LTC and bowhunting ?
Massachusetts
Quick question,..
I was reading the thread on NH and noticed the guy said you can carry a firearm while bow hunting. You cannot do that in Mass? Even if you have a LTC ? It would make sense to protect yourself but then again a lot of laws do not make sense. Let me know guys,. thanks.
No carry while you are bow hunting.
I would give you a better explanation, but this is Mass. No good explanation required.
Actually, no good explanation exists. Or, maybe just saying "this is MA" is the explanation...
No Firearms during archery. Given no silencers, you would think a handgun would be fine. It's pretty darn obvious if you used that v an arrow, not to mention the sound. I'm seriously considering bear spray though. 1.) because of all the dang bears there seem to be now and 2.) because i could imagine some crazed meth/heroine junkie appearing all of a sudden in some areas.
Seems like every other state you can carry while bow hunting. Makes sense but in MA it's too "dangerous" and illegal. Will, it's more likely that a crazed junkie could suddenly appear or harass you than a bear would. Mace is a good plan.
OMG that is funny Buckshot thanks for the early morning laugh. Probably true too !
Buckshot - I'd generally agree... But having seen bears the past few years, and thinking of the woman in Amherst pinned on a car by one and scratched last year, and the yale student a couple years ago eaten... Well... It makes me think at least...
Then again, I was once so scared by a couple raccoons fighting on my walk in, in the dark, that, well, lets just say I learned I'm not that brave... :)
HAHA. I'm not that brave either. I scared a fawn once in the dark and it panicked and bleated loud as it ran away and I almost crapped myself. Also, had 3 coyotes follow me all the way to my camp once in VT during rifle season and my heart was pounding because I was convinced I was the hunter being hunted.
I'll be carrying bear spray on my PA hunt this fall. The landowner said he has more bears now than ever before. And, I've already had 3 uncomfortable encounters with bears on that property over the past 12 years. I thought about getting a handgun. But, everything I've read says bear spray is the best way to go with black bears.
Jimbo - I saw a neat thing on Discovery years ago on this. I forget the guys name, but he had this bear, brutus, a Griz, that he'd raised from a cub. He was used in movies and stuff, but also for education. The show this guy had, was basically him teaching the world about bears, using Brutus to show what bears can do.
One "scene" he set up a fake bear on a track and the person could shoot at it with a gun or bear spray. With the gun, they could barely hit the darn bear when it was running at them... but with the bear spray, they could plaster it every time.
His point, was that your odds of dissuading the bear from attacking were better with the spray, given you have very good odds of not even hitting the darn thing with a hand gun.
Your idea makes sense to me with all the bears popping up - especially in PA and NJ where the numbers are well beyond ours.
I'm on my way to Alaska on Friday and will be carrying a .41 at all times ... I really don't understand why they give you 6 shots though. I'm thinking at best, the 3rd one will be to put myself out of my misery haha.
