DC Frig in cab or bed of truck?

[Brewticus]

I'll be travelling from Ohio to Alaska and back over the span of 4 months, boondocking whenever possible. When in bear country, which will be a lot, I'm wondering where to place my DC frig/freezer. I have a crew cab and a fiberglass cap on the bed of the truck. My sleeping setup is in the truck bed. Assuming I keep everything clean as possible, is it wise to place the frig in the cab or bed? While backpacking, it is a golden rule to NEVER have food where you sleep. Looking for thoughts and inputs.

 

[rgallant]

I keep my basic food and fridge inside my truck, Pathfinder through to my Land Rover LR4 over the last 20 years without issue, sleeping inside the truck or an RTT. BUT everything is in sealed containers and I wipe things down. Bears far away from large campsites are not really much of an issue, but my rule is if there is garbage around or fresh bear scat I move on.

I have left my cast iron frying pan out without any bear interaction, raccoons, and at least one mouse, but never a bear.

The real issue with bears are the human habituated ones and in my experience cubs. So large heavily used campsites, areas with a lot of bear sign etc.

I am in SW British Columbia and have camped all over the province, including grizzly habitat with no issues, but BC is pretty big and empty.

I small piece of advice, avoid political discussions, as you pass through Canada. If some idiot starts one walk away, they all seem to want either pontificate or stir the pot, you don't need that, just enjoy your trip.

 

[grubworm]

I didn't do this for the sake of bears, but having a swing away hitch mounted rack/basket might be something useful to you. when we travel with the pickup only, I forego the 12v fridges we have and go with a regular ice chest on the back. gives more room and kind of perfect to swing it over and cook off the tailgate with the ice chest right there. might could buy a cover for the 12v fridge and run a cord to it if you rather the 12v one. also a very nice way to carry extra fuel without fumes inside the shell. just an idea...

otherwise i'd go with the cooler in the back seat. should have an easy access to 12v socket and between the ice chest seal and the cab seals...I doubt it would smell enough to attract bears. if we sleep in the back, then its also nice to keep the back clear so that when we pull off somewhere to sleep, its dark and maybe raining, so the last thing I want to do is be moving stuff out of the back to the cab of the truck.

I also went with a basket on top, so there is extra room for totes of clothes and stuff up there and frees up the back seat more for the chest if you go that route. I also keep the LP tank up on the roof and run a hose down to water heater and stove. Don't want to sleep with LP tank in the shell with me.

sounds like an awesome trip!

 

[AdventureWithDanan]

I’m a fan of keeping all my food inside the truck because I sleep in the bed. While driving, it’s more temperature controlled, doesn’t get dirty and is easier to access than the bed of the truck.

 

[highboy4x4]

I have all my food/fridge in pull out drawers in the bed. Although I have not traveled west yet (Aug2026 is a go). In the multiple trips I have been on, I have not experienced bear issues in the Smokies or Blue Ridge Mountains. So this discussion is good for me to hear.
My setup is a contractor cap, has 3 doors that have twist/fold down handles. My tailgate bottom and sides are sealed with 1/8” rubber seals.
My sleeping platform is on top of the passenger side pull out. Food is stored in the rear compartments of both drawer slides, behind the fridge and the blackstone. I would figure the smell of the blackstone would draw more curiosity than dry goods. I have a bear bag for the tree and normally do not eat dinner where I sleep.

What issues do I need to consider? If any?

 

[socialpants]

I have hauled a fridge through Montana in deep bear country with the thing stuffed under my RTT like bait. Never had a problem. That does not mean you will not. Chaos is always on the table. But a two things are worth considering...

First the fridge itself. It is sealed. Air tight. A stainless steel vault for smells. And smells are the currency bears trade in assuming they have already developed a taste for people food. Which for the record they are not supposed to want. They are vegetarians. Mostly. Until humans screw it up.

That brings me to point two. If you spend time doom scrolling stories about bears ripping doors off trucks like they are opening a can of beans you will notice a pattern. National Parks. Tourist zones. Places where millions of people wander through every year doing profoundly stupid things with trail mix and hot dogs. Those bears are seasoned criminals. They know the deal. Like the old cartoon they have got a soft spot for a good pic a nic basket.

So net net if you are camping away from places where wildlife has not been marinated in decades of human stupidity you are probably fine. Probably. Still caution is the price of admission out there. Strange things happen in the dark.

These days I keep the fridge in the cab. Not because I am terrified of four legged passersby but because it is easier. Good luck. Enjoy your trip.

 

[grubworm]

@Brewticus ...maybe a hair off-topic, but also something else to consider...

if you're doing a 4 month trip to Alaska, you're going to be remote a lot of the time, so redundancy is good. I don't run my 12v fridge, or any additional load, off my vehicle battery. I have a 50w solar panel on top of my camper shell and a 35ah lead acid battery inside the shell to run the fridge, led lights, water pump, etc.

even if you don't want a solar panel, you can still have a 2nd isolated battery and charge it with a DC/DC charger off the alternator while you're driving. I had my starter battery go out one time and it was very nice to have the 2nd battery in the back to start the truck and get me on the road.

just something to consider...not trying to load you down with more stuff, but a 2nd battery on a long trip like that might be pretty helpful. its saved my butt more than the one time, so thought I'd pass it on

 

[ZombieCat]

@Brewticus ...maybe a hair off-topic, but also something else to consider...

if you're doing a 4 month trip to Alaska, you're going to be remote a lot of the time, so redundancy is good. I don't run my 12v fridge, or any additional load, off my vehicle battery. I have a 50w solar panel on top of my camper shell and a 35ah lead acid battery inside the shell to run the fridge, led lights, water pump, etc.

even if you don't want a solar panel, you can still have a 2nd isolated battery and charge it with a DC/DC charger off the alternator while you're driving. I had my starter battery go out one time and it was very nice to have the 2nd battery in the back to start the truck and get me on the road.

just something to consider...not trying to load you down with more stuff, but a 2nd battery on a long trip like that might be pretty helpful. its saved my butt more than the one time, so thought I'd pass it on

THIS!!
My trailer has a built in solar panel + AGM battery to run the fan, lights and charge low amperage items. I have two portable 300W Jackery power stations with a separate 100W solar panel whose primary job is to run my 12V fridge. When the weather is cloudy or rainy, I leave one Jackery to power the refrigerator (which stays in the kitchen of my teardrop trailer) and the other is plugged into the inverter in my truck to charge while I drive around. I swap them out daily, until the sunshine returns. I use the same method for longer tent camping trips. If you’ll be occasionally staying in campgrounds with electric sites, you can bring an extension cord.
As for bears, I’ve never had any issues with coolers or the refrigerator in either my vehicle or trailer. As everyone has stated, keep a clean camp and vehicle to reduce enticing scents. Less problems with mice and other rodents, too.

 

[RedRob]

One hears many unsupported claims about bear deterrence, so I cannot endorse this from experience, but spraying to door with PineSol is supposed to throw bears off the scent. I can tell you my experience is in line with those who say that bears are rarely a problem outside campgrounds. I have taken the precaution of cooking some distance away from where I spend the night, but I doubt it’s ever mattered. All else being equal, I would rather awaken to the sound of my cab being ripped apart while I was in the bed than hearing the bed be ripped apart with me in it.

 

[grubworm]

...just maybe we are ALL thinking about this bear thing from the wrong angle...

 

[smlobx]

Ive been to the great North twice from both VA and NC all the way to Deadhorse.

My fridge is kept in my bed under my AluCab canopy and never had an issue while sleepng. The only issue I ever had was a huge black bear 400+#'s coming out if the bush literally 10 feet from where my wife was cooking. I got her to get into the truck from the other side (bringing the food with her) and used my bear spray to scoot him away while I got into the truck where my shotgun was. He came back about 20 minutes later and we did dosed him again and he never came back.

Always have bear spray on you when you're outside your truck!

 

[tractor to trail]

With not a lot of space I would keep it in the back seat of the truck. Here's a slim battery I'm working on installing in my set up now. It will fit under or behind most truck rear seats to also save space. Either hook dc charger or solar to it and good to go.

 

[traildog]

I have a fridge in the back of my 4Runner for drinks and a second one in my off-road trailer where we sleep for food. Non refrigerated food is stored in a yeti cooler in the back of 4Runner near the drink fridge.

Agree with @tractor to trail that the slim batteries are the way to go to save space. Mine is mounted on a molle panel in the rear of the 4Runner.

I’ve done the drive to Deadhorse from AZ and then toured around AK on our way back. No bear issues and we boondocked the entire time.

Similar to @RedRob’s pinesol, I used ammonia to wipe things down and sprayed around. I’ve read from numerous folks that live in bear country that the bears don’t like the smell. The only scary bear encounter I had was in Glacier National Park in a campground. I was cooking eggs and sausage when a bear passed by. He walked past us, further on ahead then into the bushes to eat berries. Guess he was a vegetarian.