Personal protection?

    The question recently came up as to what is the smallest caliber handgun you'd trust to protect yourself from wild animals while out hiking?? 

            My personal favorite dangerous animal self-defense small gun has always been a little Beretta Jetfire .22 caliber pistol. Over the years when hiking I will never leave the camp without first it in my pocket. 

            Of course we all know the first rule when hiking in the wilderness is to ALWAYS use the "Buddy System". For those of you who may be unfamiliar with this, it means that you NEVER hike alone, you ALWAYS bring along a friend or companion. In this case, two are definitely much safer/better than one...for obvious reasons. 

            I remember an incident when I was hiking with a very good and old friend, and out of nowhere came this huge grizzly bear...and man, was she ever MAD! We must have accidentally been near her cubs. 

            Anyway, if I had not had my little Jetfire I'd not be here today. That's right, fellas...just one well-placed shot to my friend's kneecap and I was able to escape by just walking at a brisk pace.  

            Yep...That truly is one of the very best pistols in my entire collection!