Going to Big Bend to camp

[philip964]

Since the weather is nice for camping, I thought about going to Big Bend in a little bit.

Can I have a gun in my car in a state park? If I have my CHL can I concealed carry?

Am I permitted to open carry a pistol while hiking in the wilderness? What about a rifle?

Last time I was there in the late 80's, I went on a guided raft trip. It was a lot of fun. About a month later, a sniper killed a few tourists doing the exact same thing.

Seems things are much worse in that part of the world now than in the 80's.

I want to be a Boy Scout, but I don't want to find out when I get there it is illegal.

Thanks in advance for your help.

[alexrex20]

Big Bend is a national park, unless you meant Big Bend Ranch state park. As of a few years ago, guns are allowed in national parks except inside the visitor center, or rangers office. The workers are federal employees and thus it is a federal building. You can not open carry your handgun, because that is a violation of state law.

[CC Italian]

Yep. 100%. I did it there on my way to Davis state park and Guadalupe mountains national. Just review the laws pertaining to federal and if you don't know look it up. I have a family friend who is from out near Alpine and he says everybody carries out there.

Edit: As for rifles I don't think you can open carry rifles in Texas state parks (unless there is some type of authorized hunting) and well the federal law says this.

Read this my friend, especially if your going on the river:http://www.nps.gov/bibe/planyourvisit/firearms.htm

Open carry is NOT permitted in either. I think this is the same for rifles. I will check real quick!

http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/spdest/park ... gulations/ Here you go 3/4 way down. If Texas doesn't allow it then the National parks don't!

Quoted straight from website

(d) Arms and Firearms. It is an offense for any person to display or discharge an arm or firearm in a state park, unless:

the person is participating in a public hunting activity within the state park that has been authorized by written order of the director so long as the person is in compliance with the applicable public hunting rules and regulations; or
the person has been authorized by written order of the director.

Here is another good resource. http://www.nps.gov/grca/parkmgmt/upload ... 2-2010.pdf

[CC Italian]

So to clarify, you can carry a concealed handgun in both parks. Watch where you go in the parks! Read the laws and signs. Texas doesn't say you can't bring a firearm into a campsite, it is saying you can't display or discharge it. If my understanding of the federal law is sound I think in Big Bend National you can have a rifle in your vehicle but it can't be displayed.

I am not 100% on the second one so do your own research. I have never brought a rifle to a national park, only handguns. I have brought rifles into state parks though!

[CC Italian]

Also, some state parks have "no firearms signs" I don't know how this pertains to rifles but if you have a CHL you may carry your handgun concealed all day long. It has no bearing on a CHL holder with a concealed handgun! Others should chime in tomorrow about the rifle.

[philip964]

Thanks,

Appears my dog is a bigger problem than my handgun.

Didn't realize it was a national park. Glad they changed the rule in 2010.

Didn't plan on rafting anyway, due to my memories of what happened after I went last time. But it appears that CC while rafting would be a no no.

Are state parks better for dogs?

[PeteCamp]

"For those on a river float trip, please be aware that it is illegal to transport firearms and ammunition into Mexico. Due to the fact that the Rio Grande is an international boundary, this is a complex regulatory area. The US/Mexico boundary is defined as the deepest part of the middle channel. As watercraft float down the river, boats cross the international border many times on a float trip. Thus, a US citizen with a firearm on the river who may lawfully possess that firearm in Texas still violates Mexican law because they likely will have entered Mexico several times during the float trip with a firearm just by meandering down the river. There are severe penalties in Mexico for the possession of firearms and ammunition,which is what a person is doing if they carry a weapon on the river. Mexican officials can arrest persons floating on the Mexico portion of the Rio Grande and along the Mexican shoreline for possession of guns and ammunition."

This is patently stupid. The place where you are MOST likely to need a weapon (rifle of the assault variety) is on the river! Anyone remember Colorado Canyon?
http://www.bigbendchat.com/portal/forum ... ing-recap/

The NPS would like to pretend that this and all the related incidents on the river never happened. More proof of our government at work protecting Americans.
Besides...those who would enforce the law in Mexico across from Big Bend NP are part of the problem, not part of the solution. I used to live down there and I would not go anywhere there now without lots of rifles and ammunition. YMMV

[alexrex20]

Yes, national parks are more gun-friendly than dog-friendly. In Big Bend specifically, dogs are only allowed where vehicles are allowed. You can't bring them backpacking, or trail running or anything where a vehicle can't go. They don't want the presence of domestic dogs to adversely affect the wildlife.

I'm not sure what the actual law is regarding long guns in a national park, but I remember at Guadalupe National Park on the way to Williams Ranch, we had to pass through a couple gates and one was clearly posted something along the lines of, "No firearms beyond this point." I guess you could infer that firearms were thus allowed outside of that gate...

I think the general consensus is that NO firearm can be displayed or discharged in a state or national park. But you can concealed carry your handgun in a state or national park. I don't see why you would need a rifle or shotgun, but they must remain in your vehicle because it's illegal to conceal carry one, and illegal to open carry in a state/national park.

Big Bend Ranch State Park is more pet-friendly than Big Bend National Park, but I recommend the latter 100x over.

[philip964]

"For those on a river float trip, please be aware that it is illegal to transport firearms and ammunition into Mexico. Due to the fact that the Rio Grande is an international boundary, this is a complex regulatory area. The US/Mexico boundary is defined as the deepest part of the middle channel. As watercraft float down the river, boats cross the international border many times on a float trip. Thus, a US citizen with a firearm on the river who may lawfully possess that firearm in Texas still violates Mexican law because they likely will have entered Mexico several times during the float trip with a firearm just by meandering down the river. There are severe penalties in Mexico for the possession of firearms and ammunition,which is what a person is doing if they carry a weapon on the river. Mexican officials can arrest persons floating on the Mexico portion of the Rio Grande and along the Mexican shoreline for possession of guns and ammunition."

This is patently stupid. The place where you are MOST likely to need a weapon (rifle of the assault variety) is on the river! Anyone remember Colorado Canyon?
http://www.bigbendchat.com/portal/forum ... ing-recap/

The NPS would like to pretend that this and all the related incidents on the river never happened. More proof of our government at work protecting Americans.
Besides...those who would enforce the law in Mexico across from Big Bend NP are part of the problem, not part of the solution. I used to live down there and I would not go anywhere there now without lots of rifles and ammunition. YMMV

Yeah this was in 1988, it happened a few months after I did the same thing. I always wondered if my guide was involved.

[13MWZ]

I went to Big Bend a couple years ago with a friend. We got there just after midnight. I parked my truck in a way that would let us use the headlights to set up the tent. I locked my Glock in the truck as we drank some beer then slept it off. I got woke up in the morning by a ranger. I steped out of the tent to talk with him. He asked why my truck was parked in the grass. I explained it to him and appologized for forgeting to repossition it before heading off to sleep. He asked me for ID so I gave him my DL and CHL. He asked if I had a firearm, I said yes, it's locked up in my truck. He kind of smiled and said something along the lines of "Mexico is about 30 yards from this spot, people get kidnaped and worse. That pistol wont do yall any good in your truck". He suggested I refrain from the beer and keep the firearm on me, consealed of course. The rest of the trip was great. Awesome hiking. I cant wait to go back again. Have fun down there!

[tommyg]

One thing to watch out for. Land that is under control of the Army corpse of Engineers is off limits to carry.
There are efforts going on to change this but for now no carry No Notice is required No posting required
State and National parks Chl is ok except in park buildings

[PeteCamp]

I don't see why you would need a rifle or shotgun, but they must remain in your vehicle because it's illegal to conceal carry one, and illegal to open carry in a state/national park.

You wouldn't. Your handgun would be fine, as long as you could hit an ambusher 180+ yards away at a +35 degree elevation.

I watched the officers load the boats to head into Colorado Canyon and retrieve the body of Michael Heffley and oddly enough they didn't just carry handguns! Jim Burr was the guide with Far Flung Adventures and he was wounded also.

[alexrex20]

I don't see why you would need a rifle or shotgun, but they must remain in your vehicle because it's illegal to conceal carry one, and illegal to open carry in a state/national park.

You wouldn't. Your handgun would be fine, as long as you could hit an ambusher 180+ yards away at a +35 degree elevation. YMMV

If you spot them at 180yds, it's not an ambush. If you have that much of a head start and you've already verified it as a threat, why wouldn't you just get in your truck and get the hell out of there?

I watched the officers load the boats to head into Colorado Canyon and retrieve the body of Michael Heffley and oddly enough they didn't just carry handguns! Jim Burr was the guide with Far Flung Adventures and he was wounded also.

You can not display a firearm, nor can you conceal carry a long gun. Good luck walking around the campsite with a rifle over your shoulder and the park ranger not noticing.

If you're that worried about your safety at Big Bend that you feel the need to bring a long gun, maybe you should reevaluate your vacation location...

[PeteCamp]

Well Alex...no disrespect intended, but clearly you have never been in Colorado Canyon. There are no roads. No pickups. No running away. You are in a raft with sheer vertical rock canyon walls that rise in places many humdreds of feet. The first indication you will have of an ambush is a fusilade of bullets. If you camp for the night, you camp on a small flat spot, none of which is more than 50 yards long and perhaps 25 feet wide from the edge of the river to the rock walls of the canyon and overlooked from the Mexican side for many hundreds of yards up and down the river. There are some of those spots on the Mexican side for the truly adventurous. The only way in or out is by boat, unless you like swimming. To put it gently, anyone in the canyon is a sitting duck. And over the years, many have been shot at.

And yes, it would be illegal to carry weapons. Judged by 12 or carried by six. Your choice. If I were going to ride the river though, the choice is pretty simple. Camping off the river is somewhat different, but the whole area is, as the Park Ranger observed above, a place where you'd better be armed. All of which is a shame because it used to be great fun. I do agree with your last sentence. I lived there for almost 9 years. I won't be going on the river again.

My point about the officers was meant to highlight the reality that you don't plan on defending yourself in a place like Colorado Canyon with a handgun anymore than a soldier would trek into hostile territory in Afghanistan with only an M9. No offense intended.

[r_gray]

Since the weather is nice for camping, I thought about going to Big Bend in a little bit.

Can I have a gun in my car in a state park? If I have my CHL can I concealed carry?

Am I permitted to open carry a pistol while hiking in the wilderness? What about a rifle?

Last time I was there in the late 80's, I went on a guided raft trip. It was a lot of fun. About a month later, a sniper killed a few tourists doing the exact same thing.

Seems things are much worse in that part of the world now than in the 80's.

I want to be a Boy Scout, but I don't want to find out when I get there it is illegal.

Thanks in advance for your help.

Philip,

Always be a Boy Scout.

I've been there back in the mid 80's and I miss it. I did the raft trip also. I'm sorry to hear about what happened later. Maybe it's a fluke...you never know.

Live your life. But always be prepared. If you can carry, then carry if you think it's worth the hassle.

God bless and be careful, and God bless our land,
-robert