My favorite is a Freedom Arms 454, 7.5" with iron sights. It hits hard, is very accurate (most important to me), can reach out a good long ways if varmints present themselves, and is still comfortable enough to carry around the hills all day. It is, however, too large to be my choice for a non-hunting backpacking trip.
In .22 it is a High Standard GE with 6.75" barrel.
dvnv