Pop-ups and bears

Guess things have changed from two years ago: http://www.nbcnews.com/id/43511151/ns/travel-active_travel/#.UhUQGRaYnzI
Pop up slide in truck campers were okay then in that same area after the attacks.

"The forest is allowing hard-sided vehicles made of metal or strong composite plastic to be used at the three campgrounds. Truck-box campers that have a 4-foot high hard side, in addition to a raised upper section, are permissible, but tents and pop-up campers are excluded, as is camping without a shelter."

Yup, been there...done that! As long as you don't "pop-Up" your pop-up you can sleep in it.

So, I guess I'll stealth camp with mine not popped up.

I thought that Madison campground in Yellowstone had a no soft sided campers policy
bumpy

A couple of weeks ago we stopped at several campgrounds between Cody, WY and the East Entrance to Yellowstone and were turned away with our Outfitter Apex 8 because no pop ups with any type of soft side were allowed because of bear activity in the area. Each campground, managed by the NFS, was signed posted at the entrance prohibiting pop ups. I thought that applied only to pop up tent trailers and that our Outfitter with the Weblon soft wall 8 feet up in the air would be acceptable. I was wrong. No soft walls of any kind - apparently bears can climb... We could have stayed if we did not raise the roof. So we simply went another 15 miles down the canyon and found another great NFS campground that had had no bear activity, so pop ups were allowed. However, we were told that any food had to be either sealed (even in the Fridge) or put in the bear box food storage lockers.

These were the only campgrounds we ran into on our Yellowstone / Cody / Red Lodge / Beartooth Pass / Cooke City loop that did not allow pop ups. The pop up restriction apparently comes and goes depending on bear activity. However, we have seen grizzly bears many times over the years in the Cooke City area where we camped at Island Lake Campground, but apparently not enough activity this year to ban pop ups. Terry

An apex predator like bears can easily rip open any camper.

If only the bears knew how easy they could get through those so-called "hard" sided walls made of 1/4 luan and 2" styrofoam.

I still have what I consider to be the best bear avoidance system. the first night I take a paper bag full of meat scraps, etc., take it to the other end of the campground, and toss it under a RV there.
bumpy

I agree that bears can open the tin cans (campers)easily. I'm guessing the reason for not exposing the canvas sides is that smells/scents of food will pass through the canvas easier than through the aluminum or fiberglass sides. Thereby attracting the bears to check out what's inside.

It says that Hard-sided pop-ups are allowed, but then states that small pickup pop-ups are allowed as long as the canvas is not exposed.

....there are actually quite a few hard-sided pop-up campers out there:

-ALiner here-->

-Chalet Arrowhead pop-up hardside camper

-Forest River Rockwood Hardside

-Flagstaff Hardside "tent camper" series' T12RS, etc, etc.

....and numerous more...

The "pick-up camper" mention further down on the notice segregates the hardside pop-up from pick-up truck bearing pop-up campers. I suppose the notice could have been written far better....I'll redo the copy for them for a mere $700 fee (focus group included) :B