Who carrys a firearm with them while camping?

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Desert Runner

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One time in the back country of Glacier NP. We were all open carrying, as was he, he asked about the guns out of curiosity as to what we were carrying and a reminder that discharging a weapon in the park would be illegal. Carrying is not.
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That is such a difference from the late 1970's/early 80's. Back then NP Rangers were known to hassle people if they even saw a firearm. The push-back from all the restrictions in place, resulted in those policies being eased. The 'checks and balances' put in place for the 3 branches of government, are for the next 2 year;s........sidelined. Anyone that follow's politic''s, know's the party that is in power, will run with it. Expect a wild ride. Let's just hope that some radical politicians will choose not to touch that 3rd rail, similar to what happens if they touch social security.

This is why they are doing it by legislation. A presidential degree can easily be dismissed by a pen, but passed legislation can only be overturned by new legislation or by court order. And that is a Cr^p-shoot, and not a sure thing. As seen in prior years.

As I have commented on before. I would rather have ability to protect myself and family, and not a officer who gets there minutes /hours later vs the seconds I might have to deescalate the situation. Whether that be at home in the city, or out in the wilderness.
 
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CR-Venturer

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One time in the back country of Glacier NP. We were all open carrying, as was he, he asked about the guns out of curiosity as to what we were carrying and a reminder that discharging a weapon in the park would be illegal. Carrying is not.
Obviously things are a bit different in Canada, but when I'm out in the bush camped out, I somewhat keep the gun on the DL. It's perfectly legal to have a non-restricted firearm on crown land for target shooting or wildlife defense, of course, but especially these days I don't trust that some overzealous and ignorant mountie isn't going to try to jack me up over it.

If I lived in the states, I might open carry a handgun in the bush with a proper retention holster, because it's a very different environment than an urban area. The bears aren't going to sneak up on you and try to grab your gun, and any two legged varmints aren't likely to get right up on you before you know they're there, so the convenience of open carry wins.

Depending where I am and what I'm doing, I might opt for a rifle or shotgun anyway though.
 
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M Rose

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That’s a great ap to have! Unfortunately SC has a bad rap and the press seems to make it sound like we give guns to anyone with a pulse! Not true btw, but not too many states honor my cwp! I have looked into getting one from another state that is acceptable in more states but it’s a little bit more trouble than worth from what I hear. My feelings is this is America we are all one. I should be able to carry from sea to shining sea without being hassled!!!
Look into getting a Utah CCW permit. They are easy to get and one of the most widely reciprocal permits.
 

LowCountryBound

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That’s a great ap to have! Unfortunately SC has a bad rap and the press seems to make it sound like we give guns to anyone with a pulse! Not true btw, but not too many states honor my cwp! I have looked into getting one from another state that is acceptable in more states but it’s a little bit more trouble than worth from what I hear. My feelings is this is America we are all one. I should be able to carry from sea to shining sea without being hassled!!!
Look into getting a Utah CCW permit. They are easy to get and one of the most widely reciprocal permits.
Doing that right now!
 
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M Rose

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...
My question is for those who carry at the campsite, do you open carry or concealed? Have you ever had anyone, park ranger or otherwise call you out on it?
I do both... a side arm is a side arm... it stays at my side... I have my long arms within reach, maybe not in perfect visible site, but not hidden either.

As for being called out by the authorities... only once... night before Elk Season opened up I was unpacking camp and had a game warden stop and talk to me. He wasn’t too happy that I was transferring my rifle from the truck to the tent... he felt it should have stayed locked up in my truck until the season opened the next morning. My view was I didn’t trust my vehicle to keep my rifle secure, yes my vehicle had locks and such but windows can be broken and lock boxes can be picked.
The next day as I was returning from my hunt I saw the warden walking down the FS road. I stopped and asked if he needed a ride. He said he would get a ride as far as my camp then continue walking to town. This had me puzzled for a minute, so I asked where his truck was... well long story short... he parked his truck at the trail head about 2 miles up the road from my camp the night before and hiked in to a spot where he thought he could catch a poacher (we were on a unit border where the unit I was hunting was foot access only and the other unit was very accessible to a rig). After sitting in the brush most of the opening day and not seeing a hunter he decided to go back to his rig and change locations for day 2. When he got to the trail head his truck was no where to be found.
He also told me that he then understood why I didn’t trust my rig to secure my rifle... even if I was 20 feet from the rig.
We did find the Warden’s truck. No damage done, and it was several miles away at a state camp ground. This happened many many years ago when we would leave the keys in the ignition or under the gas cap while in the woods invade there was some kind of emergency and some one needed a rig quickly. Usually you would leave the narrowed rig at the nearest camp ground, gas station, mechanic shop, or at the police department along with a note saying who you are, why you took the rig, your contact information, as well as reimbursement for fuel .
 

ThundahBeagle

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Look into getting a Utah CCW permit. They are easy to get and one of the most widely reciprocal permits.
There was a big push for National Carry back in the mid 1990's. Obviously it got nowhere. So within my circles, there was a big push to get licensed in the several states that had the highest reciprocity so one could essentially carry anywhere. I never bothered with that, as most of my travel was limited to New England.

Most of my travel is still within New England, but I'll be headed west for a road trip in a couple months and it's got me thinking.
 
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M Rose

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There was a big push for National Carry back in the mid 1990's. Obviously it got nowhere. So within my circles, there was a big push to get licensed in the several states that had the highest reciprocity so one could essentially carry anywhere. I never bothered with that, as most of my travel was limited to New England.

Most of my travel is still within New England, but I'll be headed west for a road trip in a couple months and it's got me thinking.
most of the east coast accepts the Utah CCW permit

 

Two Sheds

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I actually have the Unicorn of ccw, issued in Kalifornia, so yes.. I carry.
now to our brethren in Canadia.. A- NEED.?, “who needs x y z weapon? Really? And your argument about the difference between a “regular “ semi auto rifle/ carbine and the dreaded “ Black Rifle”.. none. Exactly. They just look scary to some folk. It’s never been about guns, it’s about CONTROL. It’s a GOD given right to self protection from what or who ever. At OUR country‘s founding Some folks that wanted to maintain a stranglehold on Freedom seekers from across the pond were afraid of those people standing up, came to take their “Black Rifles” of the day. I think we know how that worked out. So if you don’t want one, don’t get one. But don’t belittle our Constitutional & God given rights.
..and now for something completely different
 

CR-Venturer

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I actually have the Unicorn of ccw, issued in Kalifornia, so yes.. I carry.
now to our brethren in Canadia.. A- NEED.?, “who needs x y z weapon? Really? And your argument about the difference between a “regular “ semi auto rifle/ carbine and the dreaded “ Black Rifle”.. none. Exactly. They just look scary to some folk. It’s never been about guns, it’s about CONTROL. It’s a GOD given right to self protection from what or who ever. At OUR country‘s founding Some folks that wanted to maintain a stranglehold on Freedom seekers from across the pond were afraid of those people standing up, came to take their “Black Rifles” of the day. I think we know how that worked out. So if you don’t want one, don’t get one. But don’t belittle our Constitutional & God given rights.
..and now for something completely different
Don't lump all of us Canucks into one group. I'm Canadian and I 100% support lawful firearms ownership including concealed carry. I would like to see it brought back to Canada. Yes, believe it or not, concealed carry was both legal and somewhat common in Canada before the 1930's.

Also, the OP had actually changed his view and no longer believes what he previously posted, so that's an encouraging thing.
 

BensonSTW

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For the longest time I didn’t want an ar just because of the attention around them. I was sitting in a gun shop one day and I owned something comparable to everything on the wall. I couldn’t justify buying a single firearm that day. I started to walk out and saw a rack with a couple of ar15s sitting there. I thought, I’ll just take a look. I walked out with a s&w ar15. After shooting it I thought it would be awesome for calling coyotes. I bought an all polymer lower for and it weighs nothing with a straight 5x Burris sight. Now that I had a spare lower I needed an extra upper and ended up with a target barrel upper and a 6x18 leupold scope for it. It’s one of my most accurate rifles. Wether I am calling coyotes or eliminating sage rats from my buddy’s hay fields, they are the first two rifles I grab. They are more fun than I can explain. If you honestly think there is no reason for an ar15 in the world, I invite you to come spend a day in the squirrel fields with me. See it being used as it was designed to be used for. As long as you aren’t squeamish, I promise you won’t be able to wipe the grin off your face.
 

SquishBang

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For the longest time I didn’t want an ar just because of the attention around them. I was sitting in a gun shop one day and I owned something comparable to everything on the wall. I couldn’t justify buying a single firearm that day. I started to walk out and saw a rack with a couple of ar15s sitting there. I thought, I’ll just take a look. I walked out with a s&w ar15. After shooting it I thought it would be awesome for calling coyotes. I bought an all polymer lower for and it weighs nothing with a straight 5x Burris sight. Now that I had a spare lower I needed an extra upper and ended up with a target barrel upper and a 6x18 leupold scope for it. It’s one of my most accurate rifles. Wether I am calling coyotes or eliminating sage rats from my buddy’s hay fields, they are the first two rifles I grab. They are more fun than I can explain. If you honestly think there is no reason for an ar15 in the world, I invite you to come spend a day in the squirrel fields with me. See it being used as it was designed to be used for. As long as you aren’t squeamish, I promise you won’t be able to wipe the grin off your face.
I too have a S&W AR15. I freaking love it!
I soooooo badly want to go on one of those Texas feral pig hunts with it!
 
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