Camping Warning - Joshua Tree

[EvoXguy]

Originally Posted by ja308

I heard an interview with this woman daughter yesterday (KFI) John and Ken show.

Fortunately the lady was found after escaping a near rape at a california campground.
https://fox40.com/2019/07/15/missing...d-found-alive/
A Huntington Beach woman who vanished four days ago while camping with her husband in Inyo County has been found alive, and her family says she got lost while trying to hide from a man who threatened to rape her.

Too bad she didn't have a california approved 380 in her purse or fanny pack! She would not have had to almost die running away from a possible rapist !

Yeah, somethings off with her story.

[Bill Carson]

Originally Posted by floogy

I've got a few around the house. They're actually really small and self contained. Doable for car camping. The problem is that little critters will set them off too.



If you think there's a nationwide conspiracy of police departments trying to skew the national crime rate, you're giving the gov a lot of credit.

I'll buy the FBI statistics over vague accusations of a nationwide conspiracy to lower the crime rate.

I never said nationwide conspiracy. Some municipalities do not report their crime stats to the FBI since they are not required. Some municipalities (mostly liberal run ) have an agenda. Did you not see Jaws ?

[ja308]

Originally Posted by EvoXguy

Yeah, somethings off with her story.

I heard the interview with the daughter and it seemed possible, I did note however there was no talk of rape yesterday. IIRC this is the story I heard.
Mom was off the trail peeing and a big, bald ,burly guy was behind her making obscene comments about her anatomical feature's (censored on radio ). Mom heard and saw him and began to run so fast and far she got lost.

Rescue units heard her little animal barking and she was found about 3 or? days later. She survived because she was near some stagnant water.

Where is the problem with this story, as you see it ?

[Bill Carson]

Whether sleeping at home or on the road in a hotel or motel or camping or hunting I always sleep in underwear and cargo shorts and a t shirt with socks in the shoes nearby and the car/house keys , wallet, flashlight, money clip, gun , knife and flashlight , water bottle right next to me. Am I the only one that sleeps in condition 1 ?

[omega]

I prefer "car camping" if it's just for the night, plus if you have a others with your group, you can position your vehicles so the headlights can be used to scan the area in all directions, always sleep with your boots on so you can move at a moments notice, keys in the ignition.

dogs can be used as your alarm if anybody tries to sneak around at night

[Jimi Jah]

Handgun in the tent is now standard equipment these days.

[MechaDad]

Thanks OP. Also all the mindful contributions.

Perimeter motion alarms: Awesome if you can afford.
Basic motion lights: Like this idea.
Camp sleeping in condition 1: Me too.

One year we did big family reunion camping at Lake Perris. My toddler went missing. My dad-in-law had immediately driven to the park entrance and was stopping every vehicle leaving.

Turns out she crawled into back of minivan and fell asleep on floor between seats. Grandpa didn't even complain about having to do what he did. Much respect for the man.

[Carcassonne]

Originally Posted by 71MUSTY

We camped at Indian Cove in the 70s and 80s. I remember a specific weekend we were there when a young child was abducted. They found her scull in the desert years later.

http://www.hidesertstar.com/news/art...1d937c9f7.html

We never went back.

I was going to say you should never leave kids alone outside at night while camping. There have been a lot of abductions.


.

[Carcassonne]

Originally Posted by Bill Carson

I never said nationwide conspiracy. Some municipalities do not report their crime stats to the FBI since they are not required. Some municipalities (mostly liberal run ) have an agenda. Did you not see Jaws ?

This is true. Some cities dont count something as a crime if it isn't solved, and some won't even write a report of a crime.


.

[Oldboyjun]

Originally Posted by Bill Carson

Whether sleeping at home or on the road in a hotel or motel or camping or hunting I always sleep in underwear and cargo shorts and a t shirt with socks in the shoes nearby and the car/house keys , wallet, flashlight, money clip, gun , knife and flashlight , water bottle right next to me. Am I the only one that sleeps in condition 1 ?

I do the same. Also, I wear contact lenses and take them off before going to bed, so I have a pair of backup glasses that I keep right next to the gun, flashlight, knife, keys, cell phone, etc.

[ja308]

Originally Posted by elSquid

If things get uncomfortable enough, it's probably time to load up and retreat. Have the armed person(s) keep their attention on the bad guy(s), have everyone else chuck all the gear into the vehicles/pack up.

It's not a "heroic/cool/etc" thing to say, but the question is: what is important?

Keep the kids safe, and avoid getting into a gunfight/shooting if at all possible.

You can be in the right, legally speaking, and still be "victimized" by both the criminal and civil legal system. Shelling out tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars for lawyers, and possibly a year or two of stress? No thanks.

As well, say you have a similar confrontation and the guy leaves. Who is to say that he won't come back? Or maybe decide to snipe at the party with a 22 from standoff? Or...? Crazy/psycho people are crazy/psycho.

It's probably excessive... but I'd be tempted to move camp/leave. As the saying goes, it's not the odds, but rather the stakes. Better to have a "ruined" camping weekend than some possible bad alternatives.

I think that the OP's decision to take a drive and confirm that the bad guy left the area was a smart thing to do.

-- Micvhael

Good points and I did a bail out thing while solo camping in Wyoming. My plan was to shoot the next day as it was near the seasons end and no one was there. Next thing this couple shows up and she invites me to eat with them. I declined but they were likable.

Guy starts drinking and shoving her around.
She then calls the cops and guy chills out.
I threw everything in the car and went to a hotel. Last thing I need was LEOs showing up when I was so well armed and being the only one there !

IVC is a smart guy and handled that situation really well ! Not sure how I would have acted under similiar circumstances.

[Bill Carson]

Originally Posted by Oldboyjun

I do the same. Also, I wear contact lenses and take them off before going to bed, so I have a pair of backup glasses that I keep right next to the gun, flashlight, knife, keys, cell phone, etc.

Glad I am not the only one.

[HUTCH 7.62]

Originally Posted by floogy

Well unless the FBI crime stats are lying, I don’t think this is liberals. I think the opposite is true. Liberals are trying to paint a picture of a “gun violence crisis”. When the reality is, it’s not. We’re safe with hundreds of millions of guns in the country.

But hey, show me some evidence to back your claim.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Hard to trust the FBI anymore, their track record hasn’t been all that great the last handful of years.

[floogy]

Originally Posted by Bill Carson

I never said nationwide conspiracy. Some municipalities do not report their crime stats to the FBI since they are not required. Some municipalities (mostly liberal run ) have an agenda. Did you not see Jaws ?

Yeah, some local gov likes to pad their numbers, like making burglary a misdemeanor offense, particularly where a lot of snowbirds live. Empty houses getting broken into all season long makes their crime rate worse. But by and large, violent crime is still reported the same way. Assault, rape, murder, robbery etc. That's what I'm concerned with. If you've got a better indicator than the FBI taking the time to compile what does get reported, I'm all ears. But I doubt there's a more comprehensive collection of such data.

But yeah, Jaws.

Originally Posted by Bill Carson

Whether sleeping at home or on the road in a hotel or motel or camping or hunting I always sleep in underwear and cargo shorts and a t shirt with socks in the shoes nearby and the car/house keys , wallet, flashlight, money clip, gun , knife and flashlight , water bottle right next to me. Am I the only one that sleeps in condition 1 ?

I always sleep condition 1, unholstered. I figure that if things are flopping around, it will distract them long enough to do what's required. It throws people off their game. You ever see cops trying to arrest a naked guy? It's terrifying.

Originally Posted by omega

I prefer "car camping" if it's just for the night, plus if you have a others with your group, you can position your vehicles so the headlights can be used to scan the area in all directions, always sleep with your boots on so you can move at a moments notice, keys in the ignition.

dogs can be used as your alarm if anybody tries to sneak around at night

Do you camp in Afghanistan? Even the guys crashing under cammy netting on cots take their boots off.

If I was that worried about getting jumped in the middle of the night, I wouldn't camp there. Sounds like having to crash for the night at a rest stop, rather than camping.

[golfish]

Originally Posted by Bill Carson

Whether sleeping at home or on the road in a hotel or motel or camping or hunting I always sleep in underwear and cargo shorts and a t shirt with socks in the shoes nearby and the car/house keys , wallet, flashlight, money clip, gun , knife and flashlight , water bottle right next to me. Am I the only one that sleeps in condition 1 ?

Two flashlights maks it condition 1+

[ja308]

Originally Posted by Bill Carson

Whether sleeping at home or on the road in a hotel or motel or camping or hunting I always sleep in underwear and cargo shorts and a t shirt with socks in the shoes nearby and the car/house keys , wallet, flashlight, money clip, gun , knife and flashlight , water bottle right next to me. Am I the only one that sleeps in condition 1 ?

I always have a gun within easy reach. That said I like your idea's and you are better prepared than I, who just has a minimum caliber handgun close by !

Life is full of surprises and being prepared could prolong ones life on earth. Good tactics Sir!

[JohnBrian]

Originally Posted by Bill Carson

Whether sleeping at home or on the road in a hotel or motel or camping or hunting I always sleep in underwear and cargo shorts and a t shirt with socks in the shoes nearby and the car/house keys , wallet, flashlight, money clip, gun , knife and flashlight , water bottle right next to me. Am I the only one that sleeps in condition 1 ?

Ditto, but no cargo shorts, just underwear. My keys and etc are in my pants on the floor next to the bed/sleeping bag.

When camping I add a pee bottle (Snapple bottles are great because of the wide mouth). The last thing I want to do at 3am in 20 degree weather is get dressed so I can go take a leak.




[Useless Trivial Pursuit: Taking a leak means you are going to steal a mirror. <--- What book? Bonus points if you can name the character. Use of a Search Engine is not allowed!!!]

[Notpc]

Harbor Freight
Motion Activated LED Security Light


Driveway Alarm

[nitroxdiver]

I’ve got a few of the fithops shotgun primer and 12gauge flashbang trip alarm ied’s that I’ve used to put around my tent sight before. I’ve only used the primer ones, and I’ve only had it go off once, most certainly by an animal. It will literally give you a heart attack if it goes off, but would do the same to the tweeker creeper also, and also hopefully scare away any large animals exploring your sight. Probably not legal in California, but you could check and see. Very well made and they work fantastically. Haven’t tried out the flashbang one yet but I do have rounds for it.


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[Bill Carson]

[QUOTE=floogy;23213914]Yeah, some local gov likes to pad their numbers, like making burglary a misdemeanor offense, particularly where a lot of snowbirds live. Empty houses getting broken into all season long makes their crime rate worse. But by and large, violent crime is still reported the same way. Assault, rape, murder, robbery etc. That's what I'm concerned with. If you've got a better indicator than the FBI taking the time to compile what does get reported, I'm all ears. But I doubt there's a more comprehensive collection of such data.

But yeah, Jaws........ You sir are correct The FBI does have the most comprehensive collection of crime data. I quote their numbers often. Funny thing you mentioned "snowbirds " . I live in Palm Springs and the snowbirds have no idea what a crime ridden ****hole this place has become and the police lie about the crime all the time.

[cgseanp1]

Originally Posted by nitroxdiver

I’ve got a few of the fithops shotgun primer and 12gauge flashbang trip alarm ied’s that I’ve used to put around my tent sight before. I’ve only used the primer ones, and I’ve only had it go off once, most certainly by an animal. It will literally give you a heart attack if it goes off, but would do the same to the tweeker creeper also, and also hopefully scare away any large animals exploring your sight. Probably not legal in California, but you could check and see. Very well made and they work fantastically. Haven’t tried out the flashbang one yet but I do have rounds for it.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Uh those are awesome! Didn’t know such a thing existed. The primer ones are perfect

[WartHog]

Originally Posted by JohnBrian

Ditto, but no cargo shorts, just underwear. My keys and etc are in my pants on the floor next to the bed/sleeping bag.

When camping I add a pee bottle (Snapple bottles are great because of the wide mouth). The last thing I want to do at 3am in 20 degree weather is get dressed so I can go take a leak.

32oz Gatorade is perfect too

[nitroxdiver]

Originally Posted by cgseanp1

Uh those are awesome! Didn’t know such a thing existed. The primer ones are perfect

Order a couple roles of their trip wire too when you order them. I’d recommend 2 primer detonators and two roles of trip wire. You can zip tie them to a tree. Great for screwing with your friends to haha.


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[Sierra57]

Originally Posted by 357manny

Good to see you and the group made out safe. The guy could sincerely have been on the lookout for recyclables, but there’s a time and place. I wouldn’t believe bet my life or those under my charge on that.

My family is starting to camp, we mostly go to more populated areas (prefer a little more facilities). Didn’t bring anything but a big can of bear spray last time. This upcoming trip, I’ll be more prepared.

Thanks for the informative post.

Who the heck is out looking for recyclables at 2 AM?

Most likely is was a desert tweaker up to no good and "recycling" was his cover story if confronted.

[357manny]

Originally Posted by VictorFranko

Right in my backyard Manny, and both the local Sheriff and State Park Rangers knew that someone had been shooting at campers on and off for more than a year and never warned anyone about it, not campers or local residents.

Beaudette's wife has sued, usually I'm against such things but in this case I hope she gets all she asks for as it is doubtful he would have taken his two young daughters camping there had he known.......

From the news, looks like they caught the guy.. Only after Mr. Beaudette was killed though. That burglar/murderer had been shooting up campsites and stealing stuff in Malibu SP for 2 years.... Glad they caught him, but yes--the authorities (local SD, SP Rangers) could have done something about this sick ahole sooner.

[Beendare]

Originally Posted by woolybugger

Who knows what the guys real intent was. But the. recyclying/scavengers dudes out there are really ballsey/ stupid.
I live in a fairly nice neighborhood and have been woken up numerous times past midnight to find some tweaky looking dude on my side yard rooting through my trash. It really irks me and is a recipe for a bad confrontation.

Sounded like a BS excuse to me....I had no idea this is a common occurrance.

[splithoof]

Originally Posted by 357manny

From the news, looks like they caught the guy.. Only after Mr. Beaudette was killed though. That burglar/murderer had been shooting up campsites and stealing stuff in Malibu SP for 2 years.... Glad they caught him, but yes--the authorities (local SD, SP Rangers) could have done something about this sick ahole sooner.

Would you please elaborate on that....
Am I to figure that you have knowledge/experience with that particular area?
Thank you.

[Diabolus]

I use perimeter trip alarms when I camp, mainly for wildlife, but I guess it works with humans too.

https://fithops.com/

[baggss]

Originally Posted by Diabolus

I use perimeter trip alarms when I camp, mainly for wildlife, but I guess it works with humans too.

https://fithops.com/

In this case the humans are the "wildlife".

[omega]

Originally Posted by woolybugger

Who knows what the guys real intent was. But the. recyclying/scavenger dudes out there are really ballsey/ stupid.
I live in a fairly nice neighborhood and have been woken up numerous times past midnight to find some tweaky looking dude on my side yard rooting through my trash. It really irks me and is a recipe for a bad confrontation.

the Tweakers that are out looking for recyclables at 2am use that as an excuse if they get caught, they are doing a lot more than just looking for recyclables

Ive observed them checking for unlocked car doors / unlocked garage doors , and also for stealing things like lawn chairs, tables, umbrellas, anything you leave in your yard.

thats how many of them get those chairs / Star Bucks umbrellas, they steal them at night , Ive even seen them pushing lawn mower late in the night, probably stolen from somebody's unlocked yard.

[KrisDSA]

Thanks for the heads up OP.


Years ago. Camping in another not so friendly 2A state. I woke up to use the BR n grabbed my G38 n light as the walk was about 10 yards from the camp site. Heard something then noticed a guy in sneakers and running shorts next to the girls tent. ( my buddy two sisters who were passed out drunk) He had something behind his back. I asked can I help you ? He just look at me n started walk towards me. I told him to stop, he didn’t n then I told him I was security n armed. He takes off running in the opposite direction. I didn’t give chase. I ran n woke everyone up n checked the girls. Everyone was safe but the girls tent had a big Slice on the side of the tent. We called the Authorities N made a police report. Later that morning the girls noticed that some of there underwear were missing for there bags. The group wasn’t into guns but after that day. 4 out of the 7 ended up buying a firearm.

[Citadelgrad87]

Originally Posted by ja308

I heard the interview with the daughter and it seemed possible, I did note however there was no talk of rape yesterday. IIRC this is the story I heard.
Mom was off the trail peeing and a big, bald ,burly guy was behind her making obscene comments about her anatomical feature's (censored on radio ). Mom heard and saw him and began to run so fast and far she got lost.

Rescue units heard her little animal barking and she was found about 3 or? days later. She survived because she was near some stagnant water.

Where is the problem with this story, as you see it ?

Its goofy. The area was in the middle of nowhere. There was no one else around. How did this guy get there? husband was supposedly just either parking or turning the car around, she was walking a dog with a bum leg.

He returns, calls for her and honks horn. Massive search but nobody saw the supposed threat?

[ranch41]

I have to agree that anyone in your campsite at 2:00 am is suspect. And if you are in someone’s campsite at that hour you should expect some type of confrontation. We live in a society where we are more afraid of being sued than the results of being assaulted. If you are out camping, you are responsible for your own safety, you need to be prepared, and you need to plan in you mind what your actions will be.

[ezb57]

Originally Posted by floogy

I've got a few around the house. They're actually really small and self contained. Doable for car camping. The problem is that little critters will set them off too.



If you think there's a nationwide conspiracy of police departments trying to skew the national crime rate, you're giving the gov a lot of credit.

I'll buy the FBI statistics over vague accusations of a nationwide conspiracy to lower the crime rate.

Not a "nationwide conspiracy", just a lot of departments trying to look like they're doing a great job.

[JohnBrian]

Originally Posted by WartHog

32oz Gatorade is perfect too

Even better! Then you can do multiple pees over a couple of nights (or the same night) without having to empty it every morning. I don't typically drink Gatorade but I do drink Snapple.

[God Bless America]

Originally Posted by ezb57

Not a "nationwide conspiracy", just a lot of departments trying to look like they're doing a great job.

I suspect places trying to keep property values up has more to do with it. More crime = more police and more gear.

[Packy14]

Originally Posted by 357manny

Good to see you and the group made out safe. The guy could sincerely have been on the lookout for recyclables, but there’s a time and place. I wouldn’t believe bet my life or those under my charge on that.

My family is starting to camp, we mostly go to more populated areas (prefer a little more facilities). Didn’t bring anything but a big can of bear spray last time. This upcoming trip, I’ll be more prepared.

Thanks for the informative post.

Looking for aluminum, almost found lead.

[CBR_rider]

Originally Posted by God Bless America

I suspect places trying to keep property values up has more to do with it. More crime = more police and more gear.

Not generally.... elected officials and high up brass, if they are monkeying with stats at all, depress crime rate stats. Low crime stats encourages people/businesses to move/stay, elected officials can show they have a handle on crime or are “doing something” about a crime wave, and brass looks like they know what they are doing for promotions/bonuses/electability/job security/etc. guess it would blow some minds in this thread to know that some brass get bonuses based on a reduction of crime stats as opposed to increases in crime stats.

[johnnyh75]

I think you did well with what you had and deescalated the situation even if he mend no harm you never know good job glad you camping group are safe!!

[Mojaveman]

There are a lot more people in California then there used to be and therefore a lot more wackos. I've encountered a few over the years while in remote areas and it's a little scary. I think I'd only go camping or on another outdoor activity with some good (and armed) people. There's strength in numbers.