Lots of good info in this thread (bad behavior and hurt feeling not withstanding). I’m by no means a grizzly expert, not even really a player by many counts. I hunt and camp near and around Yellowstone in Idaho and Montana, so even though I’ve not had any issues with them, they’re an ever present threat, like fire, traffic accidents, and murderers.
I load my G20 10mm with new brass, moderately hot loads, and solid copper bullets to maximize penetration. My buddies have never been tangled up with grizzlies but buddies of buddies have. I agree with those guys that have said that the man from Florida was who that guide was counting on to save him and I agree with those who said that it’s not the clients job to protect the guide.
I’m confident that it’s the guide’s job to protect the client, not the other way around.
The man is from Florida. He probably know how to avoid snakes, gators, and chiggers, but grizzlies are not in his wheelhouse nor is an unknown G20 which has been thrown at him during a grizzly attack. If memory serves, the poor man was looking for a safety on the gun when he hit the magazine release and dropped the magazine, which probably made his mental state go from dire to worse. I refuse to blame the client.
We learn more about these bear attacks every year (we around Yellowstone have been learning even faster over these past 10 years or so) and something that seems to matter more than anything else is to have a reliable companion (I used to say “partner” but these days folks think “partner” means you share a sleeping bag). Someone else who has a weapon they’re familiar with and is going in with the understanding that they’re responsible for the other guy should a bear attack him/her. Maybe 1 on 1 guiding in Wyoming needs to be re-thought or at least 1 on 1 retrieval. Those guys knew they were going in to try to find a dead elk that morning, maybe a spare guide (or sturdy Wyoming camp cook) to protect the other guide from bears would be a reasonable precaution.
Crossone