rjthehunter
Well-known member
I think you have grizzlies mixed up with mice!
I'd rather get eaten by a bear than smell moth balls 24/7 lolThe only issue with one way in, is that there's only 1 way out also...
Grizzly Bear Deterrents while Backpack Camping (increased safety while sleeping)
- Thread starter daltrix99
- Start date
I'd rather get eaten by a bear than smell moth balls 24/7 lolThe only issue with one way in, is that there's only 1 way out also...
Hem
Well-known member
No, seriously on the mothballs. Maybe folklore. No matter how you wrap them the stench is there.I think you have grizzlies mixed up with mice!
The only issue with one way in, is that there's only 1 way out also...
I sleep better with one way in.
rjthehunter
Well-known member
I guess it leaves you with one direction to shoot/spray!No, seriously on the mothballs. Maybe folklore. No matter how you wrap them the stench is there.
I sleep better with one way in.
Hem
Well-known member
Psychological advantage!
perma
Well-known member
Sig worthy
It works! Seriously I’ve done this so many times. Squirrels sound like demons at night. Ignorance is bliss.Aside from the usual precautions, my primary line of defense is what I call "bear plugs." I put them in each ear when I go to sleep and drift off into total denial
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WildWill
Well-known member
A couple years ago me and my brother were camped in western Wyoming elk hunting. I was sound asleep in my hammock when my brother started yelling Bear! I rolled out of the hammock not so gracefully grabbing the 1911 in the hammocks pocket. Brother comes scrambling out his little tent bear spray and flashlight in hand. We search around and find nothing he swears he heard a bear growl. Whatever I'm tired go back to bed. He was to wired after that to go back to sleep immediately. That morning he told me while he lay there trying to go to sleep I began snoring he became convinced I woke him with a particularly loud one that sounded to him like a bear.Bring someone along that snores super loud....like Cushman...
Luke_with_a_lab
Well-known member
You could always get some llamas. They are great security at night. They'll alarm call if anything comes into camp.
Magnum Sherpa
Well-known member
The chance of being attacked by a grizzly is small. The chance of being attacked by one in your tent is extremely small, especially if you keep food and attractants out of your tent. I read a book about grizzly attacks and if I recall correctly, only 2% of the attacks that produced serious injuries happened to people in tents.
Dan O
Well-known member
I believe it was two summers ago the Grizzly attack in Ovando that killed a lady in her tent. It was noted that there was or had been food in her tent. This occurred in the park in Ovando. I don't remember all the details but I think the bear had been run off earlier in the evening.
MTLabrador
Well-known member
Sleeping in a tent around them is something that you just have to get used to. Even though sleeping in a tent probably seems scarier, you’re a lot more likely to run into a bear when you’re out hiking around, and especially when returning to pack meat.
All that said I just about shot a muley doe in the face when I returned for the last load of meat on my bull 2 years ago. I saw eyes light up right next to where I had the hindquarter and head stashed and pulled that pistol faster Doc Holliday. In hindsight, packing meat at midnight in grizzly central was a stupid idea and I should have had my rifle with me.
All that said I just about shot a muley doe in the face when I returned for the last load of meat on my bull 2 years ago. I saw eyes light up right next to where I had the hindquarter and head stashed and pulled that pistol faster Doc Holliday. In hindsight, packing meat at midnight in grizzly central was a stupid idea and I should have had my rifle with me.
LuketheDog
Well-known member
This is what I did in brown bear country last fall, I took those little Slumber melatonin hot cocoa packets that Mt Ops has, it's only thing they make that I'll buy. I slept like a rock for 11 nights and let the other guys worry about the bears. We did have an electronic tripwire thing up that would make a real high-pitched noise if it was triggered, but I didn't care, I probably wouldn't have woken up anyway.
A bad fart in the night is going to put out more odor than a granola bar enclosed in a wrapper. i think people overthink the scent issue sometimes. we use a bear fence and hang food, but i don't worry if i forget a little granola bar, or chapstick, or a toothbrush, or whiskey. all of which i've been yelled at for by my hunting partner.
Straight Arrow
Well-known member
That is true. However, there has been enough human presence in bear country that the bears nose distinguishes the difference between the smell of human, even human farts, than that of food enclosed in a wrapper. Believe what you wish ... but don't expect an invite to my camp overnight ... whether it be excessive farting or in-tent snacking!
Disagree! I think people ignore the scent issue mostly.
Anecdote: Before setting up camp at a remote backcountry campsite in the Bechler River region of Yellowstone, I spent almost an hour picking up candy wrappers and other garbage at
sites where tents had obviously been set.
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Magnum Sherpa
Well-known member
I remember that. They reported that she had food in her tent the first time the bear came, after which they ran it off. She supposedly never removed the food, the bear came back again, and we know the rest of the story. I’m not sure if removing the food after the first visit would have changed the outcome, since the bear could likely still smell the residual odor even if she did.
Straight Arrow
Well-known member
If you ever have the opportunity visit the Grizzly Center in West Yellowstone, where there are demonstrations of bear behavior and particularly of their incredible sense of smell and ingenuity & strength. Foods are secured and hidden from the bears, who are in their den spaces. They are released and it's though they have xray vision, as they go directly to the food and begin dismantling whatever containment to get to the food. Also "bear-proof" containers are tested there and it's entertaining to watch the bears do their thing in attempting (and sometimes succeeding) in opening the containers. It certainly gives one incentive to practice "bear aware" precautions when visiting the bears' habitat!
