vb:literal>

Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast
Results 1 to 10 of 16

Thread: Do you feel safe doing remote geocaches in the Maine woods unarmed?

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Sep 2010
    Location
    Readfield, Maine
    Posts
    101

    Default Do you feel safe doing remote geocaches in the Maine woods unarmed?

    some friends were over this past weekend and It came up that In a couple of weeks I was going to be going on a two night three day geocaching trip to try for 13 pages on the Delorme challenge. Not really a true power run because I plan to do a lot of hikeing type geocaches and I do not want to do one geocache on a page and run, so the plan is two-four per page. OK back on topic, My friends ,and the better half, think I am crazy for alway's heading out on camping trips and Geocaching runs without a hand gun for "protection" from either wildlife or wild people. I think they are parinoid, I have been hiking and camping since I was 12 and my first camping trip in maine was over 24 years ago and NEVER have I carried a gun. I have them and I am not oppossed to them but Like I say, personally I don't feel the need to go geocaching "armed". I was just wondering how other "GEOCACHER'S" feel on this subject. I also realize some folk may not want to give their views to this in a public forum.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Jul 2005
    Location
    Unity, Maine
    Posts
    3,874

    Default

    It's been my experience that here in Maine a little bit of prudence and commonsense (i.e. do not approach the baby moose when the mom is near, do not attempt to pet the cute little black and white kitty cat or movable pin cushion) is all you need to avoid the wildlife . . . well there is the chucabra, but I hear that's only in western Maine.

    It has also been my experience that most of the wild people and crazies tend to congregate in the cities and not the deep woods of Maine . . .

    So in answer to the question . . . I have gone 41 years of hiking, camping, geocaching, sledding and riding the backwoods of Maine and have never yet had a single moment where I have thought I needed a fire arm . . . I think common sense and a bit of prudence is all one needs.

    And yes . . . like you . . . I am most definitely not opposed to firearms and have them . . . that said . . . it doesn't bother me if other folks feel compelled to bring them along on the hike . . . it's a personal choice.
    "Courage is not the absence of fear, but the realization that there is something more important than fear."

    "Death is only one of many ways to die."

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Nov 2009
    Location
    Belgrade, Maine
    Posts
    963

    Default

    I've spent time "out in the wilds" in several states and have never had an encounter where I even remotely thought I'd need a gun to protect myself. I have, however, been out in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by civilization and thought, "Gee, if I had a gun I could shoot that humongous rattlesnake.", but it wasn't a total necessity to do that. The one time I was out with my father and we stumbled on a living raccoon that had been hit by a car and was in really bad shape and Dad had his .22 revolver with him it was a good thing for us, rather than leave the animal to suffer or to use a stick as a club and beat it out of it's misery just one little pop with that .22 and the animal was humainly destroyed. One other time, I found a beaver that had been run over and had a broken back. I didn't have a gun of any kind with me. Fortunately, for the beaver, I had an old golf club in the back of the car and a well placed swing put him down. Currently, I own the very same .22 that dispatched the raccoon but it needs a bit of a going over to make sure it's in good shape before I'd carry it much. I'd consider carrying, if for no other reason than to have the means to end an animal's life rather than leave it to suffer.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Aug 2008
    Location
    America
    Posts
    2,578

    Default

    I have been in the woods most of my childhood and a bunch lately.

    Ever since my fathers murder I have carried a firearm. He never needed one until the first time either.

    I have had only one encounter where all the noise and waving my arms around did not scare away a bear. A shot right in front of it into the ground did the trick. I'm not sure of the outcome without the weapon, but enjoy the outcome with it. The encounter happened in the big city where one would not expect such an occurrence.

    For me I feel better knowing I have all the tools that might be needed, so I can tell the story and not a game warden and/or a coroner.
    I have no enemies, but I'm intensely disliked by my friends.

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Nov 2009
    Location
    Belgrade, Maine
    Posts
    963

    Default

    There is a lot of truth in that saying, Mike, never need one until the first time. It's kinda scary that the state I grew up in from, the 6th grade on, is coming to the point where we're even having this dicsussion, however.

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Aug 2008
    Location
    America
    Posts
    2,578

    Default

    That is so true.
    I have no enemies, but I'm intensely disliked by my friends.

  7. #7

    Default

    Being a big supporter of the 2nd Amendment and believer in the right to arm one self by choice, for self defense purposes, I actually feel very safe in the northern Maine woods unarmed. Although, I generally have my K-Bar knife on me which can be quite deadly, I myself have never come across a time that I felt threatened. There have been some late nights where I could hear coyotes in the distance, but I feel less safe walking around certain towns and cities in Maine and New England unarmed, then I do up north.
    <a href="http://www.geocaching.com/profile/?guid=0838195a-ef02-4e25-a4b9-50f88e311feb" target="_blank"><img src="http://img.geocaching.com/stats/img.aspx?txt=Serious+Caching+Adventures&uid=083819 5a-ef02-4e25-a4b9-50f88e311feb&bg=1" alt="Profile for SeriousTool" /></a>

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Dec 2006
    Location
    Orrington, Maine
    Posts
    629

    Default

    After pondering this question my answer has to be: I do feel safe in the woods unarmed....lock-n-locks and ammo cans are easy to open. But in the city....no way! A typical nano would be extremely difficult to open with no arms........

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Nov 2009
    Location
    Belgrade, Maine
    Posts
    963

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by EMSDanel View Post
    A typical nano would be extremely difficult to open with no arms........
    Sigh. That was bad.

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Sep 2009
    Location
    [x, y, z, t]
    Posts
    672

    Default

    With o.b. you will always feel safe. And that's why some people stuff them in caches.
    Moo

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •