Country Kitchen

Photo courtesy of Diana Rivers.

You might be wondering how I'm keeping my food in bear country.  I certainly don't keep any of it in my tent, but neither have I purchased a pricey bear vault.  I DID try the "bear bag" thing — storing my food in a critter-proof, metal-mesh bag hanging from a tree, but that proved too cumbersome.  It's okay for backpacker's quantities, but not for homesteading!

First of all, every food item I own is enclosed in a tightly sealed glass container; tightly sealed meaning tight-fitting metal lids or glass lids with hermetically sealing rubber rings.  Each time I purchase a food item from the store it is immediately transferred to such a container.  For additional protection, I store jars of especially aromatic and sweet foods in a large steel barrel with a tight-fitting lid (see black barrel left of the table in photo above).  And I keep the kitchen very clean.   All food-tainted liquids and solids go into the composting barrel.

This approach is NOT designed to withstand the strength of a bear, nor is it designed to keep food out of a bear's reach.  Rather, it is designed to prevent a bear from becoming interested in (smelling) the food in the first place.  I have a bear's favorite commodities in that barrel, including honey, jam, and nuts, and so far they haven't shown any interest.

My ultimate concern isn't the safety of my food but the responsibility I have for the welfare of these creatures.  If a bear discovers that my outdoor kitchen is the mother-lode of tasty treats, that bear will return and become a "nuisance" bear, and the danger that causes to me will require the bear's removal from it's home, and that's if someone else doesn't shoot it first.  I don't want to be the cause of that.  So I'm careful.  REAL careful.

It's easy to wonder whether or not we human beings can coexist with creatures like bears and others that can become dangerous.  I believe we can, but that coexistence requires enhanced responsibility on our part.  Behind many "nuisance" bears are human beings who really don't think that the needs and ways of other creatures are as important as their own.  I think that there are ways to handle our food and refuse that does not create nuisance bears.  Yes, it is more work, but it can allow for a much richer community of creatures than we allow for ourselves today.