There are several ways to carry a gun. the trail carry:

The trail carry leaves a hand free for balance
trail carry is used if you expect a potential target coming from your front. In this method, the gun should be loaded so it can handle a sudden attack.
If you're traveling in a group, the one who has the trail carry position tend to be placed on the furthest front.

Texas’ gulf coastal plains are the western extension of the coastal plain extending from the atlantic ocean to beyond the rio grande. its characteristic rolling to hilly surface covered with a heavy growth of pine and hardwoods extends into east texas. in the increasingly arid west, however, its forests become secondary in nature, consisting largely of post oaks and, farther west, prairies and brushlands.