Bear provisions along the Great Divide Mountainbike Route

[ritchthefridge]

Dear all. I'm preparing for the GDMBR but have never been in bear country so I have a question that may be obvious to you but not to me.
Reading about bear safety I've seen all sorts of bear hanging techniques but also that certain national parks require the use of bear canisters.
Bear canisters seem the preferred method and though heavy they save quite some time compared to the hassle to make and use a proper bear hang.
Can anyone estimate me:
1) what percentage of informal campgrounds have a bear box.
2) what percentage of informal campgrounds have a bear hang ready for use.
3) what percentage of campings have a bear box.
4) what percentage of campings have a bear hang ready for use.
5) Riding the entire route. Will it anywere be required to have a bear canister with me? (In this case I better buy it right in Banff and not bother about bear hangs and bear boxes anymore.)
Best regards Richard

[Iowagriz]

I can only speak to the formal camp spots in Montana bear country.  If you stay at a Forest Service campground they will either have a bear box to give you, or a shared one for the group.  I know that the campground at Red Meadow pass had a shared steel box. I also know when we stayed at the campground in Seeley Lake, the host gave us a bear box/canister. 

Any informal camping will not have any provisions.  This of these spots as just wide spots on the side of the road, you are just setting up on your own.  If you bring 50feet (or so) of lanyard, and learn how to string between trees, then you will be fine. 

[dh024]

I have not ridden the GDMBR, so I can't comment on the availability of bear boxes. But I am familiar with the Canadian portion of the route having biked, hiked, hunted, and fished almost all of it many times. You might consider an Ursack (spectra bear-proof bag), which I have moved to from a bear canister because it is much easier to pack (I can throw it in a pannier or strap it to a top-rack or slide it in a backpack). I still hang it, whenever possible, but there are just times when you can't seem find a suitable tree or you are just too tired to bother with the hassle of a bear hang. The bag is an excellent compromise (just tie it to a tree the bear can't knock down).

One thing, though: Ursack bear bags may not be recognized as a suitable alternative to a bear cannister or approved bear hang method in some national parks -- not sure if that will impact you.

[harryonaspot]

I have spent plenty of time on the Canadian and northern part of the route. It goes thru no National Parks. If it did or you plan to, there will be no informal camping unless you go renegade. Most National parks and state parks etc will have bear boxes. No informal camp sites will. You may find a hang area if someone has been using the same informal site for a while or was hanging deer or elk. We hang from the tallest longest branch we can find. Sometimes a challenge. Bear cannisters are heavy and bulky. Worst of all they are very small inside. With all your consmetics, sun screen etc, you would be hard pressed to get more than a day or so worth of food in them. Certainly not 4 or 5 which you may have to do once or twice. So you are going tomhave to hang stuff anyway. Just deal with hanging. Just do it 150 feet or more from camp and put everything with a scent in the bag. Some people have bears in camp, butbnot many that I have spoken with. I personally have never seen a western bear closer than several hundred yards. Hope my luck holds! Just take the proper precautions, but don't stress about it.

[dh024]

I have spent plenty of time on the Canadian and northern part of the route. It goes thru no National Parks.

Doesn't the route actually START in a national park?  ☺

[harryonaspot]

That is my bad.   I was actually thinking of the US sections. Also, since the op was concerned about camping and bear concerns, it is easy to ride thru that park and camp beyond.

[dh024]

That is my bad.   I was actually thinking of the US sections. Also, since the op was concerned about camping and bear concerns, it is easy to ride thru that park and camp beyond.

You are totally right -- I was just making a fun jab!

[Leeazjr]

I thought that said  "beer provisions" at first glance. It's probably a better idea to worry about bears. Good luck on the ride!

[vikb]

These bear bags are light and easy to carry:

http://www.mec.ca/product/5020-583/ursack-s29-allwhite-bear-resistant-bag/

Use them with one of these odour proof sacks:

http://www.mec.ca/product/5013-942/loksak-opsak-odour-proof-barrier-bags-3-pack/?q=odour%2Bproof%2Bbag

All my touring is in bear country. I've had no issues.

[blaaat]

Sorry to kick this old topic.

Planning to ride the GDMBR this summer, with absolutely zero experience with bears, does anyone know if everything bear-related (Ursacks, spray etc) is available in Banff?

[Iowagriz]

I can't speak to availability in Banff, but saw a Calgarian post recently that they have a chain similar to REI with locations in Calgary.  Sorry, can't remember the name, but that is probably a better place to look.

[dh024]

I can't speak to availability in Banff, but saw a Calgarian post recently that they have a chain similar to REI with locations in Calgary.  Sorry, can't remember the name, but that is probably a better place to look.

The Canadian equivalent of REI is called MEC (Mountain Equipment Coop). There is a store in downtown Calgary, and they will have everything you need.

There are good sporting good stores in Canmore and Banff, and getting bear spray should not be a problem (the Canadian Tire in Canmore should have that for sure). Getting an Ursack in Banff might be a crapshoot, though.

[blaaat]

Thanks! Sounds like we'll plan for a day/night in Calgary. Would you say 1 bag is enough food for 2persons riding at touring speed?

[dh024]

Would you say 1 bag is enough food for 2persons riding at touring speed?

That's probably fine, if you stock up at the right spots. I can carry about 4 - 5 days worth of food at most in my Ursack bag, so if you have to split that between two people, you would need a resupply every 2 or 3 days. Hard to judge, however--I guess it all depends on how much you eat!

[dh024]

Oh, and one tip to get more food inside the bag: the bag comes with a scent-resistant liner, so stuff that full of any food that might possibly have a scent. Packaged foods that will have little scent (e.g., freeze-dried, packaged meals, like Mountain House entrees) can be stored inside the Ursack, but outside the scent-resistant liner.

Finally, if you are new to travelling in bear country, make SURE that you holler a lot any time you can't see more than 50-100 m in front of you, like on a trail that takes a turn through the bush. Most bike-bear encounters occur when a cyclists startles a bear (unfortunately, one mountain biker in Montana was killed last year near the GDMBR by a grizzly that he collided with because he didn't see it in time). I actually carry a refillable air horn for this purpose, just to keep from going hoarse. And literally, I have hollered ahead and had a bear jump out of the bushes along the side of the trail (proved to me the effort was worthwhile!!).

[blaaat]

Oh, and one tip to get more food inside the bag: the bag comes with a scent-resistant liner, so stuff that full of any food that might possibly have a scent. Packaged foods that will have little scent (e.g., freeze-dried, packaged meals, like Mountain House entrees) can be stored inside the Ursack, but outside the scent-resistant liner.

Finally, if you are new to travelling in bear country, make SURE that you holler a lot any time you can't see more than 50-100 m in front of you, like on a trail that takes a turn through the bush. Most bike-bear encounters occur when a cyclists startles a bear (unfortunately, one mountain biker in Montana was killed last year near the GDMBR by a grizzly that he collided with because he didn't see it in time). I actually carry a refillable air horn for this purpose, just to keep from going hoarse. And literally, I have hollered ahead and had a bear jump out of the bushes along the side of the trail (proved to me the effort was worthwhile!!).

Thanks for the advice. I own a Timber bell to make a constant noise, but have the impression that this mostly annoys me and you can hardly hear it 30m in front of me.

About the scent resistance; I've read toothpaste should also go into the bag, are bears also attracted to human scents? Anything we should do to make us less attractive while sleeping?

[dh024]

Thanks for the advice. I own a Timber bell to make a constant noise, but have the impression that this mostly annoys me and you can hardly hear it 30m in front of me.

About the scent resistance; I've read toothpaste should also go into the bag, are bears also attracted to human scents? Anything we should do to make us less attractive while sleeping?

IMO, bear bells don't work on bikes. The sound isn't recognizable to bears, and even if it were, the sound doesn't carry far enough. They will recognize a human voice, however. Yelling is always your best bet, IMO.

And yes, bears may be attracted to toothpaste, deodorant, chamois cream, lip gloss, etc. It should all go in the bear bag/vault and/or get hung at night. If there is nothing to tempt them, it is very unlikely they will approach your camp at night. Remember, most bears (particularly the ones in the backcountry) will be afraid of human encounters, so when they catch YOUR scent, it will be something they are likely to avoid. But the smell of food or anything associated with human food might lure them in - so hang all that a good distance downwind of your camp, and you should be fine, especially if you put your camp OFF the trail where animals could be travelling at night.

If you want to learn more, here is a link to some very succinct advice: https://www.pc.gc.ca/en/pn-np/mtn/ours-bears/securite-safety/ours-humains-bears-people

And I can't emphasize how important it is to carry bear spray, and have it on your person and accessible at all times, just in case you startle a bear - you will encounter them along the GDMBR, particularly in Canada and Montana.

Oh, and to put this all in perspective, follow these precautions, and then don't worry too much about a bear encounter. Quite genuinely, I am far, FAR more worried about getting injured or killed by a motorist while road touring than I am about bear encounters while bikepacking. Bears are far more predictable than drivers, if that helps put the risk in perspective.

[bakerjw]

You'll get out there and get a feel for when you need top make noise. At least I did. Wide areas with lots of visibility are fine, but then you come into a narrow area  and you get the feeling. "I better start making noise"

I had one bear encounter last year. It was a black bear walking on a hillside trail in the same direction that I was taking. It was an "Aw S***" moment. I started singing a stupid song called "Please let me make it to Sparwood". The bear eventually heard me and took off.

What scare me more than bears? Free range cattle. Try riding past a bull with his herd of cows. Although it was a cow that charged me and not a bull.

[SEC]

Rich,
Lucky!  Hopefully this gets to you in time... have fun!

1) what percentage of informal campgrounds have a bear box.
5% at best
2) what percentage of informal campgrounds have a bear hang ready for use.
0%
3) what percentage of campings have a bear box.
Official campgrounds?  Didn't really frequent those- the ones we saw were in a semi-official camp near Togowtee Pass in WY; there was 1 in Teton National Park Campsite; in Provincial Parks in Kananaskas and Elk Lakes
4) what percentage of campings have a bear hang ready for use.
Didn't see any
5) Riding the entire route. Will it anywere be required to have a bear canister with me?
Nope

We had a super light bear hang we borrowed from a friend and it was typically easy to hang.  
Cowboys are great sources for recent bear activity.
Thy were fine with us bringing the Bear Spray over the border.