Opinion on concealed carry gun for hiking camping etc

bigpick

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Wanted to get your opinion on what you would use for a ccw for hiking camping etc in case of an encounter with a large 4 legged animal. I'm only purchasing one handgun at the moment when I can and would like something that's going to be good all around. Would a 9mm be sufficient enough? I've read many different articles and have looked at other forums and the 9mm doesn't seem to cut it so I thought I'd ask here and get your thoughts.
 
I have hiked/trail run with far smaller guns than a 9mm. However, my preference is for a 9mm or larger. When I carry the 9mm in that type of situation, I have most recently carried my 127 grain +p+ Winchester Rangers. I have carried .40s in numerous occasions and also my .44 SPL snub nose (a Charter, loaded with Hornady, Winchester Silver Tip, or Blazer GDHP). I essentially bought my G29sf for this role, which is a 10mm. I also have carried my 4" Redhawk (.44 Mag) as a woods gun- though that is a very difficult gun to conceal- and is something that I carry only when concerned about certain species (I also hunt with that revolver during revolver bear season).

In short, you can make a lot of guns work. If you take appropriate precautions you will substantially reduce the chance of needing it.
 
Where are you hiking? In Alaska I wouldn't accept much less than a 12ga with slugs. In New England, I'd be more concerned about two-legged creatures and I'd just carry whatever I normally do. Up here 9mm is fine, honestly.
 
Where are you hiking? In Alaska I wouldn't accept much less than a 12ga with slugs. In New England, I'd be more concerned about two-legged creatures and I'd just carry whatever I normally do. Up here 9mm is fine, honestly.
This. I think the statistics are in favor of 2 legs being the problem around here. Well, tics with Lime are probably the biggest danger.
Two things to remember: How big the hole is isn't as important as where the hole is. Get a gun you'll practice with (unless you can shoot well with any gun, any time).

The gun has to be immediately available. A S&W-500 probably won't be on your person 100% of the time, while a Shield or LC9 are small enough to always wear.
 
FYI there's probably a 50x better chance of dying from hypothermia than a 4 legged animal. for me, having provisions to stay warm, dry and create a fire if needed are more important than having a gun. i keep dog kibble on me as I can survive on it but not eat the whole bag in a few hours.

in terms of pistol, personally my woods cartridge is 357 sig. i'm not saying this is the best, just my choice as it provides excellent balance of power, portability and capacity.
 
i keep dog kibble on me as I can survive on it but not eat the whole bag in a few hours.

Really..being sarcastic here..You cant carry Captain Crunch or beef jerky with you instead." Shakes head and rolls eyes" I think there are better viable options than dog food ... you can eat dandelions you know.
 
snubby .357 revolver

done.

This. Works very well for regular concealed carry plus stick it in a leather owb holster for the woods. I use a Ruger sp101 357 Magnum. Round town it's 158 grain hornady xtp......In the woods I switch to Buffalo bore 180 grain hard cast lead.
 
FYI there's probably a 50x better chance of dying from hypothermia than a 4 legged animal. for me, having provisions to stay warm, dry and create a fire if needed are more important than having a gun. i keep dog kibble on me as I can survive on it but not eat the whole bag in a few hours.

in terms of pistol, personally my woods cartridge is 357 sig. i'm not saying this is the best, just my choice as it provides excellent balance of power, portability and capacity.

Dog kibble? What the hell really?

Anyhow......I agree the chances of a 4 legged encounter in the white mountains is rare and probably do no need the revolver. But when I am actually back country camping the "warm fuzzy feeling" it provides is worth the few extra ounces hanging on my hip.
 
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Doesn't MA have a law about nothing bigger than a 38spl in the woods with out a hunting license? I'm not a hunter so someone else chime in on this?
 
Bear attacks happen, particularly if you're backpacking and carrying a sizeable amount of foodstuffs with you. You'll want a gun that does two things - dishes-out BIG-caliber lead, and brings it out FAST. Bears run fast, and in an encounter there's a 'fight or flight' situation for the animal. You will be unloading the gun as you probably will not get a kill-shot with the first round. There is no chance to reload or clear a jam when several-hundred pounds of wounded animal is bearing-down on you.
 
Doesn't MA have a law about nothing bigger than a 38spl in the woods with out a hunting license? I'm not a hunter so someone else chime in on this?

I've been all through the abstracts for hunting regs in mass and never heard that one. It's not wise to have a handgun on you when hunting small game in shotgun only zones like WMA stocked with pheasant during the open season on pheasant. Also deer in mass is bow shotgun or muzzle loader only so not wise to have a handgun on you when deer hunting......The definite answer on if you can get fined for having a CCW handgun while deer hunting is like most mass bullshit......Nobody really knows it's vague.

I was privy to a story about a guy that came out of the woods on opening day into a pheasant stocked WMA field with an open carry revolver this last fall. The Epo approached him and he said he was just putting up game cams........They did hassle the guy a bit as he was in a shotgun only WMA.

If you have an LTC and are out camping in the summer I'm not sure why the PO PO would have a problem with that.
 
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Ever since I walked between a cow and and calf at Moosehead Lake in Greenville, ME, I carry a G29 or a 4" 629 (sometimes, both).
 
I personally favor a .357 magnum revolver with 158 grain semi wadcutters for carry in the Northeast. An alternative would be the most excellent but underrated .357 Sig in the heaviest bullet weight commercially available. Then practice, practice, practice.
 
No. Unless you're hunting

And that 38 SPL rule he is "quoting" is probably a mis reading of the special night hunting regulation that states 30 minutes after sunset until midnight you can only use a handgun not chambered larger than .38 or a rifle not chambered larger than .22.
 
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I always switch over to FMJ's when I'm in the woods. I read an article once about a guy that shot a black bear 7 times at point blank range with 45acp hollow points and the thing still almost mauled him to death. Only thing that stopped it was a point blank rifle shot from the guys friend. Even then the bear ran 50 ft.

My prognosis is that the HP's didn't penetrate the heavy bear hide and fat deep enough. Long of the short. Whatever gun you bring in the woods, bring it loaded with FMJ. I/M/H/O.
 
I always switch over to FMJ's when I'm in the woods. I read an article once about a guy that shot a black bear 7 times at point blank range with 45acp hollow points and the thing still almost mauled him to death. Only thing that stopped it was a point blank rifle shot from the guys friend. Even then the bear ran 50 ft.

My prognosis is that the HP's didn't penetrate the heavy bear hide and fat deep enough. Long of the short. Whatever gun you bring in the woods, bring it loaded with FMJ. I/M/H/O.

Buffalo bore hard cast lead is good too. Actually designed for deep penetration on large predators. They are loaded to max Sami pressure too for best velocity you can get.
 
And that 38 SPL rule he is "quoting" is probably a mis reading of the special night hunting regulation that states 30 minutes after sunset until midnight you can only use a handgun not chambered larger than .38 or a rifle not chambered larger than .22.

That's the one I was recalling. As I said I'm not a hunter so don't know exactly. Here's a thread from long ago that talks about the subject---

https://www.northeastshooters.com/vbulletin/archive/index.php/t-2368.html
 
I've been all through the abstracts for hunting regs in mass and never heard that one. It's not wise to have a handgun on you when hunting small game in shotgun only zones like WMA stocked with pheasant during the open season on pheasant. Also deer in mass is bow shotgun or muzzle loader only so not wise to have a handgun on you when deer hunting......The definite answer on if you can get fined for having a CCW handgun while deer hunting is like most mass bullshit......Nobody really knows it's vague.

I was privy to a story about a guy that came out of the woods on opening day into a pheasant stocked WMA field with an open carry revolver this last fall. The Epo approached him and he said he was just putting up game cams........They did hassle the guy a bit as he was in a shotgun only WMA.

If you have an LTC and are out camping in the summer I'm not sure why the PO PO would have a problem with that.
Might be my buddy's story, as I don't recall posting it and it sounds familiar. We watched a guy in full camo walk out of the woods on the opening day for pheasants this past fall. The EPO didn't like that and he especially didn't like it that the only gun the dude had was a CCW pistol. He said he was just scouting for deer or something to that effect. EPO was pissed off. Don't know what happened, as we packed up and left.

My take on it is that if you're in camo during hunting season and trailblazing with a handgun, you're F'ed. If you're just walking around dressed normally on marked trails, you're fine carrying. IANAL
 
Dog kibble? What the hell really?

Anyhow......I agree the chances of a 4 legged encounter in the white mountains is rare and probably do no need the revolver. But when I am actually back country camping the "warm fuzzy feeling" it provides is worth the few extra ounces hanging on my hip.

yes when I was a kid I went hunting with a family friend who taught me to bring a bag of dog kibble for multiple reasons:
1) doesn't taste good, so can stretch it out over maximum time. really don't eat it until very hungry. major issue with food options is people eat them too quickly. i'm a fat kid...food doesn't last long.
2) dried, so lightweight
3) minimal scent
4) doesn't spoil
5) requires no preparation

--

In terms of firearm choice, I would submit the following:
Glock 32 = 14 rounds of 357 sig = 24 oz empty, 31-ish oz fully loaded
Ruger GP100 = 6 rounds of 357 mag = 40 oz empty, 44-ish oz fully loaded

if covering distances, the difference in weight is very noticeable for me. I prefer to keep the firearm under 30 oz total weight. the G32 is simply amazing in that regard. the G20 isn't far behind but i'm not convinced the 10mm cartridge offers much over a 357sig in the northeast and the thickness of the G20 is noticeable over a G32.

the P320 in 357sig would also be a great choice IMO.
 
This. I think the statistics are in favor of 2 legs being the problem around here. Well, tics with Lime are probably the biggest danger.
Two things to remember: How big the hole is isn't as important as where the hole is. Get a gun you'll practice with (unless you can shoot well with any gun, any time).

The gun has to be immediately available. A S&W-500 probably won't be on your person 100% of the time, while a Shield or LC9 are small enough to always wear.

in Alaska...outdoors, yeah I would have at least a .44 magnum, and probably more, in addition to a rifle. The RIFle you might not have on you as you open the shit house door and see a hungry Kodiak bear standing there.
 
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