theksmith 5,778 Posted July 9, 2014 Beyond the standard pre-trip tasks, I've been busy prepping for bear country this time around (for the Rubicon Trail trip). I believe G & D said they did not see any bear activity during their previous Rubicon trips, but threads like this one on Pirate4x4 should have you thinking about the possibility at least: http://www.pirate4x4.com/forum/rubicon-trail/278447-bear-buck-island.html So far in 2014, Yosemite National Park is reporting a 153% rise in bear incidents since the same time last year. That said, a few sensible precautions are all that should really be necessary... - this page on the Yosemite site has some good suggestions on food storage: http://www.nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/bears.htm - and this one talks about what to do if you encounter a bear: http://www.nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/scarebears.htm Remember, anything that smells or looks like food is food to the bear - even unopened cans, candy wrappers, those pots you thought you got really clean after cooking dinner, supposedly even baby wipes! In some areas they have learned what coolers and other food storage looks like, cover items with blankets to disguise them. How do you prep for bears? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
theksmith 5,778 Posted July 9, 2014 i'll actually be leaving food in the rig mainly because it's not practical to remove the fridge. i plan to cover it with a blanket, and keep the windows rolled up. other than the fridge, i'll be storing all my food and kitchen stuff in a Vittles Vault (Petco has them locally). it isn't bear proof, so it's staying in the rig too - they idea is that it's air-tight and should keep any smells contained within (they have an o-ring seal on the lid). our fellow member defectivemonk turned me on to these. for trash i have an old duffel bag which i'll be putting my individual trash bags in. it's already tied to a rope and ready to be hung from a tree limb. i usually use grocery bags or these 3 gallon bags for trash, but i'm going to try Hefty 2.5 gallon freezer bags this time to keep smells down. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Number7 89 Posted July 9, 2014 I thought they just looked for picnic baskets. G Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bradywgn71 1,008 Posted July 9, 2014 Thanks!! Good ideas! We ended up going with the Canyon cooler (new style) that is bear proof with padlocks and got a heavy duty tool case for food storage that also locks. Not storing it in the Jeep as I don't want the bears opening my jeep up. Keeping it away from the tent and jeep. Also locking up anything with a smell as I was reading that they even will go after toothpaste and deodorant. One site said you should change clothes after you cook but we don't have the space for all those clothes. Also bringing bear spray and and air horn. Let's hope we don't encounter any! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Curly 1,317 Posted July 9, 2014 I don't have any suggestions, but I do have a bear story to share. We were staying at the the Fallen Leaf campground near Lake Tahoe when a Mama bear with 2 cubs decided to enter camp. She walked right up to a family that had just opened the bear proof food locker provided by the F.S. and proceeded to pull all the food out of the locker and eat it. The family ran to the car and just watched all their food get eaten. The camp hosts called the FS, but they didn't show up. I got tired of the show and went back to camp so I'm not sure what happened with the bears. So, heads up, even if you have bear proof food storage, you still have to watch out for bears! curly Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Number7 89 Posted July 10, 2014 I don't have any suggestions, but I do have a bear story to share. We were staying at the the Fallen Leaf campground near Lake Tahoe when a Mama bear with 2 cubs decided to enter camp. She walked right up to a family that had just opened the bear proof food locker provided by the F.S. and proceeded to pull all the food out of the locker and eat it. The family ran to the car and just watched all their food get eaten. The camp hosts called the FS, but they didn't show up. I got tired of the show and went back to camp so I'm not sure what happened with the bears. So, heads up, even if you have bear proof food storage, you still have to watch out for bears! curly Facinating. G Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Number7 89 Posted July 10, 2014 I have some ideas to booby trap the camp perimeter, it involves rope and cans to make noise. I will bring extra rope to try this out. G Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Maddogjeeper 2 Posted July 10, 2014 Road flares at night are very intimidating to bears; they are bright and make a lot of noise; not quite as much noise as a shotgun though. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
91AzXJ 2 Posted July 10, 2014 Flares would be tough during a fire ban and no Boo Boo, they don't only look for picinic baskets! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Russ Chung 54 Posted July 10, 2014 I don't have any suggestions, but I do have a bear story to share. We were staying at the the Fallen Leaf campground near Lake Tahoe when a Mama bear with 2 cubs decided to enter camp. She walked right up to a family that had just opened the bear proof food locker provided by the F.S. and proceeded to pull all the food out of the locker and eat it. The family ran to the car and just watched all their food get eaten. The camp hosts called the FS, but they didn't show up. I got tired of the show and went back to camp so I'm not sure what happened with the bears. So, heads up, even if you have bear proof food storage, you still have to watch out for bears! curly Yes, I remember that incident. It's kinda hard to see in this picture (I didn't want to get too close) but that's the mama bear standing in front of the open food locker Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
