Date: Fri, 11 Feb 2011 10:43:33 -0800
Reply-To: Don Hanson <dhanson928@GMAIL.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Don Hanson <dhanson928@GMAIL.COM>
Subject: Re: camping amidst bears, safety question
In-Reply-To: <AANLkTi=AgxG9dd4cCktJrqutXWxMoo0FdaOgV30sbgsc@mail.gmail.com>
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I had bears clawing against the side of a split window van in
Yosemite...in the high meadow country camping areas. He was standing and
shoving the door of the van at the seam...wanting in badly! Not a Westie,
thankfully. I would never sleep in bear country with the top open...Even if
you had it closed up tight, a hungry bear could come through your fiberglass
roof in short order, if he was hungry and there was no easier source of food
around.
I'd just keep the top down to be safer and to lessen the scents that can
escape through the canvas...and to eliminate an entry point through the tent
walls.
Don Hanson
On Fri, Feb 11, 2011 at 10:05 AM, Joy Hecht <jhecht@alum.mit.edu> wrote:
> I was once in a place with lots of bear warnings. (Grand Tetons, I think.)
> I was with a friend who was MUCH more fearful than I, and we had his car
> with us. We put the food in the car, which wasn't parked near us. We
> slept
> with the poptop down. The rangers had also said we shouldn't have anything
> with scents in the vehicle - shampoo, other toiletries. Well, being much
> less risk-averse than my friend, I didn't mention to him the shampoo,
> conditioner, and also a goodly supply of perfume in the van. You know,
> what
> you don't know won't hurt you.
>
> No problems with bears.
>
> I would keep the poptop down and the windows closed in serious bear
> country,
> but other than that, what can you do? Fumigate your van before you camp?
>
>
> Joy
>
>
> On Fri, Feb 11, 2011 at 12:19 PM, Mike Miller <mwmiller@cwnet.com> wrote:
>
> > Yup, cooking, eating and storing food in the van. No problems. Bears are
> > supposed to be pretty smart and can figure out how to get in but other
> > vehicles must be easier cause vans just don't get busted into that I ever
> > heard of.
> >
> > mike
> >
> >
> > On 2/11/11 8:41 AM, "Sheilah Rogers" <sheilah@SHEILAH.ORG> wrote:
> >
> > > (okay good. i'm not nuts for thinking about this)
> > >
> > > so are you guys not only cooking in the van, but also popping the top
> in
> > bear
> > > country when you camp?
> > >
> > > because unlike an RV, we got some fairly easy access (considering bears
> > are
> > > climbers), i would think?
> > >
> > > s.
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > On Feb 11, 2011, at 8:33 AM, pickle vanagon wrote:
> > >
> > >>
> > >> the one time i went, the ranger told us to stow our food in bear
> > containers
> > >> and to absolutely not leave any food in our tent or car.
> > >>
> > >> i looked at him flummoxed.
> > >>
> > >> regarding his safety precautions, i sleep "in a kitchen". one that
> gets
> > >> cooked in. one that's presumably permeated by food smells, at least
> from
> > the
> > >> perspective of a bear's nose.
> > >>
> > >>
> > >>
> > >> I laughed out loud when I read this. I've often worried about the
> same
> > >> thing---the idea of separating food smells from the van does seem like
> > an
> > >> absurd goal. Like Mike, we've camped in bear country and never had
> > problems,
> > >> but that's no proof that its safe...
> > >>
> > >> I guess a relevant question here is what RV owners are supposed to do.
> > >> They're in the same kind of situation. Presumably they don't clear
> out
> > their
> > >> fridges and put everything in bear containers. Presumably the bears
> > usually
> > >> just don't try to enter the vehicles? That's what I've told myself in
> > the
> > >> past...
> >
>
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