Camp, Meat, and Bears in the high country.

[Alpinegypsy]

My brother and I are getting packed in for the Washington high buck hunt next week. Im curious, what do you guys do about meat and food in camp if hanging isn’t an option? I’ve thought about getting a bear fence just for whatever food we bring and if one of us kills a buck(or bear), but I’m not sure if it’s really necessary. TIA

 

[DawnPatrol]

In the Cascades, I wouldn’t sweat the black bears—in most places they are not too habituated or aggressive. I’d be more worried about little critters and spoilage from meat from lying on the ground. Not sure where exactly you’ll be, but it might be worth packing it down somewhere and hanging it in a tree if you are gonna be there a couple days. Sounds like you’ll have a bear tag, so probably won’t have any problems. Hope you kill a monster!

 

[Alpinegypsy]

In the Cascades, I wouldn’t sweat the black bears—in most places they are not too habituated or aggressive. I’d be more worried about little critters and spoilage from meat from lying on the ground. Not sure where exactly you’ll be, but it might be worth packing it down somewhere and hanging it in a tree if you are gonna be there a couple days. Sounds like you’ll have a bear tag, so probably won’t have any problems. Hope you kill a monster!

I’ll definitely be hanging the meat as high as we can in bags, I’m just not sure we’ll come across trees big enough to hang it properly “bear safe”. Looking at the weather it should be plenty cool up there.

 

[Wrench]

You're going to have more trouble with vermin than bears.

 

[JDBAK]

Pee around the meat to dissuade bears. Put on rocks, branches, antlers to get off the ground, and make overhead cover.