Once a bear gains access to improperly stored food it begins the process of becoming dependent on human food and less fearful of humans. Taking the time to store food properly makes the difference between a wild bear and a bear that may have to be killed because it is a threat to people. According to wilderness manager Diana Pietrasanta, campers and backpackers can do a lot to prevent bears from gaining access to food, garbage and toiletries. It begins by thinking ahead in the planning for a trip and making sure that you have the means to properly store your food while visiting areas where there are bears. It is important to realize that different places have different levels of bear activity and therefore different methods to properly store food may be necessary, she explained.
Food storage is very important when camping in frontcountry campgrounds and trailheads.
Recreation manager Julie Molzahn stresses the importance of storing all food and ice chests, day and night, in bear-proof food lockers where they are available. For the past decade the Inyo National Forest has been in the process of outfitting campgrounds and trailheads with bear proof garbage bins and food storage lockers. However, due to the expense of purchasing even used food lockers, the forest has not been able to keep up with outfitting the problem areas as fast as they are developing. Until such time as food storage lockers are fully available, the next best recommendation is to store well-sealed food in coolers in an area of a vehicle that is not visible to a bear. However, since bears do have an extraordinarily keen sense of smell, and can detect food stored inside coolers and even in tin cans, there are no guarantees that being out of site will mean that bears will not be able to detect it.