High Sierra Topix

I know people stash bear cans at the trail Junction on Whitney but is it ok to stash a can in other places when day-hiking? Example: can I leave my can in Cottonwood Basin while going up to Langley?

If you stash it near camp, yes. Caches/resupplies are illegal, using one to keep food safe while camping is what they are for.

Interesting. Normally I'd carry my tarp/bivy/quilt in this situation because it weighs so little and gives me a margin of safety if something happens. What qualifies as "camp"?

I'd not be resupplying or caching in this scenario, just dropping my can for a few hours.

Then you're probably fine. The general rule is to not leave gear of any kind in the wilderness for more than 24 hours.

It should not be a problem at all if you are just day hiking and then return to camp the same day. I am not sure if there is a specific time window for leaving it, but I think 24 hrs like almostthere mentioned is probably a good rule.

I have left my bear can at camp in cottonwood basin when I hiked Mt Langley without any issues.

There is absolutely no problem stashing your bear canister while your going out on a day hike, just be sure and remember where you stash it, get the gps co-ordinates if you have to, have heard of folks having to search for hours to find their stash because they could not remember their stash location when they go back.

Awesome. Thanks, everyone!

When I did Lake Basin last year with my mom, we left one of my canisters at the base of Cartridge Pass (Muro Blanco side) for about 3 days. I did this so I could carry a few more things for her, so her pack would be as light as possible for the climb over the pass and down into Lake Basin. I hid it well off the trail and up the hill where I figured no one would accidentally stumble upon it. I even left a note in a ziplock bag on top of it pleading with anyone that did find it to not disturb it and when we expected to pick it up again. I marked it with my GPS and had little trouble finding it when we returned. It sounds like this would not be considered OK by the rangers, but fortunately for us it worked out just fine.

Matt