Carrying A Pistol In The Woods

[ScottR]

https://www.outsideonline.com/2397355/dont-hike-with-guns

So..I read this and had plenty of my own thoughts. I am curious what you all think. And Go!!!!!

 

[JimP]

I'll always pack a pistol when I am out hiking in the woods, except for when I have a rifle with me. The two legged animals are where the problem is at, and I disagree with a lot of what the author of the article says. I actually started to wonder about what he was saying when he said that firearms were only meant for hunting.

It is also interesting in all the jobs he says that he has held. I worked with a person like this once and if you added up all the jobs and the time that he spent at each one of them he would be over 100 years old

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[archeranthony]

So I could rant on this for days. The main problem I have with articles like this is they never show the side of how a firearm saved people from the life threatening events. Those stats are buried deep. I have a chl in my home state. First and foremost I would say if the law allows you to carry in that state whether you are a resident or not. That is your decision. For the author to try to convince you that it?s not safe if you wanna take a swim or other activities . Have they never heard of a gun lock or safe for your vehicle. Everyone is entitled to their opinion. I definitely don?t carry my pistol everywhere I go. But if I was hiking in Grizz country and the law allowed me. Absolutely I would carry it. To say that a firearm makes people act irrationally or because they fear something is crazy. If more guns in a situation make it worse were true like the author says than hunters would be in danger every time they hunt public land.


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[Gr8bawana]

I would much rather be prepared. I always have a pistol handy when out in the boonies because you just never know who might show up in an out of the way campground.
We had a shady character come into the campground where we were staying once, we were the only ones there. He was in a beat up car and didn't look like he had any camping gear. Came over by the fire and tried to make small-talk but I didn't like his look. Our dog didn't like him either.
I went out of my way to let him see I was armed. He hung around til late afternoon in his car not doing anything which was strange.
Anyway I'm glad nothing happened but we were prepared.

 

[THelms]

I would much rather be prepared. I always have a pistol handy when out in the boonies because you just never know who might show up in an out of the way campground.
We had a shady character come into the campground where we were staying once, we were the only ones there. He was in a beat up car and didn't look like he had any camping gear. Came over by the fire and tried to make small-talk but I didn't like his look. Our dog didn't like him either.
I went out of my way to let him see I was armed. He hung around til late afternoon in his car not doing anything which was strange.
Anyway I'm glad nothing happened but we were prepared.

Rather have it and not need it then need it and not have it!

 

[Winchester]

I'll always pack a pistol when I am out hiking in the woods, except for when I have a rifle with me. The two legged animals are where the problem is at, and I disagree with a lot of what the author of the article says. I actually started to wonder about what he was saying when he said that firearms were only meant for hunting.

It is also interesting in all the jobs he says that he has held. I worked with a person like this once and if you added up all the jobs and the time that he spent at each one of them he would be over 100 years old

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I agree, I always carry a pistol while in the woods, unless I'm carrying a rifle while hunting.
The author of the article lost all credibility right up front when he said firearms are only made for hunting, which of course is completely inaccurate.

 

[tim]

I am pretty pro gun, but I don't understand why people pack guns just to go hiking, and I have ran into lots of predators with out guns. If you want to pack, go for it, if you don't feel the need to pack, don't.

 

[Fink]

This is tricky.. On one hand, it's such a giant pain in the neck to carry around a pistol, that I rarely do it anymore. I'll carry if I'm in known or fringe grizzly habitat I will, but didnt even take a pistol on my last trip in the Bighorns.

On the other hand, a few years ago, in fringe grizzly habitat, we were camped off a trail, and came down one day to get water. A group of guys had set up on the trail and were going to camp there, just a few hundred yards from us. When we told them where we were, and that we were hunting this, they got pretty belligerent, one of the guys in particular. He clearly felt he owned the mountain, cause he had hunted this area for 10 years or whatever it had been. It started to get to the point where it looked like he might want to fight. My buddy and I had pistols, as did the guide that was camped up the creek from both of us (not a guide for either party involved). We defused the situation, and told the guys that we would just move on and hunt a different drainage, even though we were there first.

When we left, I was really surprised that the guy hadn't tried to fight us, but then realized that the pistols in clear view probably dissuaded him quite a bit. Or, maybe not, I dunno. I just know there was no fight, noone got hurt, and I killed a bull 3 days later.

 

[taskswap]

English is such a rich language. There's a word for everything, even the most micro/nuanced thing.

The word here is "tendentious". This article was written to support a position. Fine, it could even be right about certain details. But it's not scientific because it provides only the arguments the author wanted to use to support that position. No counter-arguments were provided or analyzed. No statistics were provided. And it's full of reaction-provoking phrases like "unnecessary and dumb" and "a gun is not the cure for fear."

I carry when I feel it's appropriate. I wear a sweatshirt when it's cold. A sweatshirt is "unnecessary and dumb" in the summer - except I live in Colorado and I've had hikes go from 65 to 30 at 10,000' and start hailing all around me. For me, a sweatshirt is appropriate to carry.

I often carry bear spray because it's lighter. In Yellowstone, it's mandatory. But let me tell you, I practiced with one of those and it blows away, and you can only carry one can without getting ridiculous (bet the article's author has never actually USED bear spray). If you have a 5-day hike or hunt and run into a second bear, tell me how you explain to it that it shouldn't mess with you because look what happened to the first bear that crossed you. Tell me. I want to watch.

This article is just click-bait surrounded by ads. Wanna know how effective it is? They got a bunch of hunters to click on a link about an anti-firearm story. Guess it worked...

 

[Hilltop]

If I am hiking with my kids or my wife, I always carry. I don't think I could ever forgive myself if something happened to one of them that I could have prevented if I was carrying. When I'm by myself, I don't always carry- just depends on the activity and location. It is my opinion that the presence or even perceived presence of firearms keeps criminal activity at a minimum. If a bad thinks people may be carrying, that generally acts as a pretty good deterrent. As far as animals go, I question if many of us would have the reaction time necessary to stop a lion or bear attack. I hope none of us have to find out.

 

[Rich M]

Just another liberal - tell him to hand all of his guns over.

As for carrying a gun - the moment the 5 guys saw it on my hip, they changed from wolf pack to little lambs. That was 30 years ago. Remember it like yesterday - had my girlfriend (who I think was the main target) and my cousin, in a walking cast with me. They came at us with precision and intent, then the lead guy saw the gun and started making gestures to the other fellas. Amazing how it changes stuff.

 

[Alaskabound2016]

"A gun is not the cure for fear." What a ridiculous statement. Sure as hell cures my fear and makes me feel better about going into the back country, especially with family and kids.

 

[kidoggy]

i'd probly shoot my peter off.


guess that would make me a sharpshooter.

 

[BAKPAKR]

"A gun is not the cure for fear." What a ridiculous statement. Sure as hell cures my fear and makes me feel better about going into the back country, especially with family and kids.

If it is not a cure for fear, it sure has one heck of a placebo effect on me.

 

[AKaviator]

I can't imagine NOT having a firearm close by. Anchorage has a fantastic trail system that winds all around in the city and outside of the city. We use it all year, for hiking biking and skiing. But I wouldn't feel comfortable without bear spray and a firearm. We've encountered numerous bears, one which was aggressive but stopped when I fired a warning shot. Many testy moose and at least one nude guy.

In the remote Alaska stuff, It's silly not to have a firearm. I wouldn't want to be stuck with bad language as my only option when facing an arctic grizzly.

 

[kidoggy]

at least one nude guy??????

seems like if there were more then one , it might be hard to fergit???




A gun is only a cure for fear if one is afraid.

nothing wrong with packing and being prepared for the worst.

it is simply a better have it and not need it then need it and not have it situation.


no more no less.

 

[taskswap]

at least one nude guy??????

Off topic but what the heck, there's no good topic for this one. If you think nude guys are strange, what does it mean if I've found three TOILETS? Two honest-to-god porcelain thrones, one a half mile from a parking lot so maybe a college frat hazing prank? And one like 3 miles in I can't remotely explain. The last one was just a wood toilet seat set up between some logs but I say it counts.

Note: all three were set up as if they were meant to be used, not tossed-there/broken like trash. One of the two porcelain ones (those are HEAVY, how did they carry them in?!?!?!?) was set up with a stick holding a soggy toilet paper roll.

I find more toilets than sheds, I can't explain it, and it's kinda bothering me...

 

[archeranthony]

Off topic but what the heck, there's no good topic for this one. If you think nude guys are strange, what does it mean if I've found three TOILETS? Two honest-to-god porcelain thrones, one a half mile from a parking lot so maybe a college frat hazing prank? And one like 3 miles in I can't remotely explain. The last one was just a wood toilet seat set up between some logs but I say it counts.

Note: all three were set up as if they were meant to be used, not tossed-there/broken like trash. One of the two porcelain ones (those are HEAVY, how did they carry them in?!?!?!?) was set up with a stick holding a soggy toilet paper roll.

I find more toilets than sheds, I can't explain it, and it's kinda bothering me...

LOL


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[dustin ray]

How did this go from packing heat then turn into Naked and afraid in Anchorage

 

[JimP]

I have pictures of naked and afraid in Arizona