Ursack is a company that specializes in the manufacture of bear bags made out of bullet proof fabric that are far lighter than rigid bear cannisters. Weighing only 7.5 oz, the TKO (since renamed the V27) sounded like it was worth trying out and I took it on a few trips last year where I just needed a regular bear bag and not a cannister. One of the advantages of the Ursack over conventional bear bags is that you don’t have to suspend it in the air. Instead it can be tied to a stout tree branch or a fallen tree, which is helpful if you’ve ever tried to hang a bear bag late at night, in the dark, only to be hit in the head with your rock!

You fill an Ursack the same way you’d fill any bear bag. I line mine with a large odor barrier bag from O.P. Sack, cinch the Ursack very tightly closed, tie a figure 8 knot in the top to keep out the critters, and then tie the remaining cord to something big that a bear can’t drag away. Never once did I experience any lossage from bears, mice, raccoons, or any other eastern US animal. In fact, it looked like the bag was completely undisturbed when I retrieved it each morning.

However, I can’t really recommend this bear bag for use in wilder and western regions of the US given the ambivalent and somewhat negative reviews it’s received during bear cannister tests held by rangers in the Sierras. Before you decide to replace your bear cannister you should carefully read these reviews and the FAQ’s posted on the Ursack web site, but suffice to say, there are always trade offs to be made when substituting ultralight gear for heavier alternatives.

As for myself, I’ve gone back to hanging a bear bag at night using the mesh/silnylon Ursalite bear bag system sold on Backpackinglight.com, with some modifications that I’ll discuss in another post.

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