trvtrekker
She has never camped in a tent. And most of all she is concerned about our safety as late May there may be a lot of hungry bears that are coming out of hibernation. I wouldn't want to compromise safety either, given we have a six year old son. But how could I convince her that front country tent camping is safe during late May?
Answer
Bears are only after food. Keep your site clean and store your food properly and you are unlikely to have any problems.
That means no candy wrappers or food containers in your tent, pockets, or left in your car. The same goes for cosmetics. Bears have a keen sense of smell. I have been camping almost every year since I was a kid in the 1940's and have never had a problem with bears when my food was properly stored and trash properly disposed of. National Parks in bear country have steel food storage lockers at each campsite. Follow the rules and everything will be fine.
I got a roomy tent tall enough to stand erect any have room to walk around in. A Queen size air bed that is standard height. I invested in a porta-potti.
When I served my wife her breakfast in bed the first morning she was hooked.
Now in our seventies and my sweetheart is still an avid camper.
Bears are only after food. Keep your site clean and store your food properly and you are unlikely to have any problems.
That means no candy wrappers or food containers in your tent, pockets, or left in your car. The same goes for cosmetics. Bears have a keen sense of smell. I have been camping almost every year since I was a kid in the 1940's and have never had a problem with bears when my food was properly stored and trash properly disposed of. National Parks in bear country have steel food storage lockers at each campsite. Follow the rules and everything will be fine.
I got a roomy tent tall enough to stand erect any have room to walk around in. A Queen size air bed that is standard height. I invested in a porta-potti.
When I served my wife her breakfast in bed the first morning she was hooked.
Now in our seventies and my sweetheart is still an avid camper.
Tent camping in bear country?
MissK
The last time I camped in bear country (a variety of states) I was married, so I wasn't too concerned ... plus my husband at the time had a 44 w/ him when we slept. For the first time, I'll be camping in bear country (Yellowstone) ... alone. I was reading on the nps.gov site re: bear safety. It mentions properly store beverages (even water). Don't mind my naive question ... but is it UNSAFE to have bottled water in my tent? Of course I will NOT have any food in my tent, nor toiletries (which I never knew about not having toiletries in a tent till I read the NPS info) ... but I'd like to at least have water. What's your thoughts? Safe or not?
Any other info I need to know? Things to consider?
Answer
You will be fine with a bottle of water inside your tent. The problem is when bears see bottles in the open they think food will be nearby.
Don't bring anything into your tent that has any scent, even if it is in an airtight container. If you store food or beverages in your vehicle, even if in an ice chest, place them in the trunk or over with a blanket so they cannot be seen by curious bear.
It is good practice to setup your cooking and dining area as far away from your tent as possible to avoid any lingering scent from attracting bears. 100 feet is recommended. It is also good practice to change your clothing and wash-up after dinner and before you enter your tent, again to remove as much scent as possible. Use scent-free soaps, deodorants and other hygienic products, and even if unscented, store them as you would your food. Trash also needs to be stored as you do food.
The good news is that improvements in wildlife management, particularly in regards to bears, has significantly reduced the incidents of bear raids and attacks in Yellowstone. There have been 43 bear attacks on humans in Yellowstone between 1980 and 2011, an average of 1.3 per year, out of 21 million overnight campers in the same period.
Contrary to a prior posting, you can legally carry firearms in most areas of the park, subject to Wyoming and Montana state firearms laws. Open carry is allowed without a permit. Concealed carry is allowed with a concealed carry permit (except that Wyoming residents do not require a CCW while in the Wyoming section of the park). Both Montana and Wyoming has reciprocal CCW agreements with other states. Firearms may not be brought into the visitor centers.
However, firearms are not considered the best protection against wildlife attack. If you are concerned for your safety you should consider keeping bear deterrent spray at hand for quick use. Use the spray only if you are threatened with attack, do not use it as prophylactic to try to keep bears from visiting your campsite. Bears will actually be attracted to the smell of the bear spray, so if you do need to discharge the spray to fend off an attack, immediately leave the area and notify the park rangers of the time and location of the encounter.
You will be fine with a bottle of water inside your tent. The problem is when bears see bottles in the open they think food will be nearby.
Don't bring anything into your tent that has any scent, even if it is in an airtight container. If you store food or beverages in your vehicle, even if in an ice chest, place them in the trunk or over with a blanket so they cannot be seen by curious bear.
It is good practice to setup your cooking and dining area as far away from your tent as possible to avoid any lingering scent from attracting bears. 100 feet is recommended. It is also good practice to change your clothing and wash-up after dinner and before you enter your tent, again to remove as much scent as possible. Use scent-free soaps, deodorants and other hygienic products, and even if unscented, store them as you would your food. Trash also needs to be stored as you do food.
The good news is that improvements in wildlife management, particularly in regards to bears, has significantly reduced the incidents of bear raids and attacks in Yellowstone. There have been 43 bear attacks on humans in Yellowstone between 1980 and 2011, an average of 1.3 per year, out of 21 million overnight campers in the same period.
Contrary to a prior posting, you can legally carry firearms in most areas of the park, subject to Wyoming and Montana state firearms laws. Open carry is allowed without a permit. Concealed carry is allowed with a concealed carry permit (except that Wyoming residents do not require a CCW while in the Wyoming section of the park). Both Montana and Wyoming has reciprocal CCW agreements with other states. Firearms may not be brought into the visitor centers.
However, firearms are not considered the best protection against wildlife attack. If you are concerned for your safety you should consider keeping bear deterrent spray at hand for quick use. Use the spray only if you are threatened with attack, do not use it as prophylactic to try to keep bears from visiting your campsite. Bears will actually be attracted to the smell of the bear spray, so if you do need to discharge the spray to fend off an attack, immediately leave the area and notify the park rangers of the time and location of the encounter.
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