Areas
Bear canister rules by area
58 parks, wilderness areas and forests. 20 require a canister everywhere, 25 do not require one. Every page is dated and linked to the official source.
- Adirondack Eastern High Peaks Wilderness Overnight campers must use a bear-resistant canister: commercially made, solid, non-pliable; soft/non-rigid containers d… NY DEC · NY Canister required seasonallyCheck source
- Ansel Adams Wilderness Canister or counterbalance per Sierra NF order; Inyo portions follow Inyo order. Yosemite NP (adjacent) requires an allo… US Forest Service · CA Canister required in partsCheck source
- Big Bend National Park Bear boxes/lockers; a bear-resistant container (300 ft-lb standard) is required only for caching. National Park Service · TX Canister not requiredCheck source
- Bridger-Teton NF Food storage order: IGBC list or courtesy inspection container, hang, or vehicle. US Forest Service · WY Canister not requiredCheck source
- Caribou-Targhee NF IGBC list or hang. US Forest Service · ID/WY Canister not requiredCheck source
- Carson-Iceberg Wilderness Bear canisters currently not required (same Stanislaus page). US Forest Service · CA Canister not requiredCheck source
- Crater Lake National Park Canister not required: canister, hang or vehicle. National Park Service · OR Canister not required
- Custer Gallatin NF IGBC list or courtesy inspection container, or a hang. US Forest Service · MT/WY Canister not requiredEnds soon
- Denali National Park & Preserve BRFC required in backcountry units 1-21 and 23-43. National Park Service · AK Canister required seasonally
- Desolation Wilderness Canister required for all food in Desolation Wilderness overnight. US Forest Service · CA Canister requiredCheck source
- Emigrant Wilderness Bear canisters are currently not required (Stanislaus NF page). Canisters ARE required in adjoining Yosemite wilderness. US Forest Service · CA Canister not requiredCheck source
- Gates of the Arctic National Park & Preserve Approved food storage required; BRFCs loaned; purchases must be IGBC approved. National Park Service · AK Canister requiredCheck source
- Glacier Bay National Park & Preserve Canister or hang; canister highly recommended; personal canisters must be IGBC-listed. National Park Service · AK Canister not requiredCheck source
- Glacier National Park Backcountry food may be hung, kept in a designated NPS locker/hanging device, or secured in an IGBC-approved bear-resist… National Park Service · MT Canister required in parts
- Grand Teton National Park IGBC-approved bear canister required in the backcountry (free loan available). National Park Service · WY Canister requiredPartly verified
- Great Smoky Mountains National Park Food must be hung on provided cable systems; canisters not required. National Park Service · TN/NC Canister not required
- Hoover Wilderness Securable, solid, non-pliable container rated for at least 300 ft-lb required for unattended food; hanging/guarding not … US Forest Service · CA/NV Canister requiredCheck source
- Indian Peaks Wilderness Canisters required year-round near all trailheads and in Diamond Lake and Jasper Lake zones; recommended elsewhere (othe… US Forest Service · CO Canister required in partsCheck source
- Inyo NF - Bishop Pass / Treasure Lakes Canister required for food/refuse in this order area (one of eight designated areas). US Forest Service · CA Canister requiredCheck source
- Inyo NF - Cottonwood Lakes Canister required for food/refuse in this order area (one of eight designated areas). US Forest Service · CA Canister requiredCheck source
- Inyo NF - Duck Pass / Purple Lake Canister required for food/refuse in this order area (one of eight designated areas). US Forest Service · CA Canister requiredCheck source
- Inyo NF - Fish Creek Canister required for food/refuse in this order area (one of eight designated areas). US Forest Service · CA Canister requiredCheck source
- Inyo NF - Kearsarge Pass Canister required for food/refuse in this order area (one of eight designated areas). US Forest Service · CA Canister requiredCheck source
- Inyo NF - Little Lakes Valley Canister required for food/refuse in this order area (one of eight designated areas). US Forest Service · CA Canister requiredCheck source
- Inyo NF - Mammoth Lakes / Rush Creek Canister required for food/refuse in this order area (one of eight designated areas). US Forest Service · CA Canister requiredCheck source
- Inyo NF - Mt. Whitney zone Canister required for food/refuse in this order area (one of eight designated areas). US Forest Service · CA Canister requiredCheck source
- Inyo NF - other wilderness Outside the eight canister zones: canister OR counterbalance hang (15 ft / 10 ft). US Forest Service · CA Canister not requiredCheck source
- John Muir Wilderness Canister required in the Inyo order zones inside this wilderness; elsewhere canister OR counterbalance (Inyo and Sierra … US Forest Service · CA Canister required in partsCheck source
- Katmai National Park & Preserve Bear-resistant food container mandatory; IGBC or ADFG-approved; soft-sided cannot substitute. National Park Service · AK Canister requiredCheck source
- Lake Tahoe Basin (outside Desolation) Basin-wide order: unattended food in a bear-resistant container (a canister is required only for Desolation overnight vi… US Forest Service · CA/NV Canister not requiredCheck source
- Lassen Volcanic National Park NPS-approved bear-resistant container required; hanging not permitted. National Park Service · CA Canister required seasonallyPartly verified
- Maroon Bells-Snowmass Wilderness IGBC-approved container REQUIRED. US Forest Service · CO Canister requiredCheck source
- Mokelumne Wilderness Bear canisters currently not required (same Stanislaus page). US Forest Service · CA Canister not requiredCheck source
- Mount Rainier National Park Hang or use food-storage poles; canister highly recommended in sub-alpine areas, not required. National Park Service · WA Canister not required
- Mt. Shasta Wilderness No canister requirement found in the order. US Forest Service · CA Canister not requiredEnds soon
- NCDE national forests IGBC list or district-ranger inspection; or other approved storage. US Forest Service · MT Canister not requiredCheck source
- North Cascades National Park Complex IGBC-approved canister required at nine named camps and in cross-country zones (page says six zones but lists seven). National Park Service · WA Canister required seasonally
- Olympic National Park Approved Food Storage Container (ARFC) required in all park wilderness areas; only containers on Olympic's list are perm… National Park Service · WA Canister required
- Pisgah NF - Shining Rock All overnight campers must use commercially made, solid, non-pliable bear-resistant canisters for food, refuse and toile… US Forest Service · NC Canister required
- Redwood National and State Parks Lockers at designated camps; Redwood Creek: hang or canister. Canister not required. National Park Service · CA Canister not required
- Rocky Mountain National Park Hard-sided, lockable, commercially made canister required for wilderness overnight camping; hanging not permitted. National Park Service · CO Canister requiredPartly verified
- Sequoia & Kings Canyon NPs - Dusy Basin Canister required in the Dusy Basin. National Park Service · CA Canister required seasonallyCheck source
- Sequoia & Kings Canyon NPs - North Dome Canister required in the North Dome area. National Park Service · CA Canister required seasonallyCheck source
- Sequoia & Kings Canyon NPs - Pear & Emerald Lakes Canister required in the Pear and Emerald Lakes areas. National Park Service · CA Canister required seasonallyCheck source
- Sequoia & Kings Canyon NPs - Rae Lakes Loop Canister required in the Rae Lakes Loop. National Park Service · CA Canister required seasonallyCheck source
- Sequoia & Kings Canyon NPs - other backcountry Canister highly recommended elsewhere; hanging/other methods allowed outside the required zones. National Park Service · CA Canister not requiredPartly verified
- Sequoia & Kings Canyon NPs - Rock Creek Canister required in the Rock Creek area. National Park Service · CA Canister required seasonallyCheck source
- Sequoia NF Canister strongly recommended, not required. US Forest Service · CA Canister not requiredCheck source
- Shenandoah National Park Canister preferred but not required (hang is also allowed). National Park Service · VA Canister not required
- Shoshone NF IGBC-approved container or other approved storage. US Forest Service · WY Canister not requiredEnds soon
- Sierra NF wildernesses Canister OR counterbalance hang. US Forest Service · CA Canister not requiredCheck source
- Trinity Alps - other areas Elsewhere any bear-proof system designed to prevent access by bears must be used (canister not specifically required). US Forest Service · CA Canister not requiredCheck source
- Trinity Alps - Canyon & Swift Creeks Bear-proof canister required for food/refuse in the Canyon Creek and Swift Creek drainages. US Forest Service · CA Canister requiredCheck source
- Weminuche Wilderness No canister order found; store food properly. US Forest Service · CO Canister not requiredCheck source
- White River NF Store food in an IGBC Courtesy Inspection container, a vehicle, or by 10 ft / 4 ft hang. US Forest Service · CO Canister not requiredCheck source
- Wrangell-St. Elias National Park & Preserve BRFC required; IGBC-approved plus named PVC/aluminum canisters (Garcia, Wild Ideas, Purple Mountain). National Park Service · AK Canister requiredCheck source
- Yellowstone National Park Canister not required: food-pole hang or IGBC hard-sided container; soft-sided containers not allowed. National Park Service · WY Canister not required
- Yosemite National Park Food must be stored in an allowed canister or food locker park-wide in the backcountry; hanging is not a legal alternati… National Park Service · CA Canister requiredCheck source
Checker
Check a canister against any area
Not legal
BearVault BV ONE Adjustable in Yosemite National Park: does not meet the rule.
Not on the Yosemite/SEKI list as reproduced by NPS. IGBC certification alone is NOT accepted here. BearVault confirms the BV ONE is not approved for these parks; BV425/BV475 are absent from the list.
Area rule Food must be stored in an allowed canister or food locker park-wide in the backcountry; hanging is not a legal alternative.
Read the full answerChecked 2026-10-26. Always verify with the land manager before you go.
Not yet verified
These 6 areas are in our dataset but we have not confirmed their rule from official text. We keep them off the site's pages until we have, rather than guess: Lake Clark National Park & Preserve; Bob Marshall, Scapegoat & Great Bear Wildernesses; Idaho Panhandle NFs; Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie NF; Chattahoochee NF - Appalachian Trail; Catskills backcountry. They are listed in the downloadable dataset with their verification status.