"The bottom line: DON'T BUY A CRITTER GITTER FOR A REMOTE HIVE LOCATION.  It
won't deter a bear.  It only works if you use it for an alarm and are
willing to get out of bed in the middle of the night "armed for bear.""

Like you, we have lots of bears up here, and the only thing that works reliably for me is an electrified fence.  I use a net (or mesh) fence from Premier1 and a Parnak solar charger.  I leave it up all year round.  My bees have been hit three times over the past (14) years - first in 1998, before I used a fence (that took two years for the bears to find my hives), second in 2003, when I was moving, got lazy and did not set it up, third in 2005, when the old, battery-powered charger failed and I did not realize it.  As long as the fence is working, my hives have not been hit.  With the fence up, I have found bear scat within 5 meters of my hives, but no damage, so I know it works.  The mesh fence goes up in minutes and is a LOT easier than sinking posts, stringing hot wires and pounding grounding rods into the ground for a traditional fence (which I have also done for my chickens).  More effective, too.  You don't have to string bacon or anything to the wire; there are so many hot wires, the bears are sure to touch them.  Also has the advantage of keeping skunks out, since the mesh goes right to the ground with no gaps.  The current configuration with the solar charger has been running for five years with no problems (Watch, I just jinxed myself).  At least that has been my experience, which has been a lot more intimate with bears since keeping bees than I care for.  

By the way, my only experience with AFB has been after bear attacks.  I think the stress to the hives (being knocked over, chewed on, exposed to the elements, generally massively disrupted and then reset) is enough to enable it to get a foothold.  Suggest you watch your hives carefully for signs of it.

Bill
Claremont, NH
+43.35687 +43° 21’ 25”
-72.3835   -72° 23’ 01”
CWOP: D5065
Weather Underground: KNHCLARE3
HonetBeeNet: NH001

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