Are Knives allowed in the park?

[silvercreek]

Hopefully this link will post. See page 5 and 6 Sec 2.1. You can gather these except within a distance of a trail. Sorry, no ramps can be picked.
http://www.nps.gov/grsm/parkmgmt/upl...Compendium.pdf

[Rebelsoul]

My KaBar goes where I go and especially when I head out into the woods...

[SWAMPUS]

Have the same knife.ALWAYS wear it when fishing in park.Never got a look from Ranger or anyone except when I forgot and wore it in Kroeger.Wondered why folks were staring at me!Still,no one said a word.I consider it a survival tool.I am too old,too fat,and haven't the lungs or legs to run.I shall stand my ground.Was fishing above the welcome farm on NC side and thigh deep when I heard thrashing on bank behind me.Something large.I turned to face whatever,unsheathed K-Bar,and was relieved and pleased,and somewhat chagrinned when mama elk and yearliing calf appeared.Thank God I had my nitro spray!

[Parzival]

I emailed the park and got this response..

"Hello,
Knives such as Swiss Army knives or Gerber Tool types can be carried in the
national park. However, some knives are prohibited -- such as those with
large or stiletto blades. The regulations covering knives have some grey
areas that allow rangers leeway in interpreting the law based on the
situation at hand. So, if a camper has a hunting knife that he or she is
brandishing about and another camper complains to a ranger, the knife owner
may receive a citation. However if the knife owner is low-key and acts
responsibly, that same knife might not be a problem.
Generally speaking, if the blade is longer than 6", leave it at home."

[Carlito]

Originally Posted by tjw37909

Not sure about NC, but TN law is you can not carry a knife with a blade over 4 and a half inches, but I am sure, especially with the bear activity that we have had this year, that a ranger will not say anything about a man carrying a survival tool/ knife. most of the rangers in my area do a little fly fishing and camping in their free time and would be very understanding.

If you read the Tennessee Code Annotated, it is in fact illegal to carry a knife w/ a blade over 4". HOWEVER, there are clauses in the code specifying instances in which it is legal to carry a larger blade, such as when you are hunting/camping.

Basically what they are saying is that your pocket knife should have a blade less than 4", but the law does not straight forbid carrying a knife over 4". Like everything else, it probably just depends on the situation and the officer. I carry my Sealpup every time I am fishing or backpacking in the Park, and I am confident that it is reasonable to do so as long as you don't act like a moron.

[Rebelsoul]

The email from the park hit on a good point....being low key.
I have my KaBar on most of the time but sometimes when there's tourists and kids around I might just put the sheath down in my waistband in the lower back out of view until I'm out in the woods.
I got in the habit of doing that when I was at places hiking trails like Land Between the Lakes and Natchez Trace Pkwy.
I have noticed that it catches the eyes of some people....but not so much as the machete a guy had on his side at Holly Flats a couple of weeks ago.He unsheathed it while walking towards me...I asked him if he planned on hitting me with it,he looked surprised...and mumbled something....he would have been even more surprised if he had tried.
Now that was "brandishing".

[Carlito]

Originally Posted by Rebelsoul

The email from the park hit on a good point....being low key.
I have my KaBar on most of the time but sometimes when there's tourists and kids around I might just put the sheath down in my waistband in the lower back out of view until I'm out in the woods.
I got in the habit of doing that when I was at places hiking trails like Land Between the Lakes and Natchez Trace Pkwy.
I have noticed that it catches the eyes of some people....but not so much as the machete a guy had on his side at Holly Flats a couple of weeks ago.He unsheathed it while walking towards me...I asked him if he planned on hitting me with it,he looked surprised...and mumbled something....he would have been even more surprised if he had tried.
Now that was "brandishing".

What a jerk. Like you even need a machete up there. It is a useful tool for splitting wood to help start a fire, but there is no other reason to carry one and certainly no reason to unsheath it while passing someone on the trail.