Who carries a sidearm while hunting?

I try to always have a handgun with me whenever it is legal. Why? Because I believe in being prepared. For those times when my rifle is not loaded or handy such as when I've already unloaded to get back into the truck or in case of a rifle malfunction.

Two years ago I carried my .44 along with my deer rifle and ended up taking a deer with the handgun simply because I was able to wield it with one hand while the rifle was slung over my shoulder. I don't always carry a large caliber sidearm. Sometimes I just carry my everyday .38 special snubbie. It's lightweight and provides good insurance against wacko ambushes. It allows me to have the element of surprise if I need it for self defense.

People like to talk about which handgun/caliber combination is suitable for a woods sidearm. If you're already carrying a suitable rifle, it's the handgun that you don't mind carrying and that you can draw and shoot accurately and quickly with one hand.
 
Who carries a sidearm while hunting?

I do, but I don't carry a rifle. I have a few I just prefer hunting with the T/C Contender in .35 Rem. The only big game we have here is whitetail and black bear so it works just fine and I can holster it while hunting in the adirondacks. Lots of up hill walking and at my age I don't need the extra weight to carry. :D

John
 
I carry a pistol whenever I am, be it hunting or not. It isn't used to finish off big game, as all but one are not legal calibers (just got the one that is a couple months ago), but it is carried to deal with 2 legged predators, or legal small game/upland game animals going into the pot for dinner.
 
My grandfather taught me to hunt. He always carried a model 64 Smith and Wesson .38 special. It's what we finished the deer off with after a botched shot. His father who taught him used to just finish deer with his knife behind the ear. Pulling a finely tuned Smith trigger is a little cleaner. So that's what I always carry with me when I go on seldom hunts. A .38 special is plenty for any wildlife we have around here, coyotes, oppossum, skunks, and 'coons mostly. And it serves some very handy purposes:
1. finishing game (ever finished a dear close up with 00Buck?)
2. offering protection against any ill-wishers going in or coming out.
3. it is a fast draw and quick on target when game/wildlife is close and you don't want to point-shoot with a scoped rifle.
4. making sure you are armed when you are separated from your rifle, or it is inaccessable in an instant.
5. When you come accross small game that you don't want to obliterate with over-powered ammunition.
6. If you're hunting with a bolt rifle (Remington 700 .308) and something is close, even if you could get a round at the target attempting to adjust for your 0 and range, you may only get one shot. Where with a pistol with good sights, you may get 3-4 shots (hopefully unneccesary) in the time it would take you to cycle a bolt.

So there are my reasons. I believe any hunter, especially bow hunters, should carry a pistol with them to offset the time it takes to loose an arrow in case you are surprised by something threatening. You are in the "wild" after all.

~LT
 
When gun hunting deer I used to carry a 6" GP100. Legal for deer in Ohio and it was my back up gun so I was taking it to deer camp anyways.
Now I carry a 4" b/c I traded the six off for it. I still carry it for the I always carry deal. Plus, if we break for lunch and go into town I am not carrying my shotgun around town.
 
I carry a sidearm anytime I'm in the woods hunting or otherwise. Mainly for those just in case encounters with hogs, coyotes, mountain lions or snakes. A rifle sighted for 100 yards or more will be difficult to shoot accurately or quickly at close range especially if its shouldered. Also shooting straight down at hogs or coyote etc. from a stand would be difficult.
 
Used to but the Arkansas regs make it cumbersom and impractical.
Plus many of the enforcement officers do not really understand the regs and might write a citation or, worse, make an arrest, even if one is complying with the law.
 
I finally picked up a decent revolver and a good holster so I will be carrying a pistol with me when I head into the woods for deer this year.On some of the drives we do the brush is so thick thats its just not practical for the guys doing the driving to carry a rifle so a pistol is better than nothing.
 
I carry during bow and muzzleloading season in particular. Mainly for back up if needed, for finishing game and for SD if threatened by game of two or four legged type :rolleyes: Just not fast enough to reload that muzzleloader in an emergency. :o
 
CCW in Vermont...

Here in Vermont i carry all the time, Even when hunting. During Bear/Deer you can carry a sidearm, Usually a Ruger BH .45Colt. But not during Muzzleloading, archery or turkey seasons. They are expressly forbidden in the Fish and Wildlife regs. If you get caught with a sidearm, they will confiscate them and possibly your vehicle too. The F&W guys here in Vermont are no joke....


Now that doesn't mean that i haven't done it.............
 
I always carry my sig 226 or 229 both chambered in 357sig when I hunt. I usually kill 1 or 2 hogs per year with them while dear hunting.
 
I live and hunt white tail here in KY where a handgun is unnecessary on our local hunts. Bears are not a problem and I know who is on the land with me.

Colorado for elk is another matter. It's a PITA to carry an additional 3 lbs of weight when actively hunting but it offers some advantages. Bears can be and have been a problem in the past, and we're far enough from the chimney smoke that I don't know who's on the public land with me.

Field dressing a big elk is one heck of a job alone. My rifle is usually far enough away to offer little in the way of protection but the .44 on my hip is always there. After quartering, I pack out one quarter. On return trips for the rest of the meat, I carry the .44 and the pack board only.

It'll probably never be a problem, but packing out large chunks of raw meat while unarmed, at dusk, in bear country, after an all day dressing/quartering/packing operation session can give you the willies. And the next morning's pack out, if you were unable to get it all out before dark is even worse.

The .44's bulk and weight for the packing out operation is always welcome. And mark well Ruark's well spoken admonition: Bring enough gun!

JMHO, Rodfac
 
I carry a tokarev t33. I agree with others here that it's a tad redundant when hunting with a modern rifle, but I feel it's a good choice during muzzle loading season.
If I bow hunted, I would carry it for sure.
Full geographic disclosure: I live on the front range but hunt in Northern Colorado.
The biggest worries here are black bears and cats.
 
I'm going to play a little devil's advocate here:

Reasons listed by some to carry a sidearm;

Rattlesnakes, If you have enough time to shoot it then you have time to step away from it. Unless it's in camp there is no reason to kill it, they are an integral part of the ecosystem. Kill all the snakes and we'll be over-run with rodents.

Coyotes; Why kill them? Same as the snakes, they ain't hurtin you.

Wolves? Come on guys, when was the last time a wolf attacked an adult human being on this continent?
Edit; I just Googled "Wolf attack" and found an interesting article. There have been wolf attacks that were documented in the 1800s and early 1900s (I assume that wolves were more plentiful than they have been until now) With the re-introduction of wolves they may be a bigger threat than in decades past. Similar to Mtn. Lion attacks here in California, No attacks for several decades, Mtn. Lion hunting was outlawed, now years later attacks are more common.

Mountain lions; Well, I'll give you this one but if I've got a rifle on me that's what I'll be using. I don't think I could get a handgun out of a holster as fast as I can get my rifle up.
The same goes for Black Bears, though I've seen lots of them, they are usually high tailing it away.

When I'm hunting deer, I'm hunting deer. not everything that moves.
 
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I DO! Especially when I'm squirrel hunting. I almost always have my .45 auto on me just in case I happen upon a deer, hog, bear, etc., as seasons for these overlap here, and a .22 just won't fill the bill. Also, there are so many druggies around, you never know when or where you might run up on a "secret hidden" pot patch or meth lab in the woods
 
Sadly....

I think it is not even close that the most dangerous/best reason to carry a sidearm while hunting is the whole druggie/methhead's in the woods scenario. Here in Bama that is easily the most dangerous threat in the woods. One other danger that has not been mentioned, however - and is a documented threat to hunters - are the packs of feral dogs that roam the woods. A good high-capacity auto is just the ticket.

J
 
Here's a short poem...written long ago by a guy who obviously had done some serious thinking on the subject. I found it in Stebbins' eminently readable, "Pistols - A Modern Encyclopedia" published about 1960 I think. Regards, Rodfac

The Colt Automat … a poem

For wide open spaces, the rifle's all right,
Where there's time, space and distance, and plenty of light,
But for work on the instant, when shooting is tight,
You can't get the slant with a rifle.

So I'll say that at times, it is all very well,
But for devilty, death, or the raising of hell
The Colt 45 is unusually swell,
And will go where you can't with a rifle.

You can spatter a dollar at seventy feet,
With a stunning precision that's pleasing and neat,
So I'll still make the claim that the Colt can't be beat
And will do what you can't with a rifle.

So when something is crashing the alders ahead,
And it's death to the brute or you in its stead,
Let the Colt automat, the fist-filling gat, the chunky blue cat,
Chuck its competent lead!
 
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