[OldMissileer]

Or a Smith 629 mountain gun...But you have to have very strong hands and wrists to be any good with it. 4in barrels have a lot of snap.

I will be fully retiring soon to my old family home in northern Michigan. I now carry my Smith Model 29, 6" barrel, whenever I go out onto our property in the woods. There are many black bear and now confirmed cougars.

All the way through the 80s I could just go out there to shoot, hunt, or cut firewood without having to worry about getting attacked by predators.

[Mariner]

The 6in barrel helps, but do you find the second shot a little hard to get off accurately?

With just Black bear and cougar, a .357 is plenty.