Totoe ... Make sure you are properly wiped down with condiments if you plan on shooting a grizzly with a 357... you want the bear to at least enjoy the meal Yep a 44 mag and larger with hardcast bullets as well as plenty of practice shooting something at real close quarters may be better than nothing. Don't forget the Pepper Spray either. Had an aquaintance that bowhunted Wyoming and took a nice 6x6 and then ran into a grizzly ...he was packing a 357 and he said it felt like a capgun sitting in that holster. Good thing for him the bear scattered.

Tote a Marlin Guide Gun in 45-70. Nothing but a big handgun anyway<img src=icon_smile_big.gif border=0 align=middle> In all honesty unless you are limited to carrying a handgun I would grab a Marlin 45-70. They and some of the more potent factory ammo were the choice combination for coastal bear defense up there on the Alaskan shore.

Any handgun will suffice if it is properly lubricated. What you do is grease that thing up real good with bacon grease. Not gun oil, but pure, fresh bacon grease. That way when you run out of ammo, throw the handgun at the bear. It may stop and sniff it long enough for you to get away.

I know a big caliber handgun is gonna make ya feel all warm and fuzzy inside, but if you really want to REALISTICALLY stop a bear attack leave the handgun in the truck (or at least don't rely on it as your primary or ONLY defense) and get a can of &quot;Bear spray&quot;.....not the little Yogi and BooBoo sized can.....they make one about the size of a can of hairspray.
Keep it in easy reach on your belt and know how to use it......IMO the only real chance you have with any handgun on a P'd off Grizzy that REALLY wants you dead ,is when its alredy standing on your neck and you are lucky enough to get the gun into its open mouth or under its chin and touch one off.
Everyone seems to think that they could down a charging Grizzly with the right gun.....99.9% of these people probably have zero chance. Of the other .1% that might pull it off.....probably half of them would just be lucky.
If you don't want it to get that far use the industrial sized can of pepper spray. Also with pepper spray.....you don't have to worry about &quot;Shoot Don't shoot&quot; repercussions.

A .357 for big bears? I think we're on the right track, but a little dislexic here. For me, a .3-7-5 H&H will be much preferable, over a pistol, pepper spray, or suicide note.

Honestly, any gun beats no gun (until a few years ago, the world record Alaskan brown was killed by a native American woman with a .22 rimfire), but instead of a handgun which is adequate for whitetails, I'll take just about any decent elephant gun - .375, .416, .404, etc.
Just don't trust those bears to have a sense of humor.

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I would pack a .700 nitro express. Just in case the bear is as big as an elephant. lol

..Look here i saw a 22 hornet,put a raging 541 pound black
bear down in his tracks,bullet was put right in the skull
just dont miss......

..JESUS IS COMING BACK BE READY...

Well, totoe, for a guy like myself that has spent the most part of his life in the southern WV area, I can definately tell you were a fellow nieghbor. Yep, that urban legend in the Racine area, has been going around for 20 years.

Personally I would want the guide as a back up, armed with maybe a .375 H&H Mag, as a minimum. But I would want my customized S&W 25-5 4&quot; .45 LC on my hip just for comfort. Loaded with 300gr Hornady XTP Mag's or a good 300gr lead hardcast. Your 454 Super Redhawk would do the job, if you are up to it. You have a couple of years to get good with it. Pratice. Start out by trying to hit what you are shooting at, then work up to the speed part. Try and get to were you can get off 6 aimed shot into a 20x20 piece of cardboard at 20-25yds in 8-10 seconds, double action that is. It just might save your skin. You will not have time to thumb the hammer back more than once on a charging grizzlie.