Who we are.
We are three aero-space engineers who enjoy escaping to the wilderness
to enjoy our natural surroundings. With over fifty years of cumulative
experience in the field, we have the know-how of ultra-lightweight super-strong
products and processes. With several licensed engineers on staff, we
are committed to finding the latest materials that bring to you lightest
and strongest backpacking products available.
Bearikade history and beyond.
Wild Ideas, LLC was formed in November, 1998 to meet the challenge of
enjoying wilderness hiking while minimizing impact on the lives of wild
animals that are a vital aspect of the adventure of backpacking. The
Bearikade portable food storage canister was introduced during the 1999
hiking season and this marked the first Wild Ideas commercial product.
Our three
aerospace
engineers had studied over a thousand questionnaires, supplied by the
National Park Service, to understand product improvements suggested by
hikers who
care about keeping food away from bears and other animals. The two most
common complaints about the existing canister were "too heavy" and "opening
is too small". Using the lightest and strongest materials available,
the Bearikade offers significant improvement in both areas of design. It
is one pound lighter and has a 2" larger diameter opening.
300 units were built for the 2000 season and supplied free of charge
to the Northwest Interpretive Association at Olympic National Park
and the
Sequoia Natural History Association at Sequoia/Kings Canyon. A rental
agreement was fashioned to share revenue without asking the park
concessions groups
to take any financial risk. This rental experience allowed Wild Ideas
to determine valuable design improvements for the second generation
food canisters
called the Bearikade Mark II. These canisters were offered for sale
in July, 2002.
National Parks and Forest Service Rangers at Gates of the Arctic, Arctic
National Wildlife Reserve, Olympic National Park, North Cascades
National Park, Mount Rainier National Park, Yosemite National Park,
Sequoia/Kings
Canyon National Park and Inyo National Forest have chosen the Bearikade
food canister for their personal use in the wilderness.
Wild Ideas is currently developing other dual purpose backpacking
products which reduce overall trip weight by their versatility.
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