My irrational fear...

[TimC]

I have this irrational fear that I will share and maybe you guys can calm my fears. I will occasionally be camping in out of the way places, where there won't be anyone else camping. My fear is camping and having some idiots trying to scare the s^#@ out of us in the middle of the night, or worse. Have any of you had bad experiences in the wild?

I was camping at a state forest campground a few years ago. It had maybe 20 or so groups of campers and in the late evening after most of the folks had settled in we heard gun shots and shouting coming from a camp site about four sites away. It turned out some idiots were trying to scare someone at a different site next to the one with the gun. I don't think anyone pointed the gun in a serious direction. They were just trying to give the trouble makers a scare. That night has been burned into my memory!

I've thought of silly ways to react to any such event, like having a small hatch in the floor of the TD and if someone tries something setting of a few firecrackers to scare them away. Yeah, I know, stupid thoughts.

[felixx]

I plan to use mine for hunting trips a bit, even if it is just a bunny or 2 with my son.
Fortunately here in New Zealand idiots with firearms are pretty rare.

I think if someone had a firearm and wanted to give you a fright, fire crackers would not be a deterrent.

Read into this what you will, Im not being gung ho, but if you're in the boonies and its getting a bit wild, you need to ensure you and your camping buddies are safe.

[dales133]

Its not realy that irrational.
The older i get the more it concerns me as it does most people.
There are some pretty ordinary people getting around that find robbing or terrorising peole enjoyable not to mention alot of them are of thier heads on crack/ice/P...call it what you will.
Its a differnt world we live in these days and id think twice about camping on my own unless it was very remote...out of dichead range

[Padilen]

Your not alone. I slept in my own yard in my Camper last night. And I wondered if my friends would come over and "scare" me. And I was hoping if anyone did try it would be my friends With out windows or any outdoor lights I was somewhat concerned.
I do plan on a window for door and when an awning is added I'll have string lights for it.

[Vedette]

Best way to enjoy camping I to put those type of thoughts out of your mind!
But, if you are truly a worrier, than don't put yourself in that kind o situation. Camp within your comfort zone.
As seen on this Forum, there are many ways to TD camp.
Pick one you enjoy!
Good Roads
Brian & Sandi

[Dale M.]

I feel it's a rarity rather than the norm to have problems camping .... But idiots abound... You have several choices, always camp with others, do not camp at all, get firearms training and "carry" for self protection, or just do it and if a situation happens deal with it......

Yes its not the same world but I have been camping to 60 years and can only remember one situation where there was a problem, and it was just a drunk stumbling into wrong camp... When several of us escorted him to his camp, and "tucked him in" all was quiet for the rest of the night...

Dale

[TimC]

Its a differnt world we live in these days and id think twice about camping on my own unless it was very remote...out of dichead range

Ha Ha! "Less dickheads range" is a possibility. I don't know if "out of dickheads range" is a thing these days.

Just to be totally transparent... I won't make this irrational fear keep me from doing what I want to do. It's like the 9-11 thing. People told me I was crazy to go to Europe in 2002. If my couch is my only comfort zone they win. I have seriously thought about concealed carry, but, I doubt that I would be safer. You know, the escalating threat thing. Bad guys "Oh S@^t, I think that dude in the camper has a gun. Let's get out the 30-06 and teach him a lesson!"

[Talia62]

I have this irrational fear that I will share and maybe you guys can calm my fears. I will occasionally be camping in out of the way places, where there won't be anyone else camping. My fear is camping and having some idiots trying to scare the s^#@ out of us in the middle of the night, or worse. Have any of you had bad experiences in the wild?

I was camping at a state forest campground a few years ago. It had maybe 20 or so groups of campers and in the late evening after most of the folks had settled in we heard gun shots and shouting coming from a camp site about four sites away. It turned out some idiots were trying to scare someone at a different site next to the one with the gun. I don't think anyone pointed the gun in a serious direction. They were just trying to give the trouble makers a scare. That night has been burned into my memory!

I've thought of silly ways to react to any such event, like having a small hatch in the floor of the TD and if someone tries something setting of a few firecrackers to scare them away. Yeah, I know, stupid thoughts.

Actually, even firing a gun up into the air kills people.

[mkitchen]

I think that a lot of the fears/concerns are due to a lot more media attention to the few issues that do come up. Mo and I do a lot of back country camping and have not had an issue. I believe that you are safer out there than you are in town. You might just try to gradually expand your comfort zone with each trip.
Mikey

[S. Heisley]

Actually, even firing a gun up into the air kills people.

...True, unless it's shooting a blank.

If you're thinking seriously about carrying, please remember that city and county laws can sometimes trump state and even national laws, if they are stricter. Rules for concealed carry can change with each boundary you cross.

Think positive. What you heard may have been immature "friends" scaring somebody on their first camping trip or even honeymoon. The neighboring camper may have been over-reacting because he didn't know better. If the victim(s) knew the people harassing them and thought them friends, they would not be speaking up and saying so.

I believe that it still applies that you are 35% less likely to have a problem when you are camping than you are in your own home. However, go with God and a can of wasp spray. Why wasp spray? Because it hits a target that is close or 20 feet away, temporarily blinding them; and, if you've had to use it, you tell the human (don't use it on animals) that they have to wash their eyes out and get to the hospital within 20 minutes or they'll damage their eye sight and possibly go blind. Once you've told them that, it becomes their choice what they do. Odds are, they'll leave. Once they are gone, you high-tail it out of there and never go back to that location. Call 911 as soon as you have reception and let the authorities know what happened. Will you ever have to use that can of wasp spray? ...Maybe on insects but probably not on humans. But, you will have saved yourself the worry of local laws or of somebody other than you getting hold of your gun because you won't need a gun along unless you're going to hunt for dinner.

Probably (& hopefully), the above is a plan that you'll never need and maybe it'll make you feel better about camping.

...Just my 2 cents.

[TimC]

If you're thinking seriously about carrying, please remember that city and county laws can sometimes trump state and even national laws, if they are stricter. Rules for concealed carry can change with each boundary you cross.

Think positive. What you heard may have been immature "friends" scaring somebody on their first camping trip or even honeymoon. The neighboring camper may have been over-reacting because he didn't know better. If the victim(s) knew the people harassing them and thought them friends, they would not be speaking up and saying so.

I believe that it still applies that you are 35% less likely to have a problem when you are camping than you are in your own home. However, go with God and a can of wasp spray. Why wasp spray? Because it hits a target that is close or 20 feet away, temporarily blinding them; and, if you've had to use it, you tell the human (don't use it on animals) that they have to wash their eyes out and get to the hospital within 20 minutes or they'll damage their eye sight and possibly go blind. Once you've told them that, it becomes their choice what they do. Odds are, they'll leave. Once they are gone, you high-tail it out of there and never go back to that location. Call 911 as soon as you have reception and let the authorities know what happened. Will you ever have to use that can of wasp spray? ...Maybe on insects but probably not on humans. But, you will have saved yourself the worry of local laws or of somebody other than you getting hold of your gun because you won't need a gun along unless you're going to hunt for dinner.

Probably (& hopefully), the above is a plan that you'll never need and maybe it'll make you feel better about camping.

...Just my 2 cents.

I like the wasp spray idea. Or pepper spray (large bottle for bears and such). K.I.S.S. is my mantra! I don't need the complications of a gun and changing regulations every time I pass into another jurisdiction. And explaining what happened after the fact. I'm sure there would be doubts in my story no matter the facts.

Sharon, your two cents are worth a fortune to me. You just saved me countless hours perusing the internet about what handgun to buy. Then hour upon hour making sure I know the regulations and getting a CC license. And the money saved! Hundreds at least...

[dales133]

We cant carry guns here so ill just have to resort to a "this vechile is protected by a pitbull with aids" sticker on the window

[lrrowe]

I have concerns when I camp in the National Forests. But I do take precautIons. I notice who is around me and who comes and goes (when I can). About 35 years ago, a pair of crazies found a guy sleeping in his Izuzu and shot him for the fun of it. It was very near I camp. This story made the Most Wanted TV show and they did catch the bad guys years and years later.

I still will not let it stop me and where possible I have a buddy with me as I will be doing next week during hunting season. And I do pity the idiot who does try something. What idiot wanders into an armed camp?

[lrrowe]

I read something about a comparison of them on the web. I forget the details of the articles, but they can be googled.
I myself will stick to using the designed stuff....bear spray for the big furry menaces and personal spray for the two footed ones. But Just my personal opinion, I do not think I want to depend on only bear spray for grizzlies.
And I would not hesitate to use bear spray on the bad guy.

[tony.latham]

The only time I've been rousted at a campsite was by a government trapper knocking on my 'drop's door. "I'm with Wildlife Services and I put a a wolf set out on a wolf-killed beef calf and a grizzly stepped in the damn trap and snapped the chain. I think he's across the creek still wearing the trap. Don't go down there."

Sheeeeesh, you gotta be kidding me.

I've thought of silly ways to react to any such event...

Next time call 9-1-1. (As if you had a cell phone twenty years ago) It's illegal to discharge a firearm in federal campgrounds and I'm sure the same for state campgrounds. Sure, how long is the response time? "It depends," but I think there's an old Chinese saying about taking firecrackers to a gunfight.

Wasp spray vs. bear spray? There are peer reviewed papers about the effectiveness of bear spray on bears. (It is very effective and works the same on humans.) There's discussion about using wasp spray on humans on Snopes. Keep in mind, spraying someone with a poison could easily get you arrested for aggravated battery followed by a law suit if there's permanent eye damage. (And what bumb's not going to lie about that?)

If there's anyone willing to try wasp spray on a grizzly, please make sure your video is rolling! (Bear spray is $35 on Amazon BTW)






Tony