Appalachian Trail horror: Machete wielding man assaults two hikers on the trail, one expected to live

So the whacko hid the knife probably behind a tree or under a rock when he heard (sirens) or saw 50 approaching the first time.

Don’t blame you for getting the heebeejeebees . But the legitimate hikers should have carried bigger knives .

I’m not a and never will be a through hiker but I live locally to the trail . I go for 1/2 hour to 3 hour walks .

I always carry a knife and sometimes wish I had a firearm for a potential rabid animal or human being .

For a through hiker not to carry some sort of weaponry and not be at the ready is nuts.

Kumbaya and negotiating with a Charles Manson wannabe on the drug du jour ain’t gonna work deep into the woods .

See movie ‘Deliverance ‘.

We need common sense machete control laws.

For whom the bells toll wrote:

We need common sense machete control laws.

Look, someone killed with a knife, so guns must not be a problem.

Nuclear Lake wrote:

So the whacko hid the knife probably behind a tree or under a rock when he heard (sirens) or saw 50 approaching the first time.

Don’t blame you for getting the heebeejeebees . But the legitimate hikers should have carried bigger knives .

I’m not a and never will be a through hiker but I live locally to the trail . I go for 1/2 hour to 3 hour walks .

I always carry a knife and sometimes wish I had a firearm for a potential rabid animal or human being .

For a through hiker not to carry some sort of weaponry and not be at the ready is nuts.

Kumbaya and negotiating with a Charles Manson wannabe on the drug du jour ain’t gonna work deep into the woods .

See movie ‘Deliverance ‘.

I think you're underestimating the element of surprise. Sure, being armed helps if you actually know the attacker's intentions. But unless you are on the set of a movie, the attacker probably isn't going to stand there brandishing his weapon for five minutes while he gives a speech about how he's only doing this because society let him down.

More likely scenario: You're walking down the trail. A hiker passes you going the other way and gives a polite nod as he approaches. Just as the other hiker passes out of your field of view, you feel his blade slice into your carotid. By the time you realize what has happened, he's stabbed your hiking buddy too. For someone who has planned out the attack in advance, this is two moves with a knife and could be completed with about one second passing from first noticing that there is a problem to the second person being severely wounded.

So yeah, being armed could help in certain situations and I'm not saying it's a bad idea. But I wouldn't be too confident in my ability to fight off an attacker who already has the tremendous advantage of knowing what he is planning. I wouldn't even be sure that the victims weren't armed. A weapon only helps if you have time to use it.

What is the AT record done in full body armour?

Nuclear Lake wrote:

So the whacko hid the knife probably behind a tree or under a rock when he heard (sirens) or saw 50 approaching the first time.

Don’t blame you for getting the heebeejeebees . But the legitimate hikers should have carried bigger knives .

I’m not a and never will be a through hiker but I live locally to the trail . I go for 1/2 hour to 3 hour walks .

I always carry a knife and sometimes wish I had a firearm for a potential rabid animal or human being .

For a through hiker not to carry some sort of weaponry and not be at the ready is nuts.

Kumbaya and negotiating with a Charles Manson wannabe on the drug du jour ain’t gonna work deep into the woods .

See movie ‘Deliverance ‘.

Only in America...

Nuclear Lake wrote:

So the whacko hid the knife probably behind a tree or under a rock when he heard (sirens) or saw 50 approaching the first time.

Don’t blame you for getting the heebeejeebees . But the legitimate hikers should have carried bigger knives .

I’m not a and never will be a through hiker but I live locally to the trail . I go for 1/2 hour to 3 hour walks .

I always carry a knife and sometimes wish I had a firearm for a potential rabid animal or human being .

For a through hiker not to carry some sort of weaponry and not be at the ready is nuts.

Kumbaya and negotiating with a Charles Manson wannabe on the drug du jour ain’t gonna work deep into the woods .

See movie ‘Deliverance ‘.

Has anyone ever told you that you are paranoid? You're paranoid.

well,, wrote:

Nuclear Lake wrote:

So the whacko hid the knife probably behind a tree or under a rock when he heard (sirens) or saw 50 approaching the first time.

Don’t blame you for getting the heebeejeebees . But the legitimate hikers should have carried bigger knives .

I’m not a and never will be a through hiker but I live locally to the trail . I go for 1/2 hour to 3 hour walks .

I always carry a knife and sometimes wish I had a firearm for a potential rabid animal or human being .

For a through hiker not to carry some sort of weaponry and not be at the ready is nuts.

Kumbaya and negotiating with a Charles Manson wannabe on the drug du jour ain’t gonna work deep into the woods .

See movie ‘Deliverance ‘.

Only in America...

Uh, no. Go spend some time in Africa. Educate yourself. Of course, the only idiots wielding knives in Europe are jihadists running through Christmas markets.

Unfortunately, another AT death. I hiked most of it in the 70s. It ain’t the 70s anymore, kids. (Funny, you never hear of this crap on the pacific crest trail)

https://www.wbir.com/mobile/article/news/doj-1-dead-1-severely-injured-after-appalachian-trail-assault-suspect-in-custody/51-a9e24c37-e068-4cb7-85b3-49aa8aab3c40

I live in California where hiking and backpacking in the Sierras is extremely popular. I can only think of one time when people were murdered out on the trail. Attacks by animals are also extremely rare. You don't need to carry a weapon.

You've watched way too many movies, young feller. Get off the couch and get into the woods for a reality check: There aren't machete-wielding Freddies hiding behind every tree.

NoTrace wrote:

You've watched way too many movies, young feller. Get off the couch and get into the woods for a reality check: There aren't machete-wielding Freddies hiding behind every tree.

No, you're thinking of Jason from Friday the 13th. Freddy is the guy that attacks teenagers during their dreams. There's some funky noise in the background when Jason attacks, so if you hear it and are a runner, you should be able to get away in time.

You are right, a lot less violent crime now than the 70’s.

well,, wrote:

Nuclear Lake wrote:

So the whacko hid the knife probably behind a tree or under a rock when he heard (sirens) or saw 50 approaching the first time.

Don’t blame you for getting the heebeejeebees . But the legitimate hikers should have carried bigger knives .

I’m not a and never will be a through hiker but I live locally to the trail . I go for 1/2 hour to 3 hour walks .

I always carry a knife and sometimes wish I had a firearm for a potential rabid animal or human being .

For a through hiker not to carry some sort of weaponry and not be at the ready is nuts.

Kumbaya and negotiating with a Charles Manson wannabe on the drug du jour ain’t gonna work deep into the woods .

See movie ‘Deliverance ‘.

Only in America...

Not so, you've obviously never been to Africa.

SDSU Aztec wrote:

No, you're thinking of Jason from Friday the 13th. Freddy is the guy that attacks teenagers during their dreams. There's some funky noise in the background when Jason attacks, so if you hear it and are a runner, you should be able to get away in time.

How can I possibly hear that through my headphones?

romantic past wrote:

You are right, a lot less violent crime now than the 70’s.

Yes, there was more random street crime in the cities in the 70s, but not this random rural crime that we see today. That was very rare at the time.

JohnnyO wrote:

romantic past wrote:

You are right, a lot less violent crime now than the 70’s.

Yes, there was more random street crime in the cities in the 70s, but not this random rural crime that we see today. That was very rare at the time.

And it's very rare now.

Apparently, not on the AT. Out of the now 12 homicides, only 2 were recorded in the 70s.

http://appalachiantrailhistory.org/exhibits/show/doublemurderontheat/doublemurderontheat

not a movie wrote:

Nuclear Lake wrote:

the legitimate hikers should have carried bigger knives .

You're walking down the trail. A hiker passes you going the other way and gives a polite nod as he approaches. Just as the other hiker passes out of your field of view, you feel his blade slice into your carotid. By the time you realize what has happened, he's stabbed your hiking buddy too. For someone who has planned out the attack in advance, this is two moves with a knife and could be completed with about one second passing from first noticing that there is a problem to the second person being severely wounded.

To attack this quickly, the hiker must already have machete in hand, which completely negates surprise. If you are competent, you keep your eye on that machete until it is safely past, and you keep your ears peeled for any sound behind you in case he comes back. Just standard practice in a stranger-with-machete-on-unobstructed-trail situation.

Even allowing for surprise, the two hikers will likely be moving in single file to pass the machete guy, and it's impossible to complete two attacks within one second. The victims would already be separated by a couple of meters at least, and then the one in back would stop completely when the attacker struck, giving the one in front at least another meter or two of separation and chance to react. That may be why one of them escaped in this situation.