Winter isn’t best time for traveling, but since Phil didn’t see his shadow the other day, perhaps spring is right around the corner. And with nicer weather, travelers will soon start hitting the roads.

Concealed-carry advocates travel just like everyone else for both work and pleasure, and many carry for self-defense when away from their home states. While most states allow some form of concealed carry, the laws often differ, and some states don’t recognize permits from other states.

Keeping up with firearm laws as you travel can be difficult and confusing, as you have to know in which states you can carry, as well as the various places that you can or can’t carry a concealed handgun into. Some states allow carrying into a restaurant that serves alcohol as long as the user isn’t drinking, while others don’t allow any firearms into places that serve alcohol for on-premise consumption. There are some states where you can carry into a rest stop, and others you can’t. You have to know the laws of the state that you’re in, or trouble could follow out of innocent ignorance.

There are numerous resources for learning the various gun laws among states. One of which is the Traveler’s Guide to Firearm Laws of the Fifty States. Here, the NRA compiles the gun laws of every state for easy, portable reference.

Another is the Internet. My favorite site is the Pack-n-Go website, which lets you enter your permit and the states that you’ll be traveling through to find out where you can legally carry a gun either concealed or open. The only problem is that laws can change, and it is up to you to know whether or not the information is good. As any cop will tell you, ignorance is not an excuse for breaking the law.