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Post by ropeandsummit on May 18, 2016 8:53:16 GMT -8
I'll be heading from Nashville to Asheville next Tuesday, 5/23, and am in need of a bear cannister for a Shining Rock Wilderness hike! I'm slow to pull the trigger on one since I won't use it much...
There is a place to rent from in Asheville, but it's about an hour out of the way (and if we went there we wouldn't be able to drive the Blue Ridge Parkway... I was really hoping for that!)
Rental places charge like $10/day, and I could definitely pay that if any friendly hikers would lend me a cannister for a couple days! (we would be driving back to Nashville on 5/26)
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Post by ropeandsummit on May 18, 2016 9:15:02 GMT -8
Also, any bear spray?
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Post by Lonewolf on May 18, 2016 18:04:10 GMT -8
You really don't need either in black bear country.
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crawford
Trail Wise!
Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.--Edison
Posts: 1,775 
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Post by crawford on May 18, 2016 18:16:20 GMT -8
Is it required in the area you are hiking in? If not, a bear bag suspended on a branch 12 feet off the ground and over 4 feet away from the trunk and a few feet below the branch should give you plenty of black bear prote tion for your food. Keep it a bit away from camp in a suspended dry bag.
If the area you are hiking in requires the vault...disregard my advice as the contrivance of a mad man.
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Post by ropeandsummit on May 19, 2016 9:08:19 GMT -8
Unfortunately bear cannisters ARE required for Shining Rock.
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bp2go
Trail Wise!
California
Posts: 1,329
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Post by bp2go on May 21, 2016 6:12:39 GMT -8
a bear bag suspended on a branch... Thanks for stirring memories of the fun I used to have hanging food in bear country! Divy the food between two stuff sacks, then tie a rock onto the parachute cord. Go find the right branch, throw the rock, watch it go not quite far enough to go over the branch! Throw it again. Maybe again. Sometimes the rock ends up spinning back under the branch and winds around the branch! Tugging it loose, throwing again, eventually getting the rock (and cord) back in hand. Tie on one hag and pull it up high. Tie on the second bag, then push it up with a walking stick to get both bags hanging high enough to thwart a short bear. Ahh, bear-bagging. Canisters took some of the fun out of an evening in the forest. Hope you have some luck there, rope. Buy a canister and maybe become the guy who rents it to others? |
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almostthere
Trail Wise!
putting on my hiking shoes....
Posts: 696 
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Post by almostthere on May 21, 2016 7:21:42 GMT -8
I went on an easy how-to-backup trip a friend was leading. She showed someone how to counterbalance the right way, instead of the lazy, find an easy branch that a bear can get to, way. It took her 45 minutes and taking turns with one of the students.
It's highly amusing that the same people who will say things like "I don't hammock, you need to find the right trees" will also say bear bagging is worthwhile in areas where the canister isn't mandatory. Hammocking is infinitely easier than finding the right branch on a live tree, that's long enough and not surrounded by other rope-snagging branches that prevent your efforts to get the rope over the branch, or too near other trees that the bear can climb and kamikaze-jump across.... If you have a good arm, accurate aim, a rope that doesn't tangle easy, and more patience than me, bear bagging works great. Meanwhile, setting up a hammock anywhere I darn well please takes a few minutes and I fall asleep "trying out the hang."
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Post by ashepabst on May 21, 2016 9:26:51 GMT -8
i'm fairly certain there's a pretty good gear store in Brevard, which is right off the Parkway near Shining Rock. if they don't do bear can rentals, they really should.
call The Hub, in Brevard. gear shops in these smaller towns come and go, so who knows if they're still around.
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Post by Lonewolf on May 21, 2016 10:34:32 GMT -8
I don't hang off a single branch when hanging the bag.
I use 2 trees about 30'-50' apart. Rope over even just a nub on each tree, not even necessary to use a "full" branch or counterbalance bags.
Secure 1 end of the rope. Bag on a loop in the middle, usually with a carabiner. Pull up on the other end of the rope and secure. Bag is now as much as 20' off the ground and at least 15' from the nearest tree.
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almostthere
Trail Wise!
putting on my hiking shoes....
Posts: 696
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Post by almostthere on May 21, 2016 13:50:00 GMT -8
I don't hang off a single branch when hanging the bag. I use 2 trees about 30'-50' apart. Rope over even just a nub on each tree, not even necessary to use a "full" branch or counterbalance bags. Secure 1 end of the rope. Bag on a loop in the middle, usually with a carabiner. Pull up on the other end of the rope and secure. Bag is now as much as 20' off the ground and at least 15' from the nearest tree. The bears in more popular areas would chew the rope and get those bags in a shot. |
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Post by Lonewolf on May 21, 2016 14:09:13 GMT -8
The bears in more popular areas would chew the rope and get those bags in a shot. I deal with grizzlies and I don't go to popular areas, 2 things that make a difference. But the way I run my rope, I doubt they'd figure it out. At least they haven't so far. |
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Post by JRinGeorgia on May 22, 2016 4:01:10 GMT -8
You can rent a Bearikade Weekender directly from Wild Ideas for $6/day. Or, you can usually pick up a used BV450 for around $40-45.
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Post by ropeandsummit on May 22, 2016 12:51:17 GMT -8
Luckily I found a nice hiker here in Nashville to lend me one! Thanks anyways, guys... happy hiking
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crawford
Trail Wise!
Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.--Edison
Posts: 1,775
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Post by crawford on May 22, 2016 13:26:11 GMT -8
Good to hear. Enjoy the trip!
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