Since 2007 I've had 4 friends involved in grizzly attacks in WY. Only one of those situations allowed enough time and space to shoot multiple rounds from rifles. That sow became visible at around 30 yds and died at the feet of two people shooting big center fire. The others were all bowhunting and had even less time and space. One person was actually stalked and ambushed by a male and never even got his gun out of the holster because the bear came out of thick willows and pulled him into a tree by his face. The chance of breaking down a bear at close range with anything other than multiple rifle shots is not realistic. Its head and face and penetration is king. The most recent encounter last fall had two shooters and the empty casings from the 10mm were behind the terminal location of the bear. It is not common to have time to plan and aim well.
A grizzly is an effective predator. That's his full-time job, and he does it well, as well as you do your full time job. So assume he can stalk you without you knowing it. Really should have two people in grizzly country so you can see 360, and try to stay in the open. Not a final solution, but a good precaution. Don't go without a handgun.
There are multiple factors in a bear attack. A rifle is best outside of a few yards, but closer and the bear is likely to swipe it away from you, not being stupid. Inside a few yards, a handgun is best, but you must hang onto it and attend to firing it. A good idea to have your handgun on solidly mounted lanyard so you can find/retrieve it if he hits you and you're still alive. CNS is necessary to cold-stop anything, bear included. Be sure you know how to hit that brain target from assorted angles. With a big rifle (.338 or >) there are other effective target zones. A predatory attack will be a surprise on purpose, but other types of an attack will also be swifter than imagination, depending on distance. The behavior of grizzlies will depend on their local population density; if over the area's bear carrying capacity, as in a unhunted area, people and other bears (esp. cubs and smaller bears) likely become purposeful food. You can turn a black bear with a 9mm; best assume your attacking grizzly can't be turned. Be familiar with your handgun and don't give up!
Bear spray: I know what the "experts" say about this, but strongly question it ("Experts" are too often too interested in preserving the bear): 1) in a rapidly evolving situation, you are likely to be committed to using only your first choice of defense. 2) A fog of bear spray or a straight liquid jet of bear spray on the grizzly's fur likely won't do much to deter him if he's in a committed attack - you're going to have to put the spray in his mouth/eyes/nose to do anything, then best by far if you can catch him breathing in. 3) Bears that are discouraged by an initial spraying can and do come back - make sure you have more than one can of bear spray accessible. Also, there are likely to be other bears in the area. 4) Just like a gun, you must "maintain" your bear spray - replace it at least annually. 5) Just like a gun, you need practice with bear spray - don't leave it to the last second to figure out how to put it into action. 6) Bear spay doesn't always work even if you do everything right. Bear deterrence stats usually include a large proportion of "encounters" with bears that are accommodated to people, like near a ranger station. The bear you meet in the wild won;t be like that and will behave differently.
memtb
