Hi guys, while I'm not new to the outdoors I am new to discussion forums. I have noticed a wealth of experience here and am interested in how many of you share my tripping style and what your results have been. More specifically do you hang your food or stash it? I suppose this has been bantered about at least 100 times but as a stasher I am interested in how many of you have been clipped and more importantly why and how many of the tree hoisting variety has been deprived. I was rudely handled one night on Sawbill lake ( fortunately it was our last night) when I got careless with a snickers bar. The lesson was well learned though and 8 years later I'm still batting 1000. Am I just getting lucky??

NO - NO - NO - absolutely not.  Please   (You need to Login or Register this forum before you start a new one - especially on this topic.  

Heres 1 for starters.

  (You need to Login or Register

Heres two.

  (You need to Login or Register

There are hundreds more.

I don't know about hundreds but oh but it's been so long! ;)

Nana locked this thread and linked to some old archived posts reserved for Inukshuks for when they want a blast from the past. It's weird. This is one of the few things where perception if not reality has changed over time - a little. Hiding blue barrels was a scary paradigm type shift for a frugal guy with a blue RubbereMaid tub. Still love the tub!

My wife and I slept 20, 30, 40 (I forget) feet from   (You need to Login or Register for three days while enjoying each others company tremendously.

Unlike the various innie/outtie debates of old, there are   (You need to Login or Register on bear-proffing topics that aren't as valid as "anyone been to x lake 5 star campsite" type posts. Everything gets archived somewhere sometime.

While I can appreciate Nana's aversion to this topic I'd also like to use it to make a point. Bears have bigger brains than ants and there aren't as many of them.

That said, I hear the bear population is declining with the moose population and human traffic where I like to go at least has decreased for other reasons plus knowledge has increased. My original concern when I started QJ was people didn't have enough information and for good or bad, my bear encounters have subsided considerably over the years.

That said, there are no secret methods so I made the links above and below available to everyone. I'm sure there are more that would resonate with someone new but what follows should give them food enough for thought.

  (You need to Login or Register
  (You need to Login or Register
  (You need to Login or Register
  (You need to Login or Register
  (You need to Login or Register
  (You need to Login or Register
  (You need to Login or Register
  (You need to Login or Register

Tis the season:
  (You need to Login or Register

For all the posts you see in the archives that go something like this, "I have always used method XYZ on my trips and never had a problem, therefore method XYZ is best"; keep in mind that for many of those people, their method of bear proofing could have been putting their food in a paper bag. They never had a problem because a bear in camp is a relative rare circumstance (more or less so depending on location) and for reasons totally unrelated to how they store their food, a bear never visited.

My bad if I have committed a breach of etiquette. I suspect my "dang the torpedos, full speed ahead" style may rub some the wrong way. Hopefully I can add something interesting and over time win those over.

Despite a life long love affair with wild places I have developed a certain healthy respect for bears and sharks. The shark nervousness came after I seen a 15ft hammerhead do "S" curves on the surface looking for the head of a 60 lb amberjack it had just taken from us. Pure power. The bear respect came after reading Stephen Herreaus book "Bear attacks, causes and and avoidance". Up to that point I had never really worried about them. Ignorance is bliss comes to mind. I have had 2 close encounters in the past 10 years including a very troubling night in Algonquin this past spring where we had one snuffling about the tent for quite some time. It was surreal. A hand axe in one hand and bear spray in the other and fits of nervousness that came out as laughter. Fortunately I am informed and there was no reason for our guest to intrude. The tracks told the story as well as a few dry bags batted about. I am aware that the Quetico does not have the troubling history that Algonquin does ( about every 10 years there is a fatality).

As a courtesy, we surfers on the Outer Banks of North Carolina used to take those pansy-ass hammerheads off the fishing lines of the dudes that hooked them off the Frisco pier.

Of course, that was in the "old days" when hammerheads were twice as big, and waves all came out of the classic movie, "Endless Summer".

Bears?  Mere child's play... comparatively speaking, of course.  

Sharks, bears... no bother at all.  Just use a blue barrel.  Don't bother hanging it.  Just put it outside the other guy's tent with a pile of pots on it & you'll do just fine, if you're a light sleeper like me.  Worst thing that can happen is that it might get slimed over by those green army worms, like what happened to me about 8 years ago.

It's those deadly canoe flies/ankle-biters that give me the heebie-jeebies!  Greatest nemesis known to to canoe-campers anywhere!  Thank your lucky stars they are only interested in ankles, not food packs!  Six-inch teeth in quarter-inch bodies... now THAT is terrifying!

Jimbo   8-)

...and Pollyhumpers, Jimbo.  Don't forget the Pollyhumpers.  They eat Black Bears for appetizers.

Snow_Dog wrote on Feb 6^th, 2010 at 2:56am:

...and Pollyhumpers, Jimbo.  Don't forget the Pollyhumpers.  They eat Black Bears for appetizers.

You're dead straight, Snow_Dog!  Ain't NOBODY messes w/Pollyhumpers!!!

Jimbo   8-)

mastertangler wrote on Feb 5^th, 2010 at 8:42pm:

My bad if I have committed a breach of etiquette. I suspect my "dang the torpedos, full speed ahead" style may rub some the wrong way. Hopefully I can add something interesting and over time win those over.

In terms of n/etiquette here on QJ goes, I guess the main rules are.

#1 Don't post solely to sell yourself or your products.
#2 Don't use ALL CAPS.

Other side of the coin?

#3 Be kind and use short paragraphs even if your english teacher....
#4 This is the web where stubbed or stepped on toes recover. The little ones that don't, simply drop off upon realizing they were not really useful anyway.

A very apologetic, self described long time lurker told me where to find another link encouraging it's addition to this thread so:
  (You need to Login or Register
I'd have never even considered wasting time searching 'The Bookshelf' so I appreciate the heads up as it seems a fair, recent and condensed summery of 10 years worth of posts on the subject. Thanks! (I think)

That last thread that db linked to was one of the better ones, IMHO.  Good catch by the longtime lurker.

Good stuff. I especially liked the link db, exactly what I was hoping for. BTW, info for solo tripper.... I had also hit on the idea of a motion sensitive alarm system. The bear that hit my pack on Sawbill was deterred for about 3 seconds before he went back to munching. A flashing light and shrill alarm......Hmmm, dinner with a light show and music to boot.

Sharks, bears and now I have to worry about pollyhumpers!

Dang I broke the long paragraph rule in that last link, DOAH! ;D

Gosh, I'll try harder but that's about as brief as I get. I don't have much practice with word fencing.

Wait a minute, didn't I read about a number of you in Boundary Waters Journal? Quite the colorful bunch,especially Old Salt if memory serves me correctly.

Do you guys still go as a group? If someone drops off throw me an invite. I'm handy with a filet knife and best of all with a brillo pad. ( yea, I know I'm setting myself up for a avalanche of pithy one liners......fire away!)  

mastertangler wrote on Feb 7^th, 2010 at 11:43am:

Wait a minute, didn't I read about a number of you in Boundary Waters Journal? Quite the colorful bunch,especially Old Salt if memory serves me correctly.   Do you guys still go as a group?

Ah, yes, the infamous "Flamingo Gang"... the bane of natural color schemes across Quetico!  You've pegged our cook, anyway.  Old Salt has raised park cuisine to an altogether bizarre level.  It's neither fresh nor dried.  It's sort of achieved a category status of its own (think thickened Pepto Bismol featuring lava/magma type qualities with occasional filets slowly bubbling up to the surface).

QJ luncheons & suppers seem to be favorite haunts for these park renegades, who enter the park wherever they want & proceed forth where no man hath gone before.  Otherwise, their flags, buoys, banners, balloons, & whirlygigs - all brightly emblazoned with their logo - scream their presence in the park.  If they're around, you'll know it!  Others  imitate them [see:   (You need to Login or Register ], but nobody has ever figured out WHY.

Attach yourself to this crowd with caution!  Beware!!!

Jimbo   8-)


P.S.  In keeping with the theme of this thread (which has taken on a life of its own), Flamingo Gang members often hang their food packs, though one wonders "why?"  Half the time there are mainly hunks of wood in those packs, anyway.....

Quote:

P.S.  In keeping with the theme of this thread (which has taken on a life of its own), Flamingo Gang members often hang their food packs, though one wonders "why?"  Half the time there are mainly hunks of wood in those packs, anyway.....

Just don't hang it where other Flamingo Gang members may have easy access to mess with it.... like over an island cliff  ;)

Could just do like Flash & leave the food pack open & out by a smoldering smoke pile that never really was a fire...LOL

Woods_Walker wrote on Feb 7^th, 2010 at 2:09pm:

[quote] Just don't hang it where other Flamingo Gang members may have easy access to mess with it.... like over an island cliff  ;) Could just do like Flash & leave the food pack open & out by a smoldering smoke pile that never really was a fire...LOL

Ah, a charter member of the Original Flock speaketh!

Over the cliff was a pretty good way to go, though I DO recall the look on one flock member when he pulled up his food pack rope the next morning only to discover it was no longer attached to anything!  Seems those nuisance bears (& guys that look like a bear  ;) ; see WoodsWalker's pic) are quite resourceful.

The "smoldering smoke pile" is a proven anti-mosquito technique.  The source of warmth THAT particular nasty day was liquid, not combustion, as I recall.

Finally, flock protocol and tradition dictate that open food packs are stowed right outside of Quetico Passage's tent, whenever he is in camp.


Jimbo   8-)

Two points should be well noted here!
1 Firewood packed in a pack is always dry, hence easy to start a fire. ;)
2 Packs must always be placed near my tent.  Especially if you like bear steaks for breakfast.  First you lure them in, then you blow smoke in their face to blind them, just before you holler fer Old Salt, after all he's the camp chef.  8-)

qp

So glad that this thread stayed "on-topic".   [smiley=thumbup.gif]  I just knew we needed another conversation on this all important (and underdiscussed) facet of canoe camping.  While were at it, perhaps we can discuss how to catch Bass in Quetico.

PhantomJug wrote on Feb 7^th, 2010 at 6:13pm:

So glad that this thread stayed "on-topic".   [smiley=thumbup.gif]  I just knew we needed another conversation on this all important (and underdiscussed) facet of canoe camping.  While were at it, perhaps we can discuss how to catch Bass in Quetico.

So you want to catch bass?? (Quetico Carp)?? That's too easy... Just pitch anything with a hook.

I would prefer knowing how to avoid catching those pests. After all, they are non-native alien invasives. ;)

Off track just a bit, but what are "pollyhumpers?"  I know what 'mini-bears' are, but never heard of pollyhumpers...   Ray T.

They are beasts of the larger lakes in Q. They seldom surface, hence they are not widely known, nor is their danger appreciated. But, when they do surface, they have been known to upset or swamp canoes, endangering the paddlers, who have been known to be tasty hors doevers for these beasts. I once broke my favorite paddle defending myself from attack with a sharp blow to the snout. They seem to be especially sensitive there, as the piercing screams haunted me and my party all through the night. :o

They feed on mature sturgeon, beaver, or, sometimes, in the spring, moose calves learning to swim alongside mama.  Personally, I don't mess with them anymore... at least not since the incident.  If you happen to get one on the line, best to have a club handy (36" X 2", minimum) and pop them between the eyes; they generally release.  Keep your hands away from their teeth & dorsal barbs & you should be OK.  Heavy-duty leather gloves serve better than rubber.  If you hook a big one, cut your losses immediately by cutting the line.  Don't mess with it unless you are in a vessel larger than 20' & are reasonably close to shore.  Snap a picture, if you can.  They are almost as rare as Sasquatch.  If you are a masochist, bait your hook with beaver and troll that northern bay of Sturgeon Lake, not but 200 meters offshore from the portage into Ram Lake.

Good luck!

Jimbo   8-)

Grappling hooks make good trebles for catching a 'humper.

Okay, there musta been one off my campsite, one night.  It was breaching, and I heard it slapping the water all night.  got up red-eyed and shakey!

Do you need a fishing license?  What is the season and are there any size limits?

Westwood

It's not a fish, so you don't need a fishing liscence. But since everything is regulated these days, it wouldn't surprise me if you needed some kind of permit...

No seasons or size limits that I'm aware of, but they won't fit in any canoe.

Worthy quarry indeed!

We had this creature show up in our campsite on our last trip.  Nothing we could do to keep the beast out of our food, either hanging or stashing worked; nearly ate us out of house and home.  Fortunately he paddled a canoe pretty well and carried stuff on the portage okay.

starwatcher

  (You need to Login or Register   (You need to Login or Register