A ranger at Shenandoah told me bear canisters are required and I was annoyed until I saw the food bag count

River White · 2026-10-01T00:15:05.216328+00:00

I used to think bear canisters were overpriced plastic buckets that only mattered out west. Then a ranger at Shenandoah showed me a log from this spring: 41 food bags taken off the Appalachian Trail in one district between March and May, and almost all of them were hung wrong or left out unattended. She said the canister rental at the entrance station costs 5 dollars a night, which is cheaper than replacing a single stuff sack and a weekend of food. I rented one for two nights and it fit six days of meals plus my stove, so my pack gained about a pound and a half but I slept without a single scratch or sniff near my tent. Now I want to know which canister actually fits a big guy's food for a 5 day trip without costing over 100 dollars, because the rental desk only had one size.

🐿️Pinecone Attack

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A ranger at Shenandoah told me bear canisters are required and I was annoyed until I saw the food bag count | Camping Gear Reviews - Pinecone Attack