I like that idea of a bag with a tab to put the rock in for a hang! Also the hook on the trekking pole: I guess that would get me a total of about 10 ft reach off the ground, enough to grab a hanging loop off a bag. My problem for a few years now is that I have had a rotator cuff problem and have had trouble throwing rocks, so the cannister became easier for me, despite the weight. However, I just had shoulder surgery, so maybe I'll be hanging more. Counterbalancing does seem the proper way to go, but it's tricky...and I always worry I'll get my food stuck up there and not be able to get it down. I had a few close calls there. It's definitely one of those skills that is good to practice in advance, rather than try it out at the end of a long, exhausting day of backpacking I have thought about tying a little "tail" of floss or thread to hang down from one of the counter-balanced bags, with the theory being that a bear wouldn't be so able to grasp it, but I don't know how well it would work.