...As to the Big Bad Bob... give me a break. Bear Spray works there too. If you want to lug a pistol, by all means, you only have yourself to burden. Bear spray, however, is more effective and lighter. Between the two, only an idiot would chose a firearm over the spray.
Why you gotta be so arrogant all the time.
I can just see you and your two lady friends, all three marching through the hills in your menopausal rage. No wonder not even a bear want's anything to do with ya.
Burden is burden and we all make our choices. I'll take a weapon, and leave the books and liquor behind.
Hey Shane, here's my original post on this subject:
By the time I was 16 I'd walked just over 1,000 miles of the AT. Never, ever felt the need for a handgun. If I felt the need, I'd resist and carry bear spray. Damn effective on two and four legged beasts. FWIW, I never pack a handgun here in grizzly country, except when packing out bloody elk meat... then it's just a backup to bear spray.
Carrying a handgun is an awesome responsibility. If you've ever taken a human life you'll know what I mean. Unless you're thoroughly trained and have the right mindset, I'd not carry.
I stand behind every word of it.
Would also add, the only arrogant are those that think, not having taken life, they're up to it.
Another aspect of arrogance, is totally ignoring the vast preponderance of evidence that bear spray is FAR MORE effective on bears than a handgun.
I've had at least half a dozen up close and personal encounters with grizzlies. I'm still in the bear spray camp if forced to chose. That's based on reality, not some limited sense of my own manhood and a Freudian-like fixation with phallic symbols that go bang in my hand.
While I admire your highly skillful use of your terrific 308 and 30-06, I never see where you're really out and about in the highcountry and among the grizzlies, year in, year out.
You seem more of a target shooter, but I'm willing to be corrected if wrong that you backpack, year-in, year-out, multi-day, in the Montana backcountry out among the grizzlies.
Back to the dead girl on the AT... unless she were highly trained, having a firearm wouldn't have necessarily changed the outcome. You of all people should know that. As an un-trained female, it's more realistic she would have been better off with spray.
That point about her is essentially a red-herring.
As the the disparaging remarks about my wife and our good friend... the friend has four or five pistols, is HIGHLY trained, and can empty a mag on a man-sized target with ferocious effectiveness. You wouldn't want to be in a pistol fight with her I assure you, and I can only recall one trip where she packed her S&W 357 Scandium. Bear spray is always there.
As I said before, you have only yourself to please. If you want the added burden, knock yourself out.
