Have done more than 5,000km of hiking in the mountains of the US, Romania and France/Spain. Never even came close to requiring anything more than my opinel.

I have.

'The raccoon rabies epizootic now extends throughout New England and as far west as Ohio, and south into North Carolina. Note: an epizootic is a term used to denote an epidemic of the disease in an animal population).' www.co.hunterdon.nj.us/Faq.aspx?QID...

If you need a gun, the country you are in is the problem

It’s for wildlife, my guy. Do you want to be torn to shreds by a grizzly?

1- Seriously, there’s bear spray and other ways to avoid getting hurt without having to kill a wild animal. It’s really a shame to kill creatures that are just living in their own home. Of course, I don’t want anyone to get mauled by a grizzly, ....

2- but whenever possible, solutions other than death should come first.

I agree. It would be the last choice to shoot it but I would definitely want that option, just in case it can’t be dissuaded through other means

I agree... I dislike guns but carrying one seems prudent when in certain environments. The sharp sound of a gun firing can be a discouragement to wildlife alone, so shooting it need not be the first reaction.

I roll 3 dice… critical hit 20! The grizzly is now my mount.

All kinds of dangers out on the trails.

'We conducted an analysis of coyote attacks on humans in the United States and Canada, including 142 reported incidents of coyote attacks resulting in 159 victims.' urbancoyoteresearch.com/resource/coy...

"Future coyote attacks could be reduced or prevented through modification of human behavior and public education designed to prevent the habituation of coyotes." urbancoyoteresearch.com/resource/coy...

'Coywolves Are Taking Over Eastern North America Coywolves are not ‘shy wolves’—they are coyote-wolf hybrids (with some dog mixed in) and now number in the millions' www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/c...