I often carry either my .45 semi-auto, or a .357 or .44 revolver while I'm hunting or just wandering around in the hills.

This season there were two occasions when I was very glad to have the .44 on my belt:

1. While hiking up a remote canyon, not far from Yellowstone, hunting mule deer. My buddy and I found grizzly sow & cub tracks going up the same trail we were using. The .44 with stout loaded 300 grain hardcast bullets felt good on my belt. I didn't think much of my .25-06 & 115 gr Berger VLD's as grizzly medicine. Great deer rifle, but I don't think it would do too good on bear, particularly at close range... Fortunately we never found those two bears. Believe they headed up and over into another drainage. We did leave them two boned-out carcasses though.

2. Earlier in the season I was with a fellow who made a high spine shot, a little farther back than he would have liked. He dropped the deer, but it was trying to crawl away, dragging the hindquarters. Not good, but these things happen time to time while hunting. The other hunter asked me to finish it for him as we closed in on the broken mule deer. At about 20 yards I drew and fired a controlled pair from my S&W 629, putting both bullets through the chest. One went through the shoulder, the other just behind. In this case I was carrying factory loaded 240 gr JHP Federal American Eagle brand ammo. It worked great, tearing the top off the heart and destroying the lungs while punching all the way through the deer.


240 JHP recovered from my water-jug tests. No bullet recovered from the deer... Punched through, with a big exit wound:


Most of the time the revolver on my belt is just dead weight, but sometimes it's real handy! Glad I didn't have to use it on grizzly up in the Wyoming high country. Glad I had it along on the other deer hunt. I carry a sidearm pretty much every day. Time to time it proves useful.

Regards, Guy

That 5 inch classic is about as good as it gets in a carry yet capable .44 mag.

No problem with full hilt 300 grain loads let alone 240 grainers.

Very nice. I had a 6 1/2" Classic that was probably the best .44 Mag. I ever owned.

The only handgun I'd consider carrying while carrying a rifle would be my little 3 inch 317 Smith, .22 LR. That would be for those dumb, high mountain grouse.
If I'm ever unlucky enough to tangle with a grizzly, I pray that I have a rifle, not a handgun.
I have carried a Smith 29, 4 inch while bird hunting. Came real close to shooting a small buck or two. If they had been much bigger, I may well have done it.
I also like to pack a decent handgun, like a 10mm, or, if the small game seasons are on, a 1911. .45 ACP while stream fishing w/ a fly rod.
When I'm out and about in our mountains, I always have a gun, usually a handgun. Lighter, easier to carry on those long, tough hikes in the high country. E

It feels good to have a handgun in a holster when you are out tramping around in the mountains. You just never know, but in most cases, it is just dead weight. Comforting, but heavy as time wears on any your pants start to ride a bit lower.

That load on your hip will feel light as a feather if you come face to face with a mountain lion! Been there!

I think I would have used the 25-06 first! I agree with the comforting but heavy comments. Once I got a S&W 329pd, the weight factor went away. A 4" 44 that weighs the same as a 3" steel J frame is easy to tote and doesn't get left behind. Of course, it hurts a little when you fire it, but so what.

I carry a .22 Freedom arms revolver Model 97 when I hunt. Figure if I ever see a bear, my rifle will be OK for that job.

I've used it a couple of times for a "coup de grace" shot.

Also shot various rabbits, groundsquirrels, sage hens etc!!!

The S&W 329PD is a heck of a 44 Special and, in a pinch, a darned hard recoiling 44 Magnum! Maybe someday I'll find the "right" grips to help handle the recoil better.

That said, I'm much more likely to found carrying a Rossi 515, 22 MRF, or Rossi 720, 44 Special, then I am any other revolver. If I carry a pistol, it is usually a 4.5" S&W 2206.

Jeff

I usually carry either my Smith 317 or my Colt Woodsman. If i was in Bear country it would be my 4 or 6 inch 629 with the Keith 250 gr Cast pushed by 20 gr of 2400.

My S&W 431PD in 32 H&R mag. is just right for an everyday woods backup for me. I ALWAYS have it with me, along with a short barreled carbine.

Mostly an 1892 Trapper in .45 Colt or an 1895 Marlin 45-70 cut back to 17"

I have Cougar and Blackbear in my neighborhood.

Virgil B.

These days I mostly carry a stainless Ruger NM Vaquero .357 Montado in a cross draw along with my .357 stainless M-92 Rossie when wandering around in the bush or on horseback (which is mostly how I go these days)..

given the choice between a .25-06 with a 115 and a .44 mag at bad breath range on a bear, I'd go with the rifle every time.

just sayin'

Was thinkin the same thing...

But i hope like hell I'm never given the choice


Ingwe

I have either a 629 or a 329 99% of the time I am in the woods. The other 1% I have only a long gun. I have been carrying my long barrel 629 since about 1985 and hardly notice it is there. I load some mild loads for the 329 for most of the shooting I do with it. I fired it three times with full loads when I first got it and really didn't want to shoot it again without reduced loads. I do load it all the way up when I might need to use it against something big and hairy with fangs and claws. I load it with several rat shot loads when snakes are likely to be encountered. I also have a rack for a rifle and a shotgun in the cab of my Kubota.

The 4in. 629 is my sidearm of choice when afield w/o a long gun......always. Handloaded with WFNHCGC'd 300gr. Beartooth bullets, steppin' out at 1,200+ fps.......it'll do it's job if I can do mine.

I use to carry a Freedom Arms 454 but the thing was just way to heavy, so now I carry the Glock 20/10mm with ext.floorplates that give me 20 rounds and I feel it is good back up if needed.

I don't carry a sidearm if I'm hunting...I figure if I can't do it with the rifle, I'm NOT gonna do it with a handgun. However, I spend more time afield fishing here in MT,and always carry a sidearm. After 35 yrs. of lugging around a .44 and never having to use it, I decided to step down to something lighter....a 4" Titanium Taurus in .357, loaded always with a shotshell first, and hard cast for the rest.Hoping for the best...
As my luck would have it, the FIRST day I took my Taurus afield was the ONLY time I've ever had an unprovoked incident with a black bear...
Didn't have to make it go Bang!, but I was wishing for my .44 for a few seconds....

Ingwe

That's a bit like those being involved in a shooting incident/robbery/what have you and wishing that they had packed that day...... I never have understood those that choose to pack concealed or afield only on Tuesdays and Thursdays 'cuz you know damn well that "it" will inevitably happen on those off days. BTDT many years ago.

Anything is better than nothing, just some "anythings" give me a bit more confidence than others.

When played correctly, which obviously can't always happen, a .44 Mag loaded as I have above, is certainly a real confidence booster.

For the record, I don't pack a sidearm when rifle hunting either, but when afield without a long gun......always.

I'm hoping that if I ever need to protect myself from a bear with a handgun, that I'm far enough up a tree that I only need to discourage it from climbing up after me.

a handgun is definitely better when you're climbing trees

.......or when your pants happen to be around your ankles (not Deliverance type........).

I used to carry a magnum handgun while hunting, but gave up on hauling the extra weight. I do sometimes carry one when bird hunting in pig country. Sometimes, while carrying a rifle, I will carry my .38 snubby with shotshells that I've loaded myself using the Speer capsules filled with #12 shot for snakes.

Like others have said, I feel there is little else that I can do with a handgun that I can't do with the rifle I am carrying, including finishing off wounded game.

My XD-40 goes with me every step I take in the woods. Where I hunt, it is mostly for the two legged, illegally here kind.

this past hunt, I forgot the holster I usually carry ( I carry it left handed so it doesnt bang my rifle). I actually left it at campe one day and boy did that feel weird!

Around here we have black bears, feral hogs, and feral dog packs. If I put my rifle up in the vehicle in order to track, or drag, a deer you can bet I put a handgun on. I used to use a N frame S&W (.357 MAG, .41 MAG or .44 MAG) or a Ruger BH (.41 MAG, .44 MAG or .45 COLT) but lately I have simply slipped my Glock 23 in a Fobus paddle into my pants and started tracking. If I am handgun hunting I still use one of the BH, SBH, or N frame revolvers.

We don't have mean bears around here, so its mostly two legged preditors that are the issue and of course the other shots of opportunity.

So my answer is the S&W 360-1. its a 11oz 357mag. Its light enough I always carry it.



Its a handfull with full house 357mags, but a 38's and milder 357s are easy enough.

nope if I have a rifle I don't carry a handgun

and 99% of the time I have a rifle.


it's a rare odd day that you don't feel on top of the world with a good rifle in your hand afield

A 480 Ruger Super Redhawk...