Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Handguns Handgun Choice for Flyfishing in Bear Country

VarmintGal,

I'm VERY "surprised",that simplistic Facts fuel your Insecurities in such epic fashion...you "lucky" kchunt. Hint. Congratulations?!?

Just dropped a pard off for his flight home and have only seen (3) Bears in that modest window,thus far today. Now ain't it funnier than fhuqk,that a slow rolling Wednesday afternoon's interactions,exceed your "Life's" version of same?!? Hint.

Fhuqking LAUGHING!.................

Wreckster,

Good luck with preparing a friend to shoot a handgun in defensive use, whether fishing , hiking, or using the ATM.

Cutting to the chase, it seldom works out for most of us. A guy wants to learn to shoot, he's gotta step forward and shoot.
If he does, you can advise, coach, and help.

Best that'll happen...

There are no grizzlies in New Mexico. Frankly the average black bear in NM is about 250 pounds. You might wonder around most of your life and not find one over 300 pounds. The skin is thin and they aren't hard to kill. I would frankly encourage the buyer to carry a revolver. As long as he makes a point to get used to it doesn't really matter if it's a single action or a double action. I've carried a Single action for years and they just point well for me, but he may feel more comfortable with a double action. There are a ton of guns that would work. When I lived in Alaska for 33 years I mostly carried Buffalo Bore ammo. Most people have to get used to it.

A good 357 magnum, with 180 grain cast bullets, a 44 Special/mag that you can shoot MacKays good 44 Specials would be great. 45 Colt is always a good choice there just aren't quite as many guns to choose from in double action. His 270 grain hard cast should give you a lot of confidence.

If your friend is willing to spend the time to get used to a semi-auto, and the things that can go wrong you've gotten a lot of ideas that will work. Frankly I'm not a Glock guy, but DeFlave's Glock recommendation, well a guy could do worse. 180 grain bullets should work well. This may seem like heresy but I don't consider a 1911 as the ideal gun for a novice. I like the 3rd Generation Smith's and consider them to be exceptional. He should carry as a minimum a mid size, to full size semi, and forget the Mini's that are so popular for concealed carry these days. Obviously a good holster, I like the Guides Choice from Diamond D. It's out of the way for casting and higher to stay out of the water.

Nice of you to help your friend out. Spend plenty of time, shoot plenty, and make sure he can handle what ever his choice is, readily and is competent.

Something else your friend needs to understand. Bear spray works with black bears to a certain extent, but should he find himself in a position he needs to use the spray on a black bear, it's time to vacate the area. If the black bear is predatory they will be back. It's time to go somewhere else.

I forgot to mention the XDM and Smith and Wesson M&P in the 10mm’s. My buddy just picked up a smith in a 10mm and loves it.

On the upper Kenai not far from the Russian River. When I’m fishing I very rarely pack a pistol. I remember one year the ferry blew the horn alerting people to a bear on the river. Next thing you know it’s a mass exodus of people, headed our way to get on the ferry. That’s when the bear popped up gd this wasn’t no black bear lol. It was one big ass brown bear. He stopped looked around and jumped into the Kenai River coolest thing ever. That bear he just floated down the Kenai River that River was nothing to him like back yard swimming pool. He floated down the River hung a hard right and got out on the opposite side of us ie the parking lot. Well we stuck around had the whole river to ourselves and got our limit thank you mr brown bear.

Went and met an Old Boy earlier in the evening and ended up handing him a check for his boat. Then took a short spin and saw (8) more Bears,which makes today just shy of a dozen and I see only a few hunnert a year as a minimum. Hint.

I've see me schlep a rifle while Fishing,if only because there isn't a month of the year in which Season isn't open. Oft in conjunction,it's a GFI Kenai and a Pistole wearing a RDS. If only because everything leads with it's head,it really don't make a flying fhuqk to me,what rides in the GFI. I've zero qualm leaving The Rifle slung and doing dirty work with The Pistole. Hardly a big deal to shoot first,stay on the gas and keep from educating problem Bears. If it ain't 40gr Rimfire Solids,I want Centerfire FMJ's and I've long ago quit schlepping a Centerfire Wheelgun for any fhuqking reason. Hint.

When you can shoot,not much concerns you. Hint...............

No grizzlies here in the east, but we have a lot of Black Bears. I've had trips into the fields where I've seen 16 different bears in under 4 hours in what would be just a few square miles. Some bears here are very big, some going over 800 lbs. I've photographed bears here that went over 700 lbs, and have had two up close encounters (inside 30 feet), one a surpise, with bears over 500 lbs. Nothing like being inside 30 feet with a 500+lb black bear that won't move and that's popping his jaws and slapping his paws at you and there's no where to go except in the ditches on either side of the trail, or back up, because here, when they are that old and big, they don't move for you. Most bears I've seen are under 500 lbs. Some of the areas I go are crawling with bears, having one of the highest denisty of bears in North America. And only once, in the encounter described above, has one been even remotely aggressive. I've literally had them pass me on trails while going in opposite directions and acting as if I wasn't even there. But I've never had, or seen one, apparoach me or anyone else looking for a handout. I guess the endless corn, sorgum, soy beans and other stuff grown in the fields keeps them fat and happy.

Nonetheless, I usually carry a Glock 20 Gen 3 10mm, or a Glock 29 SF 10mm, or sometimes some other Glock, when I'm out there. They hold a lot of ammo and would come in handy if I broke a leg. I could fire quite a few 3-shot distress shots. Or if I encountered a big alligator while kayaking. Fully loaded Glocks are good for throwing at alligators, because you sure as hell won't hit one coming towards you, and they aren't so expensive that loosing one will make you cry. A Glock easily survives getting dunked in snake infested swamp water when you get out of your kayak. And a 10 mm will easily punch through sheet metal on some redneck's truck who decideds your camera would bring hima a few meth dollrs in a pawn shop. So carrying in bear country does make sense.

CJ, thanks for the guidance. As another has said, my friend has to decide based on range experience whether he's comfortable with a wheelgun or semi. The Glock 9mm/40SW family would be the easiest semi learning curve and a good old S&W MG or 65/66 would work also with right ammo for NM black bears.

If I were deciding for myself, would have a hard time choosing between an appropriately loaded 4566, a G17g5, or a 625MG in .45LC.

Interestingly I just talked to a friend who has a friend who investigates bear attacks in Alaska. This is what he was told. After investigating 40 of these attacks (I believe that was the number) the guy is adamite about using a revolver. The reason being is too many people limp wrist the semi's when the bear is on them causing a jam and when pressing the gun into the bear it causes the slide to be pushed back causing it to fail to fire.

I'll take a stab at the reason for that and say it's because the 90% is what you asked about in the OP.

However, I disagree with the 90% and vote with Big Stick that it matters less what the firearm is, your 90%, as long as you can get at it in a hurry. In Big Stick's case a GFI Kenai, and in Caribou Jake's case a Diamond D. Both are similar solutions except the Kenai won't get soggy and the Diamond D will. If I'm fishing I'll take the Kenai.

I'm not truly a Glock Guy,but Glocks simply run and that fact is rather soothin'. Another obvious thing is their capacity and at most,I may keep(1) extry mag in the confines of a pack. A guy can thwart (3) encounters with a coupla pokes each,not reload and still have more rounds remaining than many platforms start with and especially Wheelguns. Hint.

As carry goes,I've done it all and the GFI Kenai is without equal. Once the brush it wet(always),whatever is being carried will be soaked and everything that isn't Kydex is a sponge,which does NO favors. That in both the short and long term. Hint.

I know LOTS of guys who've Pistol Whipped Problem Bears and nobody has yet to wish for a Wheelgun. Hint.................

The Kenai is one I ought to consider. I usually carry in kydex CompTacs. They can handle funky water. But being on the hip in a kayak sucks.

Only had a few dozen griz run ins and never shot one, but my personal experience drawing a pistol when looking at a grizzly is that my G20/629/SRH all felt equally tiny and I wished I had a rifle, every time. I ended up sticking with the G20 and often a G22 with 200gr hardcast. They are also much lighter than most wheel guns.

Stick's point on the carry method is worth repeating... drawing from a wet leather belt holster, while trying to deal with your rain gear and other junk, while wearing waders or standing in a stream or just trying to pick your way across wet rocks...is not always easy. The kydex GFI chest rig is the only thing that always works, wet or dry, backpack or not, waders or not, raingear or not. Nothing else is really close.

I remain unconvinced of reco-ing a handgun, let a bigger bore gun, for someone with little/no experience with firearms.

One of the few times a shotgun with 18” to 20” barrel and whatever buckshot he can find may well be the better ticket.

YMMV.

Not so easy to cast a 9’ Fly Rod while wading a fast running steam with a slick bottom with a Riot Gun slung over your shoulder.

A Scattergun is farrrrr and away THE fhuqking schittiest blend of weight,length and recoil to Terminal Effects ratio,that has yet to be conceived in the Smokeless Era. Hint.

Buckshot is a fhuqking JOKE and Bears will happily soak that schit up like a fhuqking sponge. They are loud,kick and expensive to shoot,which don't help Terminal Effects either. Hint.

Fhuqking LAUGHING at all of these Wives Tales!...................

This is a great thread….

I’m well aware of the limitations. My point is for someone with no firearm experience and may well not make themselves get some.

Potential for at least some hits to stop a charge vs. loud misses.

It would not be my reco for folks here, in general.

The heaviest/longest/hardest recoiling "system",with the lowest Terminal Effects,is a DIRTY Fhuqking Trick to instill upon anyone. It's also the most apt to be left aside,for more than a few of those reasons. Hint.

It is a Fairy Tale to think same is going to "increase" connect percentages,let alone end/stop an encounter. Hint.

Schit that ain't FUN to shoot,don't get shot and that constant don't "bolster" connect percentages either. Hint.

Less is soooooooooo fhuqking VERY much more. Hint.................

Question, is the gfi kenai holster hard on a guns finish?