Difference in National Park Rules?

[waynesan]

I have been under the impression that if one is transporting a gun through a National Park you are OK to lock up your unloaded weapon in the trunk or out of reach and lock up the ammo in a different location. I know several Parks have this as their "rules" spelled out on their websites. And this is what I have always done with my handguns when visiting a National Park while traveling.

However, this morning I was reading from the Smokey Mountains website and they simply state "no firearms allowed".

My question is: Are there different rules for different Parks? Or is the general rule that I have always obeyed superceeded by an individual Park's stricter rules? If so, this ought not to be.

[Tim Nunan]

As I understand it firearms are prohibited in national parks. National forests rules are compliance with what the firearms rules in each state where the national forest is.

[waynesan]

Tim,

Here is an example of what I mean. I took this from the Yellowstone NP website:

No firearms or weapons, including state-permitted concealed weapons, are allowed in Yellowstone. However, unloaded firearms may be transported in a vehicle when the weapon is cased, broken down, or rendered inoperable, and kept out of sight. Ammunition must be placed in a separate compartment of the vehicle.

It seems there is a difference between the Parks if the Smokies rule is "No Firearms Allowed".

[Marswolf]

The Virginia Citizen's Defense League http://www.vcdl.org/ has been working to get the rules changed in National Parks to allow carry. Last news I saw on this goes back to March and isn't good. Go down to about the bottom of the VCDL page for info.

I'll have to check this more, but I would think you could have a properly packed gun in your car under the "safe passage" provision of 18 USC 926A of the 1986 Firearms Owners' Protection Act. However, you could not stop to camp or lodge in the park.

Interstate Transportation of Firearms

Notwithstanding any other provision of any law or any rule or regulation of a State or any political subdivision thereof, any person who is not otherwise prohibited by this chapter from transporting, shipping, or receiving a firearm shall be entitled to transport a firearm for any lawful purpose from any place where he may lawfully possess and carry such firearm to any other place where he may lawfully possess and carry such firearm if, during such transportation the firearm is unloaded, and neither the firearm nor any ammunition being transported is readily accessible or is directly accessible from the passenger compartment of such transporting vehicle: Provided, That in the case of a vehicle without a compartment separate from the driver's compartment the firearm or ammunition shall be contained in a locked container other than the glove compartment or console.

The Park Service may not nullify federal law.

[strickj]

I was under the impression you could carry any where in your car(state dependent) if you have a hcp.A car is your personal property like your home.is that right?

[Mike.357]

I was under the impression you could carry any where in your car(state dependent) if you have a hcp.A car is your personal property like your home.is that right?

I cannot cite a law but in TN your car and your home are not the same things.

I was under the impression that in SMNP you could have a gun seperated from ammo and stored in the trunk.

[jgrauman]

I cannot cite a law but in TN your car and your home are not the same things.

yeah, i guess that depends on the law you're referring too. the castle doctrine says they are the same thing when it comes to defending them. i'm sure there's a contradictory law that says they're different for carrying in them. you've got to just smile and nod when it comes to these laws

[Mike.357]

jgrauman what I meant was that even with a HCP you cannot carry in a national park, in a national park your car is not defendable like your home is.

Does that make any better sense? Not arguing here.

[jgrauman]

i got what you were saying i was just poking at the ridiculousness of all these laws. so many "if... then..." it just goes back to the basic argument that we're responsible enough to carry sometimes and not others.

[waynesan]

I posted this same question on another website and got this response:

"Traps, nets and unloaded weapons may be possessed within a temporary lodging or mechanical mode of conveyance when such implements are rendered temporarily inoperable or are packed, cased or stored in a manner that will prevent their ready use."

http://ecfr.gpoaccess.gov/cgi/t/text....0.1.1.2.0.1.4

If this link is correct (and it looks like it is) it would seem that by following the rules for storage while there would make it legal to have a gun in any National Park. The "no firearms allowed" restrictions that are listed for some parks may just be a holdover from the days before carry permits became so common.

[strickj]

waynesan

that the way I was thinking,and anyhoo there not going to look unless they have a reason to look