Bear/woods pistol

Status
Not open for further replies.
Where I spend time outdoors there are bears but I don't really consider them any sort of threat. You don't see them that often and when you do they generally take off as fast as they can once they see or get wind of you. If I'm not carrying a rifle with me, I generally just carry my M&P 2.0 Compact. It's a handy size gun with a lot of rounds, doesn't weigh too much and it's fun to shoot. The only animal I'd consider any kind of viable threat where I live would be a cougar and a 9mm should be sufficient for that. People with bad intentions are a much bigger concern.

FWIW there's an average of 2 fatal bear attacks a year in North America. Factor that into how much time you spend considering how to defend against that threat.
 
American_Fusilier said:
Not literally Indian territory. I mean potentially dangerous wilderness. You know, like "you're in the jungle now" typically does not actually mean you're in the jungle...
Click to expand...
Before we were so afflicted with old age and infirmities, my wife and I were avid backpackers. And because there actually are grizzlies in this part of the country, I carried (along with bear spray) either a heavily loaded 4" Taurus .41 Magnum, or a heavily loaded 4&5/8" Ruger .45 Colt.
However, the only bears we ever seen while hiking hundreds of miles in the Idaho and Wyoming backcountries, were black bears, and they were usually running away - the same with mountain lions. After they re-introduced wolves into Yellowstone, and then into the Idaho wilderness, we heard them once in a while, but we never did see one - except for a couple of "escapees" from nearby "Ligertown" (Google "Ligertown Lava Hot Springs, Idaho" - it was quite the fiasco.:confused:)
Anyway, in all of my wife's and my backcountry hiking, the times I always felt most ill-at-ease was when we were at the trailheads. Sometimes there's two-legged predators and other miscreants hanging out at trailheads. Yet we never ran into any of those types when we were 10 or 12 miles into the backcountry. So, I guess I'd have probably been better off carrying my regular CCW rather than bear spray and a .41 Mag or .45 Colt when my wife and I went on our backpacking trips.
BTW, for 27 years I worked on an Indian Reservation near here. And I'll tell you what - unless you're a member of the tribe, you'd better not get caught carrying a gun of any kind there. Some of the guys I worked with used to get "Reservation Permits" for hunting ducks and geese on the reservation, but that was about it as far as carrying guns on "Indian Territory" around here.:D
I'm just giving you a bad time, American Fusilier. I know what you meant.;)
 
Mostly while out hiking and such it's with the same old S&W Model 19 which has sided me since forever.

full.jpg


If I'm actually worried about bears, it's the S&W 500.

full.jpg

And this old .22 Combat Masterpiece gets the call when the local pinecone population needs a bit of thinning.

full.jpg
 
We have Black Bears. They tend not to be aggressive but on the other hand they can be dependent on circumstance. In two plus decades of residence here we have not heard or read of an incident where there was a problem other than the usual bears into the garbage etc.- etc. The adjacent state park receives bears that have been trapped due to nettlesome behavior but so far no interactions with humans.
 
I just take the 124 grain standard pressure Gold Dots out of my Sig P365 and put in a magazine loaded with 115 grain Lehigh Xtreme Penetrators. While I do spend a lot of time in moose, black bear and mountain lion territory armed this way, I don't spend much time off pavement in grizzly country.

P365-Sparks-Lehigh-2.jpg
 
In black bear country I carry my Ruger Blackhawk .357 Magnum, in grizzly bear country I do take my Taurus M44. Grizzly bears are a protected species so If I had to shoot a grizzly bear in self defense I wonder if my CCW insurance would defend me?
 
Oaktree45 said:
In black bear country I carry my Ruger Blackhawk .357 Magnum, in grizzly bear country I do take my Taurus M44. Grizzly bears are a protected species so If I had to shoot a grizzly bear in self defense I wonder if my CCW insurance would defend me?
Click to expand...

If you wait until the powder burns are obvious.....you have a good solid defense case in court! ;) memtb
 
No bears in my neck of the woods but coyotes and some feral dogs would definitely show up on the animal radar around here. Don't hike as much as I use to but would feel quite well armed with my Ruger SR9c or else my Ruger Blackhawk in .357.
cGcSMTn.jpg
vwUx8gt.jpg
 
Last edited:
I have carried my Taurus 415 41mag when hiking in Yellowstone and other National Parks. I have been lucky and have seen Grizzlies on both trips toYellowstone. I have also seen black bears in Yellowstone.
I also go to the Smokies and Shenandoah National parks and see bears frequently. At minimum I have a 38 +p in my pocket and worry more about the two legged critters than the bears.
I am wanting to add a 44mag to the collection. Bear carry is a good reason to buy one.:D
20210326_171854.jpg
 
My experiences with black bears indicate that they are not particularly aggressive. But a few years ago one evening I was out with the dog in the woods and she seemed rather interested in a brush pile. I decided to check out what piqued her interest, when my mind registered what the two black kitten-sized animals were, we left in a purposeful manner. Fortunately we only saw the very new cubs. What do you want in your hand when a large female decides she needs to defend her cubs?
 
Apparently bears kill something like three Americans per year and hogs much fewer than that.

I devoted 30 seconds to some Google glancing.

I'm taking my daughter fishing in the morning, and I was planning on bringing my regular CC "anti-two-legged predator" pieces.

That still sounds like a pretty good plan.
 
bannockburn said:
No bears in my neck of the woods
Click to expand...

Same here, unless we're counting trash pandas. My EDC may be a bit overkill for them. If I were in black bear country, I'd probably still just carry it. Or the 38 Super loaded hot. If that doesn't kill them, at least their ears will be ringing and they won't hear which way I ran.

Big bears? I'm not equipped for any of that.
 
Ruger SBH loaded with Hornady xtps under a load with ram shot enforcer powder. If im not carrying a rifle. I'll carry my 10mm 1911. Loaded with hard cast lead and sometimes xtps too. The other day we took the dogs for a hike. And all i had was my Taurus spectrum. I was hoping we would not run across mama bear and cubs. We made plenty of noise to chase any away hopefully.
 
Since I live in the People's Republic of Illinois and we have few to no bears or cougars, I feel fairly safe wandering the woods of my small farm armed with only a little Charter Bulldog 44, a Smith 624, a Ruger NM 44 special, or even my dad's old 63 Smith 63. Biggest threat has been a neighbors rooster. Notwithstanding, we do have our share of poachers and meth cookers to watch out for.
 
Nearest bears, ( black bears), are probably close to 50 miles away but I have been known to carry a 4 & 5/8" Blackhawk in .357 Mag. with 180 gr. hard cast WFNGC bullets in front of enough Accurate #9 powder to launch one about 1159 ft./sec. when I'm occasionally in their neighborhood. Perhaps just having that pistol with me helps in keeping bears away, as the only times I've ever seen a bear was when I was unarmed. IMG_0223.JPG ..
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

American_Fusilier
Bear defense pistols: .357 or .45acp. Pick one!
2 3 4 5
Replies
107
Views
4K
crestoncowboy
C
C
  • Locked
Hiking/Camping CCW: Looking for carry ideas...
2
Replies
37
Views
2K
wow6599
wow6599
4
  • Locked
Best Gun for Black Bear Defense
2 3 4
Replies
85
Views
15K
dmazur
D
Confederate
  • Locked
If You Go Out In The Woods Tonight....
2 3 4 5
Replies
117
Views
16K
SmokingFrye
S
Mr. Hill
  • Locked
My woods gun: S&W model 411 (.40 S&W)
Replies
7
Views
995
Janos Dracwlya
Janos Dracwlya
Back
Top