Backpacking with GP100

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Recommend me a holster for my Ruger 4" GP100 .357 for backpacking. I've used drop holsters for my auto loaders in the past when backpacking, but would like to get a holster that works with a backpack for my GP100.

What are your favorite holsters for said application? Drop holster, chest holster?

My pack is an internal frame with waist and sternum straps so keep that in mind.
 
If you have a concealed carry permit, check out the Safe Packer from Wilderness Gear. Even if you don't have a CCW, you might check the laws in the State you are planning to backpack in. I believe some States allow concealed carry in wilderness areas for such purposes as hiking etc.
 
That's a really heavy gun for backpacking. If I cut the handle of my toothbrush shorter to save weight, I sure wouldn't pack a GP100. But to your question, what kind of access are you looking for? Do you want to be able to draw quickly at any time? Or will you keep it in the bottom of your pack just so that you won't need it and not have it? In terms of access, a chest or high-ride belt holster is best. A drop-leg would put a lot of weight down on your femur that you would have to swing back and forth like a pendulum with every step. In terms of weight-distribution, you would ideally put the revolver in a padded zipper case between the foam pad on the spine of the backpack, and the internal pocket. A lot of backpacks have a pocket there for a hydration bladder. That's where I would put a big steel weight, in that pocket. The zipper case would pad it a little more and hold it from sliding or bouncing around.
 
I've seen the Kenai Chest holsters, they seem to be well regarded and loved. https://gunfightersinc.com/kenai-chest-holster/

Anyone have any comments on this chest holster?

I typically carry two speedloaders with me as well.

I carry one of two 6.5-inch N-Frames in my Kenai and love it. It holds the gun close to the chest and stable. It does not flop around much when moving, even with vigorous activities. I slide a speedloader pouch on the chest belt and carry two moonclips or speed-loaders in it.

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Wearing it over a heavy winter hunting jacket under my Tenzing vest/backpack
 
belt:
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chest: Kenai-Hiking-34.jpg


Some people clip them on the shoulder strap near the sternum strap junction, but with a heavier gun you want it to be on the centerline.
 
It is heavy for backpacking. I would like to get a scandium framed smith eventually but right now I just need to dance with the girl that brought me.
 
So i actually just did 21 miles on an overnight this past Monday and Tuesday. I carried my CZ. The major problem is the rubbing for miles. I agree a chest holster is the best for the woods but I would not buy unless I could wear it and see how it lies with my pack on. I mounted my gun to my pack on this hike which I don’t really recommend, but it worked best at the time.

I know hill people gear is awesome, but that’s not as fast to draw.
 
I used my sternum strap on this last backpacking trip and it was less than ideal, didn't put the gun an appropriate position for draw, bounced around and just overall not a good solution.

In regards to the Hill People Gear chest pouch, that would be nice back east where a lot of you all are with higher populations and public who aren't as used to seeing firearms, but out west here I just prefer to open carry when backpacking. It is commonplace over here to see people open carrying on the trail, its probably 50/50 whether who you come across the trail is open carrying or not (and I'm sure some are concealed carrying).
 
I would say a Simply Rugged Pancake. Strong side, cross draw, or chest holster convertible. I believe it is the best bang for the buck.
 
I mounted my gun to my pack on this hike which I don’t really recommend, but it worked best at the time.
I have come to believe that losing access to my pistol when I shed my pack is a bad thing, and so I do everything possible to avoid using either the pack itself or the pack’s straps as a attachment point for my holster. Having said that, I have in the past used the pack’s waist strap to hold an outside the waistband crossdraw holster when I felt that a drop leg holster was too awkward. I never found a chest carry holster that did not interfere with my pack’s shoulder straps, but I will admit it has been quite some time (a decade or more) since last time I looked.

As an aside - I found myself not favoring drop holsters if I was hiking in areas that were fairly rocky or in which I felt that I had a relatively high risk of falling. Slipping and landing on your side and having the gun smashed into your femur loses its appeal pretty quickly, and I have come to appreciate that sometimes the speed of draw is less important than other factors.
 
I second the Safepacker. It is discrete and protects the gun from dirt, branches, etc., but fast enough to draw. I also think the GP100 is a lot of iron to tote outside of Alaska. I carry a Shield with Buffalo Bore Outdoorsman ammo and sometimes resent even that.
 
I used a Safepacker for quite awhile backpacking, It did work well, the gun was accessable, protected, and discrete but occasionally I had to to have a saddle maker reinforce the stitching with leather, add rivets, replace fastex buckles, increasing the area of velcro, or replace zytel strap hooks.
 
The Safepacker, and the Hill People Gear Kit Bag, were both designed with back-country usage in mind. The Safepacker can be attached to various belts and harnesses, and the Kit Bag is intended to be worn under the backpack harness, so that is still in place, if one sheds the backpack. I am not certain the the Kit Bag is compatible with all backpacks’ sternum straps.

Having said that, my actual usage of these two products has been mostly urban, over short distances. My bad knee, and my wife’s heart health, keep us out of the back-country, and near good roads. Our backpacks are for getting camera gear to good spots for photographing birds and such.
 
My problem with a chest rig is that I would sweat all over it. I have a tactical tailor Lunar pouch that works great and hasn't (to my knowledge) been IDed.
 
I run a through belt Mernickle Cross Draw 5" GP100 during small game season so I have a sidearm with some punch. It's a heavy gun, but the weight rides good there. I still have pocket access too. I just added my own drop extension for it but haven't tried it much. You can't run the cross draw with any type of heavy winter coat because they are too long and cover it. A heavy flannel works good, you can tuck it behind the weapon and it works. I also made drop extension because the holster doesn't work with a heavy bird vest and needs to be lower. Another thing is the cross draw is inconvenient for work...it gets in the way and accumulates dust and debris.

I do like the cross draw a lot though. It's hard to pack a heavy gun and it works well. Every carry position has its downfalls.
 
I prefer a shoulder holster or chest rig. Once upon a blue moon, I didnt have a vehicle for about 2 weeks (car crash) I wanted to see a movie and the nearest theater was about 8 miles away, this was in the fall, I put on my clothes and at the time the only handgun I had was a smith and wesson model 57 in .41 mag, I put that on in a desantis leather holster and walked the 8 miles in the Texas sun. NEVER AGAIN.
 
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