Agree.If someone gets bent out of shape just because you're legally carrying a gun, that's their problem. Not yours.
And I'm guessing most people posting aren't hunters. Seems that many are "freaked out" by firearms even though they own them. If it's legal and you are comfortable carrying that way than by all means do it. I could not care less if I "offend" someone. I've been stalked by cats while hunting. Terrifying feeling even w/ a rifle at the ready. I've been in a tree stand and had a black bear run up a tree next to mine in about half a second. Yet another terrifying feeling even though I had a big enough gun w/ me.
Wild animals are unpredictable and you should plan accordingly. In all honestly if you are in grizzly territory you should have a rifle w/ you. If you hike w/ dogs you owe it them to protect them as well. I believe the saying is "that's it better to have it and not need it". If I "offend" someone than oh well. I will be able to protect my loved ones and myself.
They are not only intimated by the gun on his side, but by the air of confidence he holds and the look of contempt he has towards them.
We had gone up one valley, over the ridge, and were coming down the adjoining valley. We'd just walked by a couple of ginormous piles of bear scat. We happened on a camp of a couple of guys and stopped to chat. They were fishermen, and from NJ. They were A)camped right by the stream/trail (where everyone, including bears travel), and B) were cleaning fish in camp, and C) cooking right by their tent. And they were going on and on about how a hiker had come by carrying a shotgun, and they thought that was ridiculous, because A)there weren't any bears around and B)a shotgun was useless for bears and C)only wackos would be armed. I mentioned that this was in fact grizzly country and there was copious bear scat just up the valley, but it didn't seem to register.
That line is hilarious. Watch out, big man with a gun coming through haha. And no, I'm not talking about hunters.
There's also a big difference between confidence and showboating, apparently some folks do not know the difference.
LOL!The difference is some folks have been walking in the woods their whole lives, know what's goin' on and do it on their terms without worrying about being PC to others that are less familiar. Then there's those that are there hiking because it's the newest fad promoted in their "Fit Outdoors" magazine. Next month it will be Fat Tire biking and the hiking gear will be put on the next neighborhood garage sale. The day OCing is promoted in it, they will be the first in line to buy Bandoleer rigs and thigh holsters. Hopefully with a cute little monogram on it somewhere.
That's pretty much what I do, but also with an untucked shirt. I also carry OWB the same way. If I am walking in the woods when it is dark during archery season, I will open carry until daylight (or after dark) and position the waist belt of the pack between my body and the gun. That is a little goofy, but it is only for a short part of my day. If I bump into something in the dark, it likely will be a ground fight from the start.I hike in the NC/SC/GA area 1-2 times per year. About the same as the OP (~10 miles per day). I have been carrying my G30S IWB as I usually do at home with the only difference is that I use a holster with a 'sweatguard' on the trail. When I need to get to it I unsnap the buckled on the pack and then can use my normal draw motion. I'll most likely be switching over to my G29 for this spring's hike and going foward.
Hey, you're the author who painted his imaginary Napoleonic woodsman looking down his nose upon all the unarmed folks with contempt. There are some for whom a gun is just a gun and others for whom a gun has a more compensatory significance.
Hell I've been charged by a bear with cubs in Shenandoah. Had grizzlies come into camp at night in Alaska. Had snakes strike at the guy walking in front of me. Managed to walk out of many such events without having to use a gun.
And look at you talking about trashing/abusing the environment while you're cutting sapplings for hiking poles and foraging about. You might have heard of Leave No Trace. It's more than just a saying, and it could stand to be practiced a lot more.
I saw a show on Netflix about hiking in bear country. Apparently bears now know to look for strung up food caches and go straight to the lines and cut them.(in case people aren't familiar with good camp hygiene in bear country, you don't gut fish or cook where you sleep - you cook and then hike a bit farther, or in any event walk 50 or 100 yards away from where you sleep to cook. And you try not to camp in places that are obvious thoroughfares, so a bear won't stumble on you by accident while passing through)