Adequate handgun for hiking in bear country?

[rick benjamin]

<broken link removed> for serious bear

 

[Mark W.]

Thanks for the advice but I WILL NOT punch pencil size holes in a bear that I want to stop in it's tracks and it won't be just one shot... If a standard cheap hollow point from a 44 mag can explode rocks the size of a bears head it will do the job just fine

Does that rock have paint brush stiff 3-4" hair all over it with a 1/4" of leather and 6" of fat under it? A Brown bears skull is over 1/4" thick in places and angled like the front of a Panzer tank.

A Ruger Alaskan is a 45 ounce handgun that's 2.81 Lbs empty that costs $1000.00

A Remington 870 20ga wood stock 18" 7rd shotgun is about 6lbs empty add a lb for ammo And can be found used for $250.00 The chances of hitting something with a shotgun (even shooting slugs) while its running 25 mph at you is much greater then with a revolver you have to pull back down to the target after each shot. And your throwing 7/8oz lead slugs instead of maybe 240gr bullets.

A Ruger American Compact in .308 is less then 6'lbs

 

[TOVO]

The question I believe is what should I carry while hiking in bear country. A simple answer is number 1 a bell (they will hear it long before you ever can see one), number would be bear mace (the large bottle just for bears) and third would be a big revolver and don't forget the five shot rule......... (5 for the bear and save the last one for yourself). All joking aside I have hiked many mountains in Montana (mostly near Glazier Park) and all the guides or Forest Serve people will tell you to put bells on your packs. They will scare the bear away from you. Have fun and it is truly "Gods Country".

 

[2506]

Does that rock have paint brush stiff 3-4" hair all over it with a 1/4" of leather and 6" of fat under it? A Brown bears skull is over 1/4" thick in places and angled like the front of a Panzer tank.

A Ruger Alaskan is a 45 ounce handgun that's 2.81 Lbs empty that costs $1000.00

A Remington 870 20ga wood stock 18" 7rd shotgun is about 6lbs empty add a lb for ammo And can be found used for $250.00 The chances of hitting something with a shotgun (even shooting slugs) while its running 25 mph at you is much greater then with a revolver you have to pull back down to the target after each shot. And your throwing 7/8oz lead slugs instead of maybe 240gr bullets.

A Ruger American Compact in .308 is less then 6'lbs

More like 35mph. You might want to consider wearing Depends. They'll save you the embarrassing aftermath of an encounter.

 

[beavernation]

Whatever handgun you decide to take make sure you make this one simple modification. File the front sight down nice and smooth so it will hurt less when the bear shoves it up your backside..........lol........or a .44 DA loaded with 320 gr Hard cast bullets pushed as fast as possible and hope you can get one in the brain or the spine of a charging grizzly......eww that made me pucker just to say it!!!!!!!

 

[DieselScout]

A Ruger American Compact in .308 is less then 6'lbs

Interesting solution! I like the idea.

 

[kukusya]

In last I read: that you have 5% survival when you use gun against charging bear and 95% when you use bear spray.
My advise to get some bear spray, spray his bubblegum and then shoot the bear.

 

[MnP]

Bear spray is already in the works, and obviously I don't want to shoot anything that I don't have to.
the gun is basically a last Ditch effort.

 

[twowheels]

Read tovo's reply twice and then follow his advice. If this is an an opportunity to buy a new gun, I suggest a nice smith used 629 loaded with hot elmer hard cast bullets and pray you don't need to use it on a bear.

 

[MnP]

I definitely will follow his advice. I want ZERO bear encounters on this vaca lol

 

[glockman99]

Get yourself a 5.5" Ruger Redhawk, load it up with 300 grain Hornady, and call it good.

 

[2Wheels4Ever]

G20 with a 9in lone wolf barrel. https://www.lonewolfdist.com/Detail.aspx?PROD=852672&CAT=240

Get an extended magplate so you have 18 rounds of 220 hardcast https://www.buffalobore.com/index.php?l=product_detail&p=219

Now that would be a woods king. You do not want to use hollow points for bears, they will not get enough penetration to hit the vitals if you don't get that head shot.

 

[MnP]

Wow so I guess I'm just naive ?? I figured hollow points would do more damage but it seems to be the general consensus that they suck on bears... Oh well live and learn I guess

 

[Doc In UPlace]

Alaska State Patrol carries a 12 Ga. when anticipating bears, so if that doesn't tell you everything you need to know, then 1000 more posts won't help.

 

[mrblond]

always depends on your bears. The Norwegian military is issued 10mms for Polar bears. As you say your hiking, a shotgun would be to heavy. For blackies, I wouldn't hesitate to use a Glock 20.

 

[MnP]

I called the ranger station local to the area we'll be in and she said it used to be all black bears but the last 5-10 years grizzlies started coming in and it's about an even mix now

 

[MnP]

I'm hiking somewhere between 5-8 miles in (it's a HARD HIKE and involves climbing in around over and under truck size boulders) and then staying for a few days and hiking back out if I must I will save some money and just take my shotgun, but I'm gonna already be loaded down with around 50-70 lbs of camping and fishing stuff so that's where the weight issue comes into play

 

[mrblond]

where is this place ?

 

[MnP]

The absaroka bear tooth wilderness in Montana

 

[Martini_Up]

It gets really, really old packing weight around the mountains, especially when the air is thin and since you're purchasing a new sidearm just for this trip I suggest a 4" S&W 329 airweight with hot loads. They're not fun to shoot at all. But it will get the job done when it has to (hopefully never called upon) and it is really lightweight.