I had been using aspen like that for a while and recently switched to shredded aspen and am much happier with it. It seems to help with humidity more than the chips and I think it's also better to feed on as I have had snakes almost take down some nasty wood chunks with their food. With the shredded aspen I don't worry about that, plus I just like the aesthetic of it more. If you can't find it locally I would think you could get it from most any large online reptile supply place. It doesn't weigh that much so I don't think shipping would be outrageous.