Canon 70-300 IS USM vs 70-300 L IS USM

I've seen some people shoot wildlife that set up a tripod either beside a road or on the shore of a lake and wait all day until or of they see a wolf in the distance or something else.

I want to be able to take it with on a hike so weight is important. I won't have a tripod most of the time though I do use one when there are waterfalls involved and the hike is not too long.

So I'm looking at reasonable focal length, good, fast, accurate AF, quality images and light enough to carry in addition to my walkaround lens. And there's always price. Don't want to break the bank.

I agree with you about camera store being a thing of the past. A Calumet opened recently about 10 miles from here. I'll check it out in the next week or two.

Thanks for the comments.