When the grizzlies are sleeping, I carry a Glock 20 in 10mm. It holds 15 rounds. It is good stuff for cats and two legged predators. Black bears do not scare me and I would agree with your choices for them. Although elk hunting one time, I almost stepped on a black bear that was busy tearing apart a stump for ants. It was windy in the forest and he must have been deaf because bears never allow people to get that close. All I had accessible was my bow and a knife. He was a little guy that wheeled around and stood on his hind legs at dancing distance. I dropped my bow and drew the knife. My 44 was in my daypack so not accessible. We stood facing each other for a few seconds then he dropped to all fours and ran in the other direction and then for some unknown reason swapped ends and ran back toward me and passed a few feet away from my side. I think he was scared shitless (as was I) and he did not know what I was...I was head-to-toe camo so I must have looked like some goofy green bear to him. I now carry my 500 and bear spray on my side and have it available.
Not sure where you are going, but backcountry meth labs are more and more a concern of mine as are the pot growers. I have considered carrying my AR or AK so that I have lots of firepower against those vermin. But the downside is that 5.56 and 7.62x39 rounds are too light for stopping grizzlies.
I have to admit after thinking it through I'm a little happier with the notion of the boat tailed FMJ 7.62x39 round then I was with a 150 or even a 170 grain .30-30 soft point. Plus the AK is actually a little lighter and about 4 inches shorter then the Winchester.
I'm going to be tramping the Wynoochee River in Washington state. It's BLM land and the areas that I have scoped out for camping are in areas that are dotted with clear cut plots that the logging companies have worked over. I know that Northern CA and portions of OR are really bad for all the Hillbilly Mafia drug labs, but I don't know much about WA. I'll check in with the district BLM office to see about any special warnings or hazards.
I've hiked Yellowstone a few times and the one encounter with a Grizzly, I just backed away slow and quiet and left him to his lunch. I stumbled into the dang thing about 15 feet of distance on the edge of a treeline where he was munching on a Mulie or an Elk carcass. He looked up and snorted and went back to eating. My whole family damn near got trampled by a small buffalo herd on one of the scenic trails though.
