Food bag

Food Bags are convenient for keeping all your groceries together. Foodbags are also used on "Bear Wires". Foodbags and Bear Wires keep your food out of a scavenger's reach while you are not attending it. Ideally, a bear wire will suspend your food 13' above the ground and 8' from any tree branches. I've gotten away with 9' above ground. Get the wire (length of rope) into the trees by attaching it to a stuff sack with a few stones in it, then throwing the sack. Never climb trees in the Wilderness; the doctor doesn't make house calls.

If you have frequent problems with raccoons, the following will help.

First of all, understand that raccoons can easily climb up or down a rope of any size. If you hang a food bag with rope, raccoons can get it even if bears cannot. Raccoons will not jump or attempt to cross a distance greater than their extended body length. Also, raccoons cannot climb on something they can't grip and they can't grip fine stainless steel wire.

So - make up a length of stainless, multistrand wire about one meter long and 3mm in diameter. Use crimps and eyes to make loops at both ends. Tie your food bag to one loop and the rope to the other. Now when you hoist the food bag up, there will be a length of fine wire that the raccoon can't get past. The drawback? - your branch or line from which you suspend your food has to be one meter higher than with just rope.