Day 55 - Bear Safety (25/8/2016)

When I mentioned this project to a lot of people, they usually started out asking me about bears. Bears are a serious concern on the AT, no question. As a result, I'm kind of a stickler for bear safety:

1. I always hang my food, including cookware, at least 60 yds from my tent.
2. A good bear hang is 10' above the ground, 5' away from any tree trunks, and 5' down from a branch that would not support the weight of a bear.
3. My cooking area is 60 yds from my tent and also 60 yds from my bear hang.
4. Toothpaste smells like food to a bear, so it goes in the bear hang as well.

I do as many of those things as I can, as carefully as I can.

When it's dry.

When it's raining hard, my rules become more like this:

1. I haven't seen a bear in a couple of days. That one isn't near here. Probably.
2. Bears probably hate the rain too.
3. I've smelled like pepperoni before, so if bears were really a threat I'd be dead already.
4. Bear hangs are a stupid idea. If the food is with me, at least I have some chance of defending it.
1. Don't get wet for stupid ideas.
5. If toothpaste were food, hikers would already have eaten the whole tube.
6. Having dinner inside your tent puts a barrier between your food and the bears. Besides, bears know how stupid it is to eat in the rain, so they won't bother you. Don't be dumber than a bear.

Tonight it's raining, and it turns out macaroni makes a nice pillow. Like a bean bag.

Start: Bromley + 1 mile

End: Spruce Peak Shelter + 1 mile

Distance: 4.8 miles (with a stop in Manchester Center)