Now that the Forest Service has mandated food must be hung if not already stored in an approved IGBC Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee certified container, here are some ways of hanging your food if you are new to this skill.

The following 4 methods can be found in the a PDF issued by the Forest Service and goes a bit more in depth: How to Hang Your Food

1. Single Tree and Pully


2. Clothsline Method


3.Clothsline with Pully


4. Over a Branch


Any of these methods work with minimal food weight, like a couple of 20L Ursacks. Once you start having to hoist a 60lb pack, you will be limited to probably the Clothsline with Pully method. This is also the method that Sawbill Outfitters has demonstrated outside their office every year.

What are your methods for hoisting food?

Minnesotian: "
Now that the Forest Service has mandated food must be hung if not already stored in an approved IGBC Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee certified container, here are some ways of hanging your food if you are new to this skill.

The following 4 methods can be found in the a PDF issued by the Forest Service and goes a bit more in depth: How to Hang Your Food

1. Single Tree and Pully


2. Clothsline Method


3.Clothsline with Pully


4. Over a Branch


Any of these methods work with minimal food weight, like a couple of 20L Ursacks. Once you start having to hoist a 60lb pack, you will be limited to probably the Clothsline with Pully method. This is also the method that Sawbill Outfitters has demonstrated outside their office every year.

What are your methods for hoisting food?"

When will the forest service be around to trim off the lower limbs so one can throw a rope over the limb that is 20+ feet up the tree such that you can use the first method? When will they move in trees to make the second, third, and fourth method work. Non of these will work at a majority of the campsites I have stayed at.

RMinMN: "

Minnesotian: "
Now that the Forest Service has mandated food must be hung if not already stored in an approved IGBC Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee certified container, here are some ways of hanging your food if you are new to this skill.


The following 4 methods can be found in the a PDF issued by the Forest Service and goes a bit more in depth: How to Hang Your Food


1. Single Tree and Pully



2. Clothsline Method



3.Clothsline with Pully



4. Over a Branch



Any of these methods work with minimal food weight, like a couple of 20L Ursacks. Once you start having to hoist a 60lb pack, you will be limited to probably the Clothsline with Pully method. This is also the method that Sawbill Outfitters has demonstrated outside their office every year.


What are your methods for hoisting food?"

When will the forest service be around to trim off the lower limbs so one can throw a rope over the limb that is 20+ feet up the tree such that you can use the first method? When will they move in trees to make the second, third, and fourth method work. Non of these will work at a majority of the campsites I have stayed at."

We've been doing trips for 36 years and have stayed at 60+ different sites. Using the clothesline and the over the branch methods, we have always been able to properly hang our food pack. Some sites take some searching but we've always found suitable trees.

Photos from our 2022 trip.

Clothesline method:



Over the branch method:

You can ignore the "4 feet down" note on the diagrams, at least until the forest service changes the requirements in its current order 09-09-24-02. That order requires us to maintain distances of 12' above the ground and 6' from the tree.

Ya, like I can get a throw line to a decent branch 12 feet up. Makes me cry. LOL, so I'm using my small canister and ursack for the overflow. No good with a sling and rock, maybe I could try a sling shot and small rock for the initial throw line.

If a bear contaminates food in the ursack, at least I have 3 days food in the canister to get me home.

GeneH: "Ya, like I can get a throw line to a decent branch 12 feet up. Makes me cry. LOL, so I'm using my small canister and ursack for the overflow. No good with a sling and rock, maybe I could try a sling shot and small rock for the initial throw line.
"

It's higher than that. 12 feet from the bottom of the pack, 4 feet from the top of the line, plus the sag in the line and height of the pack. Could easily be looking at 20 feet, and that's assuming there's an appropriate branch at that height.

I don't understand how some people don't have any trouble doing this. They are just a lot more talented than me I guess. Which is why I went with canisters.

An arborist throw line kit and practice makes it easier to put a rope in a tree. $20-$35.

Photos from our 2022 trip.

Clothesline method:
Over the branch method:

Nice try! Little too close to the tree though aina?

Lightfoot: "We've been doing trips for 36 years and have stayed at 60+ different sites. Using the clothesline and the over the branch methods, we have always been able to properly hang our food pack. Some sites take some searching but we've always found suitable trees."

Well, this is about 2 sites/year on average. Looks like your groups were able to take its time to choose a site satisfying your requirements. What about those who travel differently, like 20 sites/year? I'm with RMinMN: hanging rules as shown above are not realistic on many sites.

uqme2: "Photos from our 2022 trip.


Clothesline method:
Over the branch method:


Nice try! Little too close to the tree though aina?"

Keeping in mind that, while photographs are 2D, the world is 3D(+), those hangs look completely legit to me. The angles strongly suggest that this group had their distances correct. Clearly, they worked to achieve that. I have never made a hang as good as those two photos and setting up the "clothes line" is something I have never tried.

It does no good to denigrate their dedication to safe food storage. We all need to do our own part. I use bear vaults because I know that I don't have the skill to set up food hangs properly. But I also carry dehydrated and freeze dried food so I don't need a cooler or a big barrel. I sympathize with the situation many/most BWCAW paddlers are in now; I don't know what I would do if I were carrying a week of fresh food for a group larger than myself. Even just for myself, to be honest.

Lightfoot: "

RMinMN: "

Minnesotian: "
Now that the Forest Service has mandated food must be hung if not already stored in an approved IGBC Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee certified container, here are some ways of hanging your food if you are new to this skill.



The following 4 methods can be found in the a PDF issued by the Forest Service and goes a bit more in depth: How to Hang Your Food



1. Single Tree and Pully




2. Clothsline Method




3.Clothsline with Pully




4. Over a Branch




Any of these methods work with minimal food weight, like a couple of 20L Ursacks. Once you start having to hoist a 60lb pack, you will be limited to probably the Clothsline with Pully method. This is also the method that Sawbill Outfitters has demonstrated outside their office every year.



What are your methods for hoisting food?"

When will the forest service be around to trim off the lower limbs so one can throw a rope over the limb that is 20+ feet up the tree such that you can use the first method? When will they move in trees to make the second, third, and fourth method work. Non of these will work at a majority of the campsites I have stayed at."

We've been doing trips for 36 years and have stayed at 60+ different sites. Using the clothesline and the over the branch methods, we have always been able to properly hang our food pack. Some sites take some searching but we've always found suitable trees.


Photos from our 2022 trip.


Clothesline method:




Over the branch method:

"

One of those photos looks like a $5,000 violation. The pack needs to be 6 feet away from the tree. Maybe an optical illusion or you are all giants but the hanging pack looks closer than 6 feet.

Don’t you guys ever go to burn areas? What do you do then?

T

A reminder that Ursacks aren't intended to (or don't need to be) hung using these methods. An Ursack can be tied directly to a tree or tree branch using a non-clinching knot.

If you are going to do one of these hang methods, you're better off finding the lightest/strongest material possible so you can maximize food weight and minimize container weight. Dyneema is a good option.

uqme2: "Photos from our 2022 trip.


Clothesline method:
Over the branch method:


Nice try! Little too close to the tree though aina?"

It is hard to show all distances with 1 photo from 1 angle. I can assure you that the packs in both photos were at least 8' from the nearest branch or trunk.

No worries. As long as you're not trying to hide a blue barrel, away from camp - I'm good.

:)

I agree - it's not that hard to find a tree(s) to make it work. 25 years and 37 trips - I can think of only once where we couldn't find an appropriate tree(s).

I bought an ursack last year, so not really a concern though at this point.

Some people bring hammocks and stay at sites with no tent pads.

Some people bring bear proof containers and stay at sites with no hanging trees.

How much time is everyone spending on hanging? Stashing a pack/barrel takes less than 10 minutes, and most of that time is just walking to a sufficiently distant stash spot. If you stash in camp, where some people also like to hang their packs, then it takes about 1 minute, same to hang an Ursack. I personally don't like wasting time in the BWCA, and food management activities like cooking/cleaning/hanging/stashing are among my least favorite ways to spend my time out there. Everyone says they're happy to hang, but I gotta wonder how much time people spend doing it. Everyone I've seen do it, including my own groups, usually fumble about for the better part of 30 minutes.

JD: "How much time is everyone spending on hanging? Stashing a pack/barrel takes less than 10 minutes, and most of that time is just walking to a sufficiently distant stash spot. If you stash in camp, where some people also like to hang their packs, then it takes about 1 minute, same to hang an Ursack. I personally don't like wasting time in the BWCA, and food management activities like cooking/cleaning/hanging/stashing are among my least favorite ways to spend my time out there. Everyone says they're happy to hang, but I gotta wonder how much time people spend doing it. Everyone I've seen do it, including my own groups, usually fumble about for the better part of 30 minutes."

I'll start by answering the question - never timed it, but less than 30 minutes for sure. My guess is 10 or less. The rope is unpacked with the rest of the pack, then at some point, i'll grab a chunk of cut and split firewood, tie the rope to it and look upwards. If nothing is readily available right in camp, i'll wander back into the woods a bit. It's not too hard to spot a suitable branch. Somewhere between 1-3 throws and i'm done. Everything gets tied off when I acutally hang the pack...which probably takes less than 5 minutes at the end of the night.

With the new rules - stashing isn't allowed unless it's in a bear proof approved container. Ursack is such a container and doesn't get hung. Unsure what yoru group is doing for 30 minutes, also unsure how one's day could be so filled they don't have a little bit of time to hang a pack. Not trying to be critical, I think now a days, I just slow down a bit more in the BW and relax more.

Speckled: "

JD: "How much time is everyone spending on hanging? Stashing a pack/barrel takes less than 10 minutes, and most of that time is just walking to a sufficiently distant stash spot. If you stash in camp, where some people also like to hang their packs, then it takes about 1 minute, same to hang an Ursack. I personally don't like wasting time in the BWCA, and food management activities like cooking/cleaning/hanging/stashing are among my least favorite ways to spend my time out there. Everyone says they're happy to hang, but I gotta wonder how much time people spend doing it. Everyone I've seen do it, including my own groups, usually fumble about for the better part of 30 minutes."

I'll start by answering the question - never timed it, but less than 30 minutes for sure. My guess is 10 or less. The rope is unpacked with the rest of the pack, then at some point, i'll grab a chunk of cut and split firewood, tie the rope to it and look upwards. If nothing is readily available right in camp, i'll wander back into the woods a bit. It's not too hard to spot a suitable branch. Somewhere between 1-3 throws and i'm done. Everything gets tied off when I acutally hang the pack...which probably takes less than 5 minutes at the end of the night.


With the new rules - stashing isn't allowed unless it's in a bear proof approved container. Ursack is such a container and doesn't get hung. Unsure what yoru group is doing for 30 minutes, also unsure how one's day could be so filled they don't have a little bit of time to hang a pack. Not trying to be critical, I think now a days, I just slow down a bit more in the BW and relax more."

My group has always had a hard time finding a ~15ft high branch that would support the weight of a 50-60lb food pack, 6ft from the trunk, away from camp. Then the battle of trying to get the line over the limb begins, without snagging it on a different tree. Get it stuck in another, spend a few minutes trying to knock it down. Then if you eventually get it over the limb you want, far enough from the trunk, then you hoist it up. We never brought slick rope so paracord was unfortunately used, which is horribly abrasive when you put that much weight on it, and was no doubt hard on the tree. Yeah, if conditions are ideal, it shouldn't take anywhere near 30 minutes, but conditions are rarely ideal in my experience, and in many others' experience as well, apparently. But if I spent 25 years hanging like you, perhaps I would have a keen eye for the perfect thick 15ft high branch and have my throwing technique perfected. And, "slowing down" doesn't necessarily mean you have to be OK with mundane tasks like cleaning dishes or hanging a food bag. But if you find those to be enjoyable meditative experiences, more power to ya. I'd rather be fishing.

A brief history of bear prevention strategies beginning with my first trip in 1957. At that time everyone used aluminum canoes and we took tin plates (even the original Frisbee pie plate) and the strategy was always to use the canoe bottom as a table. At dusk we put the food packs under it and then all the cooking gear on top. If a bear tried to get at the pack it usually made a racket that spooked it or so we could chase it away. We started hanging the packs sometime in the 1960s. We always picked campsites that had a bear tree--that is a tree tall enough with long overhanging branches (usually a white pine) that you could get a rope over it and out and high enough. We still use heavy duty parachute cord, not an actual rope. I always bring my "bear bandana," a red handkerchief I use to wrap around a rock and then tie to the end of the line so it can be thrown over a branch. The clothesline method can be a problem in that you need more tosses to get the rope to two trees and sometimes another for a rope over the line. I suspect they will follow the lead of western parks and mandate bear barrels before the decade is out. In Voyageurs some of the campsites have bear lockers for storing food like they do in western parks.

We have always* been successful w/ one of those methods. I always use a pulley (or 2), for my sake, and easier on the trees. I can hang a pack most* anywhere. I use high quality climbing rope [2, that is]: strong, easy to handle, and lightweight. I have a hacky sack size 'bag' [maybe slightly bigger than that] made of tough material, with a zipper and a loop, into which goes a rock, then tied to one of my lines, for throwing. I've encountered many a shoe stuck up in a tree! I bring leather gloves for hoisting if it is a long trip [food pack is heavy]. I use a waterproof bag for hanging.
Here is the asterisk exception, and to someone's comment, I have not always been able to find a suitable tree, the noteworthy exception being a month-long trip a couple months after the '99 blowdown. In some locations, there was not an accessible standing tree.
We now have switched to bear vaults. Once getting the hang of packing them to maximize comfort in carrying, they are no fuss/no muss, though vastly less entertaining than the nightly 'hanging of the pack' ritual! :)

As was alluded to earlier this thread hanging technique will be irrelevant…

I would start investing in bear resistant barrels while they are still only $90-$100/per barrel. The price will only go up over time.

With the recent fires and large swaths of the BWCAW without hangable trees and people refusing to get barrels for those areas (or thinking they will always find “the right tree”), newbies having trouble with proper hanging, and more people hanging thus the inevitable cause of more bears learning how to defeat the system. The inevitable consequence is hanging will be banned next as past history is it hasn’t been proven to be consistently effective. Probably after the 2 year “trial” is over.

It will be a lot easier for the FS to manage. Either you have a IGBC container or you don’t. They can check you on the trail or your camp more effectively. The FS is already moving to it or has moved to it in a lot of other areas.

T