This Common Cleaning Product Is The Key To Keeping Bears Away

Bear viewing has been getting increasingly popular in many parts of North America. However, while getting a glimpse of a black bear or grizzly is one of the factors that draw outdoor enthusiasts to bear territory, most adventurers do not wish to see one in their campsite. In order to prevent such unwanted encounters, most campers have learned to avoid mistakes that attract bears to campsites and practice proper protocol for cooking safely in bear territory.

The overriding theme to prevent a bear from joining you in your campsite is to manage the scents emanating from your camping area. It's fairly common knowledge that certain scents attract bears to campsites. Given their fascination with scents, among the most common tips to prevent these dangerous bears from entering campsites is to keep all food and trash sealed in airtight containers and avoid using scented toiletries or candles. However, just as smells can attract bears, certain scents can be used to repel them as well. In all probability, you have just such a scent among your household cleaning supplies.

Given that bears are attracted to many scents we would find repulsive, such as rancid meat, it may be hard to fathom what smells they would not like. However, like teenagers who are seemingly repelled by clean spaces, bears are not fond of tidy campsites or the smell of cleaning products. Among the more effective bear-deterring scents are disinfectant cleaners -– especially pine-based and ammonia-based products — and bleach. So, why do these smells that humans tend to associate with cleanliness send bears scurrying? 

As anyone who has ever walked into a freshly-mopped room can attest, these cleaning products send a strong, almost vapor-like smell wafting through the air. If the mixture is too strong, it can almost be unbearable, no pun intended. According to Colorado Parks & Wildlife, a bear's sense of smell is 100 times stronger than that of a human's. Considering exposure to these cleaning products can cause irritation to the eyes, ears, nose, and throat of people, it is easy to see why bears have no interest in sniffing air filled with the aroma of chemical cleaners. To that end, Pine-Sol, one of the more popular household cleaners in the U.S., is an effective way to keep bears away from camp.

Using Pine-Sol to keep bears away from camp is as easy as it is effective. Given that keeping your camp neat and tidy is an essential part of bear-proofing campsites, step one is incorporating Pine-Sol into your camp cleaning routine. Wipe down any hard surfaces such as ice chests and coolers, tables, camp chair and canopy legs, bear boxes, etc. with Pine-Sol each time you clean camp. Even items such as tarps and rain canopies can be wiped with diluted Pine-Sol. Secondly, you can place sponges or rags soaked in Pine-Sol around the perimeter of the camping area. The safest and easiest way to do this is to place them in water-proof containers or cans then remove the lids once they are put in place around the campsite. This will prevent the cleaner from leaking on other camping gear during transport or soaking into the ground once deployed.

These same methods can be used with bleach or other cleaners. However, remember to never mix cleaners, especially bleach and ammonia. Additionally, avoid using fruit-scented cleaners, as the fruit scent may negate the effect of the cleaner as a bear-deterrent since bears are attracted to most fruits.