HopeWoodside's Blog

Tattlers... Be care full!


Guns while hiking... Good Idea!

Perpetrators could make easy victims of hikers in the isolated wilderness areas... Robberies, Rape, Murders, Etc...

I think it is unconscionable for society to tell someone that they don't have the right to protect themselves it the wilderness... Thugs can easily take advantage of the isolation... No help for miles away...

Yea, if people carry guns... Thugs will at least think twice!

the only rattlesnakes i worry about (and not much) are the two legged kind. usually most snakes in this area will leave you alone unless they feel threatened. there is one exception to that, though. and that is when they are shedding their skin, also called "being in the blind". then your chances of a rattler striking at you are much increased. as far as your dogs are concerned, it's always wise to keep them under control and close to you. in all my years of living in utah and hiking in some very heavy rattler country, i've never been, or felt, threatened by them at all.

a rattlesnake no matter how careful you are their camoflauge is very effective thats why they have it, I was looking for snakes and did not see the second one right on the trail until I was already less than 12" away I cannot hear very well due to a large red hot piece of metal that found its way into my ear while welding. I am not trying to nit pick but you weren't there. I will still carry my gun while hiking fourwheeling etc. it may not be me next time that wishes they had a gun after an attack of any kind. and yes I will continue to kill rattlesnakes when I come across them they give birth to approx twelve babies every year so I look at it like I killed 24, 24 people might be grateful to have this not happen to them.

Darrin, if you read my post again you will see that I never directly addressed the situation that you found yourself in during your encounter with the snakes. I was writing in general terms about rattlesnake avoidance and how to handle yourself around rattlers. I never wrote that your actions, or taking a gun on a hike, is inappropriate. I completely agree with you that even those who take precautions can still run into snakes and be forced to kill them. I don’t have a problem with that. The point that I was making is that several bites are reported each year in which somebody is deliberately provoking and pursuing the snakes. I think that people who do that are just asking for trouble. I don’t think that your situation falls into that category.

You took the actions that you took because you felt the snakes were directly threatening you and your family. As you correctly state, I wasn’t there. Therefore I will defer to your judgment since I can’t possibly know all the details of the incident. If I thought that a snake was threatening my family, and there was no obvious path of retreat, I wouldn’t hesitate to kill it.

As for continuing to carry your gun in the backcountry, please do so with my blessing. So long as you are using it for self defense and in a law abiding manner I don’t have a problem with it. Even if you choose to kill the few snakes that you see your impact on their population will be inconsequential. These reptiles have been here a long time and they will probably remain long after we have left. But know this: should you decide to hunt the snakes, rat

Thank you Crossover for understanding my point of view. I have recieved some negative response not just from the blog, but I assure you I would rather not encounter a snake by surprise, and I dont try to play with them, I have my concealed weapons permit and dont like to fire it in areas where I could get in trouble or scare other people in the area (trust me the .50 cals roar is pretty scary)my apologies.