[pct-l] Re: pct-l Digest, Vol 26, Issue 28

[wpsnotebook at charter.net (Richard Woods)]

> Message: 6
> Date: Thu, 16 Jun 2005 13:35:16 -0700 (PDT)
> From: Michael Donnay <mdonnay@yahoo.com>
> Subject: [pct-l] Bear Canisters
> To: PCT-L <pct-l@mailman.backcountry.net>
> Message-ID: <20050616203516.746.qmail@web60325.mail.yahoo.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1
>
> Does anyone know if the NPS rents bear canisters for long-distance
> hikers that are hiking through the park?  Can you pick one up at a
> ranger station, pay the rental fee and leave a deposit, then drop it
> off at the ranger station where you exit the park and get your deposit
> back?  Sounds like a good concept, no?
>
> I have no experience with bear canisters but what keeps a bear from
> smacking the thing around your camp all night long like a soccer ball,
> bashing it against rocks in frustration, and eventually knocking it off
> the mountain side?!?!?!  Okay, the bear didn't get your food but you're
> SOL too!!  Do these canisters get "chained" to a tree or something?
>

Don't know about having to actually chase a wayward canister down, I 
painted mine fluorescent orange. Can't miss it, even in the dark. 
Common wisdom is to leave it away from your immediate campsite, in a 
low spot where it won't end up in the creek or off a cliff. The theory 
goes that the bear will wrestle with it a bit, and give up in a few 
minutes, born out by a few reports I've seen here on the list. When 
they see one again, they go looking for an easier meal. I've had bears 
pass through my camp a few times, but apparently they were all 
'canister-wise' and didn't linger.

Mo Jo