Should you camp or backpack in New Hampshire’s White Mountain Nationwide Forest, you have to retailer your meals in:
- a closed motorcar (locking is suggested)
- a campsite bear field at a pre-established tent website
- by hanging your meals in a bear bag hung 12 ft off the bottom and 6 ft from the closest vertical help (assume tree)
- a bear-resistant canister
Ursack bear luggage should not accepted to be used within the White Mountain Nationwide Forest.
Official Textual content of the USFS White Mountain Nationwide Forest Meals Storage Order (R9-22-19-19)
The next is prohibited forest-wide:
- Besides whereas being ready and consumed, all meals, meals containers and refuse shall be saved in a closed motorcar or suspended a minimum of twelve (12) ft above the floor of the bottom and never lower than six (6) ft horizontally from any object. Bear containers, bear canisters, or bear fences designed particularly for meals and/or refuse storage are acceptable.
- All refuse containing meals supplies or containers shall be deposited in receptacles offered for that goal as quickly as potential after the waste is created or saved within the method prescribed for meals in #1 above.
Campsite Bear Bins
Campsite bear containers can be found at many, however not all, pre-establishd backcountry tent websites and lean-tos within the White Mountain Nationwide Forest. These are massive heavy metal containers with bear-proof closures that everybody staying on the website can put their meals in at evening without spending a dime. Whereas these containers are bear-proof, they’re not rodent-proof, and also you wish to ensure that your meals is saved in a rodent-proof bag, like a Ratsack (extremely really helpful) or a hard-sided bear canister.
Hanging Meals is Tough within the Whites
When backpacking within the Whites, you do have the choice to hold your meals 12 ft within the air and 6 ft out. Simply be suggested that this may be very troublesome to attain within the White Mountains and it might take you fairly a while to perform (which sucks close to nightfall), if in any respect. The kind and density of tree cowl, dense spruce bushes, could make it very troublesome to search out the appropriate kind of tree limb for such a grasp and it’s frequent to have your rock sack get caught up in a tree earlier than you’ll be able to retrieve it. Should you don’t need the trouble or to spend time looking for grasp, I’d suggest carrying a bear canister as a substitute. Smaller bear canisters just like the BV450, BV425, and the Bear Boxer match inside most backpacks and are sufficiently sized for weekend backpacking journeys.
Bear Canisters
Bear canisters are hard-sided containers that bears within the White Mountains can not open. Whereas high-capacity bear canisters will be awkwardly giant and heavy, smaller-capacity fashions are a lot simpler to pack, comparatively light-weight, and they’re much more handy than hanging your meals in a tree. I now carry a BV425 or a BV450 on my backpacking journeys within the Whites.
Right here’s a comparability of the completely different fashions accepted to be used within the White Mountains.
Should you carry a bear canister, put together your meals, eat, and retailer your bear-resistant meals canister a minimum of 100 yards downwind out of your tent. Retailer your canister on the bottom hidden in brush or behind rocks. Don’t place the canister close to a cliff or water supply. Bears might knock the canister round or roll it down a hill. Cowl your canister with brightly coloured tape or stickers to make it straightforward to search out the following morning. No matter you do, don’t overlook the place you place it.
Should you don’t wish to purchase a bear canister, the Forest Service within the White Mountains loans out bear canisters without spending a dime. Name the Predominant White Mountain Forest Service headquarters in Campton for particulars at (603) 536-6100.
Ursacks are Not Accepted
Sadly, Ursacks should not accepted (per the latest forest order above), although they’re on the IGBC-approved record utilized by many different nationwide forests and nationwide parks. This got here as a shock to me as a result of I’ve used Ursacks within the White Mountain Nationwide Forest up to now and thought they had been authorized. However I’ve checked with the native US Forest Service a number of occasions and Ursack use shouldn’t be authorized.
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