Garcia Bear-Resistant Container

Comments about Garcia Bear-Resistant Container:

Listen to your rangers. This is the canister you need and have to use in most of California NPS. Get it, slap some stickers on it, give your own style and it most likely it will live on longer than all of us. The thing is a unbreakable IMO. A great backcountry chair also and easy to use.

Comments about Garcia Bear-Resistant Container:

Bought this bear canister for a backpacking trip in Yosemite, and am glad I made the purchase. As others say, the canister is a bit heavy, but is extremely durable, and makes a great seat around the campfire (just make sure to sit on the bottom as I've been told the top can sink in).

The opening is a bit small as compared to the Bear Vault models (wife has smaller BV), and makes stuffing things in a little tricky, but I was surprised how much I could fit into this canister once I repacked all my food. It sat out in the rain overnight and everything on the inside was completely dry.

I did notice the outside of the canister tends to scratch easily, but I really don't care about that but others may, so wanted to mention it.

Comments about Garcia Bear-Resistant Container:

This canister is designed to keep bears out of a camper's food supply. It's approved by and required by various NPS and USFS districts for that purpose. I haven't used it yet--haven't been camping since I got it. I would rate it higher if I'd had the chance to use it, and a bear had been foiled in trying to get at my food.

Comments about Garcia Bear-Resistant Container:

I have used this canister for a few years with good results. I appreciated the ease of use and not having to always hang a bear bag. It also keeps out the chipmunks and raccoons(etc).

Comments about Garcia Bear-Resistant Container:

I picked a Garcia bear can up when I worked for the Forest Service in Bishop, CA, almost 10 years ago. In the decade since, it still looks as good as new, despite countless long trips, leaky food bottles and rough treatment.

This can is a fix-and-forget device. I absolutely ADORE not having to hang rope to secure food. At the end of the night, you throw everything in together and set it under a rock a distance away. All your food and toiletries in one place, ready to go for the next day's adventure. It also makes a great camp stool while you're getting ready for camp.

I haven't had a bear try to crack it open yet, but I don't know how said bear would accomplish that. The coin slots work well enough, and you can usually improvise with a smooth rock if you can't find your nickel.

The downsides are its bulk, which should be expected, and its volume limitations. When hanging rope, it's easy enough to re-appropriate an extra stuff sack to hang a few more pounds of food. When the can's full, it's full, and it surely doesn't make any sense to tote a can AND gear for a bear hang.

My bear can is 10 years old, and I don't see any reason it won't be around for another 25 years... unless a bear kicks it off a ridge in frustration or something.

Comments about Garcia Bear-Resistant Container:

Well, I used this for my first backpacking trip in Inyo National Forest on the Golden Trout Lake Trail. It held our food and was easy to open/close.

Service and delivery comments:

Arrived quickly and in great condition.

Comments about Garcia Bear-Resistant Container:

I've used various techniques for storing food in bear country. The hanging bag method, while light-weight, is unreliable and no longer an option in many backcountry areas. I have used the BearVault canisters several times in the past, and while I like the idea of being able to see my packed food (translucent blue container), I had a lot of trouble opening and closing it. This made me feel good about bears and other critters not having easy access to my food, but I was frustrated with the process. The Garcia container's system is much easier. I typically use a tool from my Leatherman's to unlock the top. I like how I can leave it out in the open with the to still unlocked, but completely covered (unlike the Bearvault canister where the top has to loosely rest on top). This has proved useful when birds and squirrels are interested in my meals and I don't need to continually lock and unlock the canister for access. Like all bear canisters, this is heavier than a bear-bag, but I've done several solo trips with it and haven't had any issues with overall pack-weight. I've packed it completely inside my pack as well as on the top panel - using the top pocket straps for compression. You could consider getting a sling for it to fit outside your pack (purchase or make one). I prefer to pack my canister weight closer to my back, so I haven't tried this method. Overall, I recommend purchasing this canister if you're looking to buy. I also recommend the investment if you plan on venturing out in the backcountry a couple of times per year, as more and more places are requiring them.

Comments about Garcia Bear-Resistant Container:

I've used this canister in SEKI and Yosemite as a rental over the course of several years and was pleased enough to buy my own. This is what the ranger/permit stations at Lodgepole, Road's End, and Wawona issue as rentals. I think I've gotten a Bearikade at Road's End too.

Compared to its competitors I've used:
- Full 1 lb. (28%) lighter than the Counter Assualt w/ only 14% less capacity
- Bearikade - cool that it's 1 lb. 15 oz. for roughly the same size but the Bearikade is such a true cylinder. The reasonably sharp edges concerned me early and then as I expected put some wear on the inside of my small pack. It also costsand cost 3x + as much for an 11oz savings.

I think all of them are good products but the shape of the Garcia with it's tapered ends and rounded edges lends to easy internal packing and (for me) the case is a BIG plus. Get that big bulky thing out of my pack and put it where the sleeping pad would go! It's a good seat, overpacks (read - crams more than it'll hold with 30-40 lbs of pressure on the lid when closing) well because of the design of the lid. I've had a bear play soccer with one and it suffered damage. I'd try the BearVault if the size and lack of a sack didn't seem like such a limitation but just for it to be clear and opened w/o a coin doesn't outweigh the pros of the Garcia.

Product is sized right, shaped right, designed right, and has the right accessories.

Comments about Garcia Bear-Resistant Container:

Having been backpacking in the Sierra and other "beary" places since long before the introduction of bear-proof food containers, I find the Garcia to be a welcome addition to my pack. In 25 years I've had about a dozen close encounters with bears in the backcountry of the Sierra, mostly in the area in and around Yosemite. Only once did a bear get my food while using a counterbalance system. This was an unusually aggressive bear that came down from the tree (it was gnawing through the branch where the food was hung) several times and false charged while I attempted to scare it away. Once I began to use the Garcia container (before it was even required in the parks) I haven't seen a bear do anything more than give it a couple sniffs and a few bats while inspecting it. Nowadays most bears don't even pay any attention to the container at all. I prefer areas above tree line so the container is great where a counterbalance wouldn't be possible. It's marmot-proof, too!

A few people here have talked about rigging a lanyard to the container to hang it or attach it to a tree. Bad idea! Any bear with teeth can bite through a lanyard, short of a steel cable, pretty quickly. The bear then has a very convenient "handle" to bite onto and carry your food away. I do have my container set up with two strips of reflective tape around it. This makes it alot easier to locate at night, especially if a bear has been batting it around the area.

Yes, the Garcia is heavy from an ultralight perspective. However, going unplanned ultralight from not having any food is a worse option. I'd rather cut weight elsewhere and be assured that I'll be eating during my trip. If your buying a new pack and plan to use one of these be sure to account for the container's size. They fit nicely into the sleeping bag area of many 3 day+ packs but less so in other areas of the pack. You'll need to plan for space for the sleeping bad bag as well. Unused space in the container can be filled with items like tent stakes, cell phone, stove, fishing reel, etc. I avoid putting clothing or tent flies into the container to reduce food odors on these items.

I keep a few spare quarters in my first aid kit (throwback from before cell phone days when change for a payphone near a trailhead might come in handy) which I can use if I lose the coin I keep on hand for opening. However, I usually just use my Swiss Army knife or Leatherman (which you shouldn't be in the backcountry without) for access.

I've heard rumor that bears have been sighted trying to bum spare change at several trailheads in Yosemite. They do learn fast!

Comments about Garcia Bear-Resistant Container:

It isn't a gram weenie's dream, but it is no fuss food storage for bear country.

Service and delivery comments:

REI really stepped up to the plate on this one! I had ordered with overnight delivery so that it would arrive (with several other new toys) in time for a trip I had planned for Friday. On the day of delivery, I noticed that half the order had not been updated in UPS system. I called REI and they processed another order and had it shipped to me overnight even though the mistake was made by UPS!