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Answers:
yes
yes
yes
yes
*You don't need to include the "today's downturn" -thing. *EDIT:..;-) ...IMHO the most important aspect of learning how to handle a weapon is learning how to safely conceal it when it's not needed.
another tip
someone mentioned having their tires slashed.
usually this happens when someone blocks access to the ramp or access to the lot… so large boats with trailers have a hard time getting around the corners.
I don’t worry too much about any of this but at the same time always carry a cell phone. And think it’s a good discussion to take any reasonable precautions.
I have gotten stuck or my new truck suddenly just quit working in plenty of remote places. Several times I had to walk 5 miles to the nearest pay phone and call AAA (when I had AAA) It was very cold and if they hadn’t come and pulled me out that would have been a long night.
No worries
About the only time I have ever had the thought of “hope the car will be OK when we get back” was way up north in WI when we left it in a remote parking area for a week. Not a real concern, simply a thought as we paddled off.
Only issue we ever had was when I left the tie down straps next to the car at a local put in. They were gone when we got back but I luckily had a back up set.
I always carry a visible knife, and a smile, so I don’t end up giving somebody second thoughts about me. A gun only comes with when in bear country.
Tom
Always has been Always will be
Leaving your ride unattended in an untraveled location has never been safe.
Here in New England, river runners seem to see the worst of it with reports of car break ins at put ins and take outs all too common.
The worst I’ve heard was the poor guys who spent a week on a river in Canada. Came back to find the wheels stolen off of their vehicles.
Can’t say I’ve heard of the situation getting worse recently.
Tommy
only on my somalian coast expedition
http://coonlakebeach.com/photos/coon_lake_pirate-ship.jpg
Seriously though? What big d said.
My Experience
Haven’t had a problem while yakking so far (knock on wood), but did have a problem while bank-fishing a couple of years ago.
One of the places I like to fish is about a 35 minute walk from the nearest trailhead. 99% of the time, I’m the only person in the area. One day, after I’d been fishing awhile, I noticed a couple of young adults (upper teens, low 20’s) “loitering” a few hundred yards away. No hiking gear, no fishing poles, not dressed for the hiking, etc. I decided that, in the abundance of caution, I’d move farther away. They discreetly followed and when I stopped, they stopped. When I moved, they moved. Finally, I decided I’d better head back toward civilization and, instead of going back to the trail (which was in their direction) headed through the woods intending to catch the trail closer to where my vehicle was parked. When they started following me through the woods and closing the distance, I figured I really had a problem. To make a long story short, I ran into a couple of deer hunters headed back to the trailhead and joined them for the walk back. The two individuals who had been following me took off in another direction and I didn’t see them again.
Following that experience, I DID get a gun permit and firearm training and DO carry when I’m going to be alone in an isolated area. It was that or give up one of the things I enjoy in my retirement.
What Big D said…
A-holes are gonna be A-holes, reguardless of the economic climate. Most crime against cars parked at landings are crimes of opportunity. If they see something they want, they try and get it...if it's easy, or they think they won't get caught.
That being said, I've never had a problem at a landing for any reason, but I keep valuables out of sight, or with me in a dry box, and the truck locked. And when I come out of the water, I do what nativevter said..be assertive, be confident/friendly, start a converstaion (I run my mouth a lot as it is...I have that on good authority too!) It's hard to see someone as your next mark, after you've gotten them pulled into a conversation. Someone who's looking for an easy score needs to see you as a faceless stranger they don't have to care about. You get them talking, that 'faceless stranger' facade falls away quickly.
My only "weapon" is a very sharp Gerber tactical knife. But I think your brain will get you out of more trouble than either a knife or CCP sidearm.
Thanx for the words of advice nativevter. Good words.
Not yet …
“Every recession since the late ’50s has been associated with an increase in crime and, in particular, property crime and robbery, which would be most responsive to changes in economic conditions,” said Richard Rosenfeld, a sociologist at the University of Missouri-St. Louis. Typically, he said, “there is a year lag between the economic change and crime rates.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/10/nyregion/10crime.html
“Potentially, it’s bleak. It’s impossible to make the prediction because we don’t know how serious this recession will be or where the budget cuts will be,” said Jack Levin, professor of sociology and criminology at Northeastern University.
“There’s the direct consequence of people being out of work and being below the poverty level,” he said. “More residents are desperate to make ends meet and are willing to go outside the legal system to do it.”
“Leo Carroll, a sociology professor at the University of Rhode Island, cautioned that the research on the impact of unemployment on crime was inconsistent.
While unemployment may increase the incentive for committing crimes, he said, not having a job means people can’t afford to go out, so they’re less likely to be robbed and their presence at home discourages burglars.”
http://www.projo.com/news/content/crime_and_economy_11-10-08_ILC487L_v96.3abb21b.html
If I recall my Sociology 101 correctly, crime is driven less by poverty than disparity of wealth; when everyone gets poor together, crime remains flat, but it tends to rise when portions of a population get poor while others prosper.
Delphinus
http://www.AquaDynology.com
Frequent police presence there
That’s a ramp that I use somewhat frequently. One night after a buddy of mine lost his wife to an automobile accident, he and I went and got some catfish rods and hung out under that bridge fishing and talking all night. The area is marked “no trespassing except to fish or launch boats” (which, frankly, demonstrates a good sense of priorities). So we were fishing. I’ve never had a problem there. The cop did come over to chat with us one of the times he came through, but just chat. I think he was lonely. No questions about what we were doing there, or whether we would move on or anything. Just a pleasant chat. He may have been checking for booze, but my buddy was depressed enough without chemical enhancement.
It’s possible those kids didn’t even know your truck was there and were just tossing pumpkins off the high bridge to watch them explode when they hit the ground. There’s a large farm market near there.
Come to think of it - I do carry a knife
It’s a safety knife on my PFD. I also carry a backup. I never even considered them as weapons, but I guess it could look that way to an observer.
I make sure to carry
water and Cliff bars, low blood sugar is a bummer
Would the police have ‘protected’ you?
Crime on the water ??
… when someone (adjacent land owner to the river) comes into your “private” (and legal) riverside night camp and insist you clear off their property immediately , cops an attitude and makes threats … now that’s crime on the water .
oppps , that the other thread !!
That’s naught a noif …
THAT’S a NOIF!
http://tinyurl.com/6c6dwq
Delphinus
http://www.AquaDynology.com
Why cover the VIN label–important
Thieves have been reported as copying the numbers (can see them through the windshield), then calling the dealerships of that make of vehicle. They tell the dealership that they lost the key to their car, VIN #______, and request a copy. If the dealership does not require further ID to verify that the caller is in fact the owner of that car, the thief gets the key, unlocks the door, and drives off without even needing to break a window.
To lock or not to lock
There’s some spots on the Potomac near DC that are known for break-ins. Mostly the thiefs look for credit cards, and it pisses me off that people leave their wallets in the car. It’s like feeding the animals–trains 'em to come back.
When I park at these spots I leave my pick-up open. I remove anything that looks like quick cash and stow it in the gear box in the bed of the truck, and I put a padlock on the box. If my truck is messed with, I don’t know it when I get back. My thinking is that criminals are routinely preying on cars at these spots, and if they want in, my lock isn’t going to stop them. Why tempt a broken window?
At remote put-ins, I have been locking my truck, which makes no sense, since smash and grab is at least as viable an option as at the urban put-in. So why do I feel compelled to lock?
It is reputed that thieves easily circumvent the locks on autos. They only stop the honest or the lazy. From reading above, it appears most paddlers are locking their rides. Why?
I hate
leaving my car anywhere. i always expect it to not be there when i get back.
I lock…
… to prevent petty theft. When I lived down in Chicago’s SW side I left the car unlocked for the reasons you state. If they want in you will end up not only loosing your stuff, but having to replace a broken window as well. Maybe the bad guys up here in WI have a conscience as I have never had any trouble, locked or unlocked.
Tom
