10mm, .357, or .44

[gunsgunsguns]

“This is an LARP” seems like a pretty strange stance against carrying a sidearm while hunting. The CDFW explicitly allows hunters without CCWs to open carry or conceal sidearms while actively hunting. This is here in CA. Being prepared for anything in the wilderness is just diligence. It’s common sense.

I’m totally on board with carrying a sidearm, but pretending it’s the bears you need to worry about is hilarious.

 

[Gawernator]

I’ve seen many bears in Los Padres National Forrest. Never once feared for my life or felt the need for a sidearm. This is a LARP.

Agreed lol like many gun forum posts the ultimate worst case scenario is what guys like to fixate on. I get that the fantasy is part of the fun though. I've never carried a gun hiking save for one time and still alive too

 

[gunsgunsguns]

Agreed lol like many gun forum posts the ultimate worst case scenario is what guys like to fixate on. I get that the fantasy is part of the fun though. I've never carried a gun hiking save for one time and still alive too

I dont think it’s unreasonable to be packing in the backcountry or elsewhere, but it would be for two legged threats.

 

[Gawernator]

I dont think it’s unreasonable to be packing in the backcountry or elsewhere, but it would be for two legged threats.

Well nowadays I just carry everyday everywhere all the time essentially, I didn't spend $1200 fking dollars for a permit to the crown for nothing

 

[gunsgunsguns]

Well nowadays I just carry everyday everywhere all the time essentially, I didn't spend $1200 fking dollars for a permit to the crown for nothing

agreed brother I just think the notion of being scared of bears in California is hilarious. Our forefathers took care of that problem a long time ago.

 

[chiroken007]

I’ve seen many bears in Los Padres National Forrest. Never once feared for my life or felt the need for a sidearm. This is a LARP.

My buddy was on his property and had 2 bears growling at him. The scariest part is that he couldn’t get eyes on them until they backed out of the area. So no.. not LARPing.

 

[chiroken007]

I wanted to go with a 357 4 inch revolver for a woods gun but started pricing and i was like ok.Remembered the 10mm and i also reload so started looking up specs and liked what i saw plus capable of 15 rounds but only 10 when i was living in ca.

10 years ago not as many choices so ended up with a g20 for 500 bucks.Started reloading have a stout load for carrying.I took it for camping trips etc and no isssues with regular owb holster but last year went on an elk hunt northern az but carrying my pack the waist strap was in the way so used a drop leg and it was total PIA.Didnt take me long to figure out i need a better holster so bought an invader concepts chest rig set up which my binos can also fit over and still have good access to the gun.

Literally just talked to a patient about this 10 minutes ago.

Thanks for sharing

 

[Gawernator]

agreed brother I just think the notion of being scared of bears in California is hilarious. Our forefathers took care of that problem a long time ago.

By shooting them all? lol. I mean tiktok videos make bears seem like cuddly friends but I know they can attack you

 

[Gawernator]

My buddies was on his property and had 2 bears growling at him. The scariest part is that he couldn’t get eyes on them until they backed out of the area. So no.. not LARPing.

You gotta stand up put your arms up look big and scream at them and they run away

 

[Loading 7.62]

9 in the hood; 10 in the wood

Lmao that’s a good one.

 

[Gawernator]

Its not a LARP.

If you are hunting with a rifle or bow and can legally carry a sidearm of some kind you should have it.

The statistical argument is rich and par for the course from the usual suspects.

ehhhh deadly bear attacks here seem very rare. Why not shoot them with your rifle?

California only has black bears; the native grizzly population was extirpated, with the last documented California grizzly sighting in 1924. CDFW specifically says black-bear encounters resulting in human injury are rare. Cal Fish and Wildlife

For some scale:

• In 2012, California officials reported only 15 confirmed bear attacks statewide since 1980. CBS News
• By 2016, CDFW personnel were describing the rate as roughly three or four mostly minor attacks in a typical year, although the definition of an “attack” varies and California does not publish a clean annual hiker/hunter attack table. LAist
• California's first documented fatal black-bear attack occurred in November 2023. The victim was killed at her home in Downieville, not while hiking or hunting. As of 2026, that remains the state's only documented fatal black-bear attack. AP News

Hunters appear to be an especially tiny subset. After a bow hunter was badly mauled in Riverside County in 2018, a CDFW captain said that during his 22 years with the department he was aware of only three occasions in which a hunter had been attacked by a bear. In that particular case, the hunter had shot the bear with an arrow and approached the wounded animal, which then attacked him. Patch

Hiker attacks happen, but they're unusual enough to make major news. A good example was the 2016 Bailey Canyon attack, where a lone hiker encountered one bear and was then knocked down and injured by a second. He survived. ABC7 Los Angeles A hiker on Mt. Wilson was charged by a bear in April 2026 but escaped without being injured. Los Angeles Times

So practically, if you're deer hunting, backpacking, or hiking in the Sierra, Shasta/Trinity country, Mendocino, etc., I'd characterize the risk as:

Seeing a bear: quite plausible in good habitat.
Having one approach or bluff-charge: uncommon but realistic.
Being physically attacked: extremely uncommon.
Being killed: extraordinarily rare in California.

The situations I'd pay the most attention to aren't just “there's a bear somewhere nearby.” They're accidentally surprising one at close range, getting between a sow and cubs, having a dog antagonize one and run back to you, encountering a heavily food-habituated bear, or approaching a wounded bear while hunting. CDFW specifically calls out startled bears and cub-defense situations, and says dogs can provoke defensive behavior. Cal Fish and Wildlife

One important distinction from grizzly-country advice: if a California black bear actually makes physical contact with you, CDFW says to fight back. They also recommend carrying bear spray.

 

[gunsgunsguns]

By shooting them all? lol. I mean tiktok videos make bears seem like cuddly friends but I know they can attack you

Yes they were hunted to extinction in the early 1920s.

 

[Gawernator]

View attachment 268138
Yes they were hunted to extinction in the early 1920s.

Extirpated* haha get fking rekt bears owned

 

[SamHenry]

I’m totally on board with carrying a sidearm, but pretending it’s the bears you need to worry about is hilarious.

What’s kinda hilarious to me is that this little disagreement on what revolver round marks the threshold of what’s reasonable in the woods is taking place in a room full of dudes who own AR style rifles. There ain’t no wild hogs in these streets!

 

[ButteFlyFisher]

What’s kinda hilarious to me is that this little disagreement on what revolver round marks the threshold of what’s reasonable in the woods is taking place in a room full of dudes who own AR style rifles. There ain’t no wild hogs in these streets!

Bring the AR to the woods, I like that!

 

[Gawernator]

Bring the AR to the woods, I like that!

I definitely would. Why am I gonna fight bears with a handgun when I have literal rifles

 

[SamHenry]

My point is a lot of new hunters or people new to the woods think they NEED a hunting sidearm in 10mm/357 mag/44 mag to be safe in the woods. I and others are saying the woods are generally a pretty safe place: bears will leave you alone, mountain lions will be eating your face before you realize they are there. A lot of times people build up that they need all this gear to get into a hobby and I'm trying to help dispel that. Same with USPSA/IDPA. Just show up and start doing it, you'll find out what you actually need as you go.

With that said, if you WANT to carry a sidearm for whatever reason, more power to you. I normally carry my Glock 19 while hunting or fishing like you do your 357 snub. One hunt I didn't really feel like hunting and wanted to fish so I carried my 10mm with non-lead in the very unlikely situation where I jumped the dumbest buck on my way to the creek.

I think the word “need” is pretty strongly bandied about. “I feel better when I have” should probably be substituted. Do I need a gun to walk around a major city at night? No, but I feel better when I have one. Do I need a gun at my hip when my rifle is leaning unloaded against a tree while I dress out an animal? Maybe not, but I feel better when I have one.

I have not yet stated “I’m not that worried about bears in CA” and frankly, I’m not. I’ve camped with only bear spray for years.

But now that I’m out there hunting and carting raw meat around, I just feel better when I have one.

 

[Tex38]

Probably against popular opinion but I don’t carry a pistol hunting. I already have a 308/30-30/45-70 rifle in my hands, no way I’m reaching for a pistol when I already have a rifle.

Same goes for basically every guy I have hunted with, can’t even thing of a time one of my buddies had a pistol on his hip

 

[jayson_b24]

Extirpated* haha get fking rekt bears owned

Pwned

 

[Tere_Hanges]

Probably against popular opinion but I don’t carry a pistol hunting. I already have a 308/30-30/45-70 rifle in my hands, no way I’m reaching for a pistol when I already have a rifle.

Same goes for basically every guy I have hunted with, can’t even thing of a time one of my buddies had a pistol on his hip

Yeah, it's always the guys who have never been hunting that fantasize about carrying a magnum handgun of some sort along with 100 rounds of ammo. LOL. I'd rather carry water, snacks, and a warm jacket, but I guess that would be way too practical. I take a handgun on camping trips because I disperse camp out in the middle of nowhere, and sometimes there are some weird-looking people out there. But I just take either a Glock 19 or 22. I'm not worried about having to blast a black bear away. But even if I had to, I'm pretty sure a round or two to the brainpan would probably do the job, if you know, just walking the other direction or bear spray didn't work. As others have said, nuisance bears go where there is trash around, in more developed areas, neighborhoods, and campgrounds where no one is going to be hunting. For example, I've seen tons of bears around South Lake Tahoe where no one is ever going to be hunting deer. But just to the south along the Hwy 88 corridor and Carson Pass, which is a very popular hunting spot, I've never once seen a bear out there. And there is a fairly steady flow of backpackers on the PCT, and none of them are even carrying bear spray, let alone a hand cannon of some sort. There are quite a few backpackers that have gone missing over the years, but I'd bet it was more likely a two-legged humanoid creature is responsible and not a bear. And that is why I take a simple, unglamorous Glock 9 or 40.