Mt. St. Helena - cars broken into

I was climbing with some friends on Sunday 10/23/2016 12pm-4pm. When we got back to the parking lot I saw that my car windows were broken and backpacks stolen. There were 2 other cars with windows broken. The thief made off with my friends camping equipment/phone/wallet and my backpack which didn't have anything terribly valuable in it. To make things worse I only have liability insurance. So if anyone is climbing in that area, fucking hide your shit or take them with you or just don't go there. There was glass on the ground the day before too from people smashing windows.

Doubt these will be recovered

osprey talon pack containing:
montbell sleeping bag
neoair xtherm
iphone 4
wallet
clothes
mountain hardware ghost whisperer
black diamond headlamp
knife

patagonia cragsmith containing:
hammock
belay device
random socks/toiletries
hail satan stickers

Hey Rich:

It really sucks that this happened to you and your friend. I'm local and have occasionally heard stories like this happening over the years. These bad apples (maybe even one repeat offender this time) know they can wait until no one is around, and quickly disappear down the highway after the smash and grab. Thieves like this likely have NOTHING to do with climbing but will go after the innocent visitors and tarnish the reputation of the area for everyone...

I try to never leave anything in the car to tempt them, and never leave the car overnight, etc. but this is not always realistic for traveling climbers. There used to be a couple of signs warning visitors of this type of activity and to report crimes to the local authorities. Sadly since there is no law enforcement or State Park personnel in this immediate area the vehicles can be easily targeted. I would still consider reporting this to the State Park authorities at Bothe Napa State Park so they can be made aware this kind of thing is happening again.

Sorry again for your loss !

Sorry for the loss, but isn't it pretty common sense to not leave valuables in unwatched lots/vehicles or at the very least to put backpacks in a trunk or try to hide them?
I would check craigslist for surrounding counties over the next few months. You might get lucky.

simplyput wrote:Sorry for the loss, but isn't it pretty common sense to not leave valuables in unwatched lots/vehicles or at the very least to put backpacks in a trunk or try to hide them?

Yes.

simplyput wrote:Sorry for the loss, but isn't it pretty common sense to not leave valuables in unwatched lots/vehicles or at the very least to put backpacks in a trunk or try to hide them? I would check craigslist for surrounding counties over the next few months. You might get lucky.

I was in an SUV, so no trunk to hide things in.

Thanks for reporting on the problem. I have heard this can be a problem up there.

Did you contact law enforcement?

I too try to not leave stuff at the car and coordinate with other partners so we don't bring double rack/rope so we don't leave stuff in the car. But it's easy to blame the person getting robbed when it's really the shit heel thief who should deserve our chiding.

Rich zz wrote: I was in an SUV, so no trunk to hide things in.

Even more reason for diligence.

simplyput wrote: Even more reason for diligence.

I think he gets it now?

Bump for getting kicked while you're down!

^^^^

Some of us who travel/ camp/ take long trips in our cars for the purpose of climbing, particularly those of us with SUVs or other "sleepable" rigs don't really have the luxury of hiding shit. I can't even count how many times I've left my car at trailheads with my entire life of gear in it.

Just sayin'

B-Mkll wrote:^^^^ Some of us who travel/ camp/ take long trips in our cars for the purpose of climbing, particularly those of us with SUVs or other "sleepable" rigs don't really have the luxury of hiding shit. I can't even count how many times I've left my car at trailheads with my entire life of gear in it. Just sayin'

I've lived on the road for looooong stretches, as in years.
My girlfriend (and climbing partner) and I lived in her truck from June '15 to February '16. We included a very simple security system into the build out design and have never had anything stolen or worried about having anything stolen.
Just sayin'.

If you leave gear or other valuables visible in your car, it makes you more vulnerable to theft. If you don't have a trunk, stash it on the floorboard, throw a blanket over it, or darken the windows to your car.

If there are ten cars in a remote parking lot, the one with the visible valuables, be it cell phones, climbing gear or jewelry, is the one most likely to get hit.

Nothing wrong with talking about prevention.

Hope you get your gear back.

simplyput wrote:We included a very simple security system into the build out design and have never had anything stolen or worried about having anything stolen. Just sayin'.

Care to elaborate, I'm curious?

Alexander K wrote: Care to elaborate, I'm curious?

Colonel Mustard wrote:Thanks for reporting on the problem. I have heard this can be a problem up there. Did you contact law enforcement? I too try to not leave stuff at the car and coordinate with other partners so we don't bring double rack/rope so we don't leave stuff in the car. But it's easy to blame the person getting robbed when it's really the shit heel thief who should deserve our chiding.

yeah i called the napa police. they took a little report.

Alexander K wrote: Care to elaborate, I'm curious?

We replaced the backing liner of the tail gate with a piece of plywood and attached two hasp locks. They lock to the top of our platform bed under which is all of our storage. You would have to break the back window or pick the latches and either unscrew the entire platform or use a cut off wheel on the hasp locks to access anything.
It's actually a pretty big hassle as I found out when I locked my keys in a bag under the bed....

FrankPS wrote:

Nah, our pooch would rather lick your face off than bite it off.

simplyput wrote: We replaced the backing liner of the tail gate with a piece of plywood and attached two hasp locks. They lock to the top of our platform bed under which is all of our storage. You would have to break the back window or pick the latches and either unscrew the entire platform or use a cut off wheel on the hasp locks to access anything. It's actually a pretty big hassle as I found out when I locked my keys in a bag under the bed....

they broke my back windows.

my car has been broken into there twice in the last few years. It's a known problem and probably the same person or crew over the years, who use it as regular income.. no kidding, so says the Sheriff's dept. That parking lot on the south side is an easy hit, easy to hide between cars mid-theft. My car was "smash and grabbed" on a Sunday at 11am in a full parking lot AND my car has an alarm, which went off, which I could hear up at the bubble. Damn. They left two pairs of skis though .. ha.

Sorry to hear this, and thanks for the heads up. There are some parking spots along the road that might be more visible.

Rich zz wrote: they broke my back windows.

Right, and with our set up everything would have been locked beneath the platform.
Hopefully some of the suggestions proposed here will provide measures you can take to prevent future loss.