It doesn't matter what the law says about open carry, it matters what the law they are charged under considers illegal. Even if they were allowed to open carry, they wouldn't necessarily be allowed to exhibit the behavior they did.  You're just not used to seeing people carry long barrel guns. If they were in the woods with hunting gear on, you probably wouldn't have had any gripe because that's what you're used to seeing and thinking of, so that's why it seems weird to you.....but that doesn't make it illegal. There's really very few options for carrying a long barrel gun....and carry includes physically holding the gun with your hands, that's basically the definition of carry.    It's not like he was walking down the street with a beer in one hand and a gun at his hip pointing dead ahead doing pelvic thrusts.