Backcountry hiking

[AUhiker]

Hello all newbie here, me and my wife love to go backpack camping/hiking. 9mm is the only pistol caliber I own and it’s what I take into the woods as a “woods gun”. I know what most people will say 9mm is not recommended for that, but we are located in north Alabama so no bears or big game animals. All we have in my neck of the woods is maybe a rabid raccoon or coyote. Those two I’m not worried about so much it’s the two legged kind and we have an invasion or wild feral hogs. So my question is what’s a good ammo choice that will work for SD purpose and cover as a woods gun? Right now I swap my carry load critical defense out for Buffalo bore outdoorsman hardcast when I go hiking just in case I run into mr piggy. Is there a hollow point bullet out there that I could just stock up on practice with it and it serve well for both scenarios? I don’t want to use hardcast for SD in fear of over penetration and a hollow point not reaching the vitals on a charging hog. Maybe the critical duty line since it’s a “barrier blind” bullet? I just thought I would throw it out there and see what everyone else does!

 

[hso]

Nothing works equally well for everything so you either carry different ammunition or compromise.

One method is to alternate ammunition in the magazine and practice firing 3 rounds rapidly on target.

 

[Barbaroja]

It sounds like you already have a decent system. I see little reason to be worried about over penetration when your out in the woods. I’d continue as you are. That said, we do have bears, Just not a lot of them (only saying that to be factual not to suggest you need to change to a different gun)
I live in the Talladega National forest and I often carry my model 10 with cast 158rnfp, unless in hunting I think it’s plenty for the southern mountains.

 

[jstert]

welcome! whatever size fmj ball ammo that works reliably in, and accurately from, your pistol is most likely good enough east of the mississippi river, except perhaps in far-north maine if moose are around. there is alot of outdoors related firearms discussion on bushcraftusa.com.

what particular 9mm pistol is yours? do you have an alabama concealed pistol permit to cover out of state trips? can your wife quickly pick up and use your 9mm pistol effectively, if need be? if not, does she have her own handgun, even one chambered in the “lowly” 22lr?

 

[Armored farmer]

I think a 9mm is a great woods gun, and I have been carrying one myself. IMHO, it is suited for anything less than big bears, and much better than nothing for that.
My lgs carries CorBon, but Buffalo Bore is premium ammo also.
I like the weapon light on my 9mm for camping.

 

[bannockburn]

For hiking in the woods I use to carry either a .357 (Ruger Speed Six), or else a 9mm. (Browning Hi-Power). No bears where I'm hiking but have encountered packs of feral dogs as well as coyotes, on occasion.

 

[doubleh]

I did a lot of back country travel on foot with just a single six on my hip. A coyote was the biggest thing I would encounter and 99.9% of the time you would never even see one. Coyote sightings were extemely rare and always far away. I would still do the same today in my area if I was physically capable of making hikes. Going north or west I would want something like a stout 38 special load or maybe a 40 S&W on my hip. Encountering another person in the boonies here is like finding a hen's tooth but people are more plentiful elsewhere and it's people, not animals, I consider a threat.

 

[.455_Hunter]

Why the specific concern about overpenetration on any hostile target in the backcountry?

 

[WYO]

Off pavement, I carry a 9mm loaded with the Buffalo Bore Outdoorsman or Lehigh Xtreme Penetrators. My backup magazines are my standard pressure 124 grain Gold Dots that I carry on pavement. If for some reason I anticipate a scenario that would make the Gold Dots a better option, I can switch out.

The current "barrier blind" hollow points are generally designed for self-defense against people, and they are designed to not exceed 18 inches of penetration against a gel block after passing through various man-made barriers. They have a different purpose than ammo designed to penetrate deeply into a charging critter. They should be fine for raccoons and coyotes, but not ideal as the critter size and body robustness goes up.

 

[AUhiker]

Why the specific concern about overpenetration on any hostile target in the backcountry?

Im not worried about it in the back country I meant in an urban environment for SD. Sorry I should’ve been more clear. I only carry hardcast in the woods and switch to hollow points if I’m not hiking. That’s why I was curious if there’s one that could do both.

 

[AUhiker]

what particular 9mm pistol is yours? do you have an alabama concealed pistol permit to cover out of state trips? can your wife quickly pick up and use your 9mm pistol effectively, if need be? if not, does she have her own handgun, even one chambered in the “lowly” 22lr?

Im carrying a Glock 43 with a mag extension and sometimes a Taurus G3. My wife carry’s a 32 acp with her. We both have our concealed carry license even though the state is constitutional carry just because we travel a bit.

 

[.455_Hunter]

Im not worried about it in the back country I meant in an urban environment for SD. Sorry I should’ve been more clear. I only carry hardcast in the woods and switch to hollow points if I’m not hiking. That’s why I was curious if there’s one that could do both.

Rounds using the Hornady 147 gr XTP tend to provide mild to moderate expansion while continuing to offer higher penetration. However, they won't match a 147 gr solid for absolute penetration. Rounds like the 147 gr HST should be avoided for dual task use- too expansive and too shallow.

 

[Armored farmer]

Off pavement, I carry a 9mm loaded with the Buffalo Bore Outdoorsman or Lehigh Xtreme Penetrators. My backup magazines are my standard pressure 124 grain Gold Dots that I carry on pavement. If for some reason I anticipate a scenario that would make the Gold Dots a better option, I can switch out.

The current "barrier blind" hollow points are generally designed for self-defense against people, and they are designed to not exceed 18 inches of penetration against a gel block after passing through various man-made barriers. They have a different purpose than ammo designed to penetrate deeply into a charging critter. They should be fine for raccoons and coyotes, but not ideal as the critter size and body robustness goes up.

I like the idea of magazines with different ammo in them. I generally carry cheap range ammo when on outdoors adventures here. I may take the opportunity for a little impromptu shooting while out in the boonies. However, I generally dont do that for fear of spooking the wildlife that I want to watch. I'm often on a scouting mission when I'm in the boonies.

As far as the fmj vs HP vs cast argument goes.....that's one to settle in your own mind.
I had a .380 hp flatten and fail to penetrate the skull of a whitetail I was trying to dispatch. On the other hand you will be held responsible for any bullet you fire. I don't want one passing through a target and into an innocent. Not likely in the woods, but there's the hunter that killed the bear that was mauling his friend. Unfortunately the bullet passed through the bear and killed the friend. It was a .270...but worth considering.
I carry HPs in my carry gun and cast or fmj in my field handguns.....FWIW

 

[Old Dog]

I suspect many of us here really tend to overthink the "what handgun/caliber/bullet for..." thing.

A handgun in the outdoors is pretty much a compromise already. There's a lot of cougars (which have killed people up here) in the outdoors areas where I spend time; a couple of black bear attacks (on humans) have occurred in the past several years, and a hiker in the Olympics was killed by a mountain goat.

I tend to carry a 9mm DA/SA with 15+1 124-grain bonded JHPs and a spare 17-round mag most everywhere, urban areas and in the mountains. I feel this is sufficient for most two or four legged threats but I might add a 3" .357 with 180-grain Buffalo Bore hardcast in bear country but that often means I'm carrying a rifle as well, and I don't go near mountain goats.

My main concern wherever I am is being able to recognize a threat in time to access and draw my handgun, get accurate shots off quickly if needed.. Situational awareness, mindset, practice and training is always more important than the hardware (so long as one is confident his hardware is reliable).

 

[DR505]

We have plenty of big critters in the woods where I live (moose, black bears, grizzly bears, mountain lions). The game camera picture is from my property on the edge of the National Forest. I have other options rather than a 9mm such as a .41 magnum, .44 magnum, .45 Colt, etc.

With your location I would just carry the 9mm and Hornady Critical Duty 135 grain +P as that was our duty ammo when I retired and I still have a box or two around here somewhere.

 

[dweis]

I do a lot of day hiking in PA 9 months of the tear. Where I hike there are black bears, rattle snakes, copperheads, feral pigs, and coyotes, and, of course, the possibility of human predators. I open carry my pistol and hang a canister of bear spray on my pack shoulder strap. I have used bear spray on bears twice and a coyote once. It worked well. I suspect it work on a pig too. It is very effective on humans. But it is no good for snakes. I load my pistol with Underwood Extreme Penetrator because it penetrates deeply, and that is what is needed for a wild animal. It is not a self defense round in the classic use of the term, but it would do the job.

 

[FL-NC]

That 9mm will do fine for any critter you listed. I carry a 40 in the woods just because I acquired one in a deal, but I wouldn't feel at a disadvantage if I used a 9mm.

 

[The Night Rider]

1. There are bears in Northern Alabama.

In recent years, black bears have steadily immigrated into northeast Alabama from northwest Georgia, primarily to DeKalb, Cherokee and Etowah counties, and have established a small, but viable population in that region of the state.

https://www.outdooralabama.com/blac...t years, black bears,that region of the state.



There are definitely bears in my woods, no pigs though.

I carry a Glock19 and a can of UDAP.

 

[ECVMatt]

First of all, Welcome!

Another vote for Hornady Critical Duty 135 grain +P. It seems to perform well in a variety of situations.

 

[AUhiker]

First of all, Welcome!

Another vote for Hornady Critical Duty 135 grain +P. It seems to perform well in a variety of situations.

It does seem to excel in every test I’ve seen. I’m sure it would work for a woods carry

 

[ms6852]

I have a different philosophy that most may not agree, and provide no scientific data to back up my statement other than I am older than most and younger than a few.
My take on what rounds to take to the woods or in the city or for self defense or for whatever is pretty simple. I use on my guns what I shoot and train with on paper or steel targets. I do not care whether they are hollow points or fmj, or hard cast bullets. What I care is the familiarity of how the rounds I practice and train with perform and are enough for self defense because I have trained and am familiar with them. I do not care about expansion, I only care that it will make a hole on paper or a wild animal. Only thing that is crucial for me will be the choice of caliber for the territory one is in and the type of animal in the area. One can haul manure in a caddy but why not use a truck.

If you train with ammo labeled as self defense ammo only and pay $2.00 a round then go for it. But if you don't train with it to maintain proficiency , one may find themselves surprised that the poi may be different from the ammo they buy to shoot at the range because it is cheap or the recoil is different. If you reload then you are ahead of others. Buffalo Bore ammo you have for you 9mm, is premium ammo and a wise choice for the baconator monster you may encounter in the woods. I recommend to use only the type of ammo you practice with and are able to hit what you aim at consistently.

 

[Phaedrus/69]

The 9mm should be sufficient. Personally I carry 147gr Underwood hard cast (the Cherry stuff) when in the woods if I'm packing the 9mm. In town I go with 147gr HST. Probably for a big cat either would be fine but in the event of a black bear or hog the cast would probably be better. In my mind it's not a big deal to switch back & forth especially since (presumably) you spend more time in town. I suppose you could alternate in the magazine; that was a thing we commonly did in the 70s and 80s but it's kind of fallen out of favor nowadays. Of course it wouldn't hurt to have two or three extra mags in the woods. After all, you probably have a backpack and you're a good ways away from support or resupply.

Welcome to THR!

 

[Southerner up North]

We have plenty of big critters in the woods where I live (moose, black bears, grizzly bears, mountain lions). The game camera picture is from my property on the edge of the National Forest. I have other options rather than a 9mm such as a .41 magnum, .44 magnum, .45 Colt, etc.

With your location I would just carry the 9mm and Hornady Critical Duty 135 grain +P as that was our duty ammo when I retired and I still have a box or two around here somewhere.

View attachment 1141582

Beautiful cat. I like the 41mag idea. Probably my favorite caliber

 

[DR505]

Beautiful cat. I like the 41mag idea. Probably my favorite caliber

We have bears too!

 

[Southerner up North]

OP, a 9 will be fine with a quality bullet that you can put in target. Shot placement is key in most cases. Wild pigs have that wonderful armor so you might have to pull a head shot.
Use what you are most proficient with