# What are some good ways to dispose of bacon grease when camping? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 7, 2011, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-ways-to-dispose-of-bacon-grease-when-camping/584624 "2011-06-07T15:20:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![CC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f1d935/32.png) [@CC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CC)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-ways-to-dispose-of-bacon-grease-when-camping/584624/1 "2011-06-07T15:20:17Z")
Yep - planning the menu to include a breakfast and don’t plan on keeping the grease in a can for several days. I want to dispose of it when that meal is done. Bury it? Throw it deep into the woods? Mix it with detergent and \*then \*throw it in the woods/bury it? What’s the current thinking on this? ---
**Author:** ![california\_jobcase](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9d8465/32.png) [@california\_jobcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/california_jobcase)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-ways-to-dispose-of-bacon-grease-when-camping/584624/2 "2011-06-07T15:22:22Z")
Soak it up with paper towels. Use them to start your campfire or charcoal grill. ---
**Author:** ![Profound\_Gibberish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/65b543/32.png) [@Profound\_Gibberish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Profound_Gibberish)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-ways-to-dispose-of-bacon-grease-when-camping/584624/3 "2011-06-07T15:26:26Z")
> [@california\_jobcase](#): > > Soak it up with paper towels. Use them to start your campfire or charcoal grill. That is a brilliant idea. It is a natural, organic product that will break down over time so I would bury it if you choose not to burn it. ---
**Author:** ![Ludy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d6d6ee/32.png) [@Ludy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludy)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-ways-to-dispose-of-bacon-grease-when-camping/584624/4 "2011-06-07T15:39:28Z")
Burning it is best, but if you choose to bury it be sure to be far far away from any campsites, and detergent wont help anything. The rule of thumb I follow is burn it or take it with you. Don’t leave anything behind. By leaving it there is the possibility of attracting animals that can come dependent on camping scraps. Which often times means death for the animal. Also nothing bothers me more than seeing trash that somebody else left behind. On a safety note, that stuff will attract animals, and not necessarily ones you want hanging around your tent while you sleep. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-ways-to-dispose-of-bacon-grease-when-camping/584624/5 "2011-06-07T15:50:41Z")
> [@california\_jobcase](#): > > Soak it up with paper towels. Use them to start your campfire or charcoal grill. Yes, this. Stick the soaked paper towels in a ziploc bag until you start your next fire. If it’s the last fire of your trip, then you can just take the ziploc with you and dispose of it when you return to civilization. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-ways-to-dispose-of-bacon-grease-when-camping/584624/6 "2011-06-07T16:10:36Z")
You could also use a glass jar with a lid like a jelly jar. ---
**Author:** ![Scumpup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce73a5/32.png) [@Scumpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scumpup)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-ways-to-dispose-of-bacon-grease-when-camping/584624/7 "2011-06-07T16:17:40Z")
Bacon grease is some serious bear bait and I wouldn’t want to be carrying it around with me. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-ways-to-dispose-of-bacon-grease-when-camping/584624/8 "2011-06-07T16:28:39Z")
> [@ZipperJJ](#): > > You could also use a glass jar with a lid like a jelly jar. I wouldn’t. Glass around a campfire is generally a bad idea, and if they’re backpacking, heavy. Even if they’re car camping, pouring hot bacon grease into a jar without a flat, level countertop to set the jar on is likely to end badly. Go on, ask me how I know. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![dracoi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/90db22/32.png) [@dracoi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dracoi)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-ways-to-dispose-of-bacon-grease-when-camping/584624/9 "2011-06-07T16:33:02Z")
My family would pour bacon grease onto ant hills as a very effective way of making sure the ants were occupied with eating the grease, repairing their tunnels, etc. - things other than the rest of our food. I’m sure this is not the environmentally responsible solution, but it has meant we never needed to worry about ants. Soaking paper towels in grease and using them for fire starting is another option I’ve used. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-ways-to-dispose-of-bacon-grease-when-camping/584624/10 "2011-06-07T16:35:23Z")
> [@Scumpup](#): > > Bacon grease is some serious bear bait and I wouldn’t want to be carrying it around with me. If you are going into bear country with bacon you have to make some choices. Burying it or pouring it out are really bad options, so you’re left with burning it or carrying it. My first choice would be to not carry bacon or other difficult to dispose of foods. ---
**Author:** ![Arrendajo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Arrendajo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arrendajo)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-ways-to-dispose-of-bacon-grease-when-camping/584624/11 "2011-06-07T16:38:04Z")
> [@Scumpup](#): > > Bacon grease is some serious bear bait and I wouldn’t want to be carrying it around with me. Take note of this. Are there bears where you’ll be camping? I’ve had enough encounters with bears in the wild that I would be hesitant to carry bacon grease around with me. They love the shit. ---
**Author:** ![Peremensoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ce7236/32.png) [@Peremensoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peremensoe)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-ways-to-dispose-of-bacon-grease-when-camping/584624/12 "2011-06-07T17:15:47Z")
> [@Telemark](#): > > If you are going into bear country with bacon you have to make some choices. Burying it or pouring it out are really bad options… People bring _food_ into their campsites which may attract bears, whether there’s bacon involved or not. If you’re willing to spend a night in the woods with a sack of food hanging from a tree right there near your tent, how could it be worse to have some grease in a hole in the ground much farther away? ---
**Author:** ![Scumpup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce73a5/32.png) [@Scumpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scumpup)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-ways-to-dispose-of-bacon-grease-when-camping/584624/13 "2011-06-07T17:44:45Z")
> [@spark240](#): > > People bring _food_ into their campsites which may attract bears, whether there’s bacon involved or not. If you’re willing to spend a night in the woods with a sack of food hanging from a tree right there near your tent, how could it be worse to have some grease in a hole in the ground much farther away? Some foodstuffs are more attractive to bears, racoons, etc. than others. Also, odors cling. Sealed in a container or not, the delectable odor of that bacon grease will cling to you, your clothing, and anything you had in the pack. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-ways-to-dispose-of-bacon-grease-when-camping/584624/14 "2011-06-07T17:51:43Z")
Bet someone $20 they won’t drink it. Problem solved! ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-ways-to-dispose-of-bacon-grease-when-camping/584624/15 "2011-06-07T18:03:03Z")
You don’t hang food near your tent. In many places, you don’t even cook near your tent. It’s better to cook and eat away from your tent and then hang your food or put it in a bear canister, including the clothes you cooked in. You don’t want bears attracted to odors from food or from clothes that came in contact with food near your tent. Burying or pouring out bacon grease is a separate problem. That is feeding bears, attracting them to areas with human smells and leading to aggressive bear behavior. You shouldn’t be feeding bears anything and burying or pouring out grease is doing just that. It may not be an issue for you on this trip if it’s far enough away but it will be an issue down the road. Leave no trace. In bear country it is advisable to not carry anything with strong odors. Bacon would be pretty low on my list of food to bring. In NH, where I hike most often I would be OK with carrying bacon grease for a few days as long as I hung the food properly at night. Bears are rarely a problem here. In the Adirondacks I wouldn’t dream of carrying something like bacon as the bears are much more of a problem. Since you are now required to use a bear canister in the high peaks region storage space becomes the big issue. ---
**Author:** ![Peremensoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ce7236/32.png) [@Peremensoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peremensoe)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-ways-to-dispose-of-bacon-grease-when-camping/584624/16 "2011-06-07T18:06:19Z")
> [@Scumpup](#): > > Some foodstuffs are more attractive to bears, racoons, etc. than others. Isn’t the standard camping assumption that bears, racoons, etc. _will_ be interested in your food? That _nothing_ be left accessible to them? > [@Scumpup](#): > > Also, odors cling. Sealed in a container or not, the delectable odor of that bacon grease will cling to you, your clothing, and anything you had in the pack. So that’s a reason to _not_ pack out. As you said earlier. I’m questioning **Telemark** ’s suggestion that packing out is better than burial. ---
**Author:** ![Peremensoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ce7236/32.png) [@Peremensoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peremensoe)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-ways-to-dispose-of-bacon-grease-when-camping/584624/17 "2011-06-07T18:12:21Z")
> [@Telemark](#): > > You don’t hang food near your tent. In many places, you don’t even cook near your tent. Either we are using different understandings of “near” here or I don’t know what you’re talking about. ---
**Author:** ![Scumpup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce73a5/32.png) [@Scumpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scumpup)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-ways-to-dispose-of-bacon-grease-when-camping/584624/18 "2011-06-07T18:13:41Z")
> [@spark240](#): > > So that’s a reason to _not_ pack out. As you said earlier. I’m questioning **Telemark** ’s suggestion that packing out is better than burial. I’d say it is an altogether better idea to not bring any bacon with you and avoid the problem of the grease entirely. ---
**Author:** ![Washoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ecae2f/32.png) [@Washoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Washoe)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-ways-to-dispose-of-bacon-grease-when-camping/584624/19 "2011-06-07T18:23:02Z")
Also, where are you going? Burying it would be illegal in any National Park. If an animal digs it up and starts feasting on it, the standard fine is $50. ---
**Author:** ![CC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f1d935/32.png) [@CC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CC)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-ways-to-dispose-of-bacon-grease-when-camping/584624/20 "2011-06-07T18:38:29Z")
I’m going to a state park in mid-northern Wisconsin. Drive in campsites. I think I’d use the method of soaking up the grease with an old paperback book and put it in a plastic bag overnight. In the trunk. Use it to start the fire the next day. Maybe clean the pan with paper towels and burn those before the fire is gone. Never had any trouble with bears in the past. Not looking to, either. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-good-ways-to-dispose-of-bacon-grease-when-camping/584624.md?page=2)