Given that you are an emergency responder in the Rockies, I'd say something that is good to handle in the cold without gloves, i.e. with an enclosed tang and not a tang with scales that leaves naked steel exposed. Second, forget about turning it into a spear. You use it to cut sharp tips on multiple strong wooden sticks so you have an arsenal, and prevent the knife from getting stuck in Bigfoot while it is running away into the woods. Self defense is more theory than reality as well, just see the thread in this forum that asks soldiers who serve or have served what they use/used, where most answer 'a SAK and a multitool' and someone notes that carrying a 'fighting' knife is mostly to feel good, as a kind of talisman. Me have big knife, me great warrior, feel armed. Forget about staying literally razor sharp, get something that holds a good working edge and is easy to sharpen in the field. Every knife goes dull, one just a bit faster than the other.
Being European, I'd advise you to look at some Scandinavian stuff. The Finns used knives to survive in their endless boreal forests during their winter war against Stalin's Soviet army, and were to date the only people sharing a border with soviet Russia who managed to fight them off and avoid becoming part of the soviet bloc. Apparently they built hidden saunas with their knives and took turns sweating in those before going out into the snow again to harass the enemy.
Two (or maybe three) suggestions of blades available from that part of the world: yes, the Skrama, which is about the best midweight chopper you can get, made from ridiculously tough 80CrV2 tool steel, and a fantastic delimbing tool. Ten inch blade, full (but covered) tang, weighs about a metric pound without a sheath and comes with a very nice leather sheath for less than 100 dollars total. You can also use it as a prybar to rescue someone I guess. But carry it strapped to a pack, not on your belt. If you want an allround mid-sized knife, try a Peltonen Sissipuukko M95 (Sissi is Finnish for 'guerilla' and if you get hold of this thing you'll understand why; they also call it the Ranger knife). Also made from 80CrV2 tool steel, very tough, six-inch blade, Teflon coated, very high flat grind with a secondary bevel, good slicer, nice rakish tip if you need it as a pig sticker, good for preparing food, but you can also use it to scrape mud out of tank tracks, and it shops wood well above its weight. Comes in an ambidextrous hard plastic sheath that can be carried on the belt or upside down on a harness. Also around the 100-dollar mark when purchased directly from Finland and not through a northamerican importer with a 100 percent markup.
Third, as an alternative for the Peltonen M95, the Terava Jaakkaripuukko 140. The 'jeager puukko', like the Peltonen very popular amongst Finnish conscripts who all have to bring and thus buy their own knives for their stints in the army. Same 80CrV2 steel again, hard rubber handle with a full but covered tang, a sturdier tip than the Peltonen but also a pretty high grind (not a scandi but a sabre grind), sharpened spine for scraping, very good leather sheath. Around 70 dollars if bought (like the Skrama) from the somewhat famous Varusteleka military supply store in Helsinki over the internet (you get the Peltonen from Lamnia, also in Finland).
None of these are especially pretty, they are purely functional and get the job done.
You may have a few dollars left to throw a Mora Companion in your pack as a backup. ;-)
(Note that I'm not a survival expert and can't compare with many US made blades. But I have the above and use them frequently on our property with lots of trees and bushes that need pruning, fences to repair, prop-up sticks for the veggy garden that need pointy tips, firewood that must be split and so on. They all do their job. Haven't needed to fight off werewolves with them.)
Being European, I'd advise you to look at some Scandinavian stuff. The Finns used knives to survive in their endless boreal forests during their winter war against Stalin's Soviet army, and were to date the only people sharing a border with soviet Russia who managed to fight them off and avoid becoming part of the soviet bloc. Apparently they built hidden saunas with their knives and took turns sweating in those before going out into the snow again to harass the enemy.
Two (or maybe three) suggestions of blades available from that part of the world: yes, the Skrama, which is about the best midweight chopper you can get, made from ridiculously tough 80CrV2 tool steel, and a fantastic delimbing tool. Ten inch blade, full (but covered) tang, weighs about a metric pound without a sheath and comes with a very nice leather sheath for less than 100 dollars total. You can also use it as a prybar to rescue someone I guess. But carry it strapped to a pack, not on your belt. If you want an allround mid-sized knife, try a Peltonen Sissipuukko M95 (Sissi is Finnish for 'guerilla' and if you get hold of this thing you'll understand why; they also call it the Ranger knife). Also made from 80CrV2 tool steel, very tough, six-inch blade, Teflon coated, very high flat grind with a secondary bevel, good slicer, nice rakish tip if you need it as a pig sticker, good for preparing food, but you can also use it to scrape mud out of tank tracks, and it shops wood well above its weight. Comes in an ambidextrous hard plastic sheath that can be carried on the belt or upside down on a harness. Also around the 100-dollar mark when purchased directly from Finland and not through a northamerican importer with a 100 percent markup.
Third, as an alternative for the Peltonen M95, the Terava Jaakkaripuukko 140. The 'jeager puukko', like the Peltonen very popular amongst Finnish conscripts who all have to bring and thus buy their own knives for their stints in the army. Same 80CrV2 steel again, hard rubber handle with a full but covered tang, a sturdier tip than the Peltonen but also a pretty high grind (not a scandi but a sabre grind), sharpened spine for scraping, very good leather sheath. Around 70 dollars if bought (like the Skrama) from the somewhat famous Varusteleka military supply store in Helsinki over the internet (you get the Peltonen from Lamnia, also in Finland).
None of these are especially pretty, they are purely functional and get the job done.
You may have a few dollars left to throw a Mora Companion in your pack as a backup. ;-)
(Note that I'm not a survival expert and can't compare with many US made blades. But I have the above and use them frequently on our property with lots of trees and bushes that need pruning, fences to repair, prop-up sticks for the veggy garden that need pointy tips, firewood that must be split and so on. They all do their job. Haven't needed to fight off werewolves with them.)
