Not a sermon but.....

[Lake Erie High Ball]

Handguns are nice and easy to carry but if I am looking for personal protection from 2 and 4 legged critters I think my weapon of choice would be a short barrelled pump 12 ga. shotgun loaded with #4 buckshot slung across my back.

Do any know of the 21 foot rule?

I know it and live by it.

21 feet is a reactionary gap for attacks with edged weapons. Meaning that if an attacker is within 21 feet with an edged weapon you can not react fast enough with a side arm to defend yourself.

[aged_sage]

In the FWIW arena; an acquaintance and his fishing buddies made that dream trip to Alaska back in the mid-'70's, arriving at camp late one afternoon. Before they left camp the next morning, each was issued a fully loaded .44 magnum in a shoulder holster in case any of the grizzlies wanted to get friendly. They carried them everyday; and justifiably so, as his photos showed unbelievable numbers of bears also "fishing" the area. They were thick as fleas on a Redneck's coonhound.

I have it from very reliable sources that instead of carrying Bear Spray, many of the 'locals' in Montana and Wyoming who frequent grizzly territory carry a can of wasp spray instead, as it has a range of twenty feet, or possibly more, as opposed to about 10 feet for the bear spray. Just what i have been told!

[EdD]

I don't really know anything about firearms so please excuse my ignorance as I satisfy my curiosity.
1. Do you take the gun into the stream with you, leave it on shore, leave it in a locked vehicle, tent? And if you don't take it in your waders, then have you guys ever seen these animals while on the stream?
2. Can you actually stop a bear with a handgun?

Diane, black bears are much easier to stop than are grizzles/browns. In fact, the easiest way to stop them probably isn't to endanger them, but to be too irritating to be around. A South American bullwhip lacks the energy to stop a charging bull by brute force, but I was taught the popping a bull in the nose can make him decide that you simly aren't worth charging and goring. If one has a concealed carry permit allwoing it, then one can carry a semi-automatic pistol which is more compact than a big revolver. The first 3 shots in the magazine can be birdshot with something more lethal behind. This gives several options. Where I live, this means that one probably CAN hit that copperhead/cottonmouth at 4-5 feet and kill it or make it leave. It means that one can point it up into the air and fire a trio of evenly spaced shots, a universal signal of distress. It also means that one can sting the nose of a black bear at 50 feet and still have a lethal option if 3 attempts at irritation fail to disuade it. If you actually inflict a severe injury with a bullet first, it will probably run off but it might feel that the fight is already joined and it will likely end up being a fight to the death of either or both of you. A pistol would typically be carried in a shoulder holster under the vest.

I hope that you never find a need to use a firearm "in anger".

Ed

[Byron Zuehlsdorff]

For those who wish to come out here to fish where I do, PLEASE understand, quite a few of the areas do NOT have cell phone coverage, the police/sheriff response time WHEN you get hold of them can be up to an hour or longer depending on where you are at. Some of the areas are accessable only by foot not because of private property, but terrain. You can be in wilderness or even just a remote area with no vehicle access because of the terrain, trees, canyons, etc. I have had the good fortune of stopping two people from robbing my hunting camp by being where they did not except someone to be. My 4 wheeler was behind the tent, they saw the others leave, I had to use the portapotty. These two guys just about messed their drawers when I walked out of the tent especially with my pistol on my hip. They almost ran back to their truck and sent dirt flying as they left. They were arrested two days later for doing the same thing some where else. As I have stated else where, the sight of me packing a gun in plain sight has stopped two robberies back in the 70s.

Our climate out here is not very good for growing weed, but the remoteness is very good for portable meth labs and for places to deal. Again, the remoteness of our country makes for a very long response time for law enforcement when you get hold of them. Our firearms are for our protection from all types of possible dangers two and four legged and slithering.
I hope you will understand that we feel we have the right to protect ourselves and our families, and property.

I don't want to make anyone mad, frightened to come visit or such. I apologize if I have, it was not my intent.

Thank You,

Byron

[bspitt]

I would imaging the sheer bulk and weight of a sidearm would be a pain in the ***? Gee I am carrying SOOOOOOOOO much gear I'm even trying to cut down on the fly rod. Also where is the thing going to end up after years of not being needed? On me it would be bound to be buried somewhere not instantly accessible the one time I did need it. We cannot do this in Australia of course but still curious.

for 2 legged creatures (never worry about the 4 legged ones) I carry a 2" .38 special snub nose in a front pocket holster in the zipped pocket of my waders (the pocket that is on the top inside of my waders)

No problems with weight, easily accessible. THis would not work for large animals..but in my area, we have a few black bears and thats about the worst animal.