Trash, excess food, and dish water😁

[.gacton]

Just wondering what everyone does with leftovers that don't get eaten, and the dish water from cleaning up? We did see a small bear not far from camp last year and I've wondered if we were doing the right things in camp. Anything that would burn went into the campfire. Any leftovers went in a hole and got buried. Everything else was packed out. Were we right? It was my first trip, but I went with a friend who has been several times. We were in a drop camp, but he usually hunts out of a guided camp and they would handle those things. I may be overthinking this (it's been know to happen), but don't want to repeat any mistakes on my next trip.

 

[chav0_12]

I'm not really sure what you're asking. I came across this thread in the backpack hunting section. I've never had excess food as I'm usually pretty hungry and I eat out of bags or pouches. I would probably just hang any leftovers with the rest of my food and have it for breakfast. I try to not have leftovers as that usually leads to being cold at night for me.

 

[Tac-O]

Agreed. Although where I hunt, there's no suitable hanging so ya have to sleep with your food. *NOT in grizzly country.

I would not bury it. A bear can still smell it and will dig it up for sure. I would eat it or pack it out. If it was something non edible like a bone, I'd take it with me the next morning and toss it somewhere that the bear wouldn't associate with humans.

 

[BillLarson]

Hang ALL (food,snacks etc.) bear desirables in a tree 100 yds. from where you sleep....
reason I say this on an elk hunt high up the ******* I was with unannounced to me hung a package of jerky in a tree 15 yrds. from where our heads were lying sleeping.
We had bear company that nite.
Dumb stunts like this can turn out terribly...

 

[biednick]

Either force yourself to eat all the food or pack it out. Some trash can be burned, but everything else needs to be packed out. You should be able to get your dishes clean without soap then drink your dishwasher.

Anything that has a smell need to be stored somewhere bear safe overnight. That includes leftovers, trash, toothpaste, food, sunscreen, and anything else with a non- natural smell. Bears can smell the food you buried and it will attract them to your camp. If you happen to be somewhere with permanent infrastructure like bear lockers use them, otherwise you'll have to carry something with you for food storage.

I don't recommend hanging your food. Bear hangs aren't effective against determined bears, especially in areas where bears have had the opportunity to practice getting them down. They're time consuming. It's not always possible to find a tree that's adequate. You need a limb about 18' off the ground and at least 5' long with no other limbs near it that a bear could use to get near your food. A tree like that doesn't always exist. Most people do poor hangs. They usually can't find an adequate tree, don't spend enough time looking for one, or don't know how to properly hang their bag.

If you're dead set on a bear hang I'd recommend looking into the PCT method or counterbalance hangs. Neither require tying off to a different tree which makes it more difficult for a bear to drop your bag. A bear canister is a better choice in areas where bears are an issue, and something like a Ursack is adequate in most areas.