Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Alaska Do you carry a sidearm while hunting with your rifle?

Do you happen to have any opinions on the use of bear drool as a meat tenderizer?

BTW, I hope you don’t mind me adding a pic which might be useful to folks who don’t know what Marston Matting is:



This perforated steel planking came into use in WW II to create quick runways on ground which would have otherwise been unsuitable for landing planes. I don’t know the specifics of the history as to how the stuff got the name “Marston” attached to it, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it had something to do with Maj. Marvin “Muktuk” Marston:

http://www.alaskool.org/projects/ak_military/men_of_tundra/men_of_tundra.htm

Each section of that Marston Matting weighs 96 lbs and bolted down with enough 4" lag bolts makes a pretty secure bear screen.
We have learned that when moose meat is at stake just an electric fence is not always enough. One fall we witnessed an old boar get zapped by the fence and he sat back and appeared to think it over a while and then stood up and completely smashed the entire fence to the ground with one blow !

you're name came up last night Phil, was with Dave Marsh, Big Game Big Country, he used to guide for John Petersen

Dave was under the impression you only used a .30-06 but another guy at the table cleared it up for him. Said he got to meet you once when with John doing some fishing or something.

they were passing through town headed to sheep country so we broke bread together.

No. What's the point?

I NEVER don't carry a sidearm.

I used to carry a small pistol for the two legged wolves I would run into once in a while. Had a few try to destroy my camp and take my rifle away from me.Had one buddy that a guy try to take his quad from him. Have not had much of a problem these days. But I still carry one for the 4 legged wolves now. The ammo is cheaper and lighter than rifle ammo. Besides the damn four legged wolves travel in packs.

Sounds like a good plan, but sometimes I carry a pistol for 4-legged wolves. Now, talking about 2-legged ones, over by the Elliott between Livingood and Fox, there are 2-legged wolves cutting off catalytic converters from trucks parked near the road. I was lucky, and so a couple of friends who were hunting out that way, but several of the trucks, including a personal one that belongs to a trooper, had their converters stolen.

I don't really know if the thieves cut them off, or just remove them. I am certain that the trooper will work hard at catching those wolves.

Ray,
Why are they stealing them?

The last few years I'm seeing more of what I would call scum out there and prudently carry especially if I know I'm likely to cross paths with other people.




The platinum coating on the ceramic.

Hold my beer and watch this...

DF

If I have pants on I have a pistol on. depending on place I go and what im doing I may have 2

I have owned a .475 linebauge 454 causall, 475 something or other, 50ae Desert Eagle, 44 grizzly, .445 Dan Wesson, 480 Ruger as back up guns for hunting. Unless I was fishing or just leaving camp for a nature call they all were camp guns just to heavy and bulky to pack. I have finally settled on a Glock 10mm. It is light enough I actually carry it, 16 rounds of which I can get off more than one controlled shot.Is it ideal no but it's the. Compromise I've chosen.

To the OP:

Not Alaska ... but ...

It depends much on the rifle I'm carrying. If I'm hunting with a single shot muzzleloader or a centerfire rifle smaller than .270 or 7mm-08, then yes, I carry a handgun, too. This is usually applicable to varmint hunting and use of small calibers for deer. By the time I grab an elk rifle (or in your case, moose), there's no real reason to pack a handgun, too. For "finishing" a critter, an extra rifle cartridge or two is a lot easier to carry than a handgun.

If I'm hunting from a car camp, I'll often bring a large caliber handgun for carry in camp so I have both hands free for gathering firewood or cooking without being entirely unarmed. Lock it in the rig while I'm hunting.

Tom

Also, when you shoot dinks, you don't need to be afraid of ruining the skull plate of a trophy to be mounted for the wall...

I very often bring a handgun along when I hunt. That tool is not very often on me when I'm shooting at game, but it could be accessible during butchering and/or packing. "While hunting" can mean so many different things to different people and places.

Funny story... I typically carry a handgun when out in the woods but this is entirely dependent on time of year, what I am doing, and my load out/other gear.
I was salmon fishing at the mouth of a creek. I rested my 458 up against a tree 10 or so feet behind me. Well I was squatting rice paddy prone with my pole, back to my 458, and being drowned out by the noise of the creek. But I did not feel alone... It was all of less than 10 minutes and I looked back over my shoulder. Here was a black bear sitting, like a dog between me and my 458. I was deeply disappointed and was so scared I wasn't sure what to do. I did not have my 44 on me. I figured that because he was just sniffing away and sitting observing, that he was one of in town bears that frequents one of the creeks in town. These bears have learned to rush people for their fish and were somewhat accustomed to people. I was young and didn't know if I should just walk into the shallow stream and try to walk away or what. Well long story short, I walked in a big arch and grabbed my 458. By the time I reached it, the bear was still within 12 feet or so. At that point I leveled my front sight and started yelling. The bear just moved on.
I was so mad at myself. 6-10 feet is too close for me especially for how comfortable he seemingly was.

I always carry one. Mountain hunting or otherwise. The weight has yet to be noticed and it makes less of a mess if one has to finish off an animal. I have carried one for so long I feel naked without it.

The main reason I carry one is for defense. I may have to lay the rifle against a tree to do a small task or gut out an animal, while doing that the handgun is always with me and at hand should I need it. Not so with a rifle. Having met unsavory characters while out hunting or camping it is a comfort to have on hand. Now if I was on a guided hunt in Africa I probably wouldn't not knowing the laws and having a bunch of people around to do those tasks. I did carry my 44 Mag while caribou and moose hunting in Alaska. It was a comfort when stepping out in the wee hours to pee.

The second reason I carry is my wife insists on it.

Me too, but only one. My "reverse taper" physique makes it hard to keep my pants up with more weight than that. I did revert to my 4" L frame the other day when I went to check on my deerstands. The extra weight compared to my usual J frame was barely noticed due to the good quality holster.

You need a dedicated gun belt not looped through your pants or a chest rig.

Absolutely. A 4 5/8 inch Ruger Vaquero in 45 Colt