Personal safety when hiking alone

123468

Replies

  • Lillymoo01
    Lillymoo01 Posts: 2,865 Member
    lauragreenbaum wrote: »
    Hannahwalksfar wrote: »
    Never mind. It’s illegal here.

    To that I say "So what??" You can buy it on Amazon. Carry it when you hike and have it in a place you can grab it quickly. I talked to an ex- Navy Seal who said part of their training is being sprayed in the face with it, and he said the toughest of guys were rendered incapacitated- if only for a couple minutes which is long enough to run.

    Look luck with doing that! We can not simply buy it from Amazon and get it shipped here. If you do get caught the fines are huge.
  • Hannahwalksfar
    Hannahwalksfar Posts: 572 Member
    lynn_glenmont wrote: »
    Hannahwalksfar wrote: »
    This discussion also proves that people really don’t read past the OP before commenting.

    To reiterate

    Guns, pepper spray, bear spray, nun-chucks, brass knuckles, knives, hand grenades etc are all illegal here.

    Wow, Australia's no fun at all.

    😂🤣😂🤣
  • lynn_glenmont
    lynn_glenmont Posts: 10,089 Member
    sgt1372 wrote: »
    MikePTY wrote: »
    Australia, where the homocide rate is more than 5 times lower than the US.


    If you do have the mindset to inflict lethal force on an attacker (which is a legal form of self defense IF you have a "reasonable" fear that you may be killed or suffer serious bodily injury as a result of the attack), I would suggest you look into carrying a light weight karambit blade which can be used very effectively w/o significant training. If used deliberately to cut the throat, femoral or brachial arteries, the result will almost always be fatal.

    Is that based on your knowledge of the law where you live, the law in New Zealand, or the law is Australia, where the OP actually lives?
  • Hannahwalksfar
    Hannahwalksfar Posts: 572 Member
    Self defence laws in Australia are pretty ambiguous. Basically you can take reasonable force to subdue an attacker if you have to. If you can you must try other reasonable methods of self-protection before becoming physical. It really is based on a case by case basis from what I understand.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    lauragreenbaum wrote: »
    Hannahwalksfar wrote: »
    Never mind. It’s illegal here.

    To that I say "So what??" You can buy it on Amazon. Carry it when you hike and have it in a place you can grab it quickly. I talked to an ex- Navy Seal who said part of their training is being sprayed in the face with it, and he said the toughest of guys were rendered incapacitated- if only for a couple minutes which is long enough to run.

    I guess you missed my post where I said Amazon wouldn't ship it to me and I had to buy it in a gun store (just because something is for sale on Amazon doesn't mean they will ship it to you.)

    Or the OP's numerous posts stating she is not willing to do anything illegal.
  • Hannahwalksfar
    Hannahwalksfar Posts: 572 Member
    slimgirljo15 wrote: »
    49w5b3y7j5j3.jpg


    Yeah, yeah I know.. no knives, no guns, no sprays, no taser... but its ok we are taught to wrestle crocs and subdue a water buffalo with a look from birth. True story :D

    I legit know how to wrestle a croc 😂
  • slimgirljo15
    slimgirljo15 Posts: 269,456 Member
    Hannahwalksfar wrote: »
    slimgirljo15 wrote: »
    49w5b3y7j5j3.jpg


    Yeah, yeah I know.. no knives, no guns, no sprays, no taser... but its ok we are taught to wrestle crocs and subdue a water buffalo with a look from birth. True story :D

    I legit know how to wrestle a croc 😂

    😁 I'm up near Cairns, we know how to handle our crocs 😂
  • Hannahwalksfar
    Hannahwalksfar Posts: 572 Member
    slimgirljo15 wrote: »
    Hannahwalksfar wrote: »
    slimgirljo15 wrote: »
    49w5b3y7j5j3.jpg


    Yeah, yeah I know.. no knives, no guns, no sprays, no taser... but its ok we are taught to wrestle crocs and subdue a water buffalo with a look from birth. True story :D

    I legit know how to wrestle a croc 😂

    😁 I'm up near Cairns, we know how to handle our crocs 😂

    Haha. I used to work near the gulf and then as a reptile handler. Got the crocs covered. Just the people have me confused 😆
  • lynn_glenmont
    lynn_glenmont Posts: 10,089 Member
    Hannahwalksfar wrote: »
    slimgirljo15 wrote: »
    49w5b3y7j5j3.jpg


    Yeah, yeah I know.. no knives, no guns, no sprays, no taser... but its ok we are taught to wrestle crocs and subdue a water buffalo with a look from birth. True story :D

    I legit know how to wrestle a croc 😂

    OK, now we're talking! Wrestle a croc, hog-tie it, schlep it along on your hike with some small pieces of raw meat, and if somebody looks like they want to assault you, toss the meat in line toward them and let the croc loose. :)

    Of course, I suppose if they're from Australia, they'll know how to wrestle the croc, too. Hmmm. .... Back to the drawing board.

    ....

    Just trying to lighten the mood. I haven't got any new ideas. I think the best recommendations I've seen is borrowing a dog if yours won't make the trip, do whatever you can to look confident and not like an easy target, stick to areas with mobile service if you can, and ask local police for any advice they have.
  • slimgirljo15
    slimgirljo15 Posts: 269,456 Member
    Hannahwalksfar wrote: »
    Sadly crocs are illegal in this state 😂

    :laugh: you couldn't even have a snake...also illegal without the necessary licences :D
  • Hannahwalksfar
    Hannahwalksfar Posts: 572 Member
    edited September 2019
    They (license) only cost $40 but then you have to record everything and can’t sell it for six months after purchase even if it is a snappy jerk lol
  • slimgirljo15
    slimgirljo15 Posts: 269,456 Member
    edited September 2019
    Hannahwalksfar wrote: »
    They (license) only cost $40 but then you have to record everything and can’t sell it for six months after purchase even if it is a snappy jerk lol

    My son and daughter both have licences..
    I often visit and find a python sunning on the clothes line.
  • earlnabby
    earlnabby Posts: 8,171 Member
    As a single woman who hikes alone I have found my best defense is awareness and observation. When I am hiking, I do not listen to music or anything else because I need to hear my surroundings. I make a note of vehicles parked at the trailhead. I make sure someone knows where I went and when I expect to be back. I carry no weapon.

    OP, do what is comfortable to you, but I like the idea mentioned upthread about talking to your local park rangers (or whatever the Aussie equivalent is) or law enforcement to get advice for ways to stay safe and also to get an honest assessment of potential risks. Sometimes I think the risk is blown out of proportion and a little perspective helps.
  • Lillymoo01
    Lillymoo01 Posts: 2,865 Member
    A bit of Crocodile Dundee is in order here!
    Have I said how much I love Australia?

    5t8bjn97ajx6.jpg
  • Lillymoo01
    Lillymoo01 Posts: 2,865 Member
    sugaraddict4321 wrote: »
    lynn_glenmont wrote: »
    OK, now we're talking! Wrestle a croc, hog-tie it, schlep it along on your hike with some small pieces of raw meat, and if somebody looks like they want to assault you, toss the meat in line toward them and let the croc loose. :)

    What a great way to burn extra calories! ;)
    Hannahwalksfar wrote: »
    Sadly crocs are illegal in this state 😂

    They should be, they're a fashion abomination. ;)

    Humor aside, let's please leave the gun debate out of this thread, and stop proposing weapons that are illegal where OP is.

    Humor partially back on:

    If you always hike where there's cell signal, when you feel nervous you could pull out your phone and pretend to or actually go live on FB and start talking loudly. "Hey, It's Hannah and we're live on FB from the Croc Wrangling Trail near Cairns. So far we've seen 2 kangaroos, a koala, a snake, and this creepy guy in the red hat (show him on camera) but no crocs! Stay tuned, we'll find a croc to wrangle soon and later I'll show you how to make boots and a purse after the barbie!"

    ** Apologies to all the Aussies for putting most stereotypes into one post. :blush:

    I love it!
  • Hannahwalksfar
    Hannahwalksfar Posts: 572 Member
    Yeah, predators think like predators and it’s hard for us to think like that when we’re wired differently. Good on you for thinking twice.
  • bernadettenz
    bernadettenz Posts: 252 Member
    edited September 2019
    Love this! I need it!
    mvkz0nubnet9.png
    [/quote]

  • SuzySunshine99
    SuzySunshine99 Posts: 2,989 Member
    edited September 2019
    Lillymoo01 wrote: »
    A bit of Crocodile Dundee is in order here!
    Have I said how much I love Australia?

    5t8bjn97ajx6.jpg

    I can't believe it took 9 pages before someone went there. :D
  • Tattoosnmuscles
    Tattoosnmuscles Posts: 7 Member
    I have an english mastiff and a gun. If you get past one you're not getting past the other.

Categories