Interesting Comments Overheard in California Mountaineering Shop

Status
Not open for further replies.
A

Aragon

member
Joined
Dec 13, 2014
Messages
887
Location
The Golden State of California
I was in a rather upscale mountaineering/hiking shop here on the California coast and I overheard a conversation that was most pleasing.

A newbie was being outfitted for a hike with his friends and he asked the saleswoman if he should carry a gun where he will be hiking? Without hesitation she said that "I would."

He then said "well, if it's unloaded and in my pack, that really wouldn't be illegal without a license, would it?" She replied that an unloaded firearm transported in that manner would provide little value.

Just then the owner of the shop (a local mountaineering legend of sorts) entered the conversation. He encouraged the customer to secure his CCW permit. If he chose not to or wasn't approved then he would have to make a choice whether to break the law or not in concern for his safety. That the saleslady was right about carrying the gun in the manner he described.

He said no matter what you choose, to get some good training on whatever firearm he might choose to carry. I was surprised at how overtly pro-gun these people sounded, even though I'm sure they cater to a fair number of anti-gunners.
 
That is good. While we in "flyover country" often have our view of the coasts skewed by the major cities which lean left, most of both California and New York are pretty normal.
 
That is good sound advice IMHO. Too many people take offense to an individual taking responsibility for their own safety. If those that want to run around with little or no personal protection would not try to project their ideals onto others that do not feel the same way the world would be a better place.
 
CA went from legal open carry, then unloaded open carry, now, no open carry in at all in incorporated cities and other specified areas, but open unloaded carry is OK in most unincorporated areas if you can get away with being hassled. Generally it is both legal and reasonably accepted out in the boonies.

Where you can legally open carry, you can have a handgun on one hip and magazines, speedloaders, etc. on the other hip.

If you are travelling in a vehicle (without a ccw), the handguns must be unloaded and be in the trunk or a locked container.
 
gbran said:
CA went from legal open carry, then unloaded open carry, now, no open carry in at all in incorporated cities and other specified areas, but open unloaded carry is OK in most unincorporated areas if you can get away with being hassled. Generally it is both legal and reasonably accepted out in the boonies.

Where you can legally open carry, you can have a handgun on one hip and magazines, speedloaders, etc. on the other hip.

If you are travelling in a vehicle (without a ccw), the handguns must be unloaded and be in the trunk or a locked container.
Click to expand...

There's certainly ways to carry concealed that remain extremely accessible. I'm a fairly serious hiker and I never carried while hiking until this summer -- one tends not to run into problem people on the side of a mountain.

I began carrying because of the number of big cats looking for food and water this summer. I cannot think of a situation where I would actually run into a ranger -- even less of a chance running into one and having them ascertain that I was carrying.
 
^ Because mountaineers MUST be grounded in reality, lest they die.

I've been a backpacker since I was 22. (Now 65.)

I did mountaineering in my 40's and 50's.

I live in Maine, where at 400', I can be in the same climate
as in Colorado at 11,000' in winter.

Then, there's K2.
 
So true. And that skewing is driven by television...
Click to expand...
Not only television but the politicians from that state, all of them that we ever see/hear from are........ I can't think of a word that is both appropriate and high road, so just go where your imagination takes you. :scrutiny:
We assume they actually represent their constituents, I've been guilty of that myself.

Hopefully the shop owner will at least make people think, it's good know some folks there are openly pro-gun.
 
is it lawful to hunt with a handgun in Kali fornia ? If so I will presume it's acceptable to have said handgun holstered and on one's person. Such as a belt holster. And there's always varmints on any walking path er, excuse me, game:cool: trail

On a computer side note, why does Kali fornia go to all asterisks when putting it together to mimmic Arnold's pronunciation? Like this
**********
 
On a computer side note, why does Kali fornia go to all asterisks when putting it together to mimmic Arnold's pronunciation? Like this
Click to expand...
Because we included some of the more common derogatory misspellings of some state Names in the bad language filter, as it gets tiresome to see our members stooping to painting whole state with quasi- Nazi, communist, or other unpleasant implication cheap shots.


If you want to say "California," just go ahead and say it. We'll figure out what you mean.
 
It might surprise folks from other states to know that CA is actually geographically gun friendly.
It is those small, urban population centers that are anti gun that control the narrative.

CA is a huge state. Lots of folks from back east don't get that. I get calls from companies I contract with who are based out of state, asking if I can service places three or four hours away. I have to laugh!
Folks from say, Georgia, don't realize that it takes 14 hrs to cover this state top to bottom and 4 to 5 hrs east to west, driving.
Huge areas of this state are OK with guns.
 
He said no matter what you choose, to get some good training on whatever firearm he might choose to carry. I was surprised at how overtly pro-gun these people sounded, even though I'm sure they cater to a fair number of anti-gunners.
Click to expand...

They are real people who actually DO real things, and as such, they know full well the real consequences of going unarmed into the wild.

I very much suspect that most antis and Brady bunch worry warts, are arm chair quarterbacks.

Even my co-worker (a hunter, but not a gun nut) will never go into the woods unarmed after being surrounded by a pack of yotes while out checking his game cams. He says it's the scariest experience he ever had in his life.
 
Aragon said:
Question: Why does the average employee working in mountaineering shops seem so much brighter than the average gun shop employee?
Click to expand...
I really don't like making generalized comments but this has been my observation.

I am an avid hiker as well, and I happen to be a professional forester who get's paid to hike a lot.

People who recreate or work in the outdoors, in a way that takes them away from people, their vehicle, cell phone service, and help, tend to be very level headed. You have to think things through, and plan ahead to ensure you make it home each night. I also happen to be single so it tends to make me especially cautious about what I will and won't do, because if I don't make it home that night, no one is going to find out until morning. Even then, I'm off trail almost constantly at work, and sometimes on recreational hikes.

I think these factors tend to make a person very pragmatic, level headed, and observant.

On the other end of it, when I meet many, but certainly not all, gun counter workers there is often a weekend warrior attitude, maybe a chest thumper attitude, and sometimes a tacticool attitude. I don't hunt, because I just haven't gotten there yet, but I tend to gravitate towards the hunters that work the gun counter's, as their attitudes seems a little more practical to me. Maybe I just identify with other people who like the outdoors, and it's important to remember that gun ownership, and a love for the outdoors do not go hand in hand.

Again, these statements are generalization and I mean no offense to anyone, and they certainly do not apply to every gun counter worker I've met. I've met several gun counter workers who live in a city, and their primary interest is in self defense guns who know a lot more about that aspect of firearm use and ownership, than many rifle hunters.
 
DoubleMag said:
is it lawful to hunt with a handgun in California ? If so I will presume it's acceptable to have said handgun holstered and on one's person. Such as a belt holster. And there's always varmints on any walking path er, excuse me, game:cool: trail

On a computer side note, why does California go to all asterisks when putting it together to mimmic Arnold's pronunciation? Like this
California
Click to expand...

Yes.

You presumed wrong.

Unless one was on private property and had permission or one was on lands open to hunting and had their license/tags you presumed wrong that "it's acceptable to have said handgun holstered and on one's person."

FWIW, I fixed your childish misspelling of "California."
 
Last edited:
bainter1212 said:
It might surprise folks from other states to know that CA is actually geographically gun friendly.
It is those small, urban population centers that are anti gun that control the narrative.

CA is a huge state. Lots of folks from back east don't get that. I get calls from companies I contract with who are based out of state, asking if I can service places three or four hours away. I have to laugh!
Folks from say, Georgia, don't realize that it takes 14 hrs to cover this state top to bottom and 4 to 5 hrs east to west, driving.
Huge areas of this state are OK with guns.
Click to expand...
Yepper. Thanks for the reality check.
 
Sam1911 said:
Because we included some of the more common derogatory misspellings of some state Names in the bad language filter, as it gets tiresome to see our members stooping to painting whole state with quasi- Nazi, communist, or other unpleasant implication cheap shots.

If you want to say "California," just go ahead and say it. We'll figure out what you mean.
Click to expand...

Thank you all for doing that. Intentional (I hope) misspellings of "California" are so very infantile. They don't do the pro-gun camp's image any favors either.
 
CountGlockula said:
You'd be surprise how much pro-gun people are here. We just don't advertise it as much as anti-gunners do.
Click to expand...

I would venture to say that with the possible exception of TX, CA has more pro-2A individuals than any other state.

No, not a higher concentration, but a larger absolute number. CA is HUGE in terms of geographic area and population.
 
460K said:
I am an avid hiker as well, and I happen to be a professional forester who get's paid to hike a lot.
Click to expand...
Oh, man! Some people have all the luck. :D

460K said:
People who recreate or work in the outdoors, in a way that takes them away from people, their vehicle, cell phone service, and help, tend to be very level headed. You have to think things through, and plan ahead to ensure you make it home each night. I also happen to be single so it tends to make me especially cautious about what I will and won't do, because if I don't make it home that night, no one is going to find out until morning. Even then, I'm off trail almost constantly at work, and sometimes on recreational hikes.

I think these factors tend to make a person very pragmatic, level headed, and observant.
Click to expand...
This is precisely the point I made last night with my post upstream about the attitude of mountaineers, especially those that do the big peaks like K2 and Annapurna. (Everest is FAR less challenging than the other 8K meter peaks.) In their case, they have to think things through and plan ahead to make sure they get back to base camp, let alone home. Even backpacking, but especially mountaineering (up a full notch) requires a totally different attitude than the typical weekend camper, or those who camp for a week at a time in a campground. I think most of the latter group just don't understand that.
 
bainter1212 said:
It might surprise folks from other states to know that CA is actually geographically gun friendly.
It is those small, urban population centers that are anti gun that control the narrative.
Click to expand...
Same deal here in Illinois. 90% of the state is not Chicagoland. Unfortunately, those population center people run Springfield as well.

Admittedly, I've only ever been to the LA and SanFran areas, so not much experience with outstate CA (in IL, everything outside of the Chicago area is called "downstate"). Good to know there are still good people there.
 
AStone said:
Oh, man! Some people have all the luck. :D

This is precisely the point I made last night with my post upstream about the attitude of mountaineers, especially those that do the big peaks like K2 and Annapurna. (Everest is FAR less challenging than the other 8K meter peaks.) In their case, they have to think things through and plan ahead to make sure they get back to base camp, let alone home. Even backpacking, but especially mountaineering (up a full notch) requires a totally different attitude than the typical weekend camper, or those who camp for a week at a time in a campground. I think most of the latter group just don't understand that.
Click to expand...

Summiting Everest still takes a GIGANTIC amount of planning and resources (at least as much as the other two mountains you mentioned), skill and effort.
 
Last edited:
PJSprog said:
Same deal here in Illinois. 90% of the state is not Chicagoland. Unfortunately, those population center people run Springfield as well.

Admittedly, I've only ever been to the LA and SanFran areas, so not much experience with outstate CA (in IL, everything outside of the Chicago area is called "downstate"). Good to know there are still good people there.
Click to expand...

San Francisco is a very small city (both geographically and by population) by CA standards...
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

L
  • Locked
Blissninnies are eager to be cougar-chow
2
Replies
43
Views
2K
carpettbaggerr
C
P
  • Locked
Protection from Mountain Lions? Don't Even Mention "Gun"
2 3 4 5
Replies
117
Views
12K
Erik
E
G
  • Locked
mountain lion attack in gun free paradise
2 3
Replies
56
Views
3K
gunsmith
G
G
  • Locked
Dangerous customers in gun shops
2 3
Replies
51
Views
4K
rbernie
rbernie
A
  • Locked
CC @Pawn/Gun Shops
2 3
Replies
54
Views
2K
FIVETWOSEVEN
FIVETWOSEVEN
Back
Top