How Safe Are National Forests ?

[TheNewCatfish]

Crime in National Forests ? The statistics may shock you. According to National Park records, in 2005 in the 5 largest, busiest western parks 2,659 fatalities occured. An average of 500 people per park. Out of those fatalities, HALF were attributed to natural causes. The other half occured under suspicious circumstances. In those cases, the remains were recovered only HALF of the time. That means 250 people disappeared under suspicious circumstances in each of five National Parks and were never found and presumed DEAD (According to The Journal for Wilderness Medicine and Environmental Study). Inotherwords, if you die in a National Forest, you have a 50/50 chance of being MURDERED. Whereas drowning and boating accidents only account for 10% of fatalities in National Parks. The Truth is you ARN'T being protected on public land. The best protection is to ALWAYS carry a sidearm. Never allow ANY armed person to enter your campsite unchallenged, (especially at night). Avoid camping alone, or travelling alone. If you are hiking, frequently check for a cell phone signal. Sometimes you'll have NO SIGNAL, and you'll need to be aware of that fact. Be vigillent and don't drop your guard. If you take your family camping, YOU are responsible for bringing them home safely. The Forestry Service won't be riding up like the calvary to save the day. That's a statistical fact.

 

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[TheNewCatfish]

Nor will any Forest Ranger or BLM officer provide you with these shameful statistics when you drive through the parks gate with your family. They're gonna tell you, "You're perfectly SAFE". "Nuthin like that ever happens around here, Enjoy your stay". The truth is (and they know it), you're about as safe throwing a blanket down on skid row in Houston, New Orleans or the city of Chicago expecting to make it through the night sleeping on the sidewalk. Probably why they started allowing people to carry firearms in National Parks just recently. Well. At least that's something,huh ?

 

[RGINN]

A big difference between National PARKS and National FORESTS, although they can overlap. I am surrounded by National FORESTS up here. So if I got killed in a car wreck on the way to work it would technically be another death in the National FOREST. I camp alone and hike alone all the time in national forests, and take my family along other times, with no violent encounters or unsolved murders so far. I don't walk around with gun in hand but I sometimes have one in the truck. Have you had some difficulties in the national lands? I assume you are not an outdoorsman. As I said, I am surrounded by national forest up here and millions of people come here winter and summer to ski and camp. I haven't seen a high number of violent encounters or murders going on. This is what you really need to worry about, cause this is a cold hard fact of life, TheNewCatfish, nature can and will kill you if you drop your guard. Avalanches, rock slides, falling, bear or lion attacks, hypothermia, drowning, lightning strikes, dead pine trees falling, freezing to death, or forest fires are way more important things to worry about. But thanks for the heads up, as maybe it will cut down on the number of people I encounter in the woods this year. You particularly. You might be able to find a nice city park in your area where you would be safer. Plus it would have slides and swings and all that sort of thing.

 

[RGINN]

One more thing. I do not own a celphone. 'NO SIGNAL' does not strike fear into my heart. You might do better in the woods if you took yours and threw it as far away as you could next time you ventured close to the great outdoors.

 

[spartacus53]

One more thing. I do not own a celphone. 'NO SIGNAL' does not strike fear into my heart. You might do better in the woods if you took yours and threw it as far away as you could next time you ventured close to the great outdoors.

RGINN, you know I love your posts, but this time I have to disagree with the cell phone

How else can you tweet, I'm about to be eaten by a bear

 

[Produce Guy]

When my wife & I were dating ,I took her to Big Bend national park in Texas for a week,had no problems at all,and Big Bend is a really big place.Like I said no problems until the last day,when my wife took her purse inside a store to buy some gas and a shady fellow saw that she had a couple of $100 bills in her purse.He follows us on down to a trail head,and I kind of thought something wasn't right so ,I put my Ruger .22 pistol in my day pack and took my hiking stick with us.At first everything was okay.lots of people on the trail so he didn't try anything,but as we walked down the trail some more and around the bend in the trail,he rushed up on us ,put his finger in his jacket like he had a gun and demanded our money,before I could get my gun in my daypack,my wife takes her hiking stick(a piece of hard oak) and busts him in the face,and then in the shins and then in the privates,he slips off the the trail and falls about 10-20 feet down into the Rio Grande river.We turn around and start to walk back to tell a ranger ,when another couple ask's us if we've seen that guy who just tried to rob them,my wife tells them that she just kicked his ass and he was in the river.We all walk back together and then find a ranger.They go down to the spot and find him,bloody and pissed off,he tells them that we came after him,but they didn't beleive him.( I never said anything about my gun).He later confessed.

 

[63bkpkr]

I hike the National Forests and have never had problems with 2 legged animals. National Parks are full of city folks that do not read or understand the directions to not touch the animals, feed them or get too close to them, like if you are too close to a Buffalo it will start to grunt indicating you should back off. Same goes for Elk, Moose, Bears, Deer, Fox, you get the idea. First night in yellowstone the ambulance came in to take care of someone who did not follow the instructions and got stomped by one of the critters. This was one of the times I was in a park but the stomped person was not me as I know I can not run 25 mph like most of the 4 legged animals can so I stayed the polite distance from them.

Now 4 legged animals in the forest are a different thing especially if they think you have food. This is why I carry a .454 Casull as I've been accosted by lots of bears, lost some food bags but not my life or my children's lives...............63bkpkr

 

[dieselram94]

A good rule to live by, ALWAYS TRUST YOUR GUT! if that little voice inside you says something ain't right LISTEN to it! Bad people are everywhere, but a little common sense goes along way. I could tell a true story here about murder in a park but I will save that for later.
A good book for everyone to read is The Gift of Fear by Gavin Debecker

 

[XDSA40]

Ocala National Forest. Kidnapping, Murder and Mayhem.

Kidnapping, Murder and Mayhem: The Dark Forest

I lived near the ONF for several years and have been there a few times. The above article lists only a few of the murders and rapes that have occured there in recent years and is still ongoing. I strongly recommend you not camp in this forest alone, armed or not. I won't even fish the lakes or ponds there in broad daylight.

 

[pippinwhitepaws]

OMG

 

[DizzyDigger]

 

[Treasure_Hunter]

I always conceal carry when in any forest or national park , I don't advertise it, I just do it.

Better to have it and not need it, than need it and not have it.....

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

 

[RGINN]

I decided to pay more attention over the summer months as to what is goin on in the National Forests. I live in the middle of the Arapahoe National Forest. Just not a whole hell of a lot in the fatality area so far. A few climbers have fallen to their deaths. They took an intentional risk so it wasn't crime related. My 17 yr. old grandson got cross ways with a bear and got chased back into the house, but the 12 yr. old grandson went out and chased it off. That was an incident in the National Forest, but we didn't report it. You get closer to the front range area of the national forests and crime will rear it's ugly head it seems. Altitude up here seems to kill more people than anything else. At 10,000 feet you will find out real quick if you have a pre-existing heart condition. However, as much as I enjoy visitin with all the Texans and Okies I run across here in the high country, I will say it's horribly dangerous up here. Bandits behind every tree on every turn of the trail. I have heard grizzlies have moved back into the mountains. Plan your next vacation for the eastern plains. You can see a long ways and the temps are more what you're used to. I will continue to tough it out here in the mountains, and keep an eye on all the empty campgrounds.

 

[Treasure_Hunter]

I decided to pay more attention over the summer months as to what is goin on in the National Forests. I live in the middle of the Arapahoe National Forest. Just not a whole hell of a lot in the fatality area so far. A few climbers have fallen to their deaths. They took an intentional risk so it wasn't crime related. My 17 yr. old grandson got cross ways with a bear and got chased back into the house, but the 12 yr. old grandson went out and chased it off. That was an incident in the National Forest, but we didn't report it. You get closer to the front range area of the national forests and crime will rear it's ugly head it seems. Altitude up here seems to kill more people than anything else. At 10,000 feet you will find out real quick if you have a pre-existing heart condition. However, as much as I enjoy visitin with all the Texans and Okies I run across here in the high country, I will say it's horribly dangerous up here. Bandits behind every tree on every turn of the trail. I have heard grizzlies have moved back into the mountains. Plan your next vacation for the eastern plains. You can see a long ways and the temps are more what you're used to. I will continue to tough it out here in the mountains, and keep an eye on all the empty campgrounds.

RGINN, we have problems here, sharks have been coming ashore and dragging tourists off their beach blankets and chairs and dragging them into the water to eat. Stingrays have been launching flights of barbs ashore, and jellyfish encircle swimmers and close in for the kill.

We have advised all tourists to head your way....

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

 

[GMD52]

For almost 40 years, I have hunted, fished, foraged, and made a good portion of my living as a forester in and around the National Forests here and in the other New England states, and have encountered nothing that remotely concerned me other than some hungry black flies, and 8 foot snow drifts. In any place at any time you mat encounter situations that may prove hazardest to your health, but most of the incidents recorded are the effects of accidents, that could happen anywhere.

My take on perhaps the greatest threat on National Forests, are the hidden pot plantations. While they could be booby-trapped, or have armed guards around....I have never found any, even having been on search and destroy teams with state wardens.

Also should be noted thatour National Forests, and the National Parks are two very different entities, and should not be considered in the same vein. The Dept. of Agriculture is the home of the Forest Service who has the duty of managing the National Forests in the context of multiple use for a sustained yield of benefits, which include, timber, water wildlife, and recreation. The National Parks are under the control of the Park service, and the Dept. of the interior, and are not managed, but in a state of preservation in their wild state for the citizens of the country.....Gary

 

[RGINN]

Well that explains a whole lot, Treasure Hunter. I wondered about the upswing in visitors from the east coast. They are nice folks to visit with, if you can understand them when they talk. I was a little reactive there on TheNewCatfish and I apologize. I will still say if you pay attention, you're safer here in the national forests than you are in the bathroom of your home.

 

[Treasure_Hunter]

Well that explains a whole lot, Treasure Hunter. I wondered about the upswing in visitors from the east coast. They are nice folks to visit with, if you can understand them when they talk. I was a little reactive there on TheNewCatfish and I apologize. I will still say if you pay attention, you're safer here in the national forests than you are in the bathroom of your home.

I'm pretty safe in my bathroom, it is outside that is issue.

I much prefer where you are, I lived in Denver for 10 months and have traveled and camped through out all of Colorado.

Have you seen Clay Basket, if so tell her I am still looking for her....





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[pippinwhitepaws]

wow...I am so blessed not to be afraid to go outside.

and I live where everything sticks, stings, or bites...

 

[Treasure_Hunter]

wow...I am so blessed not to be afraid to go outside.

and I live where everything sticks, stings, or bites...

I'm not afraid to go out, I go out all the time, I just happen to be armed is all.... It is called the 2nd Amendment and it is called Concealed Weapons License.... I have been armed for 50+ years..... You choose to not be armed, I choose to be armed as is my right as an American......

 

[pippinwhitepaws]

lol..jump to conclusions...who said I am unarmed?
I have said many people should not be allowed to own firearms...and certainly should not be allowed to carry one around...

I believe in all the constitution, not just the amendments that fit my world view.