I gotta agree with Jardine. 50 years in the backcountry taught me to never hang my food. That just attracts critters. A proper hang is 10' from any tree and 15' above ground. You find someplace like that, you let me know. I never have. The other thing that hanging food does, besides create a nice pinata for bears, is it makes lines for mice, raccoons, chipmunks, and every other small animal to run down to your pack where they will love to chew holes in it, or just chew the line through if they have any experience.

So what you do, is you have an ordinary garbage bag with you. You put everything that's food or might smell like food, or might attract anything, in that bag. Twist up the neck, and put that bag into your sleeping bag stuff sack and seal that up. Put the bag next to you, under your tarp, in your tent, whatever. Do not leave out snacks for eating in the night. You, like me for the past 30 years, will never have a problem with night critters again.

If I'm in an established campground with metal bear hanging poles or bear boxes, I use them. If I'm in Yosemite, I use the mandated bear containers. Otherwise, I do as I said above.

I've found that if I take all food out of my pack or panniers, critters don't bother it even though it's outside the tent, though I usually have a large enough tent and small enough gear that I can bring it all in. I still empty out all the food and do as I said above.

Your main danger is losing the usability of your gear by having holes chewed in it or having it torn up.