Just curious what you guys/ladies carry when you head into the woods either hiking, riding, etc. My wife and I trail ride our mules all over Tennessee, Kentucky, and several other states. I carry a Ruger Birdshead New Vaquero in .45 Colt in hog and black bear country. Its loaded with one round of snake shot and five Winchester Silvertips. Otherwise I carry a S&W 686 Plus .357 magnum. This one is one round of snake shot, and six rounds of 125 grain CorBon HP. How about you?
Favorite Woods Gun(s)??
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shootniron
New member
This is my "always" gun...Cimarron Model P in .44 Special with Skeeter loads. I have a couple of Ruger Flattops and New Vaquero's in .44 Special...but I prefer the Cimarron.
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If I were on horseback I might be tempted to carry the 3" 629. But a day in the woods means walking 10-15 miles with 20-40 lbs on my back. Ounces add up so the G29 is the most carried woods gun. Much smaller and over a pound lighter than the Smith. Loaded with 11-16 rounds (depending on the magazine) of 200 gr hardcast bullets at 1300 fps I feel well protected.
In Montana the black bears CAN run up to 400 in theory, but seldom top 200. Any of my 9mm or .357 mag handguns will do for those.
On the Rocky Mountain Front (and indeed out on the prairie clear to Great Falls) we have Grizzlies. I use a .44mag SBH with 330gr WFN bullets cast of a hard alloy. They chrono at 1300 from my 7 1/2" barrel.
On the prairie I tend to load birdshot in the first chamber in hot weather.
On the Rocky Mountain Front (and indeed out on the prairie clear to Great Falls) we have Grizzlies. I use a .44mag SBH with 330gr WFN bullets cast of a hard alloy. They chrono at 1300 from my 7 1/2" barrel.
On the prairie I tend to load birdshot in the first chamber in hot weather.
For my normal Saturday hike with the dog, I carry my CC weapon, a Kahr CW40. There are black bears there in theory, but I've never seen one. I did see 3 mountain lions though.
When I hike in the wilderness where I elk hunt, I carry my 4 3/4" SAA clone 44 Mag. There are black bears there too, also coyotes and cats but I'm most concerned with moose. This July I had a new calf jump out of the willows about 20 yards away from me. My head instantly went on a swivel looking for momma. She stepped out just behind the baby. We looked at each other for about 5 minutes before I started walking down the trail. She and baby ducked back in the willows when I started moving. Thank goodness that I wasn't in between them, momma moose get a nasty disposition when anything gets near her calf. Felt reassuring having the 44 on my hip.
When I hike in the wilderness where I elk hunt, I carry my 4 3/4" SAA clone 44 Mag. There are black bears there too, also coyotes and cats but I'm most concerned with moose. This July I had a new calf jump out of the willows about 20 yards away from me. My head instantly went on a swivel looking for momma. She stepped out just behind the baby. We looked at each other for about 5 minutes before I started walking down the trail. She and baby ducked back in the willows when I started moving. Thank goodness that I wasn't in between them, momma moose get a nasty disposition when anything gets near her calf. Felt reassuring having the 44 on my hip.
Model12Win
Moderator
.50 BMG Deagle:
Better stopping powder than 10 miker miker.
Better stopping powder than 10 miker miker.
MandolinMan
New member
My go to woods gun is a Ruger mark III. But then I don't have to worry about the possibility of bears, hogs or mountian lions either.
jackstrawIII
New member
No real 4-legged critter threats where I live, so it's a 9mm or 45. Whichever flavor suits me that day.
Rangerrich99
New member
Since we don't have to worry about grizzlies here in AZ, this Ruger GP-100 4-inch has been my constant companion on fishing/hunting/camping trips for nearly a dozen years now. And where I go, the main concern is more mountain lions than bears anyway, though I've run into a couple black bears here that were well over the 300 lb. mark. Anyway, this hunk of steel has been going out in the field with me for a long time, and it'll probably still be going out there long after I get too old for that sort of thing, if my brother's son has any say in it.
I think I may spring for some of those fancy Hogue wood grips this year just to make her look as good as she shoots.
I think I may spring for some of those fancy Hogue wood grips this year just to make her look as good as she shoots.
Super Sneaky Steve
New member
3" LCRX is super light but still very shootable. It replaces my 3" SP101 as my go to woods gun.
