Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Bowhunting Do you carry when archery hunting?

Curious how many of you carry a handgun while archery hunting. Here in Pa you need your carry permit to have a handgun on you while archery hunting. Reason I would do it would simply be for bear. Brother had one at the base of his tree one year that refused to leave, even after he stood up and yelled at it. That kind of bear behavior kind of freaks me out. There are plenty of bears here in Pa, and besides hunting, I like to walk on game lands. So I am thinking of getting a 10mm something and carrying it with hard cast. May never need it...

Nope, I don’t carry.
Hunted in Alaska and guide had a big rifle.

My wife insists on it.

I have ever since the introduction of wolves.

I don't as much as I should. Also for bears with attitudes.

Got dang, PA is about as stupid as commie Cali. Can't open carry there??

Only if I’m wearing pants, just like always. We can carry for self-defense, but can’t use it for hunting while carrying a bow, not even to pop a squirrel.

Used the little LCP2 .22 to finish a buck a couple years ago. Strictly speaking, it was illegal, but both the buck and I had had enough by then.

Did the same with a doe shot during ML season some years back, but with a snubby .38. Couldn’t get another load down the barrel in the middle of a sleet storm in the dark, so I put the laser on her head and popped her to settle it.

Nope, illegal to carry any firearm while archery hunting here, including cc handguns.

Same here in New York. Just another example of a State that doesn't give a shyt about the safety of it's citizens or their right to self defense.

I did along our southern border...

The way I understand it is we can open carry, just not while archery hunting. The regs state that no firearms permitted while archery hunting unless you have a carry permit, then you may carry a handgun

Yes I do, in my state if you have a license to carry you may carry a handgun when archery hunting. You may carry a revolver or semi auto but you may not finish off your deer with them.

I don’t all the time, if calling elk in grizzly county, I will carry.

We had 4 archery hunters slammed griz in one mountain drainage in just a few days a year. or two ago. Good reason to carry bear spray and handgun.

I carry a 45 for pigs, one of us may need some relief.

To each their own but you have one hell of a lot more faith in your fellow man than I do.

Not a chance in hell I would intentionally put my life in the hands of someone else when I could have the ability to protect myself. I have seen far too many "professionals" freeze up when things got ugly. "Spotlight Rangers" They were big talkers but when it came time for a fight, they froze up.

I will rely on my own ability before that of someone else. I carry a gun any time I am in the woods with predators.

Always. Highly Recommend the Glock Model 20 10mm.
I carry mine with 16 rounds of Buffalo Boar 220 gr Hard Cast Outdoorsman Load.

Funny you should mention the Glock 20, I was in a gun store last week and handled one in 10 mm. That one is the main one I am considering.

A couple of years ago I walked up on a hog I shot in SC. I had given it 10 minutes after it stopped moving like I always do, then gathered my gear got out of my stand and walked to it. I got out my camera and took a pic from the side, then walked to the front and took another picture. When the flash went off that sucker jumped up and was making a growling noise that I never heard from a pig before and came at me. I was only 5 feet away and had my rifle slung over my shoulder but had my Kahr .40 S&W on my hip, I drew and fires at the same time and killed him at my feet with a shot to the head. It took a couple of hours for my adrenalin to subside. Here he is.

Hard to beat, IMO.

I'm quite partial to the G29 over the G20 as a carry gun. Not much to argue over for the G20 as a hunting gun.

I also handled a 29 as well as the 20. The grips on the 29 seemed small? Something about the way it handled did not feel as comfortable to me as the 20.

https://www.marsupialgear.com/products/semi-auto-holster this set up with a Glock 20 and Buffalo Bore Outdoorsman. I use this pack https://www.marsupialgear.com/products/little-joey-pack with holster when not using binos, mainly for hiking in gear country. Made a last minute trip to Cody in November two years ago, hiked to the Yellowstone gate, didn't bring Glock as I didn't want to hassle with flying with it and figured bears would be in their dens. Saw fresh griz tracks on main road in snow, felt like a complete ass not having any sort of protection. Bought bear spray same day but don't have much faith in it, mostly so I can say I tried before pulling the 10mm.

On it's best day a 10mm is nowhere close to a 44 Magnum.

Nothing beats a 329 stoked with 320 gr hardcasts over max of H-110.

One shot is all you'll usually get.

The only time I carry is hunting for coyotes or javelina along the southern border NM, AZ. Heck I was hunting down there with my sxs shotgun, and the warden suggested I pack something with more rounds at my disposal. I don't bow hunt in grizz country. I do carry a large canister of bear spray when I don't have a rifle once I 100 miles north of the border.

Yes, ever since shooting a cinnamon black bear in the left eye at less than 20 yards bowhunting elk out west 30 years ago, i never leave home without it, state laws be damned.

Yep. I agree bought a Glock 29 at the same time I purchased my Glock 20. Never could grow fond of the 29. It soon went down the road. Still have the 20.

Not a Glock guy, but I totally get the attraction of the 10mm version for those who may encounter a bad bear. Revolver simple, lots of bullets.

I always carry and always have when bowhunting. We have a few bears around and you never know when you might walk up on a rabid coyote or some other animal with rabies.

Most of the time, but not always. We do not have to worry much about bears or wolves in SD.

When I went on an archery caribou float trip in AK, I carried my S&W Mountain gun in 44 mag. Stoked with Federal 300gr hard cast.

I have two glock 20's and a 29. I was pleasantly surprised when I first shot the 29. I am still getting to know them, but glad I have them.

i should always carry but i don`t maybe about 1/2 the time, i carry if i am at deer camp in the big woods / Tamarac swamp i always do then ,i have had wolves follow me in the dark i have seen their eyes flash when i shine i light at the sound . never have had any wolf ever try to do anything but it is still kinda creepy.

In NY it is illegal to carry while bowhunting. Are we surprised...?

Having said that, I won't answer whether I do, or I don't.

When the last time a Warden strip searched you ?

If you have to be strip searched to find your hand gun you have some serious problems because a simple pat down will find a handgun unless of course it is where the sun don't shine.

I carry almost all the time while in the outdoors.
What I carry depends on the weapon I'm hunting with at the time.

Archery or muzzleloader: I carry either a Taurus 709 9mm auto or my Ruger SP 101 .357.
Rifle: usually my Ruger SR22 or the S&W 63, both are .22LR.

I had a black bear raid my pop-up blind one year. It took everything out of it except the chair and chewed on it. I put it all back and set up to watch for game. He it comes! It stopped at the spring to grab a drink and then wandered over to the blind again. I sat with the 9mm in my hand and let it get to about ten feet from me before I told him he should go away....
He did.

Frankly I worry more about trespassers than animals - another good reason to open carry.

Always carry during bow season.

I carry if I leave the house. Definitely during bow season.

living in Minnesota hunting and fishing plenty , but to be honest the most dangerous place in Minnesota is the Twin Cities " chit hole " , because of my old age health i do visit there a couple times a year and i carry then .

Same/same here Pete, i've already tested my theory, the same year Joplin had the tornado i found a really nice car in a very nice neighborhood right near downtown chitcago, the seller wanted cash LOL, i drove up there pulling a 28' enclosed trailer, packed a 7.62 LWRC REPR with five 20 round mags on the passenger seat, two G21's on my belt with a spare mag each, stopped south of there and met a couple old buds i've known from the area for over 30 years and had them tail me through this big city adventure.

I met the guy at his house, straight up mafia type LOL, he had a posse with him too, one of his garages was stacked with vettes on double decker lifts, beautiful place, car chacked out, i handed the cash over after we loaded the car and left, weird deal to say the least, had it went to chit and i lived guess the popo would have had some nice guns for the auction while i sorted the rest of the crap!

Far from a hunting story, but, a man can run into a chitstorm on the way to or from the woods just as easy.

Gunner,
I agree with you and Pete, and also others here on the topic. We have the Right to Keep and Bear Arms Protecting ourselves from Scoundrels, who think that their above the Law, and Infringing Harm on others.
The old Saying that I'd rather have it and not need it, surely applies to US!

HS58

You bet HS58, the first damn thing we have to do is stay alive, and also watch/protect the innocents, we can and WILL deal with the commie law [breakers] makers later!

I carry unless I am in the bed, shower, courthouse, jail, ocean or intentionally in a lake or river!

Yep. Although I do carry a Glock 33 when fly fishing on the San Juan River in NM. Wading, of course. Figure if it gets dunked, it’s nothing a good cleaning won’t fix. I wear it under my waders, of course. 🤠

Don’t have to worry about the Ocean. I don’t wade with the sharks. 😬

1911 on my back regardless of location and what I am doing

I shot a rabid racoon at about six feet while grouse hunting, since then figured 15 rounds was better than an arrow walking in or out if something weird happens.

Yes. No bears here but we have Meth monsters and many other varmints and predators that sometimes need shooting.

I’m not sure of the legality and don’t worry about it too much. I hunt private land and worry more about what’s right than what the rule book says.

Used to be illegal for years to carry a handgun in TX during Archery Season only. Since most of my Archery Hunting was on our Ranch, I never worried about it.
I was much more worried about rattlesnakes than the Game Warden.

That all changed when Concealed Carry first became Legal here. As it did in CO and NM too.
Now it’s legal for anyone to carry a handgun in TX during Archery Season. Unless, of course, your a Felon.

Simple answer, yes! I hunt not far from where the Hmung man shot, and killed, all those people in North central Wisconsin years ago and very close to where the Green Bay man shot and killed the Hmung hunter tresspassing up in his treestand the following year. Posted private property is no assurance!

I always carry. Always. About 15 years ago I made a personal commitment to always carry a gun. That point I would carry one about 50% of the time, and the other 50% of the time I would leave it in the truck. I decided that I wanted it to be a personal assumption that I would always have a pistol and commit to not only carrying it but training with it. I think I have achieved those goals.

Thank God I’ve never had to use it in self defense, but I have shot possums, armadillos, coyotes and wild hogs. I agree with some of the others who have posted that my bigger concern is running into a two legged predator.

It's only been legal to carry while archery hunting a few years.(with CCP)

Same for a handgun while spotlighting or a loaded handgun in the truck during hunting season.

Pa Game Comission is all about fining people.
In instances where someone might break a law, they pass a law they can fine you for, before you actually do something "wrong".

A guy might use a pistol to shoot a deer in archery.
So, make it illegal to have one.
You can then fine him for simply having a gun, instead of waiting until he does something actually wrong.

Just like we can't hunt small game in big game season.
Or use centerfire (even cast bullet loaded) for small game.

Instead of looking for the guy to do a bad deed, outlaw even having the chance. Can't believe they still let us spotlight!

Simple answer Yes with CCW. S&W 357 or 44 mag. revolver in a shoulder holster or 10mm XD-M Elite on my hip.

I liked Jerry too.

Better check the laws in your state before you carry in while hunting with archery season with an archery license.

In Canada where I live, handguns are banned for hunting, which sucks!

Where I bow hunt for elk in Alberta there are a lot of Grizz, way too many for my liking and bow hunters do get killed by bears here seems like annually! When I am bow hunting, I carry a Mossy 88 Maverick with an 18" barrel on my back, with 3 x 3" Magnum High Shok Slugs with the last 2 being SSG. I figure if a Grizz wants to Dine on me, it's going to be the most painful diner it ever had! lol

Cheers ~

This post cracks me up...

I'm a fellow PA hunter. I have had several run ins with black bears, including two false charges. I just got my carry permit, went to my gun shop, and handled several handguns. The one I kept going back to was the M&P 2.0 in 10mm. I was doing some drawing exercises in the store to simulate a charging bear with a few glocks, sig, s&w, and springfield. I would focus on a point on the other side of the store (probably 30ft away), draw the pistol, and put the gun on target without taking my eyes off of the target. The glocks were always aimed way over the target, which would be a first round miss. The others didn't go on target organically, either a little left, or a little right. But that M&P was dead on target, every draw. Now, I recognize that this is MY PERSONAL situation, and everyone is different, but I chose the gun that I felt would give me the highest percent chance of first round hit.

I also realized that there was a good chance of a low light encounter, so I also got an underbarrel flashlight. I'm still undecided on the ammo I'll use. Not planning on reloading for this, so we'll see.

In the UP of Michigan I always carry....well I always carry except in the shower.....with bears and wolves I have never walked out the door...
Alway carry a S&W 625 or a Colt 45 ACP....only had to use the Colt 45 ACP once....a bear I had shot went back after getting the 4 wheeler and it decided it wanted to fight before giving up its ghost....2- Hornady 230 gr bullets in the head ended that fight at 2'....

Yes

Actually PA is an open carry state. Carrying any firearm during archery season is illegal. However if you have a concealed carry license (its not a permit) you can carry during archery season.
I do carry my handgun but not for bears. I'm more concerned about the 2 legged animals out there - the druggies and thugs.