I live in northwest Montana, so even if i'm just out hiking I take one of the two top guns. In the northern part of the valley I live in there are more grizzly bears, so I take the .44 mag. But when I go hunting in the southern part of the valley, there aren't many brown bears around but plenty of black bears. I carry the .357 mag in the south end because I have to hike further in to my hunting grounds. The little less weight is appreaciated if i'm dragging a muley or elk quarter out.

Some people say you need a .500 or a .460 I suppose in the situation of a charging bear, more gun is never a bad thing, but I've felt safe enough with the guns I carry. I've had two instances where I've walked up on bears at close range. Turn a corner in a trail and bam there the bear stands. So far I've never had to shoot. I've just backed off and gone back to the truck to find different hiking / hunting grounds.

A black bear I found waiting for me as I rounded a bend on an old logging trail. This was taken 2 years ago in early summer. The bear knew I was comming and was waiting to see what I was. Ears perked up and waiting to see if i was something tasty. I was scouting a new area for bow season. I happened to already have my camera on with the flash off. I managed to snap this picture from my waist as I backed up and drew my .357 Once out of sight, I walked back down to the truck, and said enough scouting for today.