[wedge]

Relatively new to backpacking, and I'm planning my first trip to Arizona in May. We will be in the Tucson area, as well as up in Sedona. The books all say ALWAYS bear bag food well away from camp. Is this a necessity in the desert? I realize Sedona probably represents more of a problem in terms of furry critters, but what about camping in the south?

[Shi]

I was hiking in the Tucson area and had to step over a HUGE pile of scat! I wouldn't leave food next to where I'm sleeping, better to leave it next to your buddy! If you are out for a few days, it would not be fun to have some critter eating all your food. I wouldn't say, you HAVE to hang your bag, but you might prefer to have the security of knowing that you have food in the morning! Mary

[big_load]

I've seen plenty of bear sign and a few live bears on Tanque Verde and at Manning Camp. Some of the metal bear boxes at those designated camping areas have really impressive dents and scratches.

Almost everywhere else I've been in the AZ backcountry has bears, too. And bears or not, the desert is loaded with animals that want your food.

[wedge]

In response to Shi's reply: Yikes! Thanks for the information........we will definitely be bagging or using provided boxes.

[te-wa]

just to state the obvious without insulting intelligence, dont take food into your tent, including food on your hands, clothes, or in your hair. Either Im really unlucky or blind but ive been hiking for years in so-called "concentrated" bear areas because I havent seen one yet. Its easy enough however to simply hang your food 10 feet from the ground in your sleeping bag stuff sack (or similar)

what may concern you however are these pesky critters known as ringtail cats, which are wiley and creative and also the state mammal.
I would not rule out Tucson, Id say there are more black bears in the local mountain ranges than in Sedona.

[big_load]

In response to mikeinFHAZ's reply:

Its amazing to watch an experienced ringtail empty a backpack. They get all the zippers open and everything out on the ground in a few seconds. The habituated ones won't scare off either. I poked at one in the GC (Phantom Ranch campground) with a trekking pole, and it wouldn't back off any further than the length of the pole until it was convinced I wouldn't give up. Then it waddled off and lurked nearby until my back was turned, and went right back at it. Of course the food was hung elsewhere, but so many people (such as those on both sides of us) leave food in their packs the ringtails figure it's worth a try.

[Hoffmaster]

This is funny! After reading the first couple of replies, I thought, "screw the bears, I gotta tell this guy about the ringtails!" But, this is HAZ, so I should of guessed that I'm not the only one with a ringtail story. My excuse: uh, I was inexperienced at the time, and there was no where to hang my food from...I swear!

[john.roach]

While in the GC, a buddy had his pack chewed through by a ringtail for some toothpaste. Tottaly destroyed his pack, sleeping bag, a jacket, and our cooking tarp. So I'd say put anything that smells in a bear bag. This months backpacker magazine has a great "how to" on bear bags.

Another option to consider is a "Bear Proof" container such as a Bear Keg or a Bear Vault. I'm sure if can stop a grizzly a ringtail would have no chance.


http://www.counterassault.com/Bear_Deterrent/bearkegcounter_assault_bear_deterrent.html

http://www.bearvault.com

[big_load]

In response to john.roach's reply:

In response to john.roach's reply:

Bear Vault just came out with a new, smaller unit good for soloing.

I prefer the Ursack (http://www.ursack.com), which is essentially a stuff sack made of Spectra. It's a little more packable, and can get smaller as you eat the food.

Another product that I haven't personally tried is the Ratsack (http://www.armoredoutdoorgear.com), which isn't bearproof, but is supposedly good for all other critters.

[Al_HikesAZ]

In response to wedge's reply:
I'm not sure if anyone had mentioned this, but consider putting any clothes with food smell into the bear vault. It's the smell not the item that attracts the critters. If you cooked bacon or caught fish and put the clothes in your tent, be ready for some excitement.

[hikeaz]

Another product that I haven't personally tried is the Ratsack (http://www.armoredoutdoorgear.com), which isn't bearproof, but is supposedly good for all other critters.

April '05 our group used 4 Ratsacks in the Canyon with perfect results.

While on this trip we conducted a scientific test, wereby we put a Ratsack (full of various foodstuffs) INSIDE of a 2 gallon ziploc bag and left it unattended for 5 days *.
Upon inspection 5 days later, the ziploc was totally chewed-through but there was no damage to the ratsacks nor the food stored inside.

(* - the idea behind the ziploc was to ascertain that the stash had, in fact, been visited, and that the "critter" that visited had the means to chew through more standard bagging techniques.)


kurt

[wetbeaverlover]

In response to wedge's reply: 30 years of hiking and exploring along the rim and all over Arizona and New Mexico and Montana and still havent seen a bear in the wild, darn the luck