Hello Cameron and welcome to the forum.

Given your situation, you did what you thought best and everyone survived without injury and that is the goal here. Another goal is benefiting from the experiences of others.

You have asked for feedback, so as a fellow outdoor enthusiast, I will oblige you with my opinion. Please note that this is not intended to enflame or embarrass anyone. It?s strictly an observation. So with that disclaimer, I?ll continue.

To answer your question, ?Do you think I over-reacted?? - simply stated, yes.
? Your sister saw or thought she saw a bear ? then panicked and ran away screaming, ?bear!?
? Having seen or heard nothing, you panicked, ran for your weapon and fired it into the air.

Our discussions generally revolve around the principles of knowledge, gear and mindset in order to be better prepared.

Based on your story, it seems you had sufficient gear, but the knowledge and mindset categories may have needed a little fortifying. (But isn?t that why we are all here <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" /> )

Going into a place where you are likely to encounter wildlife, you should familiarize yourself with what to do in case you stumble across one of Mother Nature?s beasts. With many animals, fleeing is not the best alternative. You can?t out-run them and if they?re not interested in devouring you or simply scaring you away, catching you can become an intriguing challenge to them.

The S.T.O.P. acronym (Stop, Think, Observe, Plan) is also spoken here. It applies in several of your situations:

1. The bear
? Stay calm
? Is there really a bear
? If so, is it merely watching you, is it walking in the distance, is it protecting its ?turf? or is it in attack mode

2. The .45 pistol
? Stay calm
? Where is it (If legal to carry, why is it not secured on my person)
? Is a bear really attacking me
? Can I acquire an actual target in the low lighting*
? If I shoot a bear will I kill it, injure it, scare it or tick it off *
(*Should have been determined before the trip began)

3. The men on horseback
? Stay calm
? What are they doing
? Are they a threat

As far as the men on horseback, I can?t say who they were or why they did or didn?t do what they did. I probably wouldn?t have wanted to get too close to a group screaming, ?bear? and blasting rounds into the air either ? especially if I was on a horse that could?ve been mistaken for a bear - after dusk. They could have indeed been thugs, but I have a hard time believing that they were. They were in the woods on horses (not exactly stealthy) at night, 9 miles into the backcountry. Now unless you were mining gold in them there hills, it would probably be easier and more lucrative for these horsemen to knock off a local convenience store if they were thugs. Plus you had the .45 there as insurance.

In summation:
? Stay calm
? Identify the potential threat
? Assess the potential threat
? React accordingly

Remember:
? The weapon should be secured at all times
? Fire the weapon only at an intended target
? The weapon is not a ?noise maker?
? Falling projectiles and ricochets kill

That?s my observation FWIW <img src="/images/graemlins/cool.gif" alt="" />. Stay safe and thanks for sharing your story.