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Re:Re: [pct-l] renting bearboxes

	Brick, thank you for your comment
	I believe I used the wrong word (bear box), but I meant the
correct one (bear can)  
	There were a lot of comments to this topic recently and many
people said to counterbalance the food properly would be 
	enough protection, but I heard that hanging the food is only
delaying tactic in some areas and I am not so experienced to know the
capabilities of bears (jumping to the food, cooperation etc.) and to
choose the right trees and so on..
	I think, for me as an beginner, using bear cans will be the
safest method without having nightmares at night ,despite of the plus
costs and weight

	Nick 
> ------------------------------
> 
> Date: Tue, 02 Jun 1998 08:20:05 -0700
> From: Brick Robbins <brick@ix.netcom.com>
> Subject: Re: [pct-l] renting bearboxes
> 
> At 12:10 PM 6/2/98 +0200, you wrote:
> Laqua Nick <Nick.Laqua@hl.siemens.de> wrote:
> 
> >As I read, this year there are a lot of bear activities in Yosemite
> and
> >it is strongly recommended to use bear boxes instead of
> counterbalancing
> >the food. My question is: Are there any possibilities to rent the
> boxes
> >at the northern trailhead (Yosemite) and to give them back at the
> >southern trailhead (Mt. Whitney) without driving back to Yosemite.
> 
> Bears have been a problem for several years along the JMT, what is new
> is
> the use of bear canisters. This is not a problem just in Yosemite
> (though
> it is especially bad in Lyell Canyon) but along the whole trail.
> 
> Nick, you are confusing two different methods of keeping bears away
> from
> your food: bear boxes and bear canisters.
> 
> The one you wrote "bearbox" is a large, heavy metal box (about 1.5m x
> 1m x
> 1m) that has a locking door, an is chained to a tree. These are placed
> at
> popular camping areas, and are not meant to be carried. These are
> scattered
> along portions of the JMT, usually in the National Parks section. The
> Inyo
> National Forest section of the trail has no bearboxes because the
> forest
> management has decided that bearboxes should not be used in wilderness
> areas. A list of bearboxes is available online at
> http://www.gorp.com/pcta/bearbox.txt
> 
> The second method is a "bear resistant canister" or "bear can" which
> is a
> heavy bulky tube that you put your food in. There are currently two
> being
> sold, one is plastic, one is metal.  They are new, and the government
> agencies have started requiring them before they have figured out
> exactly
> how the new rules should work. There is also confusion and controversy
> in
> the agencies that control the JMT about which bear cans are
> "approved."
> This is because the law is new and poorly written with no specified
> testing
> procedure, and certain rangers interpret it one way, while others want
> to
> interpret it another.
> 
> The metal canister is currently being tested in Sequoia National Park,
> and
> the testers have thought of an additional test that the plastic can
> has not
> passed, so it may be re-tested. There have been reports of bears
> breaking
> into the plastic canister. They changed the name of the canisters from
> "bear proof" to "bear resistant."
> 
> What is important is that the bear doesn't get your food. If you use
> either
> one, you should be safe.  I have hiked the JMT 3 times and have never
> had a
> problem, but I am experienced and careful. Many, many hikers lose
> their
> food to the bears. This is a bad thing for the bears because they come
> to
> depend on the hikers, and stop gathering food in a natural way.
> Sometimes
> especially aggressive bears must be killed, so a bear dies for the
> mistakes
> of the humans. 
> 
> For pictures and descriptions of the two cans that are available, see:
> http://www.sierrawilderness.com/store.html#bear.
> 
> I think that the same company that sells the cans on that web page,
> also
> rents them (e-mail them to ask). I also think that if you hike the
> trail in
> a typical 20 days, it may be cheaper to buy the bearcans than rent
> them.
> 
> If you do rent them in Yosemite, I think you may have to mail them
> from
> Lone Pine back to the park. The whole bearcan procedure is new, so you
> may
> have difficulty finding someone who has experience with it.
> 
> In any event, have fun on your trip
> 
> - --
> Brick Robbins                    mailto:brick@ix.netcom.com
> San Diego, CA                   http://www.netcom.com/~brick 
> 
> 
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