As with so many discussions here, the answer is:
Depends.
Depends.
Depends.
(Not the adult diapers.)
Sometimes I opt for a rifle - preferably light and short.
Sometimes I opt for a revolver.
A few times, I've opted for my 9mm in a drop-leg rig.
When I was in Florida, I took nothing but my .380 Auto a few days.
(Whatever I carry, it's always legal ... even if only through some obscure loophole and I'm limited in what I can do with it.)
Generally, I find myself carrying my 7.5" Super Blackhawk (.44 Mag w/ 310 gr cast bullet handloads, and at least two [legal] homebrew shot shells for grouse).
But, this year, it was a bit more varied. I carried my Ruger LCR in .327 Federal more than once. I carried my Ruger GP-100 in .327 Federal a handful of times. And, I even shoved the .22 LR derringer in my back pocket for one hike on the Idaho deer hunt (for ultra-short-range grouse, mostly).
I tried to bring my 9mm as the 'camp pistol' but discovered that I no longer owned another handgun that would fit in the lockbox for my wife.
More and more often, I find myself skipping the sidearm for general hunting. It's due, in part, to having built a few fairly light, compact rifles that were intended for the short-range, quick shots where a sidearm would have been the usual stereotype; and partly due to the fact that extra weight annoys me, since I still-hunt (no stands, blinds, or sitting on a ridge top in the truck -- I almost always hike, and it's generally nasty terrain).
So the sidearm is typically only seen when I'm not hunting big game and have a shotgun as the primary (think grouse or rabbits); or when I have locked the rifle up in the truck and I'm doing something like packing out elk, hauling firewood, camping in the summer, or just wandering around before the season opens.
Kcub funny you should mention the sp101. I ordered a 4 inch in 327 this morning.
Have one. Love it.
Still haven't shot it enough to even sight it in!
It's likely to be the favorite 'woods gun' in the future. ....If I can find or make a suitable holster.