Isle Royale Forums

Haven't gotten a response to this question under the "New Food Storage Guidelines" thread under General Questions, so I'll pose it where it will probably be seen by more experienced paddlers. The thread dealt with the current "suggestion" to hang food out of reach of wolves to help prevent potential problems.

Haven't seen any comments by paddlers. Given that on IR we're not trying to protect against bears or raccoons, is it appropriate to store food (in sealed bags) inside a kayak hatch? Has anyone experienced problems with rodents trying to chew through a hatch cover?

I'm assuming that the bag of trash we're carrying out would be at least as much of an odor attractant, especially after being handled, opened/closed several times. Do you also store that inside a hatch?

I've always avoided storing food inside my tent, and really don't want to start introducing appetizing odors at this point. Besides, if a wolf is going to be inquisitive about a food smell, my tent is the last place I'd like him/her to be exploring.

So, do you store such items in your boat, your tent, a screened shelter, hung in a tree, or ???

FYI, our three man group will be paddling/portaging from McCargoe Cove to Chippewa Harbor by way of Lake Siskiwit.

I've ran the the list of storage ideas both at IR and in bear country. IR, you can most definitely store inside a shelter. In the kayak, I have to admit I've stored inside my hatch, but yes, you don't want a rodent chewing through your hatch cover. So, to avoid that, I will store the food bags inside my cockpit and cover with a cockpit cover. I've never had any problems with this method, even in bear country, where I will stack some pots/pans or some other objects on top of the cockpit cover so I can hear if something is trying to get at the food. Although I usually always hang in areas with bear.

In IR, I've stored food inside my tent while I'm around, and in my cockpit while away.

Damon...

I pack my meals individually in Zip-Lock bags and store them in the ends of the boat. They pack really well into those small nooks and crannies. I'll usually leave them there and take them out as needed. Since I have fiberglass hatch covers (Impex Serenity boat), I've never had critter problems.