Backpacker's Cache Backpackers' Cache Bear Resistant Container: Weight, Price and Alternatives
The Backpacker's Cache Backpackers' Cache Bear Resistant Container has a published weight of 2 lb 12 oz, which is about 28 percent of a 10 lb ultralight base weight.
The Backpacker's Cache Backpackers' Cache Bear Resistant Container is our expert tier pick in bear canisters, with a published weight of 2 lb 12 oz . The original ABS canister, the one park rental programs hand out, and effectively indestructible. It is also the heaviest option here and it needs a coin or a screwdriver to open.
What is the Backpacker's Cache Backpackers' Cache Bear Resistant Container actually good at?
The original ABS canister, the one park rental programs hand out, and effectively indestructible. It is also the heaviest option here and it needs a coin or a screwdriver to open.
Best for: Rental-style reliability, group food, and anyone who has watched a cheaper canister crack in the cold.
A canister is the heaviest single item most people add to a gear list, and in a growing number of places it is legally required rather than advisable. Check the managing agency before you plan around a hang, because an approved model list is a list, not a guideline.
What does it do to your base weight?
At 2 lb 12 oz this item accounts for roughly 28 percent of a 10 lb ultralight base weight and about 14 percent of a 20 lb traditional one. That framing matters more than the raw number: an ounce saved on a headlamp is noise, and a pound saved on a shelter is a category of its own. Put your real figures into the gear list builder and the same item will show you what it costs against your list rather than against an average one.
Published weights are taken in the manufacturer's favour: usually the smallest size, usually without the stuff sack, stakes or guylines that come in the box. Expect a real-world figure an ounce or two heavier and weigh it once when it arrives. A $9 kitchen scale is the cheapest useful upgrade to any gear list, because it stops the spreadsheet lying to you.
How does it compare with the rest of the bear canisters?
Every item below has been verified against the retailer listing, and every weight is the manufacturer's published figure for the configuration named. Sorted lightest first, so the trade between weight and everything else is visible in one pass.
| Model | Published weight | Listed price | Tier | Where to buy |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Backpacker's Cache Backpackers' Cache Bear Resistant Container | 2 lb 12 oz | Varies | Expert | Backcountry, Amazon |
| BearVault BV450 Bear Canister | 2 lb 1 oz | $89.95 | Beginner | Backcountry, Amazon |
| BearVault BV475 Trek Bear Canister | About 2 lb 5 oz | Varies | Intermediate | Backcountry, Amazon |
| BearVault BV500 Bear Canister | 2 lb 9 oz | $99.95 | Intermediate | Backcountry, Amazon |
| Wild Ideas Bearikade Weekender | Varies | Varies | Expert | Wild Ideas direct |
Lighter alternatives: BearVault BV450 Bear Canister at 2 lb 1 oz, BearVault BV475 Trek Bear Canister at About 2 lb 5 oz, BearVault BV500 Bear Canister at 2 lb 9 oz. Weight alone never decides this. The lightest option in a category is usually the one with the narrowest window of conditions it works in, which is exactly the trade the roundup spells out tier by tier.
Approved is a list, not a guideline
A bear canister is the heaviest single item most people add to a gear list, and in a growing number of places it is legally required rather than advisable. Managing agencies publish an approved model list, and it is a list: a canister that is not on it is not acceptable no matter how bear resistant it looks. Check with the agency before you plan around a hang or around a model you already own, because requirements change between seasons and between adjacent districts, and a citation at the trailhead is the best case outcome of getting it wrong.
Who should skip it?
Anyone buying their first version of this item. Expert tier gear is specialised, and specialised means it is better at a narrower set of conditions rather than better at everything. Buying it first usually means discovering an expensive preference rather than confirming one.
Going lighter must not mean going unprepared. Shelter adequate to the actual conditions, insulation, rain protection, water treatment and a way to call for help are fixed costs on any list. If a lighter version of this item means cutting into one of those, it is the wrong purchase however good the spec sheet looks. You are responsible for what you walk into, and the forecast is not the conditions.
Related reading
- Our full bear canisters roundup, split into beginner, intermediate and expert tiers
- Pack volume by trip length
- Ultralight food planning
- Gear list builder: see what this item does to your own base weight
- Base weight calculator
- Six complete example gear lists, every item priced and linked
- All verified gear specs, A to Z
Frequently asked questions
How much does the Backpacker's Cache Backpackers' Cache Bear Resistant Container weigh?
The published weight is 2 lb 12 oz, which is 44.0 ounces or about 1247 grams. That is roughly 28 percent of a 10 lb ultralight base weight on its own. This figure is the manufacturer's for the size and configuration named, not a weight we measured, and published figures run light often enough that it is worth putting your own scale under it.
Is the Backpacker's Cache Backpackers' Cache Bear Resistant Container worth the money?
The original ABS canister, the one park rental programs hand out, and effectively indestructible. It is also the heaviest option here and it needs a coin or a screwdriver to open. Pricing on this one moves with configuration and retailer, so confirm on the product page rather than trusting a figure here.
Where can you buy the Backpacker's Cache Backpackers' Cache Bear Resistant Container?
Backcountry carries this category and is the first link on this page, because it is where this audience shops and it pays us a higher commission than Amazon does. Amazon is the second button. Stock and pricing differ between the two often enough that checking both is worth the extra thirty seconds.
What does the Backpacker's Cache Backpackers' Cache Bear Resistant Container compete against?
On the same shelf: BearVault BV450 Bear Canister, BearVault BV500 Bear Canister, BearVault BV475 Trek Bear Canister, Wild Ideas Bearikade Weekender. The comparison table on this page lines them up by published weight and price so the trade is visible rather than argued. Our full ranking of the category, split into beginner, intermediate and expert tiers, is in the roundup linked below.
Are the weights on this page measured or published?
Published. We compare manufacturer specifications and verified owner reviews, and we do not test gear in person or run a gear lab. Manufacturer weights are usually taken from the lightest size, without stuff sacks, stakes or guylines, so a real-world figure is often an ounce or two heavier. Weigh your own kit and put the real numbers into the gear list builder.
How we choose: we compare published manufacturer specifications, listed weights, and verified owner reviews across retailers. We do not test gear in person, and every weight quoted here is the manufacturer's figure unless we say otherwise, so weigh your own kit before you trust a total. Going lighter also means carrying less margin, so treat insulation, navigation, water treatment and an emergency plan as fixed costs rather than places to save grams.