Thoughts on an electric bear fence

[colonel00]

I thought I had asked about this before but I lost too many brain cells back in college and I can't seem to find any past discussion through a search. So as part of the caribou trip this year, there is a good chance that we will be stashing a large raft, Cabela's dome tent, extra food and clothes and other gear while we go light to hike further into the tundra to get outside of the 5 mile corridor. I just have some reservations about leaving all this gear lying around for several days with nobody around. I would love to hear thoughts on this. Two years ago we did spot one bear in the general vicinity so there is a good chance of them being around. Also, if you have used one, I would love to hear recommendations as I am debating buying or renting.

 

[Jdog]

Never hunted off the Haul Rd--wish I could help.

Sorry

 

[cbat]

I understand that a lot of pilots are using them to prevent bear damage to planes when left unattended. The price of them is pretty cheap insurance compared to replacing all your gear.

 

[colonel00]

Yeah, doing some initial researching it looks like I can pick up the UDAP BEF for $229 which isn't that bad. I agree that the last thing we would want is to come back to a thrashed tent or worse, a punctured raft.

I was also entertaining the idea of making my own but I guess I will have to look further into that option.

 

[Hunt'nFish]

Punctured raft, hum.... should be prepared to fix that anyway. Don't ask me how I know this.
Get the fence, I'm sure you can sell it off afterwards. Like said cheap insurance.
Rent if at all possible.
Hunt'nFish

 

[Ray]

I was also entertaining the idea of making my own but I guess I will have to look further into that option.

Farm supply store has all the odds and ends you need to make your own kit. However, the UDAP kit may be the lightest for backcountry use.

 

[colonel00]

For this trip, we will be rafting to the point where the raft and gear are stowed so a little extra weight isn't a huge factor. Then again, if I ever wanted to hike it in, I would probably want the lighter weight...

 

[live2huntelk]

If you plan on using it in Alaska, according to UDAP website, may want to get the Outfitter Bear fence or one that has longer posts for the Alaska tundra.....

"This bear shock electric fence is 1 foot higher than the original. and contains eight 4ft posts. The 4 foot Posts are great for the Alaska tundra and also for use as a horse corral. "

https://store.udap.com/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=CF4&Category_Code=BEF

 

[colonel00]

Yeah, I looked at that one. It looks like pretty much the same kit with maybe 8" more on the poles and 4 extra poles. Which does make sense on the tundra where the extra length might be needed to actually get a solid plant of the pole. While I plan to probably camp on gravel bars, the stowed gear will be back up on the tundra so that has me thinking now.

 

[TEmbry]

Rafting the sag I'm assuming? I'd be much more worried about theft of gear than bears, but as others said $300 is cheap insurance to have for camp from now on.

 

[colonel00]

Yeah, we will start on the Sag. I had thought about the theft thing too. We will be a couple miles off the road and out of sight of the Sag when we stash stuff so hopefully it will be alright.

 

[Hunt'nFish]

That SpeedRite bear kit looks like it uses the same 2D Energizer we use for backcounty corralling the pack stock.
We just got the charger, some fiberglass poles and some twist on insulators and a spool of ribbon at the farm store and it worked great. The mules won't go near the ribbon. The charger puts off a very high pitched audible pulse that's almost difficult to hear, but the mules sure can hear it when it's on. Gotta shut it down before we take them by the unit, otherwise they freak. Not sure how bears would react to it, but I'm sure they'll hear it.
Hunt'nFish

PS: have you thought about the Elect Poultry Netting? I'm seeing these net pens on sale a lot. Kinda laughed at them, but for bear...hum.... netting might provide a little more bear sniffing surface to pop them with. Maybe hose the netting down with some pepper spray as well.

 

[colonel00]

Haven't looked at the poultry stuff. I have pretty much decided to make my own kit and I hit the farm store yesterday to start gathering materials.

 

[Browtine]

While I plan to probably camp on gravel bars, the stowed gear will be back up on the tundra so that has me thinking now.

I'd be a little worried about the conductivity of a gravel bar. You might have a tough time getting a good ground on loose gravel or sand. Something to think about.

 

[colonel00]

Yeah, I agree. I probably won't run it around camp if we are on gravel. It is mostly to protect the cached gear while we are camping elsewhere and to also protect any meat we may be lucky enough to harvest. I also picked up a cheap voltage tester so we don't have to draw straws to test if it is grounded properly. As I understand it, there is also a way to run alternating lines for positive and negative when grounding isn't effective. This requires the animal to touch both lines simultaneously though.

 

[Jordan guyer]

Used one a couple years ago. We put it up around our camp. had a bear right outside the fence he never bothered us, just came up to the fence then left.

 

[Snipershirt]

Rafting the sag I'm assuming? I'd be much more worried about theft of gear than bears, but as others said $300 is cheap insurance to have for camp from now on.

Have you had issues with theft up there? I'm all about keeping honest people honest, just curious if you've had issues off the Haul.

 

[primitive]

I use them (UDAP) all the time on gravel bars, and believe me it shocks the hell out of you. Its worth the money and peace of mind.

 

[crumy]

Anyone ever had a bear go "through" one of these? Sure i the bear just sniffs it or something it will juice him, but what if he just swats it? I know anything is possible, just wondering about usage. For example in NW Wyoming.

 

[squeekieslayer]

i just bought the stuff to build one yesterday at big r... mine is for keeping my horses in but the 6D cell unit, 8 poles, 300ft of ribbon, a ground rod and some clips came to less than 200 bucks. May not work for backpacking but would work in a raft.

joe