Protection in the Wild

[BigCountry]

I'm interested in some opinions on a handgun for personal defense out in the wild.

I'm planning a backpacking trip. An extremely long trip at that. I plan on backpacking along the great Appalachian trail. A 2,100 mile trek stretching from Georgia to Maine and this trail holds its dangers from man and beast alike and I have no intentions of being ill-prepared.

I plan on taking along a Henry AR-7 for small game, but when it comes to protection.. I'm not sure where to begin. I'm a fan of the H&K USP .45 but that's a steep price tag and I've never owned a handgun. (Plenty of rifles though.) Any suggestions? I'm open to all criticism.

(Also.. any tips for a durable knife? I've got a few old reliables.. but I'm curious to what I can find.)

[Steve_NEPhila]

The trail you want to take passes through New York. Carrying those weapons in New York will make you a felon if caught.

If you want to do some hiking and be armed at the same time, research the laws of each State the trail goes through. Like I said, step foot in New York and expect a Plaxico Burress type prison sentence. In New York, you cannot touch a handgun unless you have a license, which most people cannot get.

As for an outdoors trail gun, I would recommend a lightweight .357 like the Smith and Wesson Night Guard 386. Or, if you can find an older 386 Mountain Lite with a slightly longer barrel go for it. I have one and love it.

The .357 will work well for predators and varmints of the two legged and four legged variety. Different loads can be utilized to cover everything from snakes to wildcats and up to bear.

[bogey1]

i would think handgun laws and the such would be my first concern, if all works out, the ar7 sounds good, also a good sized caliber handgun .44 maybe would be my choice.

[BigCountry]

I'm in the process of looking into laws for each individual state, bear with me.

[donm]

The trail you want to take passes through New York. Carrying those weapons in New York will make you a felon if caught.

And don't forget about Maryland, Connecticut, and Massachusetts. CT and MA are possible to obtain licenses, though very difficult. Forget about Maryland. And none of these states (or Georgia) allow open carry without a license.

[Sandcut]

I would not only research all of the state requirements for the possession of firearms, I would also check on requirements on where you can carry concealed and openly, restrictions on ammunition types, magazine/cylinder capacity, restrictions on types of establishments in which you may possess said firearm (eg. sell liquor, restaurant, etc.), presence/absence of municipal preemption of said restrictions and a whole raft of other stuff.

Additionally, since you will most likely be hiking the AT during the warmer months, you will most likely be outside of many state's small game seasons. I'd check on hunting seasons, license requirements, caliber limitations and whether the possession of a long arm capable of being used for hunting actually constitutes "hunting" when in an area capable of being hunted.

Further, you will also need to find out any limitations by Federal or State parks through which you'll be passing. The Federal law allowing concealed possession of a handgun doesn't become effective until February 2010 and a portion of the AT in PA passes through National Park Service property.

Once all this is done, you should find a publisher and put out a book because that there is a whole hell of a lot of research and it would be beneficial to LOTS of people to be published.

Or you could just take your chances and go off half-cocked. (Not meaning to piss on your popsicle but, I'm not sure you've thought this through thoroughly.)

Always wanted to through-hike the AT.

[rwilson452]

You're OK in PA for open carry, but NY doesn't issue pistol permits to non residents. Possession of a pistol in NY will get you a felony bust . NY doesn't recognize any out of state permits either. I live about a mile from the NY border.

[BigCountry]

As do I, but I wasn't familiar with the laws. Hmmm.. Well, regardless, I'm going to continue to look into it.. do some research.. make some calls.. see if I can make some headway.

Thank you all for the input.

[jcabin]

Let us know what you come up with. I think your best bet is buying a reliable walking stick...

[BigCountry]

Haha. I'm starting to believe a walking stick may be it. Maybe I'll fashion it into a blow gun. Haha

Regardless, I'll let you know as I get in touch with state authorities to see what will come of this. (As soon as I can get ahold of them on Monday, that is.)