Camping security

[KILR0Y]

Coincidental how the moderators deleted several posts out of a nice adult discussion about camping security (between 180pilot & I) when a day later TCM posts a nice article regarding this very same thing. http://www.truckcampermagazine.com/newbie-articles/personal-safety-for-truck-campers-part-1

I do understand the need to keep threads 'on topic' though, so...

I enjoyed the TCM article especially since I've been present when two campers next to me were murdered in their camp back in 2005. My family knows the murderer drove past our camp multiple times getting a feel for who his victim would be. Glad I grabbed my .45 on his last pass, which we believe he saw me do.

Not looking too start a "scare" thread here but are there any other similar experiences out there?

What do others do for their protection?

Keep it civil and respect those things which may offend others please, and we'll get to keep this thread going so that others may become educated...

Thanks in advance to you contributors.

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[Wandering Sagebrush]

Interesting article. I met the author at DVNP earlier this year. To say the least, Bryan is a character.

 

[billharr]

I had read the TCM article, I guess I am just not as paranoid as he is.

 

[Ramblinman]

This is an easy one for me. Marlin 45-70 Guide Gun. Sits on top of the little shelf above the couch all the time. It helped me sort out a Grizzly that walked with in 10m of me Aug 23. I can hunt with and protect with. Handguns are restricted in my neck of the woods.

BTW - bear lived. I put a bullet at its feet.

Great thread. This is important stuff!

 

[DanoT]

I usually do 1 or 2 winter ski trips from Canada to the US so carrying firearms is out. Instead I carry a bear banger with a pen type lancher as well as an air horn.

 

[180pilot]

Ah paranoia..........my forte! My first day in Nam, one of our cooks stood by an mess hall hooch open back door, a VC sniper ended his culinary career..

As I said in my post that got deleted, In my 55 of camping, I've encountered Grizzly, Wolves and angry Moose, but man is still my biggest worry. From drunk jerks discharging firearms indiscriminately in nearby areas. To those strange beat up vehicles driving slowly by.....
By a long shot, my worst fear is going off hunting or fishing and being some miles away from my rig. If a criminal has been watching me for some time, he knows I'm alone and if I'm hunting may have some other firearms, or something else he'd like to have in my camper..and there is no one else now around to stop him.from getting it.. So,.. you think you've heard paranoia.. stand by.. I'm looking into an electronic portable surveillance system:

http://www.wanderthewest.com/forum/topic/9416-radio-portable-security-system/

Some tricks I have, make anyone believe there is someone else staying in the camper,....Wave good bye through partially open door to your invisible other as you leave, and leave a radio on low inside to some elevator music or country station...just so you can hear it about 25 ft. away. No stations in daytime, a MP3 player plugged into a portable.. both batteries full charge. If you were in the military, you will know how hard it is to see someone in the woods with only mediocre camo and binoculars watching you. However, scanning surrounding area with your own good 7 X 50's is always a good idea. This is one reason I would not buy a new FWC without awnings over the open windows. At night, way to easy for anyone to see and tell how many people in camper....If close enough, they can also hear you. Which leads me to another point,... picking a campsite with a good perimiter clearing. If area is wide open most criminals will not cross into it. Gravel and hard dirt with rocks is your friend here, ever noticed how easy to hear someone walking outside a pop-up on such surfaces? Brooming, a prospective perp may come in to have a look, take a broom and sweep a 4ft. wide ring 25 ft. or so out from your rig. Check for fresh tracks in the sweep in morning, It's also interesting to see what critters came in to have a look at you....

In most areas of Idaho and Montana I go, help is a long ways off, even with my Satellite phone cranked up.. When I had to use it, help was a long long time coming..... If you choose to carry, carry all the time. It should be light enough and quick to put on and off,not in your way, and adequate for what ever wildlife you could encounter. In Griz. country I pack a 4" .44 mag with skull penetrators. If forced into areas of Calif. with pot growers. 9mm Glock with 3- 20 rd. mags. And inside the ubiquitous Stainless 20" 12 gauge with 7 shot mag. and one ounce rifled slug. or # 4 buck.

On the normal side of enjoying the outdoors, most all others you will meet in those most remote areas will be like yourself, and will bend over backwards to help you and enjoy your company around their campfire. But I'm sure you've had those times the hair stood up on the back of your neck,,,the giver gave us that sense for a reason. Common sense and a little situation awareness is all that's needed to tell you, you need to change your location...

Cheers,,

 

[180pilot]

Are the Canadian customs officials still deciding on there own volition about whether or not you need a rifle or shotgun depending where you are going in Canada?? Last time I crossed to ski they told me I would not need any firearm if going to Banff or Jasper parks and that one could not take a firearm into the parks . But, if I was going through to Alaska, he would let me have my rifle in camper. So, I had to turn around and leave rifle in Montana...When I got to the Parks,.. just outside a sign "please remove bolts from rifles and pack away separately" he lied to me.....First campground I camped at the manager came over and said be very careful a Grizzly had decided to wake up early and was prowling the camp at night.......From now on if I cross the border I'm telling them I'm going to AK. Every time I have crossed in aircraft, only had to give serial # of rifle and make, did it over phone one time.from airport of entry...

 

[180pilot]

Bodies found in Klamath River every year, friend in Weaverville tells me.

One of my favorite places to camp is up the Cal Salmon river, near the village of Forks of Salmon. Spoke with a deputy sheriff up near there one day while in the FWC and he told me about all the pot growers up that way. We all know about how rare it is for legal carry in California, but the sheriff deputy recommended I carry one up there for protection. He said they all pretty much avoid that area because it isn't safe for even law enforcement to be.

Sad, such a beautiful place.

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[180pilot]

Got this from Canadian Embassy site:

"Most ordinary hunting rifles and shotguns. These may be brought temporarily into Canada for sporting or hunting use during hunting season, for use in competition, for in-transit movement through Canada, or for personal protection against wildlife in remote areas of Canada. Anyone wishing to bring hunting rifles into Canada must be at least 18 years old, and the firearm must be properly stored for transport."

If the customs officers can still make their own personal decision about whether you need a rifle, I wonder..really ticked me off..

Oh yeah, they took my Bear Spray away from me, saying only approved Canadian Bear Spray could be taken into Canada.... When I got into Canada, exact same spray for sale they took from me......and wasn't cheap...

 

[Casa Escarlata Robles Too]

Oh yeah, they took my Bear Spray away from me, saying only approved Canadian Bear Spray could be taken into Canada.... When I got into Canada, exact same spray for sale they took from me......and wasn't cheap...

In 2011 on our way to Denali I asked that question about bear spray at the border and was told ...if it is bear spray and not "pepper" spray it is allowed.
Pepper spray is for humans bear spray is for bears.
One is still at the mercy of the border guards. They have you.
Frank

 

[Smokecreek1]

Interesting article and the follow up on the Canadian position on beer/pepper spay. Over the years we have had several threads -some rather heated-on personal protection, & being safe out there and related subjects. Still the best advise i give (and it is maybe a general feeling on this site) is always be prepared for anything, use your common sense, and don't get into "that " situation " in the first place-if you can help it. Still, for me, when everything else fails, my first safety measure after the above, is my trusty dog, then my can of bear spray and if things get real bad(depending on where i am), my trusty glock or 357 Colt trooper. Again I spent allot of years learning and being trained- both on the job and off of it- in the back country on how to deal with lot's of various situations and the "Public". One of my big fears out there is that untrained and uninformed person with a gun, vehicle,fishing rod or what ever, thinking he/she is making a right decision, making a wrong decision that impacts me and my own-just got to be prepared and hope for the best

Smoke.

 

[Casa Escarlata Robles Too]

Funny, because they are both Oleo Capsicum OC based and likely the same percent ingredients.

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That was my take on the sprays.
I guess it's what container it's in and the labeling.
Frank

 

[Casa Escarlata Robles Too]

Also read that a can of "wasp" spray would work pretty well,plus it shoots a stream about 20'.
Border guards can't complain about that.
Smoke your advise is right on. Avoid a problem situation when ever you can. Just having a gun can be the worse thing for someone who is not trained to you one.
Frank

 

[idahoron]

I spend a lot of time on the river. The Snake River here in Idaho draws a lot of people some that are not friendly. The areas I fish for Catfish and Sturgeon are probably some of the more dangerous places in Idaho. As a part of my defence I open carry in some areas and in others I conceal carry. I have never met an unfriendly person while open carrying a 45 auto. I try not to leave my truck in those areas electing to do float trips where someone leaves me there and takes the truck to a more secure location.

If I am hunting or camping I open carry and leave a second 45 auto at the camper for my wife if I have to leave her. I have never ran into anyone while hunting that was a "bad" guy, but I don't trust anyone.

For camping only I mostly conceal carry because I will most likely be staying around camp. Most of the time I camp in remote areas where I have no neighbors. I don't like being beside people while camping. That said we stay fairly often in a campground in Boise. The campground itself is clean nice and the people there have always been great. It is also next to a green belt that has had murder's, rape's, armed robery's you name it. No matter how nice a place can be the "bad" guy is always possibly there. It drives me crazy that my family doesn't understand there are dangers and they need to stay alert everywhere.
Keeping my family and I safe is my first and most important job. This is an awesome thread.

 

[Ramblinman]

Problem with pistols is they are meant for short range only ... Especially under stress. This might work for a 2 legged threat in a pinch. But the long barrel and an optical site is required for the four legged threat ... Or the zombie apocalypse. This said I would carry full time if it was legal in Canada.

Sorry bout the Canadian Border Guards - some times they get a little over zealous. I hope that they do not discourage you from coming back.

 

[N'kwala]

Well, I gottoo say it: I moved north to Canada in 1970 to take work with an orchestra, and the country has become my home... At the border, I was preceded by a man who turned himself back south when he learned he couldn't carry his revolver into the Canada. I knew then that I was going to like living there. I hope the Border Guards remain zealous--I suspect they are insufficiently so.

I've camped a lot, over the past thirty years, alone and in pretty remote spots. I do keep bear spray handy and wouldn't hesitate to use it against human predators. I'm not about to start carrying a firearm of any description. And yes, I've backpacked in the Rockies and stepped over steaming grizzly scat. I do know of what I write.

 

[K6ON]

Here's how we protect the motor-home. Might have trouble getting back into Canada, but spent two months there after I retired and experienced the wonderful people, spectacular scenery, crappy whiskey, expensive fuel, and strange brew. Maybe I don't need to go back Just kidding...

Of course we couldn't travel without the twins....

 

[K6ON]

I'm a whiskey guy. There's a bottle of Angels Envy in the cabinet too. I drink it often, one of the world's 10 best whiskeys and under $40.00 a bottle. Life is good

 

[Smokecreek1]

Gee Bob, how come you didn't brig the twins up to Eagle Lake -I hope you rectify that defect whe4n we meet at the lake next month -of course, Domino was pretty neat looking, at least my " Bob" thought soo ! Kilroy-bad people do have guns and that's part of the problem! As a vodka man myself, Bob are ya bringing some of that stuff Kilroy noted (thought you where a whisky man) for us masses !

Smoke

 

[K6ON]

Smoke, I'll have Angels Envy, Gentleman Jack, and maybe some Sam Houston. I think there's some Scotch in the camper, although I don't drink the stuff. The twins will be busy that weekend..sorry

Kilroy, I'll give Pendleton 1910 a try and let you know my opinion.....OOPS, just went to the web page. Pendleton is Canadian Whiskey, never tasted any Canadian whiskey that wasn't swill..I'll pass thank you.

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