Legit need for a gun as protection in the woods?

I carry and I think mine has saved my bacon just with confidence. read on another post where the guy mentioned not looking like a sheep. there's been a couple times where i've told someone to bugger off with confidence and they did. not sure i'd have said it the same way if my holster was empty. that has to count for something.
 
on_the_edge said:
Is the need for a gun about as likely as winning the lottery?
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Fortunately, so far, living in the USA pretty much allows you to have what you want, not just things that someone else decides are your "legitimate needs."


So... it's up to you to decide whether you want to bring a gun along or not.


Stay sharp,
desmobob
 
It occurs to me that we have a very biased sample here, seeing that only LIVING people can respond (ie. survivors).

No way to ask the DEAD, if they wish they had been better armed (or armed at all) at the time of their demise....so we aren't really conducting a legitimate poll here! No doubt, their oppinions would be very instructive....
 
reconranger said:
It occurs to me that we have a very biased sample here, seeing that only LIVING people can respond (ie. survivors).

No way to ask the DEAD, if they wish they had been better armed (or armed at all) at the time of their demise....so we aren't really conducting a legitimate poll here! No doubt, their oppinions would be very instructive....
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You mean like the man and his 8-year-old son who were shot while hunting in Northern California in the year 2000?

Anyone who wonders if they should go into the woods armed in California should look at this report by the Central Valley California HIDTA (some sort of a law enforcement association). PDF.
 
I am a firm believer in that it is better to have and not need rather than to need and not have. Plus I sleep a lot better :D

I try to abide by all of the laws - but the law of the land rules.
 
Don Rearic said:
Well, the reporter just made a total ass out of the guy, you know? Showed him for what he was, a total hypocrite. Especially when you consider how many people are killed by careless or criminal drivers. If you honor a driver's license from another State with all of the deaths associated from motor vehicles and you eliminate all of the emotional arguments from it all, it's really not a big deal to accept out of State handgun permits, to honor them. The law here clearly states that a law enforcement officer passing through or sojourning in the State can carry without a Maryland permit. This is also something that Washington, D.C. does not allow for Maryland law enforcement officers who are visiting The District...but we allow D.C. officers to live and commute here on their D.C. credentials. How can the State be so sure that the training and safety standards for a police officer from a State that doesn't have a lot of funds for such things is going to be any safer than one of our own Citizens? It's not even anti-gun, it's anti-Citizen. Maryland allows it for police officers.

Basically, it's a mess. This State has everything! We have beautiful mountains, wonderful ocean and bayside beaches, swamps, flat woodlands and while there really are places that are more hostile to freedom...this place just isn't the Maryland that I grew up in.

After my Dad died in 1982, you could still walk up the street with a pump shotgun and disappear into the woods in Anne Arundel County. The police were smart enough to see that the action was open if you were smart enough to have it open and they would drive right past you, now that is a SWAT Call-out and, no, I really don't think we are "better off" for this and I don't think it is necessary at all.
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You and I are on the same sheet of paper, Don. Even though I didn't grow up here. Heck, it has changed just in the 20 years I HAVE been here. And I agree.... not for the better.
 
Ok,

Just to let you know, we were camping once way out in an open field in the Cohutta wilderness. A 4 x 4 truck came by full of rednecks, they get out and start shooting guns all over the field. My and my brother in law flew out of the tent and went flying into the woods. There were about 8 of those guys and you could smell the alcohol on there breath from far as hell away, and they were hooting and hollering. We stayed in the woods until they were through shooting, and they never saw the tent we were in and nothing became of the situation. But lets just say I sure as hell was glad I had my 357 mag on me and my BIL his glock just in case the shit hit the fan.....

So yes, I think that is reason enough right there to have protection at all time. What's it gonna hurt to have a gun on you, it isn't gonna hurt anything. I keep mine concealed at all times and no one will ever know I have one unless I absolutely need to use it, god forbid, but if I need to protect myself then I will. I don't take a gun because of the animals, I take it because of the humans. In the city the cops are usually 5 to 10 minutes away. In the middle of the mountains, well, there is no law enforcement close.
 
^ A pickup truck full of drunk rednecks.You and your Bud would have lost that fight.
 
dipbait said:
^ A pickup truck full of drunk rednecks.You and your Bud would have lost that fight.
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Because drunks are notoriously straight shooters? :p

Joking aside, I have a story for the OP.

When I was in the service, I was an MP assigned to Berlin, Germany. This was just before to slightly after the wall came down.

The Grunewald was the local forest we did our field training in. One night while out in the woods, my turn came for guard duty, and there came a scratching on my shelter half door.

"Hey, do you have a flashlight with you?" was the first thing out of the previous guard's mouth when he saw me stir. I answered that of course I did, and where was his? He said in his tent, and there was a huge pig standing between him and his tent.

Now, the Grunewald is home to the Gruney-pig. That's what we called 'em, anyway. They were plentiful, and not at all shy.

So, I grab my flashlight, take the guard's .45 and go over to the other guy's tent. Sure enough, there's a pig standing on the other side of the tent from us. The hump of its back/shoulders was a few inches taller than the shelter half. I tried to make some noise to see if that'd work, but no go. The pig just turned and stood facing us. I informed the pig that if it tried anything, I'd be forced to shoot, but the pig remained unimpressed. We stood like that for about a solid ten minutes that seemed like a half hour before the pig decided to saunter off.

Once he turned, I scanned the treeline with my flashlight, and caught the reflection of a ring of pig-height eyes spaced evenly around our camp. I didn't do a head count, but the number was pretty impressive. That was probably the uneasiest guard shift I spent in the service.

Now, had some idiot not left our dinner trash on the ground the previous night for the foxes to tear into -- thus attracting the pigs to the camp -- we probably wouldn't have seen the Yogi Bears of the Grunewald at all on that trip.

As for the gun.

Well, I'm just real glad the pig decided that he didn't find it offensive. I've never had less faith in my armament for a given situation. (Though I was glad we had at least the .45 and not just a Maglite.)
 
Head on shot into the most armored portion of the pig, worn out government issue .45 from WWII that shoots maybe five inch groups if that, loaded with ammunition that's nearly as old, dead of the night in the woods, with little ambient light, and the pig was freaking huge. I've seen a pig the same size get run over by a deuce and a half and ramble off during a field exercise in W. Germany.

Nothing inspiring of trust in that situation.
 
Hmm.

My stories would not be useful. They were in a strictly professional capacity and the varmints were not ... woodland animals.
 
Great thread, pack'em if you got'em...

Not your thing?

Don't carry, but don't be a limp wristed pantywaist and demand that the law abiding members of society not carry, because you know what?

The criminal element doesn't give a flying fart about the law or your sensitivities...

You remove the law-abiding citizens from carrying and the criminals will have no fear of repercussion.


"Security is mostly a superstition. It does not exist in nature, nor do the children of men as a whole experience it. Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. Life is either a daring adventure, or nothing."
Helen Keller
 
I always carry if I'm in an area legal to do so. I wish I could carry a handgun here ,but am not allowed to , so I usually have a 12 ga. Mossberg with assorted ammo (00 buck ,birdshot, slugs.) and one of my .22's. Depending on what I'm doing. If going light, I have a single shot 12 ga. /18" bbl. with me with Buck shot.
I've been shot at before , and fortunately wasn't hit... the guy was drunk. That was one of the closest times I came to being killed. Not a good feeling having bullets whiz by your head !
I'm always more worried about idiots and bad people than I've ever been worried about animals. I watch my 6 all time time. Second nature to me now , city or bush. Actually , I feel safer in the bush. Less people , therefore less chance of bad people. That said ,if you do happen to come across someone to do you harm in the woods , there is no one around to help you ! It can turn ugly real quick. I need self defense. Lethal if necessary. Chances are it will never come to that.....but ,it only takes once ,being at the right place at the wrong time. I want that extra measure of security and peace of mind , even though carrying may not 100% save you , it betters your odds.
 
dipbait said:
^ A pickup truck full of drunk rednecks.You and your Bud would have lost that fight.
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Maybe, but they would have had to have come really close to have seen us and by that time they would easily be in range.... element of surprise.....
 
This weekend, my son and I went hunting for elk with our .54 cal blackpowder rifles. Upon arrival in camp, we learned that a crippled black bear had killed one of the range cattle in the area. Unsure if the bear was wounded by an archer of some other injury. I had my .45 that i usually carry for bad people. Felt a little under gunned.
 
First, I want to commend you guys for staying pretty civil in this discussion. There have been some pretty reasoned responses.

One of the best things about living under the Constitution of the United States of America (the document that recognizes, not grants our rights) is not having to rationalize your choice to own or carry a firearm. It is simply a right, intrinsic to all man and outlined by the Constitution.

The likelihood of needing a firearm doesn't matter. To say that I carry/own one because it is my right is reason enough.
 
I'll make this as simple as possible for you. If you don't want to carry a gun in the woods--that's great. But remember--you seldom see and "armed" victim.
 
If I'm worried about wild animals I'd probably feel safer with bear spray.
A four second burst of fire air with a range of 30ish feet would be a bit more likely to hit a wicked fast bear/lion/badger/feral dog than ONE chance with a .44mag.
No precision under pressure required.
Of course pepper spray is useless when a psychotic, murdering, snuff flick making S&M obsessed serial killer approaches from 100yds away with a shotgun or rifle pointed at you.
Pepper spray won't help you in this situation.
I hitchhiked around the country for a couple of years in the late '80's with a full backpacking setup. After a few bad experiences it occurred to me that it could be very easy for someone to kill me, take my stuff and never get caught. Of course I knew this beforehand, but it's entirely different when you're actually in a situation thinking, "Man, this guy might murder me."
I got jumped on a bicycle tour and got a beating that I can still feel 12 years later.
The vast majority of my outdoor adventures have been free of 'bad' people.
Again, I still feel the beating I got from two bad guys 12 years ago.
If I had had a gun (pepper spray probably would have been better in this particular scenario) I wouldn't have a gimp and a lower leg that'll likely be amputated at some point, assuming I make it to my projected 100 year mark.
 
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