I like small pistols. That being said, I've never been sketched out while in the dunes. BUT, this last trip, my buddy, his son and my 2 daughters rode out to the Troll Hut. Coming over the last dune, a lone black truck with a quad in the back was suspiciously parked. No one around, Mexican flag whip.
"Of all the God damn times to not have a piece", I thought. It was a non-issue but that was very odd.
I've also been riding to vendors (normally never go) last couple years because my girls like it. Between the campers at Garbage Flats and the majority of folks walking through vendors, I'm definitely worried about the overall population out there.
I suppose it's like states. The crowded areas are full of....less desirables. The farther out suburbs/rural's are the place to be.