Backpacking with a Firearm
- Thread starter Barmcd
- Start date
Armored farmer
Member
That's what i have. My usual edc 9mm inside.
I would also be comfortable with my old LCP if I needed to be really light. That's what I carry most days anyway.
Last edited:
bdickens
Member
Sure crime happens all too often, everywhere. I’d come closer to expecting it the closer I am to Houston too.
This was my first hit googling it though.
Ambushed and Robbed on Houston’s Buffalo Bayou Hike-Bike Trail
Like many Houstonians tired of being indoors and pleasantly surprised by the cool weather last weekend, I took to our city’s increasingly well-developed hike and bike trails to seek fresh air and nature during these often too-isolating times. At approximately 10:30 in the morning on Sunday...generalacademic.com
Buffalo Bayou runs straight through the middle of Houston and empties into Burnet Bay near Chanelview.
Sam Houston National Forest is about 60 miles north.
I seriously doubt that very many scumbags go backpacking. Why would they? There's plenty of victims closer to where they live.
.38 Special
Member
- Joined
- Sep 15, 2006
- Messages
- 7,355
To me, the thing couldn't look any more like a gun pack if they tried - and frankly, I suspect they did. I'm sure it works just fine, but it meets the definition of "concealed" only by technicality.
Is that part of this Lone Star Hiking Trail hike?
We have trails in town for bike and run enthusiasts that have had a crime problem (occasionally intended victims turn the tables on criminals because there's a high number of self defense believers on these trails), but these trails are not part of the exurb trail system around here.
So, bike/run/walk trails within this medium city are accessible, but exurb trails are more challenging to get into with a less than mile walk. As you point out, criminals don't tend to go hiking.
OTOH, being an Appalachian Trail hiker there were enough infamous missing person/murder stories to cause me to carry a pocket pistol any time on trails within a mile of a parking area.
Last edited:
Vern Humphrey
Member
I've hiked the Appalachian Trail (2100 miles in mostly 100 mile segments) the Horseshoe trail in Pennsylvania, the Flint River in Georgia and the Ozark Highlands Trail in Arkansas and Missouri. I have a pouch on the backpack belt for such things as compass, trail guide, etc. It accommodates a Colt Detective Special very nicely.
.308 Norma
Member
Really??? Barmcd (the OP) is talking about a 7-day, 90-mile backpacking trip. There's no way in heck I can see one of those Hill People chest packs (and I HAVE looked at a few of them) working under of a full-sized backpack with shoulder straps and a chest harness like the OP said his backpack has.
In our younger years, my wife and I backpacked literally hundreds of miles in the Idaho and Wyoming wildernesses. And I myself spent a week on Rainier and 23 days on Denali wearing a full-sized backpack. I wasn't wearing a gun on Rainier or Denali, but I was on every other backpacking trip I was ever on, and how & where to carry a gun while wearing a 6,000+ cubic- inch backpack was always a problem. I usually ended up open carrying it by making room on my waistbelt - sort of an open "appendix carry."
However, I eventually found a chest pouch that attached between my backpack's shoulder straps, and I used that for a while. The problems with it were that it was slow to get into, and awkward as all get out when I took my backpack off because I had to unfasten the chest pouch from one shoulder strap or the other. Besides, it didn't hold my relatively heavy revolver close to my chest. And of course, my revolver was in the pouch on my backpack while we were in camp - not the best situation to be in if a bear would have ever come into camp.
BTW - I now believe that carrying a full-sized, heavy revolver as a backpacking gun was silly anyway. I carried a heavy revolver (either a 44 Mag of Ruger 45 Colt) for "bear protection" of course. And in all of my wife's and my backpacking years, the only grizzlies we ever saw were in national parks (where if you shoot a grizzly, you'd better be wearing claw marks) and the only blackbears we ever saw were running away.
So, I now believe I'd have been a lot better off carrying my Glock 19 on our backpacking trips - because the times when I felt the most ill-at-ease on our backpacking trips were when we were at trailheads. Miscreants and other two-legged predators sometimes hang out at trailheads. Yet we never saw those types once we got a mile into the wilderness.
We even considered buying a "backpacking vehicle" (a beat-up old pickup or station wagon) because we were always afraid that when we got back to the trailhead after spending 4 or 5 days (or a week) 30 miles into a wilderness somewhere, we'd find our late-model car or pickup had been broken into. It never happened, but we worried about it.
One more thing before I close - there's a "sticky" (I think that's what it's called) about What Gun for Bears. And I've never clicked on it. But I'd bet there are many posts in it recommending shotguns for bear-protection. Shotguns are fine for bear-protection AFAIC, but anyone who thinks carrying a shotgun for bear-protection while backpacking has never done any real backpacking. And a shotgun would make a lousy hiking staff.
Last edited:
i only day hike in state parks with a small backpack at most. although my areas are not high threat, the parks can attract a certain teenaged urban element, and equally feral/rabid smaller mammals. i never go unarmed or without a few survival goodies. in cold, gloved-hand weather my ccw is usually a bond arms derringer minus the trigger guard. in warmer weather either a keltec p32 pistol or a s&w 642 snubbie.
if i were hiking 7 days and 90 miles of what i own i would bring a ruger bearcat 22lr single action revolver. obviously ineffective against bears. it and 50 rounds are relatively lightweight and compact. 22lr is a good survival and signaling choice.
if i were hiking 7 days and 90 miles of what i own i would bring a ruger bearcat 22lr single action revolver. obviously ineffective against bears. it and 50 rounds are relatively lightweight and compact. 22lr is a good survival and signaling choice.
Last edited:
I've slid a surplus heavy canvas admin pouch onto the waist strap on a backpack that was just big enough to conceal a Smith and Wesson Shield. It could be unzipped and kept open if I thought it might be needed quickly. May work for the OPs purposes.
crstrode
Member
- Joined
- Aug 15, 2008
- Messages
- 360
On a gun forum, I have rarely seen advice that is best to reject more than this.
.308 Norma
Member
doubleh
Member
I don't see the need to hide a gun when hiking on a trail.
.308 Norma
Member
.308 Norma
Member
I wholeheartedly agree. The problem is, when you're going on a backpacking trip, you're not always "on a trail." Sometimes you're at the trailhead(s), and as I said in my post, miscreants and two-legged predators sometimes hangout at trailheads. So, when you're at a trailhead, it becomes the same tired old argument about whether open or concealed carry is best. I personally like my gun concealed when I'm at a trailhead (or in town for that matter) and open when I'm on a hiking trail, or outside around home (we live out of town).
Last edited:
Old Dog
Member
Um, yeah, but the way your post shows makes it appear that I made the statement (about not taking a firearm), you quoted me quoting the member that made that remark. I quoted that member to disagree.
I was up in the Olympics (day hike, no big pack, just a light ruck) on an unseasonably warm fall day; I took off my loose short-sleeved shirt (had a tank top underneath with a SIG P-229 in a Kramer Belt Scabbard). A group of tourists (apparently British) that we passed on the trail made several comments about encountering someone who was armed. This wasn't long after the guy was killed by a mountain goat on Hurricane Ridge but before this recent (8 year old attacked by a cougar in the National Park) incident:
https://www.kiro7.com/news/local/pa...pic-national-park/6XPVMSIHDVFIZNFP3E2ZZ3MM3U/
My wife looked at them as we went by and said, "Better than a sharp stick. And you don't even have a sharp stick."
Last edited:
JTHunter
Member
.38 Special
Member
- Joined
- Sep 15, 2006
- Messages
- 7,355
The great majority of the places where I hike, run, and camp are not friendly to open carry, and many of them outlaw it entirely.
halfmoonclip
Member
- Joined
- Feb 4, 2011
- Messages
- 2,767
This. Mine is old enough that it's a 340SC, and well worn on the edges. First two/three chambers with snakeshot, remainder with whatever else I'm worried about, humans or critters.
Not a backpacker, but I love a good walk, and I always feel better with a gun. Last fall, on a brilliant moonlit night, the dog and I went for a couple mile walk at camp. The world looked a black and white picture.
Moon
ETA- We have a wonderful rail trail near our remote camp; the yupsters on bikes are already hearing banjos. So my gun stays hidden.
Moon
Last edited:
.308 Norma
Member
Peakbagger46
Member
- Joined
- Jan 1, 2009
- Messages
- 1,472
I don’t backpack but I do like carrying this on long mountain hikes (front right pocket)
chicharrones
needs more ammo
Sure crime happens all too often, everywhere. I’d come closer to expecting it the closer I am to Houston too.
This was my first hit googling it though.
Ambushed and Robbed on Houston’s Buffalo Bayou Hike-Bike Trail
Like many Houstonians tired of being indoors and pleasantly surprised by the cool weather last weekend, I took to our city’s increasingly well-developed hike and bike trails to seek fresh air and nature during these often too-isolating times. At approximately 10:30 in the morning on Sunday...
Gentrified neighborhoods amongst poor neighborhoods. Typical urban life.
Frulk
Member
- Joined
- Nov 26, 2018
- Messages
- 1,588
I’ve backpacked for 30+ years. Always carried but primarily for bears, not so much for people as I’m usually deep in high country wilderness.
If it was me doing this trip: For sure I’d get a small can of mace/bear spray. It’s good to have this for a number of reasons. One being as a nonlethal FIRST option and secondly for any four legged predators you may encounter in camp or on the trails. They usually come with a clip and I’d hang it up front somewhere where it’s accessible. I’d also buy another one as they are relatively cheap and test out the spray pattern so you know what to expect performance wise.
The gun: you’re not going to see grizzly and it appears you’re more concerned about the dregs of human society. I’d bring the PMR 30 (no cost to me as it’s in the inventory but a relatively cheap purchase if you’re starting from scratch) with one mag. The gun is very light (14 oz’s I think), the sound signature belies the size of the caliber and 25-30 rounds is more than enough to dissuade 2 legged aggressors. A plus is very light recoil and generally easy to shoot accurately.
Most backpacks have a couple of D rings on their straps these days. There are plenty of pouches you can buy that fit the PMR30. would make sure the zipper has a pull on it (paracord loop) to ease function and access and then I’d use a couple of carabiners to clip it to the d rings between the straps right in the middle of the chest. That allows you to remove pack easily.
Couple of examples of packs I’m talking buckled between the shoulder straps.
backpackinglight.com
That’s what I would do.
If it was me doing this trip: For sure I’d get a small can of mace/bear spray. It’s good to have this for a number of reasons. One being as a nonlethal FIRST option and secondly for any four legged predators you may encounter in camp or on the trails. They usually come with a clip and I’d hang it up front somewhere where it’s accessible. I’d also buy another one as they are relatively cheap and test out the spray pattern so you know what to expect performance wise.
The gun: you’re not going to see grizzly and it appears you’re more concerned about the dregs of human society. I’d bring the PMR 30 (no cost to me as it’s in the inventory but a relatively cheap purchase if you’re starting from scratch) with one mag. The gun is very light (14 oz’s I think), the sound signature belies the size of the caliber and 25-30 rounds is more than enough to dissuade 2 legged aggressors. A plus is very light recoil and generally easy to shoot accurately.
Most backpacks have a couple of D rings on their straps these days. There are plenty of pouches you can buy that fit the PMR30. would make sure the zipper has a pull on it (paracord loop) to ease function and access and then I’d use a couple of carabiners to clip it to the d rings between the straps right in the middle of the chest. That allows you to remove pack easily.
Couple of examples of packs I’m talking buckled between the shoulder straps.
Keeping Gear Handy on the Trail with Multi-Use Accessory and Utility Pouches - Backpacking Light
Having accessible "pockets" on your pack is useful for keeping little bits of gear handy without taking off your pack. But consider a multi-use pouch that can also be worn as a standalone fanny-style pack.
backpackinglight.com
That’s what I would do.
Last edited:
They work fine under a full sized backpack. They were designed specifically to be used while carrying a pack.Really??? Barmcd (the OP) is talking about a 7-day, 90-mile backpacking trip. There's no way in heck I can see one of those Hill People chest packs (and I HAVE looked at a few of them) working under of a full-sized backpack with shoulder straps and a chest harness like the OP said his backpack has.
OP, the HPG kit bags work great if you have a need to conceal the weapon. Downside is that they do hold in the heat. They're really not too bad though. I often carry my pistol in a holster on my pack belt, but that comes with the downside of being attached to the pack. Simple solution is to carry a paddle holster in your pack and swap the gun over when you take your pack off. I've also hiked with a drop leg holster and that also works fine, as long as you have the holster dialed in well ahead of time. Obviously that's really overt though, so maybe wouldn't work well for your situation.
.308 Norma
Member
I'll take your word for it. I just can't see how. Like I said, I've looked at those Hill People chest packs and couldn't see how they could possibly work given the fact that the shoulder straps would be under my backpack's shoulder straps.
It doesn't matter to me anymore anyway. I'm too old and decrepit for any serious backpacking now. Come to think of it, one of those Hill People chest packs might work well for me for the kind of "backpacking" I do now - which I'm trying to "work up" to a 2-mile hike down to the Marsh Creek and back a couple of times a week. I'm half-way there.
