Handguns for hunting/backpacking

I am looking to buy a handgun to carry with me on my hunting/backpacking adventures..... I don't plan on hunting with this gun but to use as a back-up to my rifle in case of a dangerous encounter with bear, mountain lion, boar etc....... Anyone have suggestions?

I am considering a Taurus 44mag. stainless steel revolver with a 4 inch barrel..... $400 - Is this too much gun? What do you other hunters/backpackers carry if at all?

1) Weight consideration. Do you really want to pack around another 2 1/2 - 3 pounds? If so, more rifle ammo would be advisable. 2) What are the carry laws in the area where you plan to hike? 3) Bear: If confronted by a bear and the rifle is not up to the task, use the .44 to shoot yourself and save the agony of being mauled. 4) Mountain lion: These animals are extremely efficient stalkers, attack from behind and you will most likely not realize that you are 'lunch d'jour' until it is too late. Again use the .44 in the manner described in # 3. 4) Boar: I have no experience with them.

Generally speaking the risk of bear attack is overstated unless people are doing something to change the bear's natural behavior. That's a real enough consideration to warrant concern; dumps, morons feeding da bears, etc can set up dangerous situations.

I hunt blacktail deer which are sorta small and I don't want to totally waste the edible parts, so I usually hunt with a fairly small caliber rifle, thus I definitely take along a .44 mag or warm loaded .45 Colt revolver. I lean toward the 4-5/8' barrelled Ruger single actions, but at one time in the past I had a S&W 629 with a 4' barrel and I was comfortable with that. The Taurus, if that's what you shoot best, is an adequate choice.

Sometimes ... even though an adequate rifle is a lot more effective, a handgun in a holster is within reach and your rifle across camp might not be.

When it comes to backpacking ... yes, definitely I carry either a .45 or .45 LC. Either is adequate for the smallish black bear we have locally, especially 'cause if you REALLY have a legitimate need to kill one, you're talking about an arms-length encounter.

You're more likely to be able to use the gun for bear attack than cougar; cougar are furtive buggers who seem to attack from behind. Bears are dumb and sometimes come straight on from in front of you. I know a number of people who have killed attacking bears; I don't know any who have actually been jumped by a cougar ... yet.

The biggest danger, still, is two legged, not four legged, and among the four legged ones probably the little ones who might be rabid are a more serious threat than bears or cougar.

Personal opinion, formed from the places I hike and camp ... I feel fairly safe out along the trail. It's around the trailheads and popular camping area where there are concentrations of people and enough people to draw in bears to feed on garbage where I get concerned.

Is there such a thing as too much gun? I would think the weight would be my only consideration.

Go to rec.backcountry ask them they love to talk about guns and backpacking

NRA Life Member

Hi Tom and All,

What kind of holster are you using? I'm just now getting back into back packing and have been wondering about a comfortable means of carrying that is still readily available. I would definitely prefer concealed but would like to hear about any methods you have used. Thanks in advance.

If your looking to counteract a bear attack this is the right caliber. As a back up the 4 inch barrel is ok. Accuracy beyond 25 yards with this barrel is meaningless. Sounds like a good choice.

This is my dream gun for backpacking/backup: http://www.taurususa.com/tracker425.html a medium frame 5 shot 41 mag with 4' ported barrel that's 25 oz. in titanium, (or 35 oz. in stainless steel). I own 2 Taurus including a model 44 and it is a great gun at any price. As far as dangerous encounters, with the exception of Mr. Grizz, most critters, like the ones you mentioned, would rather run than fight 99.9 times out of a 100. I think it's the 2 legged predators you need to be more concerned with, in which case a small frame 357 would work just fine. By the way, my 6' Taurus 44 in a cheap 'Uncle Mike's' hip holster is surprisingly comfortable to lug around all day.

think about a ruger redhawk in a 45 long colt, more than enough gun, for your part of the world.not near the recoil and muzzel blast of the 44

No one has mentioned my favorite yet, a Charter Arms Bulldog in 44 special with 200 gr. hollow points. Not the most powerfull, and not a gun I'd want to shoot alot, but real light, compact for a large frame, and pokes big holes at short range. I carry mine in a full flap hip holster. A nano-second slower to draw, but protects the gun much better from the elements than an open holster.

We just finished a good thread over there on hunting and backpacking and are working on two bad ones on guns and self protection. Nobody got excited about the hunting one, but both sides are frothing on the self protection ones. Hmmm. Do I see a clue there? Self protection seems to make more sense with pepper spray for wild animals, so it generally starts to revolve around human predators, for which not much evidence can be found, but the anti's are afraid of the gun carriers because they're sure the carriers will shoot innocent them, being wildly reckless or having an accident. And the carriers seem just a tad paranoid over the relative dangers of other humans stalking them for fun and profit.

In the case of the origin of this thread, if the person hiking is in the lower 48, I'd advise pepper spray, unless they're a really experienced outdoorsman and shooter, which doesn't seem likely from the way the question was phrased. Or unless it's small game season and they want to pick up some fresh dinner along the trail.