I did not say anything about this before because some people are going to criticize me for losing a Grizzly. But it happens. So far this year I have stopped one charging Grizzly, with my .460 S&W. It happened the day I shot the Grizzly at long range, about four weeks ago. When the Bear came into the meadow and started crossing it smelled the gut pile. At that point it ran straight into the spruces. It circled slowly around until it was down wind of the gut pile. It then came out and approached slowly. I told my partner that I thought there might be another bear in the area, because of the way it was acting, my partner agreed.
I made my shot, and killed my bear. As we were skinning it out I heard something in the brush. Turning around I saw a Grizzly coming at us fast. I drew my S&W 460, as did my partner. I cannot say where his shots went, but he fired twice. Both of my shots were in the Bears chest. The Bear turned and went into the spruces. We finished our skinning job, then followed the bear. The blood trail gave out after about a quarter of a mile. We spent two hours, and tracked it for over a mile and a half. We lost the bear when it went into the river. We could not find where it came out. My partner really wanted this bear. It was bigger than the six footer I had shot, and it had the white shoulders and forelegs that really stand out.
Two days later we went back to the area with Ernie, one of my Beagles. Ernie smelled the blood and hit the trail. Ernie was not following my track, because in certain areas we could see where the bear had crossed Grassy meadows and we had circled around to avoid the water. Ernie went right through the watery meadow, straight on the bear track. Ernie picked up the track about 300 yards up stream of where we had lost it. The bear went up and over the hill, into the impact area of the Army and Air Force training range. The bear can enter a restricted area, I cannot and will not enter it. There is unexploded ordanence all over the next valley. Consider that bear gone.
I was using the Cor-Bon 325GR XPB with the BARNES-X bullet.
Now I don't advocate using a .223 to hunt Bears, but if that is what you are carrying, it can be effective. And the Nosler 60gr Partition will hold up for that kind of shooting. The preferred shot would be behind the ear, or as someone else said through an eye into the brain. But in an emergency you take the shots you are offered. Last year when the Poler Bear was in Arctic Village, the men of the village went out looking for it. The guy that found it was charged and all he had was an AR in .223, he stopped and killed the bear.
