"Camping" CCW

[Slideman]

.357Mag. Remington 125gr.SJHP 583 foot-pounds
.357Mag. Remington Med.Vel. 125g 413 foot-pounds
.40S&W Federal Hydra-Shok 180gr.JHP 361 foot-pounds
.40S&W Rem.Golden Saber 165gr.JHP 485 foot-pounds

The power difference between .357 mag and .40 is not THAT much. Shot placement is going to be far more important. The .40 is going to have more rounds available with or without reloads.

Personally I'm hankering for both a 10mm and a .44mag. Hiking in the woods is my excuse, but I know it is lame. The 13 rounds of .357 auto I carry constantly in my Glock is more than enough here in wolf country.

 

[roscoe]

The power difference between .357 mag and .40 is not THAT much.

Only if you limit your ammo choices. Buffalo Bore and Doubletap have .357 ammo that will get you around 700 foot-pounds from a 4" revolver. That borders on .44 mag territory, and far exceeds anything in .40. Also, those heavy .357 rounds are available in hardcast and will penetrate like crazy. Now, if you step up to 10mm, that is another story entirely . . .

 

[WeedWacker]

Do they make handguns in 10mm?

 

[MaineMan]

You'll do fine and be well protected from Yogi and his cousins with a .357 magnum. It's really not necessary to carry a huge handgun it's more important to be able to use the one you have well enough and to know where inside that bag of fur, bones, claws and teeth you need to put that bullet to stop any thoughts of mayhem on your person or the SO, I'm sure she will be appreciative and the rewards can be great.
Unless you are going after those rare heavily armored Las Vegas Bears that require barrages of the latest 500 testosterone inducing magnums, a well constructed .357 will do the job plenty. Avoid the hollow points, they may or may not expand and if they expand too quickly they may just blow a crater in the outdside of Mr. Bruin and really get him ticked at you. A well constructed soft point or hard cast bullet is better.
Wardens up here are armed with SIG handguns firing the .357 SIG round. They have to put down injured animals, like bears and moose, and found that the .357 SIG did it better than the .40's they initially had.
Like one other poster said, if the bear is tearing your campsite garbage pile apart, let him have it and retreat to a safe place. No sense asking for trouble. If the bear runs, it may not specifically be an attack. They will run in the direction their nose is pointing when they sense danger. If your in the way, don't take it personal. Keep this mantra in your head "Bullet placement- bullet placement - bullet placement." Be familiar with what you choose and practice until you are sure you can put that bullet right where you need it to go.

 

[BikerRN]

Since you are going to be out in a "rural" or "wilderness" setting I would recommend the 40 S&W.

The reason I chose the 40 was because your odds of encounters with two legged predators is still your most likely occurance. You will be without cell phone coverage, immediate police response, no 911 and may have to "fight your way to safety".

I personally prefer Revolvers, but in this scenario I would go with the "autoloader" and at least one spare magazine. For what you described I would use my Glock 9mm loaded with 115 Grain +P+ JHP's. The reason I chose the 9mm is because I don't have a 40.

Biker

 

[drinks]

A friend lives in Alaska, he killed a coastal brown with a .44 mag. 180gr hp, but does not recommend it, preferring a .45-70 or up.
He knew an indian woman who killed a polar bear with a .22rf rifle, but she had to shoot it in the roof of the mouth.
I have no desire to be close enough to any bear, black, brown, grizzly or polar, to shoot it in the roof of the mouth.
I would feel a .357 in black country and a .44 mag. where the other bears live would be the minimum.
For Felis concolor, .38 sp or more should be plenty, the animal is mostly 125lb or smaller.

 

[DougO83]

Camping Carry

You have to be really careful about this. I haven't gotten to read all of the posts due to the speed of my office computer, I just don't have that kind of time. Anyway, some parks, especially state parks, are very touchy about your possession of a firearm on their property. This is most definitely the case in Texas where it is pretty heavily fined, if not an arrestable offense. Also, I was told by one of the park rangers down here that it is pretty hard to prove that your life was threatened by an animal to the point that you needed to usedeadly force. Things may have changed, I haven't looked into it lately. Just my two or three cents.

 

[JoshB]

I'd take a 44mag.
If you don't have a 44 [like me], go with a 45ACP. I've seen bears in the VA woods and I wouldn't want anything less than a 44mag or [at very least] a 45ACP.

 

[obxned]

What kind of camping? Camping in a National Forest campground that can be reached by car has different dangers than a camp site 3 days by horse from the trailhead.

 

[Zombie Steve]

.357 mag with full house loads works fine in Colorado. It seems to hit that sweet spot of power and shootability for me. I still worry about 2 legged critters more than 4 legged in the mountains.

 

[glockman19]

I prefer the .357 mag for Camping/Hiking. I carry a S&W 686+ 4" and find the 158 grain to be the most effective.

 

[Plink]

I voted for .357 based on it's versatility. You really need to think about the size of the bears you may encounter, though. For large bears, I think I'd want more gun.