In particular, what about areas with only a few interspersed black bears throughout a very large area, not common and no grizzlies?
What if you carry all "cold" food in ziplock bags, no cooking to release excess smells?
If you have, for example, peanut butter sandwiches, bagels, and pop tarts sealed inside ziploc bags, inside a food bag, inside your backpack, is that still going to release enough smells to attract bears to your camp site?
It seems like such a hassle to hang up all the food 100 ft from your camp every night, especially in areas where bears aren't super common...
I hang my food even in areas without bears. - because usually it's other critters that get into it, and ziplocs don't stop 'em. I've never had food taken by a bear in the better part of 30 years in the boonies (I've had lots of encounters). I've had food messed with by skunks, raccoons, mice, ground squirrels, porcupines marmots, and gulls. I've participated in rescuing two motorirsts in the rockies whose cars were eaten by marmots (seriously! - they chew up the electrical and cooling lines to get the salt on them), and I've walked out sniggering at a buddy who got half a boot eaten by a porcupine (for salt) so we had to "improvise" with socks and tape. Every time I've had my food messed with is where I'm somewhere there are "no bears" and so I decide not to hang it or deal with it. Hang your food. it's not as much of a hassle as picking mice turds out of your breakfast.
and it can save a bear's life.. even if there aren't that many of 'em around. Taking a
chance and getting away with it means eventually someone doesn't, and you end up
with dead bears, conditioned bears like yosemite, and then hiking restrictions.
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