Just talked with the lady I normally ride with in the state forest near us… They had a BAD surprise when they came back from their beautiful ride yesterday. Two vehicles pulling rigs, both had broken windows-all purses stolen. When they got ahold of the rangers/state police- they were told that it’s been happening ALL OVER CENTRAL PA PARKS!!! But, there’s been nothing on the news, no warnings posted, nothing! Supposedly, Friday- there were people camping in a camper, one took the vehicle to go somewhere- the other was sleeping in the camper. A car pulled up to the empty looking camper, two men got out-one with a gun on his hip and some sort of rifle in the backseat of the car. They stood there outside the camper arguing about breaking into it because they would only find about $20. They said they should break into the park office instead and left. While the unarmed, alone man stood inside his camper listening! He got a license plate but other people have too and they are tracing back to a leased car from Florida. For some reason, they can’t find or associate it with anyone.
This is going to put a BIG dent in the incredible fall riding at the parks this year.
Anyone familiar with Central PA, this is happening at Big Springs, Colonel Denning and Fowler’s Hollow that I know of…there may be more…
Smash and Grabs - happen all too often.
You know, this should go out as a warning to people going to parks everywhere. I was the victim of a smash and grab (on Christmas day!:mad:) at a remote state park in the Santa Cruz mountains in California.
No signs, no warnings, it wasn’t until I read on a mountain biking forum that smash and grabs happen there ALL THE TIME, and the bikers had learned to take their valuables, and just leave a window down.
State beaches around here have a lot of smash and grabs as well. I do not leave valuables in my car any more…. Especially when I leave my car near a park.
We came back from a four day trip once to find someone had unhooked our trailer! It was a bumper pull back then and they had completely undone the hitch and left it sitting on the ball. Thank heavens I happened to notice it, now I always check.
It’s scary leaving the vehicle unattended…
I stopped taking my purse and started carrying a fanny pack instead when I trailered somewhere to ride. I think maybe the second time I did that the person parked next to us had her truck broken into and her purse stolen. My truck was unlocked and had the windows down and nothing was touched. A guy was later caught on surveillance at a gas station filling up vehicle after vehicle on her credit card.
Thanks KASJORDAN, I was going to one of the Parks today, and I read this thread first. Because of it, I decided to park in a more visible location. I figured if I took away the opportunity I’d have less chance of being a target. Since I had my son’s truck, I was glad to find it safe and sound on my return. 
KASJORDAN - hope you don’t mind, but since this is occuring right in my backyard, I copied and pasted your post to my Facebook page and asked all of my local horse friends to spread the word via Facebook, email etc.
Thanks for the headsup!
I am confused by people proclaiming there are no signs to warn you.
Do they put signs in the mall parking lot telling you to not leave valuables in your car? I think not. Hello common sense people.
This break in thing happens at the park near where I live too. (It also happens where I work, which is not a park and there are no signs here either.)
Leaving your purse in your car is never a good idea.
[QUOTE=trubandloki;6554333]
I am confused by people proclaiming there are no signs to warn you.
Do they put signs in the mall parking lot telling you to not leave valuables in your car? I think not. Hello common sense people.
This break in thing happens at the park near where I live too. (It also happens where I work, which is not a park and there are no signs here either.)
Leaving your purse in your car is never a good idea.[/QUOTE]
I don’t leave any valuables in my truck, but it would be nice to know if there had been a bunch of break-ins lately. I don’t think not informing the public does anything to help anybody.
Tabula, I am not saying it should be a big secret but signs? Really? Do we need ‘park here at your own risk’ signs every where? Because they would have to be everywhere or else someone who parked some where that did not have them would sue if they were broken into, saying they were not warned properly.
Petty theft does not usually make the news unless it is a slow news day.
Heck, when your car gets the window smashed where I work you do not even get to talk to a real live policeman. They have you call in to a recorded service and they send you the police report.
[QUOTE=trubandloki;6554383]
Tabula, I am not saying it should be a big secret but signs? Really? Do we need ‘park here at your own risk’ signs every where? Because they would have to be everywhere or else someone who parked some where that did not have them would sue if they were broken into, saying they were not warned properly.
Petty theft does not usually make the news unless it is a slow news day.
Heck, when your car gets the window smashed where I work you do not even get to talk to a real live policeman. They have you call in to a recorded service and they send you the police report.[/QUOTE]
Actually yes, if there have been recent thefts in a parking lot our parks do post a sign with something to the effect of “recent thefts from this area”. And, if there have been people attempting robbery at gun point?? Damn straight I want to know it’s been happening. Maybe you and I camp/ ride at different areas. I’m often alone and in the middle of nowhere, heck one place I camp you have to drive almost an hour on park roads (usually 4 wheel drive:D) just to get into camp. So it is very important to me to know these things.
I guess this isn’t the best thread to invite ya’ll to trail ride with me, :lol: but…I live right down the road from Fowler’s Hollow Park and I’d love to get a group of COTHers together to trail ride sometime this fall! We just moved here so I don’t really know anyone in the area.
If anyone is worried about theft you guys are more than welcome to drop by my house first and leave your valuables there…heck, you could even park there and we could ride down, although that might take a while.
I’d be happy to provide lunch and some cold beverages… :winkgrin:
I’m pretty confident that anyone who has ever hauled solo to a remote location would appreciate the heads up. There’s QUITE a difference in a mall parking lot and being in the middle of nowhere, usually with no cell reception. Most of the trail riding women I know have ridden locations like this by themselves, what if the come back and interrupt the KNOWN to be gunpacking KNOWN to be robbing that area man? You really dont think they would have wished to be made aware? I’m doubting it.
I saw this here last night and called a friend who sometimes rides alone in eastern PA- usually at Jacobsburg in Northampton County. She told me she was there last week with a friend when two men came into the horse trailer parking lot on foot. They had left their vehicle parked out on the road, which in itself is strange, as well as the fact they came through the woods and not the driveway. One of the women did say something to them and they were kind of evasive, so who knows what they were really up to!
Sometimes we get complacent- I think this is a great reminder that we need to be aware of our surroundings and what is going on around us, especially if we are women who ride alone or in small groups!
I, for one, appreicate the reminder : )
you have to admit, if you were a thief, hitting cars parked at a trail-head is the way to go- most people who, say, go into malls take their money and credit cards in with them, but they don’t need this kind of stuff out on the trail and so leaving it in the car seems logical. Ripe pickings for thieves.
[QUOTE=trubandloki;6554333]
I am confused by people proclaiming there are no signs to warn you.
Do they put signs in the mall parking lot telling you to not leave valuables in your car? I think not. Hello common sense people.
This break in thing happens at the park near where I live too. (It also happens where I work, which is not a park and there are no signs here either.)
Leaving your purse in your car is never a good idea.[/QUOTE]
Of course they could leave a sign there that said there have been recent break ins, common sense or not, if people had been able to go out into the wilderness or rural areas and not worry before, it would have made sense to warn people that no where is safe now. The thing is though, that they do not want to do that because they do not want to scare the tourists away, these days you pay a day use fee or buy a pass at any federal park or forest in Washington State and that would cut down on the revenue. Crazy world we are in right now.
In NY, it’s a given that you might be robbed, but in other parts of the country it might not be assumed.
Now, in Texas, somehow I dont think would be the same. Concealed carrying licenses and all :)Texans care to chime in?
We have a “security compartment” in our horse trailer. It was an accidental benefit of our fitting out our weekender LQ. We didn’t plan the space, it just was an unplanned outcome of our construction plans. I won’t discuss it in detail (that would, rather, compromise security 
). I will observe that most horse trailers, even small two horse ones, have many possible “security compartments” that could be utilized for at least small stuff (wallets, cell phones, keys, etc.). The bigger the trailer the more opportunities can be found and larger items, like purses, can be “secured.”
The past couple of months in East TN saw a number of “auto burglaries” along the TVA lakes. There are a number of good “swimming holes” with public access. People would leave valuables in their cars (sometimes unlocked) and thieves hit them pretty hard.
Theft, sadly, has become a way of life for many in modern America. I’m not sure that shooting somebody over a wallet is a good idea. Making theft of the wallet difficult by “secreting” it seems a much wiser choice.
G.
Another strong argument for bringing the fanny pack back in style.
And yep. No valuables in the truck, leave a window open, lock the trailer hitch etc.
I used to see a rig around the local campgrounds that always had a boot on the truck, and another on the trailer. Never talked to the guy that owned the rig but I’m assuming he was using these: http://www.tirelock.com/product_p/8-00055.htm At least that’s what they looked like.
My dad has been having a problem with crackheads breaking into his cars at night ever since a nearby apartment complex went section 8. Now he leaves his cars unlocked and makes sure there is nothing to steal. About once a month he’ll go out in the morning and have to hook the battery charger up to his vehicles to get them started, inconsiderate crackheads don’t even shut the car doors when they are done rifling through them and batteries will all be dead!
So…no one wants to come trail riding with me? 
LOL
It is not that we don’t want to, it is just that I have better riding here Fowler is only 104 acres, and is close to Harrisburg.
I live between Sproul, Bald Eagle, and Tiaghdaton State Forests. Almost 700,000 acres of riding.
You come here!
