It depends where I'd be hiking. When out West in Wyoming I carried a Smith 629 .44 Mag.

In other locales I carried a 3" Smith Model 60 in .357 magnum.

These days, I think a 10mm pistol makes some sense and has some advantages depending on the scenario.

When I lived in the mountains of western NC (right next to a bear sanctuary-Standing Indian Campground). The biggest threat was people. Many grew weed in the national forest to avoid conviction, and it wasn’t unusual to run across them.

I’ve seen black bears there, but very infrequently.

I’d feel fine with the 357 magnum with cast 158 solid projectiles.

The weight vs. power handgun in my backwoods travel is the Glock29SF. 10mm power, compact and in a chest rig is out of the way and doesn't feel heavy. A bonus in wet weather the not much to rust and if you squeeze the trigger it goes bang with a number of different bullet weights. Underwood ammo a nice plus.

I would want a 7 or 8 shot .357 revolver stoked with 180gr. Buffalo Bore Hard Cast Flat Nosed bullets or Lehigh 140gr. All Copper Penetrators.

quote:

Originally posted by sourdough44:
A common scenario is concealed carry on the way to the outing. That’s a reason the CC gun ends up in the woods.

I guess one could have the ‘woods gun’ available as you traveled to the woods. That travel could be 30 minutes or a two day drive West to go elk hunting.

This is an excellent point as well. The last thing I want to do is leave a gun in my car at a trailhead, as those tend to be remote and secluded, and thieves know that people are going to be away from their vehicles for days at a time. As such, the gun I carry on the trail has to be the same one that I take to the trail. Like you said, this has typically been a multi-day drive from home, cross-country through multiple large urban areas. I try not to stop in those places, but sometimes it's unavoidable, and as such the gun that you carry on the trail must now become your urban CCW piece. That 6" model 629 strapped to your chest that might not even turn a head in the backcountry of the Bighorns is not going to fly in downtown Chicago, or even Des Moines.

Something many people ignore is a weapon light. Are you going to be out during low or no light? It’s not 1860 anymore, for $100 you can strap a miniature sun to your pistol.

I've carried a Glock 20 (10MM) and an SP101 3" in .357 as my woods carry/hiking gun. However, over the years I've come to the conclusion that for what I am liable to encounter, a high capacity 9mm loaded with a round developed for high penetration is probably the best choice for me.

I like a Sig P229 Legion stoked with outdoor rounds from Double Tap. I have even gone with a staggered mag with alternating solid and hollow points. I've never experienced a feeding issue.

I generally carry it in a shoulder holster - Monarch from Andrews Leather. I also like a cross draw holster from Kramer Leather.

Considerations are:

-How accurate am I with the pistol? How well can I execute well aimed follow up shots under stress?

- How can I carry it , so that it can be brought into action quickly, and also reduces the risk of causing a potential problem with others that you may run across.

- Can it get dirty (dropped in the mud), or banged around (like in a fall/hitting rocks), and still be functional? A revolver is probably not your best bet here.

- Can it deal well with multiple threats? Think feral dogs or some other type of pack animal here.

Like many here have said, humans are most likely your biggest potential threat by far.

There are trade offs to every choice, Which firearm allows you to go into the field with the greatest feeling of confidence?

This well-known Alaskan guide used 9mm, in this incident. Notably, it was loaded with hard-cast bullets, specifically intended for deep penetration.

https://www.americanhunter.org...zly-with-9mm-pistol/

To be clear, I am not making any recommendations, as I do not feel qualified to do so.

quote:

Originally posted by Browndrake:
... a high capacity 9mm loaded with a round developed for high penetration is probably the best choice for me.

I've got a small supply of Horandy Critical Duty 135 grain +P that would probably be ideal for the trail, but Hornady does say this load is not optimal in shorter barrels. The G19 would be fine with this load and a G17 would be even better.

As a matter of fact, that's the FBI's latest combo, isn't it? G17M and Critical duty 135 grain +P. I'd much rather use that load than fmj. If using fmj, I'd want to use Winchester's Q4318 124 grain NATO load. Nice and warm.

I have settled on the HK USPc in .40 for my hiking / woods fishing protection. I load it with Buffalo Bore .40 Outdoorsman ammo. It has proved 100% reliable in this platform during my range testing, and quite accurate as well. The gun carries well and I can shoot it well. About the best combo of compromise I have found.

quote:
Originally posted by sourdough44:
A common scenario is concealed carry on the way to the outing. That’s a reason the CC gun ends up in the woods.

I guess one could have the ‘woods gun’ available as you traveled to the woods. That travel could be 30 minutes or a two day drive West to go elk hunting.


92fstech: This is an excellent point as well. The last thing I want to do is leave a gun in my car at a trailhead, as those tend to be remote and secluded, and thieves know that people are going to be away from their vehicles for days at a time. As such, the gun I carry on the trail has to be the same one that I take to the trail. Like you said, this has typically been a multi-day drive from home, cross-country through multiple large urban areas. I try not to stop in those places, but sometimes it's unavoidable, and as such the gun that you carry on the trail must now become your urban CCW piece. That 6" model 629 strapped to your chest that might not even turn a head in the backcountry of the Bighorns is not going to fly in downtown Chicago, or even Des Moines.

92fstech, you've read my mind again...great post...personally, trout fishing down in the Smokies south of Knoxville, I carry a Smith M69 as it's heavily infested with black bears down there...with some dope cookin' morons thrown in to boot. That Smith is good for the bears, but short on capacity for the two-legged threat...it's a compromise, at best. As are all concealed carry weapon choices...and avoidance is the best tactical choice 99% of the time...I'm down to single digit number of years to fish now at 75, and I'm going to go where they're wild and big. For next summer's trip to Idaho, it'll be the M69 Smith again and I'm building the 'tanker' cross chest rig for it now...Best regards, Rod

oz equal pounds while hiking. I'd go G43 or G26 loaded with extreme penetrator. If I lived in big bear country then a G29 or scandium S&W 44 mag.

I have loaded some of those ‘extreme defense’ copper bullets from Lehigh Defense, 380/9mm. They are similar to the ‘extreme penetrator’, both all copper. Since lighter weight than the norm, higher speeds. A way to get a little more out of a smaller round.

I have also bought some Underwood ammo for a relative that has finished off a few black bears clients have wounded. Not a standard tracking gun, normally a long gun, but it’s happened. He had his Glock 22.

Just a comment on guns left in vehicles, that’s almost never for me. I did park at a trailhead North of Gunnison, CO, a reason my p2000sk became my ‘woods gun’.

quote:

Originally posted by parabellum:
I've got a small supply of Horandy Critical Duty 135 grain +P that would probably be ideal for the trail, but Hornady does say this load is not optimal in shorter barrels. The G19 would be fine with this load and a G17 would be even better.

I agree, that set up would be a dandy combination for the majority of what one is likely to encounter in the lower 48.

For day hikes and bicycling, usually a Kimber 6s or S&W 586+ Performance Center (2 1/2 inch barrel) in a Hill People chest pack (also what I use when taking the dogs on long walks and training sessions). For extended hiking/camping trips and just a little more weight, add a Chiappa Takedown in .357, a light nice little rifle.

I used to fuss over my woods gun. Sometimes it was my GP100 with a 6” barrel, then I’d carry a Redhawk in 44mag. I’ve since settled in the 10mm G20. It may no be the lightest, but it gives you a lot for that weight. Also, it’s manual of arms is similar to what I normally carry (G19 & G26).

Put some real-world miles on the Model 69 and the Hill People Gear chest rig this wekeend (Short review here: https://sigforum.com/eve/forum...935/m/7390020484/p/3).

I brought along a Desantis belt holster for use during travel to and from the trail...that stayed in the car while we were hiking. Overall, I was very pleased with how the gun carried. Thankfully I had no occasion to use it, although I'm sure it would have been adequate if not overkill for anything I would have encountered in central Ohio (normally I'd have just taken my J-Frame on this hike, but I wanted to test out the gun and bag as a proof of concept for some upcoming trips next year).

quote:

Originally posted by abnmacv:
The weight vs. power handgun in my backwoods travel is the Glock29SF. 10mm power, compact and in a chest rig is out of the way and doesn't feel heavy. A bonus in wet weather the not much to rust and if you squeeze the trigger it goes bang with a number of different bullet weights. Underwood ammo a nice plus.

My thoughts exactly.

[IMG] https://ibb.co/bPGSc1f [/IMG]

Glock G20 with Buffalo Bore or HSM hard cast bear loads these days for me, with an extra mag of HSTs for less-than-four-legged scenarios. Underwood when I can find it. I used to carry my 3" Ruger GP100 with similar ammo but around here it's the two-legged, homeless varmints that are becoming more of a problem. Capacity matters. Gunfighters Kenai chest rig to keep things in balance.

A couple of years ago I thought a Mossberg Shockwave would possibly be a workable solution. Yeah...no. Too much of an encumbrance, especially if brought along lightly geared hikes. And too slow to access from a scabbard. Just practice gearing up with it convinced me that a handgun is the far better choice.

If I had to pack extremely light, where a large animal might see me as dinner, I would carry .357 in an SP101 revolver. I have fired 180-grain hard-cast loads from an SP101, and would/could do so, again. (I have never used an LCR.) So, I will not offer an opposing view.

If defense of self, from an animal, is a factor, I see a potential need for firing one-handed, as the attacking animal might have disabled, or taken control of, one arm and/or hand. I can grip an SP101 more tightly, than some other weapons, because even though I have relatively long hands, I have relatively short thumbs, so, wide-body pistols tend to result in a compromised grip. Finally, my aging right hand does not always do what my brain is consciously telling it to do, so a weapon that enables a grip with a firmly locked-down thumb is increasingly important. At least in my hand, the SP101 factory grip just works. Those with larger hands, and longer thumbs/fingers, may be served well by other weapons.