6 Tips for Camping in Bear Country

There’s a lot to pack for a camping trip, from food and clothes to first aid kits and water bottles. If you are camping in a national park or campsite known for its bear sightings, expect your backpack to weigh a little more. Why? There are dangers you need to prepare for to make your adventure safer in bear country.

DutchWare wants you to be cautious while making memories. If you’re wondering how to keep animals away from a campsite, consider the following tips.

1. Research Camp Regulations

Before you begin loading your backpack, make sure you have read the regulations for the national park or camp you are visiting. Some camps provide advice or warnings depending on the time of year and the amount o bear activity.

2. Look for Used Campsites

Once you are at your local camp or national park, keep your eye out for used campsites to minimize dangers. If others have camped in that area, it’s usually safe to assume that you and your friends or family are safe to stay there for the night, too. Just ensure the campsite is far from a water source, and clean up any litter the previous campers left when you’re taking care of your own.

3. Find Campsites With Low Bear Activity

If you are looking for your private campsite, there are a few details you need to watch for. Once you have found an area that you like, check for signs of bear activity. For example, check for scratches on the trees and examine the surrounding grounds for scat and paw prints.

4. Set up Camp Away From Water Sources

All animals need to hydrate, so your campsite must be at least 200 feet from water sources. This practice limits the chances of contaminating the water and running into wildlife, such as a large bear.

5. Keep Your Campsite Clean

One handy tool you should bring on your camping trip is bear-proof containers. Bears are opportunistic eaters that rely on their sense of smell to find food. If you leave out leftovers from dinner, deodorant, or lotion, these items’ fragrances can lure a bear to your site. You’ll want to seal up any foods, hygiene products, or other temptations before going to bed so you don’t end up with a bear in your hammock.

It’s also wise to clean your dishes and shower away from your campsite so lingering odors don’t capture a bear’s attention.

6. Have Bear Spray and a Flashlight on Hand

No matter how careful you are, camping around animals may result in an unexpected encounter, so consider keeping bear spray and a flashlight in your hammock or tent at night. If you have cleaned your campsite, there is a reduced risk that a bear will find you. On the chance that one does, bear spray can stop aggressive bear behavior by affecting their breathing and sight, buying you time to leave.

A flashlight is useful for seeing in the dark, and it usually brings a camper comfort because they can quickly switch it on if they hear something. If a bear does appear, your flashlight also lets you see where to aim your spray.

DutchWare Has the Camping Gear You Need to Make Fun Memories

Camping is a great time when you plan for anything you might encounter. If you are looking for top-quality camping gear and hammocks, trust DutchWare to provide you with quality products that make your camping trip unforgettable. Browse through our website to find what you need, and contact DutchWare with any questions.

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Tips for Eco-Friendly Camping

The more we cut down trees to construct new neighborhoods and buildings, the more sensitive our world becomes. Right now, preserved forests and wildlife need more care than ever before. One of the ways outdoor enthusiasts can help do their part is by practicing eco-friendly hammocking when on a camping trip. From using tree-friendly hammock straps to throwing trash away correctly, there are many steps you can take to leave no trace and keep the outdoor world pristine.

1. Use Tree-Friendly Straps

When you’re setting up your hammock, never screw or hammer into the trees. These actions damage the bark and create tears in the trunk that stop branches from receiving nutrients from the ground. Instead, leave no trace with hammock straps like our Spider Web Huggers, which protect trees from any damage your setup could cause. These camping hammock straps are made with durable webbing with a 1,500-pound breaking strength for exceptional security.

Ensure that the trees you choose are alive and have thick enough trunks to hold your hammock, as weak trees could cause harm to you and your companions. For huggers, wrap them around the tree tightly and connect them to your hammock. You’ll still be suspended in the air while keeping trees happy and healthy.

2. Find a Used Campsite

If you plan to eco-hammock at a national park or campground, the best campsite is one that previous campers have used. Many campers like to explore and find unique, hidden areas to call their own. However, to make the smallest environmental impact, consider setting up camp on a designated campsite. One benefit of used grounds is that there is less work for you to do.

Broken-in campsites are set on sturdy ground, well away from water sources. There’s a good chance that the site is free of fragile or poisonous plants too, though you should still scan the area for litter and poison ivy or poison oak. Since existing campsites are generally chosen by experienced nature lovers who have already accounted for these details, you likely won’t have to spend much time inspecting the area.

3. Leave Only Your Footprints Behind

One vital element of camping is cleaning up after yourself. When you’re about to go to bed or packing up to leave the campsite, leave no item behind. Plastic utensils and plates, soda cans, and food wrappers are common forms of litter left by campers. These items are harmful to the forests and dangerous for wildlife to ingest.

When you prepare for bed, ensure that you pack your items away securely. Seal leftover food in bear-proof containers, and zip up hygienic products in your backpack. These precautions protect you from attracting wildlife to your site.

4. Stop using disposable bags

Try making your own bags or investing in reusable ones.

5. Use less food packaging

Buy fresh food that doesn’t come prepackaged and avoid things like aerosol cans and individually packaged items. You can also help the environment by purchasing boxes instead of bottles.

6. Scale back on car use

Allotting a specific day a week to go car-less goes a long way toward helping the environment. Most big cities have bicycle sharing programs for individuals who aren’t owners.

7. Say goodbye to water bottles

Each year, millions of barrels of oil are used to produce disposable water bottles. Try investing in a BPA-free water bottle — or any water bottle, for that matter — and carry it with you throughout the day.

8. Quit using plastic straws

Scientists are scrambling to find solutions to the more than 9.1 billion tons of plastic our species has created. One realistic action we can all take today is to ditch plastic straws. Because of their size and shape, they’re impossible to recycle.

Trust DutchWare for Camping Gear You Can Rely On

We all have a duty to our forests and national parks. When you and your loved ones decide to indulge in an outdoor escape, be sure to practice healthy habits during the trip.

If you’re looking for camping gear to make the most of your time in nature, DutchWare has reliable products that ship quickly for your convenience. From camping hammocks and tree straps to cooking gear and backpacks, we have you covered for every trip you take.

Have questions? Fill out a contact form on our website to get in touch! Learn more about our sustainable practices here.

5 Solutions for Hammock Camping Without Trees

There are plenty of reasons to be excited about getting started hammock camping. These days, many camping enthusiasts are forgoing traditional tents in favor of this lightweight and easy-setup option. There’s only one potential downside — can you hang a hammock without any trees?

Let’s say you get to your camping destination, and lo and behold, there’s not a tree in sight. Fortunately, hammock camping without trees is not a problem. Here are five creative ways to hang a hammock.

1. Tying Between Two Poles

Poles and other round supports are great places to hang your hammock. You can find a pole or post almost anywhere, such as telephone poles or fence posts. Be sure to carefully pick your pole, ensuring that it’s stable enough to support your weight. You may want to give it a good shake to make sure it’s sturdy. Some national and state parks even have hammock posts that are free to use.

2. Using Nearby Building Structures

One of the most convenient hammock ideas without trees is to rely on what is already around you. Most state and national parks have outdoor structures like pavilions, rain shelters and bathrooms. If you’re ready to set up camp and you can’t find any good trees, you can always try hanging your hammock from the side of a building in a pinch — but make sure you have permission first!

3. Attaching to Your Car or Truck

If the sun is setting and you still haven’t found a support for your hammock, you can use your vehicle. First, find an ideal place to attach your hammock to your car or truck. Finding a stable attachment point is crucial. Otherwise, you may end up damaging your car. Anchoring a hammock to the bed of a pickup truck is perfect. Attaching it to your side mirror — not so much.

If you have two vehicles, you can set up your hammock between them. Otherwise, you’ll need to find a pole or building as the second attachment point.

4. Investing in a Hammock Stand

When you have a hammock stand, suddenly, the whole world becomes a hammock-friendly zone. This handy bit of gear lets you hang anywhere, including tree-free camping locales like beaches or deserts.

There are many different types of hammock stands out there. So, when looking for the best hammock stand for your outdoor adventure, here are a few things to keep in mind:

Setup: You shouldn’t need any special skills or tools to set up your hammock stand.
Portability: You should be able to pack down and easily carry your stand along with your camping gear. Look for a lightweight model.
Strength and durability: Your ideal stand should comfortably support your weight and not buckle when you get in and out.
Rain fly capability: Even if your hammock stand doesn’t come with a rain fly, it should have a top rail so that you can attach a tarp on rainy days to stay dry.

tips on buying a hammock stand

5. Going to Ground With Trekking Poles

This method is perfect in a pinch when you need to pitch your hammock without trees spaced evenly apart or only have a vehicle and nothing to attach the other side of your hammock to. All you need is a pair of trekking poles, like sturdy tree branches or dowel rods, ground spikes and some cordage.

Here’s how it works:

Collect two similarly sized sticks, or poles, roughly your height. Shorter sticks will work, but you’ll need to adjust their angle later on.
Sharpen one end of each stick, so it digs into the ground well.
Gather the sticks and tie them at the top on one side, so they are easily movable. Shape them into an upside-down “V” and drive the sharpened ends into the dirt.
Loop your hammock over the cross-section where you tied the sticks together and run the strap around the sticks once to hold it in place.
Take 10 feet of nylon line — 15 feet if your hammock needs to accommodate a heavier load — and make overhand knots, or loops, in every 10 inches of line.
Drive your primary ground spike or nail into the ground near the hammock and tied sticks. You might need longer spikes if your hammock will be accommodating heavier weight.
Fold your looped nylon line into two evenly sized sides. Use the first loop on one side and place it around the ground spike.
Stretch the remainder of the line flat and pull it tight. The long, flat line should be tense and close to the ground so that the weight doesn’t pull the spikes from the dirt when you’re inside the hammock.
Secure a second ground spike in the second loop and repeat the process for the third loop or as needed.
Repeat the loop process on the other side of the nylon rope, using the same primary spike at the top. The finished shape will look like a “>” symbol, with the point being the main spike and each side being the looped nylon rope with additional ground spikes.
Take the line attached to your trekking poles and hammock and retie it to the primary ground spike. Tie it with a loop you can easily cinch together.
Once you’ve attached both lines to the spike, test your hammock and make adjustments as needed. You might need to move the tied sticks or adjust your tree line to keep your hammock off the ground.

You can also adapt this method, so you don’t have to do as much manual work — like sharpening sticks and hand-tying loops — by using dowel rods, wire cable and U-nut fasteners. The process is similar, but you thread the cable inside the dowel rod through drilled holes in the top and drill bolts into the bottom of each dowel rod so you can drive them into the ground.

Find Your Ultimate Hammock Camping Gear With DutchWare

Whether you’re looking for a lightweight, strong hammock stand or other supplies for your next great hammock camping adventure, DutchWare is a name you can trust. We’re an American manufacturer of some of the best hammock camping gear on the market. Browse our shop and get outfitted with everything you need for hammocking in the great outdoors.