Keeping food safe from wildlife

[Jellybean]

Hi all,

Melinda's story in another thread (Wildlife seen on recent trips) - cut and pasted below - raises a good question - how do you store your food so that it is safe from possums, wallabies, etc when tenting/basecamping it in Tassie?

I think I mentioned 'possums' in another post but I guess this story may be best suited to this thread.
When planning our recent OT trip friends did mention 'possums'.
Now we have possums in NSW, our are refined little critters who only raid tents and flys occasionally.
Where as the possums I met on the OT were experienced campaigners who had obviously perfected their teamwork on innocents from that island to the north of Tassie!
One night I was woken by the scampering of numerous little feet running round and round the tent.
Tried to ignore it, then the action really started. Scratch, scratch,three tears in the tent and a bags of nuts stolen out of the side pockets of one the packs.
When I went out to see what was happening I found three possums having a great old time.
I admit the fault was our own (we left some food in one of the packs instead of in the huts) but....... wow!!!!
Melinda

We had an issue with wallabies at one point in the Walls in November. We had some food in a vestibule (in a bag) that was interfered with and some in packs outside the tent that wasn't. Food in a bag in another tent's vestibule was also left untouched. They'd only just got into the food when we arrived (after being away for 7 or so hours), so don't know if they'd have also got the food in the packs if they'd had longer. It seems there's plenty of stories of food being taken from packs too. (We were careful not to store anything right in the tents to avoid returning to tents with increased ventilation! ). We also met a couple there who had had food stolen by possums on a recent trip elsewhere (they subsequently chose to carry all their food wherever they went and they weren't travelling lightly!). That may or may not be practical depending on the nature of your trip (and doesn't address the nocturnal fossicking). What do you do to keep your food safe from wildlife when tenting/basecamping it in Tassie? Are tamper proof containers or carrying all food with you when base camping the answer? Curious to hear what you do?

Thanks!

Cheers,

JB

[Drifting]

I bought some cheap plastic screw-top containers from Chickenfeed (a cheap stuff store) for $2 each- each one holds around 2 litres, and they work a trick and weigh almost nothing. You can use them for water containers too.

[nothingwmn]

In a discussion of Tassie possums, we musn't forget to mention that food is not the only attraction to these furry pirates.
The last time we were camped on the Overland, a juvenile possum got into the vestibule, opened a side pouch of my partner's pack & proceeded to eat half a bar of soap before we were on to him! Of course, it was one of those nice, handmade soap bars that smelled just like ripe fruit, but I have to wonder if the little guy wasn't sh***ing bubbles for a while!

[north-north-west]

My food stays in sealed containers in a closed dry bag, whether in the tent or the pack. On the rare occasions I stay in huts, the bag is suspended from the ceiling.

Of course, the one time I left anything out - a small bottle of soy sauce, 'cause I figured no animal in its riught mind would be interested - the container was chewed to bits and the sauce left all over the place . . .

[wander]

Rats (no I do not know what type) at Prion Beach, ate though 3 different macpac canvas packs to get at food in plastic bags at Prion Beach. This was the worst.

Possums and Wallabies/Paddy Melons or whatever big hoppy things at several Tas campsites most recently Huon Camp, worst offenders at Mt Field Caravan Park. Generally poking their heads into the vestibles to grab what they can. They have never bothered the packs.

Native Rats at most Tas campsites in the vestibule looking to get into any dirty dishes and any food in soft bags. This includes tipping the pot over to get the lid off. A rock (not too small) does prevent this but it does not stop the noise from repeated trying.

Native Rats at a couple of places over the years eating through the side of the tent to get at food in the side pockets or a rubbish bag at the bottom of the tent. This is a real annoyance.

I have very slowly learnt to have all food in well done up clean dry bags inside the pack and all done up. The only containers used are nalgene. Anything else is too heavy or too weak. And do the dishes, do not leave any food or waste in the tent or vestibule unless it is in a very solid container.

If it looks like a ratty site then the packs are also hung up. This does not stop them at all (I watched a rat in Federation Hut Vic run along a wire, climb down a wire and wriggle into a tightly drawn closed bag, then wriggle out climb up the wire, run along the wire then up the timber column and in the mezzanine cavity) but it does slow them down a bit and limits the damage to the top of the pack. Which means stuff does not fall out the bottom as would happen when they eat a hole in the bottom of the pack.