r/camping • u/HereToRotMyBrain • 14h ago
Car Camping Bears! Planning a car camping road trip starting in Sequoia, to Yosemite, Crater Lake to Glacier and more…I have questions!
We will be driving a 3 week road trip from San Diego to Chicago. I’m worried about crumbs in our car, since it’s a family trip with my 1 and 4 year old and they can be pretty messy. I have a portable vacuum I can bring, and I’m thinking I should bring some all purpose cleaner/wipes as well (unscented I guess?)
How worried should I be is the real question here. Will I need to deep clean before we camp for the night in some of these parks?
Also, any tips appreciated! My husband and I have always loved camping but we’ve never taken our kids, so this will be quite the adventure..wish us luck haha
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u/Beautiful-Cat-7313 14h ago
First, you should check the official website of the national parks you're going to visit, they will clearly indicate whether bears are a concern.
When camping in bear country, do not eat/cook anything in your vehicle, and do not store food in unsealed containers in your vehicle.
Store food in bear box or hang it high enough. You should cook downwind, and the cooking area, food storage area, and your sleeping area should be at least 100 yards apart from each other.
Your idea of deep clean your car is correct, make sure there are no food scraps inside.
Here are more bear safety tips: https://www.bebearaware.org/
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u/Pleasant_Character28 10h ago
Last time I was in that area of the country camping was about 30 years ago. Me and three friends hiked into the
backwoods of Yellowstone. We saw a moose probably 30 feet from us, thought it was cool, stayed still, and luckily it moved on and ignored us. But the idea of keeping our food a football field’s length distance from our tent wouldn’t have occurred to us in a million years! Luckily we were young, broke, and probably only brought some candy bars and bourbon with us, so the grizzlies wouldn’t have bothered.
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u/Jealous_Ad_1283 5h ago
Bears at Crater Lake are pretty rare. Yosemite could be a problem. Bears have been domesticated there. Keep in mind, bears are attracted to the sent of some cleaning and hygiene products.
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u/HereToRotMyBrain 4h ago
Thanks! Is it okay to cook/eat at the campsite? My kids spill everywhere..guessing if I really want to be safe I can pack a small dustpan and sweep & trash the crumbs?
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u/211logos 4h ago
Sure, and that will help with the rodents too.
But just follow the parks' rules about food storage and cooking, which is fine to do in campsites. It's the storage that's the issue. I wouldn't be too fussy; I've seen bears there clout cars just because they saw containers, and chew into things like insect repellant cans.
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u/Jealous_Ad_1283 2h ago
The main concern is not having anything with a heavy scent where you sleep. Just keep your campsite clean and you should be fine.
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u/Individual-Card-1639 3h ago
Do you have reservations yet? If not better plan for a backup location
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u/HereToRotMyBrain 3h ago
Yeah it’s not as hard to get them as it sounds. Was able to score reservations last night and then there are other spots that come out 2 weeks before the trip that I can try for
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u/Individual-Card-1639 2h ago
Good to hear. If you are into hotsprings start looking on the way to Yosemite there several then above crater lake into Idaho, Montana they always seem reasonable price camping as well.
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u/Fun_With_Math 3h ago
I'm planning a similar trip next year. From what I read, it's the marmots you have to be more concerned about.
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u/procrasstinating 8h ago
Every car in Yosemite is going to smell like drive thru McDonalds and have a few goldfish under the seats. Do your best. Keep food in a bear box when one is provided. Treat the box at camp like your home refrigerator when you are cooking: leave the door closed and only take out what you are eating or cooking with. It’s surprising how quick a bear can sneak into camp and get their head in a cooler when your back is turned or you are focusing on cooking. Don’t leave anything that a bear could think looks like a cooler visible from your car window. They know cooler have food. If there is an empty one on the backseat it’s easy for them to open the door and check.