Bear safety and overlanding

Thank you for all the helpful tips. So what do people with Fridges do? sounds like if you have a fridge it stays in the vehicle and you just keep the camp and car super clean. does anyone keep there fridge with a battery pack at a location away from their vehicle?

 

I keep my yeti and trash in my bed under a metal tonneau cover. RTT on rack above that. Dry foods and other smellables in the cab. I keep a very clean camp. I sleep with my keys nearby and just plan on pressing the car alarm button if I wake up to any weird noises. I also have bear spray nearby. I'm pretty sure a black bear would scatter hearing the alarm go off and lights flashing.

 

Hi, where are you from?
Are you planning on camping in provincial campgrounds or out on crown land ?
If your in a provincial campground you will have a couple hundred neighbors so you don’t have to stress.
Just keep a really clean campsite if you are out on crown land. We spent a couple days camping in the flathead valley by Fernie, the highest concentration of grizzly in Canada, didn’t even see bear poo. Had the camera ready but nothing showed up.

 

Put moth balls out around your frig or cooler they don't like the smell and it hides food smells - when you are not in truck.
Do not cook bacon and other greasy stuff anywhere you are sleeping and wash up well.
We slept in the shell and or tent on a 3 month trip across US, Canada , and Alaska.
You can take a long gun (rifle or shotgun) into Canada paying like $20 and they inspect it no big deal - DO NOT take a handgun into Canada.
You can ship a pistol to any AK post office for your pickup when you arrive but 9mm is pretty small and most of us don't have a 357 or 44 or a 50 cal.
When sleeping/hiking remote areas the shotgun was loaded and available with double odd (00) and slugs. Also for shotguns they make Bangers or a noise round no shot but if it doesn't run away you must be ready to follow thru. When hiking in remote AK areas it was the wolf packs you worried about more than black or brown bears and then the moose can be really mean so walk a wide path around them. Some people use flares for bear protection but if you start a fire you will pay millions. In US mountains we also encountered mountain lions.
Finally most airlines and other public transportation bans taking bear spray as too many have been accidently set off.
Plan accordingly.

 

Alberta and BC mix of both crown and provincial parks. Haven't figured out exactly where yet.

 

If you keep things clean I wouldn't stress. You can always fire off your car alarm, have some bear bangers and spray, but really you will probably never need them.

 

lol bring yer guns!

 

if U r serious

question rangers in the area U intend to camp in

take their advice seriously abour camping criteria.......safety & defense

wild bears are Unpredictable

they are Very territorial

U smell like a meal

 

This is correct-ish.

Don’t show up at the border with $20 and expect happy times.

You need to apply, in advance, and have permission for your specific long gun with serial number.

Lots of long guns and magazines are prohib up here and lots are restricted to range use only. For example your AK or AR are a no go but an IWI tavor is totally ok. Yeah, it’s stupid.

Play smart and you don’t need a gun.

 

I live among Black Bears. Never sweat it. Basic hygiene of course, and relax.

 

first bet would be strategic placement of food then bear spray. Last resort lever action 45/70 or a sidearm nothing smaller than a 10mm.

 

At the Mt Whitney Trailhead, if you leave an ice chest in your car, you will get a ticket from the rangers. The thought is, bears have learned that ice chests = food, so they have no problem tearing into a car with an ice chest. Also, you cannot leave a 12 pack of Diet Coke in plain sight in your car -- same reason.

 

Just Diet Coke? Dr. Pepper is OK?

That would be really funny (and sad) if the bears were so familiarized with human food that they had specific brand preferences

 

I’m pretty sure the ones in Yosemite do.

The bear I encountered on a climbing trip was familiar enough with zippers that he knew opening the aipper was less work than tearing into the fabric. The guy’s camelback was completely fine (except for a little bear slobber), there were just several empty cliff bar wrappers nearby, lol. And even those weren’t ripped to shreds, but opened in a more or less human manor.