle and store in bear resistant container.
https://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/inyo/recreation/?cid=fsbdev3_003846#parks food storage
https://www.fs.usda.gov/detailfull/stanislaus/recreation?cid=stelprdb5163007&width=full
https://www.fs.usda.gov/detailfull/tahoe/home/?cid=FSEPRD581029&width=full

Mendocino National Forest offers nothing except for how not to hopefully die:
https://www.fs.usda.gov/detailfull/mendocino/learning/safety-ethics/?cid=FSBDEV3_004454&width=full

Here's a map showing where a canister is required. I have no idea if that relates to a vehicle or not.
https://www.sierrawild.gov/media/foodstoragemap/Bear-Canister-Required-Area-ver8.pdf

Here's the list of approved bear containers including coolers:
http://igbconline.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/190903_Certified_Products_List.pdf

I think I missed some National Parks. Most of the time you're going to have a container for food in those though because you can't dispersed camp.