Don't Fossil Hunt Adjacent to Gun Ranges

[Uncle Siphuncle]

6 hours ago, Carl said:

Just one quick comment. It's this pervasive mythology that the South is all crazy and dangerous or cities are all crazy and dangerous based on a few bad stories that keeps us divided and stuck in a primitive past. I prefer my fossils in the primitive past and my people in the communal future. I'll hunt fossils anywhere with anyone and continually look forward to collecting with my brothers and sisters of the deep past anywhere they may be.

At times I think of becoming more communal....but solitude in nature is so dang addictive!  And solitude is getting harder to find.

[Carl]

17 hours ago, Uncle Siphuncle said:

At times I think of becoming more communal....but solitude in nature is so dang addictive!  And solitude is getting harder to find.

I hear you there, Uncle. I'm definitely not advocating solitude sacrifice. Solitude is my antidote.

[Northern Neck]

I think basically all gun ranges have to have a safe backstop also.  If not they wouldn't be in business. Unless the laws and rules arent as strict for that state.  In Virginia it takes an act of Congress to open a gun range and it doesn't happen very often because it's a house to close or some other issue. 

[FossilDAWG]

On a related note, there are many local areas where I do not go during hunting season.  Even in the off season I wear a yellow reflective vest, as I don't care to be mistaken for a deer or some other wildlife.  Hunting, either with bow or firearm, is very popular around here and seems to take precedence over all other use of the land, such as hiking or (gasp!) fossil collecting.

 

Don

[Fossilis Willis]

4 hours ago, Northern Neck said:

I think basically all gun ranges have to have a safe backstop also.  If not they wouldn't be in business. Unless the laws and rules arent as strict for that state.  In Virginia it takes an act of Congress to open a gun range and it doesn't happen very often because it's a house to close or some other issue. 

You would think so, but the truth is people have been killed by stray bullets escaping poorly designed or constructed backstops. I'm not saying it's common, but I wouldn't hang out opposite a gun range burm. It only takes a couple careless or reckless individuals to ruin it for everyone, not unlike fossil hunting.

[Plax]

I think the OP ran into some skeet shooters that were around and used something larger than #8 bird shot. 

[Northern Neck]

1 hour ago, Fossilis Willis said:

You would think so, but the truth is people have been killed by stray bullets escaping poorly designed or constructed backstops. I'm not saying it's common, but I wouldn't hang out opposite a gun range burm. It only takes a couple careless or reckless individuals to ruin it for everyone, not unlike fossil hunting

Exactly! I'd find another cozy spot without higher risk of death lol!! 

[Fossildude19]

Please stick to the topic at hand, without ranging into philosophical/political rabbit hole.  

Thanks.   

[FossilNerd]

Glad you were safe and sound in the end! Its a good idea to be aware of your surroundings and know the dangers that are near you, no matter what environment you are hunting in. Depending on when and where you are hunting, things like wildlife, traffic, or guns can all be a real safety issue. 

 

I try to be at least semi aware of what’s going on around me. It’s hard to be fully aware with my eyes on the ground.  

[DPS Ammonite]

I do not hunt near developed shooting ranges partly because I have not found any with good fossils. I have hunted around several informal ranges in Arizona when they were not being used. I do talk to hunters when I'm out hunting for fossils so that they realize that I am in the area and hopefully they will be more cautious. I tell them that we are doing the same thing: looking for things that we don't need. They are looking for live ones and I am looking for creatures that died millions are years ago. They get a chuckle and hopefully remember that there are others in the area.

[Randyw]

LOL, if I was hunting and you came up to me and said that I’d probably pack up the rifle and go searching with you!

[Randyw]

10 hours ago, Fossildude19 said:

Please stick to the topic at hand, without ranging into philosophical/political rabbit hole.  

Thanks.   

Agreed!