Any way to go from the Florida Keys to PA and avoid SC?

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NineseveN

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Hey all, I need some help.

My mother and father were vacationing in the Florida Keys when my dad had to go to the emergency room and get emergency surgery to remove his gall bladder (it was gangrenous so they say). They were slated to leave to return home this Friday (they drove) but he will not be able to drive for a few weeks and my mom does not drive. So like the loving son that I am, I am flying down there on the next flight I can reasonably make (Friday or Saturday) to bring their car and luggage back to PA for them.

My dad is recovering slowly, and it will be next Monday at the earliest that he can fly the doctors have told him. Anyway, he drove down with his Glock and I am sure as heck not traveling 1300 miles without my gun, so I need a travel plan to avoid SC (because I do not have a permit that is valid/honored there).

So I am flying down with my .45 and driving back with my gun and his most likely (unless he checks it onto the plane in the case I sue to fly down with).

I am covered in FL, GA, NC, TN, and KY, and if I carry openly in VA I am good to go (no need for peaceable journey protection) and WV is fuzzy to me on open carry and peaceable journey. Also, SC is a bit confusing on the whole glove compartment thing. Can I, an out of state resident carry in my glove box provided it is locked or fully closed?

Thanks in advance. I was planning on getting the relevant non-res permits at some point anyway, I just have no time now.
 
I would suggest giving the state attorney for SC and maybe its ranking state law enforcement agency a call informing them you are scheduled to travel through their state to reach FL and that have a CCW recognized by every state other than them for a weapon you would like to bring with you to FL. Ask them the best way they would suggest for you store you weapon while traveling through their state so that you aren't violating their laws. It is my understanding that most states don't have a problem with law abiding citizens driving through with their firearm if they are staying on the main interstate just passing through.
 
This is was Federal peacable travel is all about.

When in doubt, unloaded, cased and trunked gives you a federal defense against state infractions, so long as your journey begins and ends at points where posession of the armament in question is lawful.
 
Route to take and avoid South Carolina

Get to Tampa and take I-75 to Chattanooga.

Take I-81 all the way up to Hagerstown MD.

From there just peel off in which ever direction you want to go. It's not exactly a straight line, but it should be good route up the Appalacians.

Have a safe trip!
 
That wouldn't do him much good.SC allows one to carry in the glovebox/console but MD allows no carry at all for out of staters ( and for very,very few residents for that matter).
 
I agree with USMCRotrHed that I-81 to I-75 is a good way to go to get around SC but traveling down I-75 you don't need to go all the way out to Tampa. If you do go to Tampa (on the west coast) you'll just have to cut back to the east coast later anyways. I-75 comes down through Gaineville. About 45 miles or so south of Gainesville on I-75 is Ocala. Here just jump onto highway 27 and that will give you pretty much a staight shot through Miami to the keys. Another option is to take Highway 40 at Ocala all the way to Ormond Beach (just North of Daytona Beach) and then head south on either I-1 (scenic route) or I-95. Both will take just to where Highway 27 takes you.

You can check out Florda Map here:
http://www.visitflorida.com/
 
I don't understand the problem with SC specifically. If that's your consideration (that SC doesn't recognize your permit), then you've got equally problematic routes as you get closer to PA.

MD doesn't even recognize the right of its own citizens to carry, and WV doesn't recognize PA permits either. Both have more restrictive reciprocity laws than SC.

So.....up to TN, go West to Kentucky, up to Ohio and then East to PA?

My vote is to simply make the haul up the 95 corridor and put the firearm in the trunk when cruising SC.
 
Interstate Carry

Off topic a bit...but this thread saddens me.

That a peacefully disposed and law-abiding citizen has to be this concerned over different laws in each state enroute to and from places where he/she:
A...Has a perfect right to be.
B...Is carrying zero contraband.
C...Has a constitutionally protected right to keep and bear arms.
D...has a God-given right to self preservation.

Such a sorry state we have come to...(no pun intended)

Okay..back on topic. Sorry for the jack.
 
If you're driving on the toll-way, get off on 441 and stop at Yee Haw Junction and get one of the really cool tee shirts at the Desert Inn. Bet you'll be the only guy in your town (or probably state) with one. Watch out for the chickens (they run loose everywhere)
 
Thank you gunsmith. :)


Tuner, not a hijack at all, it's truly ridiculous and a pain in the rear. Of course, this is an emergency situation and it can't be helped. There are ways around most of this garbage if you plan your trip (with non-res permits of course) and had this been a planned trip, I would have done just that. After some more research it looks like:

SC is okay in the glove box.
VA is okay if I have it openly displayed in the vehicle or on my person while there
WV is legal to OC, but not advised. Everywhere else I am covered through honor/reciprocity. That I can deal with.
 
Just get gas just before crossing the GA/SC border and drive on through. It's only about an hour and a half. Put the gun in the glove box to be legal. Stupid I know. I have the same issue when visiting my wife's sister in NC.

Greg
 
Well, to be honest, on the highway, having it loaded in the glove box is honestly not that large of an imposition. I'm not running convoys through Afghanistan or anything, it's not like I am likely to meet a force encounter doing 55MPH on the road. I won't stop in SC to eat or gas up or rest, I'll just pass on through to the great state of North Carolina, where I can carry rather freely and spend my money in a state that reciprocates my PA permit. :D

WV on the other hand is complete garbage. Sure, it's completely legal, but don't do it or we'll have you proned out at gunpoint on the side of the road and under arrest for, well, whatever. :rolleyes:
 
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I'm assuming that your route will pass through Maryland. Be advised that Maryland regards a loaded magazine the same as a loaded gun, even if it's locked in separate container in your trunk. MD does not recognize PA's carry permit.
 
You know, until I was 42 years old I lived in a state where I couldn't get a carry permit so I went, oh, about 42 years without carrying a gun. Maybe that's why I enjoy these posts about how people refuse to go 5 minutes without one.

I suspect that like many millions of other folks, you can probably bet on making a couple hours drive through SC without needing a gun. I understand preferring to be armed, but sometimes it's not possible or practical and I sure wouldn't throw a hissy fit or change my travel plans just to avoid spending a couple hours going down the highway unarmed.

All you 24/7 people may flame away, now.
 
this is why we need national reciprocity

In any case, much as you shouldn't need to, the odds of something happening for the few hours you will be in SC are slim.
 
Just move it from your holster to the console on the way through SC to be totally legal... no one here cares.

You've got much bigger problems in MD.
 
I live in Georgia and work in SC. I face this issue every time I drive to work.

Some tips. The console or the glove box is legal. Unlocked is legal. Loaded is legal. I've been stopped a number of times in SC for speeding. (leadfootitis) I've never been searched. I've never been asked if I was in possession of weapons. I've been stopped with long guns in open view on the passenger seat. Including evil black rifles. Only question was: are they loaded? When I said they were not, that was the end of the matter. No inspection, no taking possession during the stop. SC LEO's, in my experience, are completely uninterested in gun possession status as long as you appear to be law-abiding. I have no experience of how they proceed if they are suspicious of illegal activity.

I'm more interested in how you plan to handle Maryland. It's on my list of states which comprise enemy territory. I don't go there. Even when I have reason to do so.
 
Dave and Byron:

My destination is SouthWest of Pittsburgh, which is near the SW corner of PA. I can navigate around that little slab of Maryland. I don't go their either, it is, as Byron said, "enemy territory".

I didn't even mention it because it is not an option to travel through there. I went around it to get from VA to PA once before.
 
thatguy said:
You know, until I was 42 years old I lived in a state where I couldn't get a carry permit so I went, oh, about 42 years without carrying a gun. Maybe that's why I enjoy these posts about how people refuse to go 5 minutes without one.

I suspect that like many millions of other folks, you can probably bet on making a couple hours drive through SC without needing a gun. I understand preferring to be armed, but sometimes it's not possible or practical and I sure wouldn't throw a hissy fit or change my travel plans just to avoid spending a couple hours going down the highway unarmed.

All you 24/7 people may flame away, now.
Click to expand...

That's what is wonderful about this country; we can all do as we please within the law. But since you're a weekend warrior in regards to carry, why carry at all? What's the point? You're not carrying because you "intend" to be in a force encounter, you carry because of the slight chance that a force encounter may find you and be unavoidable. Being that chance is not under your control, how do you reconcile not carrying or only carrying part-time?

e.g. I'll only wear my seatbelt on Tuesdays and Fridays.
e.g. I'll only pay health insurance premiums in the Winter months.
e.g. I'll only purchase a warranty on half of my goods.
e.g. I'll only taunt a couple of alligators per year with a short, pointy stick
e.g. I'll only abuse drugs once a month
e.g. I'll only keep my child away from open swimming pools, loaded firearms, knives, electrical outlets, strange animals and downed power lines most of the time...after all, odds are nothing will happen if exposure is limited, right?


People that take chances with their lives because of what the "odds are" or what the "chances" happen to be, obviously do not understand the nature of odds and chance. So to you, I ask, in a non-confrontational spirit, why bother carrying, and why find amusement in the choices of others? I am sure you are not the sole human being on this earth without what others may deem as a "quirky" trait.

BTW, it amuses me when others take such needless chances with their own lives betting on the odds or for a little convenience and then criticize those that prefer not to take such chances and exercise their rights. Good day.
 
NineseveN said:
WV on the other hand is complete garbage. Sure, it's completely legal, but don't do it or we'll have you proned out at gunpoint on the side of the road and under arrest for, well, whatever.
Click to expand...
Same way for me -- in my home state, where I have a permit!
 
I've got the same situation several times a year. Pittsburgh to Naples and back. I just make sure that I only stop for fuel, food, and rest stops in Gun friendly states. Your looking at about a 20 hour plus drive from
Miami at legal speeds.
I would strap on the gun and drive up to Savanna Ga. Top of the gas tank, eat and then put it in the trunk.

Then roll through SC about 3.5 to 4 hours (240 miles) BTW. Hit NC and do what you have to do armed. Charlotte is about 7.5 hours to Pgh. Crossing Va is about an 1 to 1.5 hour ride.
From the Va/WVa border to Pittsburgh is about 5 hours.
Take I-95 north to I-26 W in SC to I-77 N all the way up to the WVa Turnpike to 19N (speed trap city) to I-79 N into Pa. BTW Radar Detectors are a No, No in Va.
It is a nice ride other than coming through Charlotte during rush hour.
 
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