Please dont freak out. Im not a carzy gun finatic looking for a new shooting range! I mean this in all honesty, for personal protection against, whatever, what kind of small arms or weaponry is alowed when you are hiking? Also, can anyone recommend a good base hiking trail (3 to 4 days). Im looking to get into it.
Lookingintoit
i carried a 13oz 5 shot revolver smith&wesson 357 magnum on my CDT thru-hike. It was the greatest power for the least weight and bulk I’m aware. Its brutal for recoil, but will do the job on two legged and most fourlegged predators. To carry it concealed you need to get a permit from the state in which you hike.
woodsman
I doubt you’ll need, or use a firearm. Get a bear repellent spray can. Find a trail near your house, and figure out a loop hike with an easy exit to a road. You sound inexperienced. Don’t talk with most other folks you don’t know well, about weapons on the trail. You’ll just make them nervous, and they’ll be less likely to help you.
Guns aren’t bad, they saved us from Hitler and helped to end slavery. Sit-down strikes wouldn’t have done the job, IMHO. Bad gun users, well, they’re bad.
Bear Spray
I think it’s a bad idea for ANYONE except for law enforcement to be carrying a weapon on the trail with rare exceptions - hunters.
We are all getting crazy with assinine ideas like this that are more apt to get more people killed … and in the darn wilderness of all places. Yes, there is violence along the trail. But I have a better chance of getting killed in my nearby city or driving to the trail!
Life on the trail is supposed to be simple - you get up in the morning, have breakfast and pack up. Then you hike for the day and set up camp at night, feed yourself and take care of chores that have to be done. It’s simple.
Weapons aren’t simple. They don’t belong out there. Trust me in 2-3 years we’d have a shoot out at a shelter!
I say no to guns. :cheers
Bruce
Well, I’ve seen several babies and small children on the trails, They certainly have very small arms.
arms
I watch TLC.They have a program called"Little People big World",lots of small arms,well prepared,dont mess with them.
:pimp
old&intheway
If you are attacked by a bear and you shoot it, it will become enraged and eat you. Carry some spray - it works better. It works on the two legged varmits as well.
bearcreek
Guns stopped Hitler? If there were go guns, Hitler wouldn’t have had them either, duh.
markv
If you don’t conceal it half the people you pass will report you to a ranger or local law enforcement, if you do conceal it , can you get to it in case of attack by two or four legged critters? If you choose to carry be sure you know state laws, city or town laws, national and state park laws where you will be traveling.
Tomahawk
I think we’ve done this thread before, here’s what I remember:
Bill
i would say of the three big trails I’ve thru-hiked the AT requires a sidearm the most. The East coast is plum full of creeps getting on the trail and hanging out at shelters. The CDT also calls for something to protect ya. Grizzly and cougars are no joke. Even the Rangers I met admitted pepper spray isnt the best thing to carry. Its your choice and your life. I assure you a pistol in your pocket is much faster to draw than a cumbersome canister of spice. If you are clean its no problem getting a permit, except for the states that dont believe in all of the Constitution (Mass., Cali. etc.)Be safe.
woodsman
I’ve hunted all my life, own several sidearms and did NOT take one on my '07 AT Thru.(nor did I take pepper spray) My main reasons for not doing so was the weight of the weapon and the fact that concealed carry makes a sidearm hard to get to quick enough to be of help in either a 3 or 4 legged issue. Also was very concerned with securing it during town/hostel/restaurant stops.
Never felt a need for it during my thru.
That all said - if I was choosing a sidearm to carry while backpacking - it would be “The Judge” revolver by Taurus - shoots both .45 caliber cartridges & .410 qauge shotshells and is offered in a lightweight titanium(I think) model.
Evil Eye
I must say I feel much more comfortable camping in Griz country and along places like the AT when my boyfriend carries his handgun. I know most hikers are leftwing pacifists types and oppose, but they dont realize how lucky they often are with all the predators out there. Especially two legged. Things do happen. So its your option…be a victim or be prepared!
Princess Joy
I carried a small revolver on the AT in 2008 the entire way. Though I may have broken the law in some of the goofy states like Jersey, York and Massachusetts by carrying, I never let any of the other hikers on the trail know I was packing given most are brainwashed college students who believe guns are the worlds most evil tool. Carry a light enough gun and you’ll often forget its in your pocket. When you need it, its always there for you. It really offers a huge piece of mind. Dont forget…its better to be judged by 9 than carried by 6. Protect yourself!
SpiritTree
I love me some guns, don’t get me wrong, but in the several thousand miles I have hiked around the country, at no point would a gun have done me any good? Out of those of you like Princess Joy who say that"things do happen be prepared" do any of you have an account where a gun helped you on the trail? I can understand maybe in grizzly country, but you’d have to be a stellar shot and knowing preventative methods like making lots of noise is more effective anyway. For you inexperienced hikers, if you can’t fight off a black bear with a rock and some noise than you deserve to be bear food.
fearmongr
I hiked all three trails and I have had to shoot one bear and deter 2 predatory creeps. Once on the At and one border jumer on the PCT in Cali. Without my pistol I’d probably be dead.
Jackson
Though I only own one gun, I think defending oneself is very important. I backpack alot, including thru-hiking the AT this year and I really am happy I carried my Glock 9mm. There are many jerks on the trail.
Mindy
just carry a gun and be ready. dont share it with anyone on trail cuz they are most likely liberal lemmings that are afraid of guns and will only give you a hard time because they wont understand you care about protecting yourself and the ones you love
Greg
I’d say of all places a weapon is needed in our innercities and in our wildernesses. Certainly the cops arent gonna protect you when some maniac at a shelter on the AT is stabbing you, nor when a cougar is mauling you on the PCT. Really.think about it what are you gonna do?
Tom Thumb