Posted on 05/07/2008 8:01:41 AM PDT by neverdem
East Brainerd resident Monica Dobbs hikes 100 miles of the Appalachian Trail every winter with friends and craves the quiet days without cell phones, television and work.
Hikers who want to leave their daily lives behind sleep next to strangers in shelters, and many trade their real names for trail names. They sometimes can walk two or three days to find a town or a phone.
While leaving society behind is refreshing, being alone in the woods also can be terrifying.
“It’s an invitation for a disaster,” said Ms. Dobbs, a 28-year-old hairdresser, who plans to take a 9 mm handgun with her on her next trek.
“I think you should be allowed to legally carry a weapon for defense purposes. If someone comes after me, what am I going to do?” she said.
Guns have been restricted from some national parks for more than 100 years, except for hunting areas. However, there is a growing interest in easing the restrictions. U.S. Department of the Interior officials have proposed bringing federal gun restrictions in line with state laws. If approved, the change would allow hikers to carry loaded concealed weapons in some national parks.
Though crime in America’s national parks has decreased in the last 10 years, 384 incidents including killings, rapes, robberies, kidnappings and aggravated assaults occurred in national parks in 2006, according to the National Park Service.
In January a 24-year-old woman, Meredith Emerson, was found bludgeoned to death on a North Georgia section of the Appalachian Trail, and the killer has been linked to other park slayings.
Since 1973, 10 killings and 10 rapes have been reported on or around the 2,176-mile-long Appalachian Trail, which comprises 40 percent national park land, 40 percent national forest land and 20 percent state land, said Brian King, spokesman for the...
(Excerpt) Read more at timesfreepress.com ...
Good for her. She just does not want to contribute to a Deliverance Part 11.
Hot chick with Pistol ping
I had a friend who was hiking the Appalachian Trail a few years back. I said I wouldn’t do it without my gun and he laughed and said I was paranoid. I would actually be more worried about wild animals than people, but in either case it’s good to be prepared.
Several things wrong with this statement. Ms. Emerson was not found dead on the trail nor even on the side trail to the AT that she was hiking. Her killer has been linked to other slayings, but none (including hers) were in parks. The AT is not a park. It is in Nat'l Forests for the most part which have hunting seasons. Certainly here in Ga. I have hiked all of it in Ga and have seen hunters many times.
A ten pound handgun? Is there such a thing?
I live in suburban NJ near the AT and hiked 240 miles of the AT last year, and I'd tend to agree. My time on the trail was pretty damn frightening last year at moments, bears in NY/NJ are so abundant they were growling at each other to see who got to steal my food. That and the BDSM looking crazy dude wearing a bright yellow see through halter top propositioning the guys for BJs, he might be a NYC area thing only though. That guy did show up on thruhikers journals though.
Last summer there was also a NoBo thruhiker who was "romancing" young female thruhikers then once he got to taste the milk, would disappear in the mornings and outpace the score to find new cows. Guy was notorious and possibly raped two women.
maybe ... back when they were matchlock muzzle loaders, and it was spelled "hand-gonne"
Unfortunately they don't, in fact they don't allow firearms at all in most cases. If they do it will be in conformity with local law, which will allow concealed carry for those properly licensed in the particular jurisdiction. Which is most cases is a very small population, in state permit holders or permit holders in a reciprocal state.
IMO carry should be allowed on federal land for anyone who can legally own a firearm, period. If not concealed, open.
That would be an M1 Garand with a small bag of trail mix on the bayonet .
“Nice to see someone who knows how to hold a gun.”
The lady holds the gun with four fingers wrapped around its butt. I guess that’s how you hold it when you plan to beat someone to death with it.
“I think you should be allowed to legally carry a weapon for defense purposes. If someone comes after me, what am I going to do?” she said.
Well, you could start by recognizing that no matter what the feminists taught you, the rules are different for attractive young women and hiking alone is an invitation for a disaster whether you carry a gun or not. America is not that civilized. Take a group of friends or stay home.
Give her a break. At least she has her finger OFF the trigger. She’s posing for a picture, for goodness sakes.
“ten pound handgun”
Yes, referring to the famous class of handgun, the “Bulky.” That would be the Tec-9.
“She’s posing for a picture, for goodness sakes.”
Would you feel comfortable holding a gun in that manner even when posing for a pic?
“A ten pound handgun? Is there such a thing?”
I was referencing the Walker model Colt; double-checking shows it only
made it to four pounds, nine ounces.
And it’s a BIG old gun.
I do admit I don’t know the weight of another old Civil-War era gun
(the Lebel?) that even had basically a small shotgun barrel under the
main pistol barrel.
But a 10-pound “hand” gun? Maybe the old “horse-guns” of centuries ago?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walker_Colt
....”The National Park Service advises against solo camping or hiking in the backcountry. Even experienced hikers can get into trouble and, if alone, may not be able to obtain help....”
from the Great Smokey Mt National Park Service guide
....the AT runs along the border of our county with Tennessee....the origional firearms ban was to stop poaching....now days you’ve got even more neferious activities on NPS lands...pot farming,meth labs,genseng poachers,indian grave robbers,persimmons wood rustlers, mushroom hunters ect....not to mention the proliferation of feral hogs and bears....NC is a concealed carry state and I don’t go into the woods without doing just that.
Sorry, but a 9mm handgun isn't going to do much to deter an angry mama bear.
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