Camping tips

[diamond hitch]

As we start to think about some serious time in the woods- how about some practical camping ideas. I went up to Libby to spend some time with the prospector club on Libby creek. When I pulled in about 2/3 of thle vehicles had their hoods up. I was a little befuddled on this one so I asked. Seems the drainage was prime packrat/woodrat habitat. During the summer I usually camped on the ridges to avoid the bugs and heat - especially the no-see-ums. Packrats like electrical systems in cars as do mice. The club, over the years, had found that by opening the hoods it made a less enticing attraction for the rodents. Even if you don't leave them open, it is wise to check the engine and air cleaner daily to minimize surprises. One time in a camp near whitebird Idaho, we tried to leave at the end of the work period and found the air cleaner filled with toilet paper. Another time a co-worker took some logs home to cut up later. Since he didn't keep his door closed during the summer, found an odd smell in his house and was greeted in the kitchen one morning by his house guest - a packrat.

Keep your paper products well sealed in a container. Rodents can make short work of an open stash. When I was on lookout out of Trout creek I found the parking area at the end of the road was enclosed by hog wire. An inquiry revealed that porcupines like wiring, hoses and belts. We found a similar issue with marmots when they ate the belts out of a dozer while parked at a road end at nearly 9000 ft.

I have a few other ones but I bet you do too.

 

[MarvB]

Son in law found out the hard way that Porkys love the salt in your boots, left his on the porch of the cabin and they (two of em) at the tongue and laces out of them over the weekend. Same trip he'd left the vents open on the wood stove when they packed up last winter. I went to open up the cabin this spring to find a fine layer of dust (actually ended up being ash) all over everything on the inside of the place...did my WTF? and opened the door to the stove to find two dead camp robbers inside. They had pushed in the screen under the chimney cap and decided to come down the pipe to build a nest or something...looked to have a hell of a tussle inside the stove before dying which kicked out all the ash through the four air vents....friggin mess. 2 lessons learned.

 

[nrpate05]

If camping in the alpine/subalpine, keep anything that's been sweaty close at hand. Marmots will chow down on it all! backpack straps, trekking pole handles, etc.

 

[diamond hitch]

I have had difficulties with Pikas in the rocky areas. Hats, hardhat liners, shirts collars are dinner if you put them down.

 

[JFish]

If camping in the alpine/subalpine, keep anything that's been sweaty close at hand. Marmots will chow down on it all! backpack straps, trekking pole handles, etc.

I had to shoo a marmot off for 5 minutes. Caught him doing something to my backpack on the ground. Now I know what he was doing! He was persistent too, even a pebble to the dome wouldnt keep him away.

 

[Mtnhunter1]

If camping in the alpine/subalpine, keep anything that's been sweaty close at hand. Marmots will chow down on it all! backpack straps, trekking pole handles, etc.

Not just marmots,,,deer, goats, sheep...etc, etc

 

[MTLabrador]

I was backpacking in the Beartooths once and discovered a marmot had chewed through the rope hanging my bear bag. He got into the bag and ate quite a bit of my food and all my coffee. I baited him back in with some pop tart crumbs sprinkled on a rock and dispatched him with my .357.

 

[Irrelevant]

Not just marmots,,,deer, goats, sheep...etc, etc

Mt goats in the olympics used to give me fits. I remember a nanny and kids (3) were in camp constantly trying to eat your pack, or shoes, or sleeping back or dinner... it was ridiculous.

 

[MTLabrador]

Mt goats in the olympics used to give me fits. I remember a nanny and kids (3) were in camp constantly trying to eat your pack, or shoes, or sleeping back or dinner... it was ridiculous.

These goats had a fondness for Red Lodge Ales flavored pee. One started rubbing on my tent at about 2:00 in the morning and gave me a small heart attack when I thought it was a grizzly.

 

[Irrelevant]

These goats had a fondness for Red Lodge Ales flavored pee. One started rubbing on my tent at about 2:00 in the morning and gave me a small heart attack when I thought it was a grizzly.
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The night I mentioned above, I had to play wack-a-mole from inside my tent as the three kids kept trying to play king-of-the-mountain on my tent.

 

[kansasdad]

Fondness for urine is a cited reason that Philmont High Adventure Scout camps require all "open air toileting" to be directed at stones and not on trees and bare ground. The trees and bare ground suffer from the deer trying to get the minerals off the bark, or churn up the soil.

 

[SAJ-99]

Fondness for urine is a cited reason that Philmont High Adventure Scout camps require all "open air toileting" to be directed at stones and not on trees and bare ground. The trees and bare ground suffer from the deer trying to get the minerals off the bark, or churn up the soil.

Good note to all those high-mountain mule deer hunters. That buck has been licking up camper urine all summer.
Wonder if it affects the size of the antlers.

 

[JFish]

For those of you that hike back in and set up a spike camp. Do you have to worry about critters chewing up sleeping bags and sleeping pads if you leave them in your tent at camp while your out?

 

[diamond hitch]

Your scent will buy you time. If you leave for a while you should hang things out of reach. Keep things clean and keep your latrine at least 100 ft from the water source. Pay attention to the prevailing breezes on that one.

Be prepared for packrats. They have no shame and will spend time with you in the tent. An ought foot trap and a 6 inch diameter stove pipe section will aid you in the war. They feel obligated to run through the pipe.

 

[Dsnow9]

For those of you that hike back in and set up a spike camp. Do you have to worry about critters chewing up sleeping bags and sleeping pads if you leave them in your tent at camp while your out?

In CO I’ve never had an issue with it.