Martinfocazio:

I have said it before and I will say it again; my personal general all round preference is a semi-auto .22 caliber rifle unless I was hunting for the bear. Because of accuracy and reliability concerns, I would chose a Marlin papoose over an AR7 for a compact take down unit because I have heard the Marlin is better on both counts. Not too long ago I purchased a new Savage .22, 10 shot, clip fed, with extra clip primarly because it is made the old fashioned way of being milled from a solid block of steel. I should have bought the heavy barreled version, but I think I will be happy with the Savage. I have yet to try it out and have attached a 4 X 20 scope to it which has better eye relief than the 4 X 15 scopes most .22's come with.

In Alaska, I understand that a lot of people carry .44 magnums in case of a chance encounter and most of the shots are to scare the bears off. If the shots do not scare the bear away, they must feel confident that the .44 magnum will put the bear away. (CORRECTION: DID A WEB SEARCH AND FOUND FT. LBS. OF FORCE AT THE MUZZLE OF A .44 MAGNUM IS 1037 AND FOR A .410 SLUG ONLY 654, A 20 GAUGE SLUG WOULD BE 1240 FT. LBS. OF FORCE AT THE MUZZLE.) You do however want to have a pump and not a single shot. People I have talked to who are good with guns tell me the new .50 caliber pistols are almost as bad to the shooter as they are to the target.

Of more concern is where you are going. If you go with a gun where guns aren't allowed, they will take it away from you and maybe even your vehicle if they decide to charge you with hunting without a license or out of season. With a .22, there is less likelyhood of that happening as long as there is something in season or a "pest" that can be shot at any time of the year so long as you have a small game license on you.

Good luck!

Bountyhunter