Jerry,

On certain points we agree, on other points I would somewhat disagree. The "what's the best gun for bear defense" is probably second only to the guns vs spray question for generating heated arguments. Here are a couple of my opinions.

Re: "Many want the maximum power available. I do not agree nor do many other experienced people .." By the same token many highly experienced people do argue for the most powerfull gun you can shoot well. Alaska bear hunting guides probably have seen more bears killed, and killed more bears in dangerous situations than anyone. Guides frequently have to go into the pucker brush to finish off a bear wounded by poor shooting clients. While I've heard of a few who carry a semi auto 30-06 or similar, most seem to prefer bigger guns. The 375 H&H is a common choice. Quite a few carry the 458 Win Mag.

Re: "If you are going to stop a charging bear you need enough power to consistently penetrate the skull. Any other shot will not stop the bear." I don't quite agree with that. While a hit on the bear's brain is certainly ideal, any number of people have successfully stopped charging bears with other than head shots. A hit on the shoulder (with a powerful, penetrating round) for example, can both shatter the shoulder bones (slowing the charge) and penetrate into heart and lungs. To reiterate, lots of people have stopped charges without hitting the brain.

Other hits can also do the job. I killed a smallish (at least by Kodiak standards) brown bear at about 15 yards. He wasn't charging, but he dropped like a rock and didn't even twitch after. What happened was that our carefully planned stalk took us out of sight of the bear for a period. Unknown to us, during that time the bear decided to move. We had just crossed an alder choked gully, and as I extricated myself from the last of the alder, the bear suddenly appeared about 15 yards away out of some high grass. He was as surprised as I was! I'm sure the bear was trying to decide whether to charge or run. I reacted first, and shot for the shoulder. I was a bit high and the bullet drove through and broke the spine. I was using a 338 Win Mag, shooting 250 gr Nosler Partition bullets.

Re: "Since we cannot be assured of hitting what we need (a baseball size) in a head moving multiple directions, even with great skill, we need to be prepared to shoot multiple times." While getting in a second shot is certainly ideal if you can do it, a great many bear encounters are at very close range and happen very fast. Quite often one shot is all you get, no matter how fast you are. You need to balance the ability to get a quick second shot against the importance of making that first shot do the job. As noted above, a few guides opt for guns that allow a faster follow up shot, but most seem to prefer more punch on the first shot.

I think the strongest argument for a less powerful gun is not the second shot, but rather that you are more likely to put in the practice necessary for making the first shot good. Many people find the bigger bores less pleaseant to shoot. Hence they don't practice nearly enough with their defensive gun (be it rifle or pistol). When I drew that Kodiak hunt I mentioned above, I immediately started shooting a lot. I burned a very big pile of ammo (and $$$$) practicing shooting in the months before that hunt. I've probably never been as good with a rifle as I was at the time of that hunt.

In my opinion, the bottom line is still to use the most powerfull gun you can shoot really well!