What to carry into the woods?

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Pepper spray is your best defense. If you want to carry a firearm, then do so. In all probablility you won't have to defend yourself and the pepper spray will just get old and out of date. At least the ammo probably won't go out of date.

For me, I would carry the gun simply because I don't want to spend more money on stuff I'll never use. If I were in an area where there are lots of bears and frequent bear-human interaction, I might consider pepper spray.
 
Carry in the woods

Around here, we are much more likely to run into a hog going to our early morning deer stand. I carry a 4" barrel revolver in 357 Mag. It will do the job with the 158 gr. SWC load.
 
Since you are in bear country I think something like a .44 mag. would be in order. I never tried the bear mace that I've seen advertised, but I know a mamma bear with a cub can be a dangerous combination if you get too close or she feels her cub is in danger.
 
Everywhere is "bear country". I think every week now, via helicopter camera, we see someone getting surprised by one in their backyard.. in L.A.
 
Thank you for the replies everyone and like some have said, the chances of ever needing to draw my weapon in defense against a bear are incredibly small.

However, I do need to take my daughters concerns into honest consideration, not simply dismiss them and approach them from an educated, respectful and prepared (without going overboard) point of view.

All the best,
Steve
 
For a black bear defense - - - 357mag and up in a revolver, 10mm in a semi auto

You may already have other guns that will do the job with the right bullet & load - say in a heavily built 38 Special revolver or 40 S&W pistol.

Its fun to have another excuse to buy a gun (been there/done that) but the odds of needing to defend yourself from a black bear are pretty slim. One buddy of mine ran across a momma black bear and her cub when bowhunting; he backed away without incident. Another buddy was also bowhunting and an aggressive black bear clawed at the trunk of the tree where he had his deer stand. It eventually ran off when it saw that there was a human in the tree. I had one follow me for awhile (stalking?); I was bowhunting. It was reassuring to have my Glock 10mm on my hip. Then again, it may have been following the same deer that I had my eye on. Neither of us filled our tag that time.
 
Just pick a good reliable gun and that's that. I'd prefer .357 on up as you can always load it down but lesser guns can't be loaded up in power.

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My preferred woods gun. 629-2 in El Paso 1942 holster. Normally I load 240gr SWCHP at 1000 fps. Plenty for anything in Texas.

Deaf
 
To add a little class I carry a 4 5/8" .357 Ruger Vaquero. Loaded with hot soft point Remington .357's you'll get penetration plus expansion enough for the average bear. For an extremelly large one you might wantt to opt for an early .44 mag Vaquero.
Though this almost dosen't need to be said but also carry a large stout Knife!
BPDave
 
Loaded with hot soft point Remington .357's you'll get penetration plus expansion enough for the average bear. For an extremelly large one you might wantt to opt for an early .44 mag Vaquero.
Click to expand...
But, if yer planning for the average one and encounter the extremely large one... Oops, how do you make the switch?:uhoh:
 
I like my Glock 20 for a light, easy packing, and generally powerful woods gun.
 
For the most part I carry a Security Six loaded with 158 hardcast at 1400 fps.
However, there are places where my 44 Redhawk is the bear minimum :D: Yaak, Glacier, Mission, Cabinet, NW Montana, etc..
My Redhawk is my hiking buddy in these parts.


Redhawk1_zps2e7de2e7.gif
 
My thoughts at this stage of my life are a bit different than earlier. Blackies are smaller and less likely to want mortal combat than browns. 85% (or more) of hogs are within .357 mag practical range. Is the OP asking for guilt edge guarantees for anything that might happen, or just a practical solution for percentages?

IMHO for an emergency handgun a good 4" or better .357 is OK. Pay close attention to what you load it with if you go .357. The most versatile handgun in the world will do NOTHING for you if stoked with .38 spl LRN. If you go into bear woods take ammo that will penetrate. 180 gr (or 200) hard cast...... 125 gr SJHP are for human predators and urban environments where over-penetration is a dirty word.

Are .44's better? In a word, yes. There are now hogs in the southern US (rare) that rate (after a fashion, not literally) the way a brown bear would (very few). In any truly wild woods a handgun is less than optimum for a worst case scenario. On the other hand your ancestors did it with black powder and round lead balls. They also accepted that any of their number might die in their daily pursuits.

Blackie country, .357 with smoking solid penetrators, good medicine IMHO.
 
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Many years ago I lived in N Idaho and always carried a .357 S&W mod 19 in Id, N/W Mt, and BC. Once shot a bear with it in the Cabinet Mtns - I am 100 percent confident with the .357 for anything in N America.
Richard
 
I live where there are quite a few black bears but they are rarely a threat except to my bees. I carry a 44 but have not had to use it for bears, coyotes and rapid coons are another story.
 
XDs in .45 where I live for mountain lions.

SP101 in .357 if black bears are around though I don't think I'm getting good enough velocity out of it since it has a 3" bbl. Probably no better off than with the XDs.

5" 460mag in griz country
 
6" GP100 in a leather shoulder holster from Galco. Almost always with me when working on the land or during bow season.
 
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