My Father in Law hunted Bear in PA all his life leading crews of 25 drivers. He once told me "bears in PA are shot at 30 yards not 300". That caught me off guard at the time but years have passed now and I have to say he was right. I definitely prefer a 45-70 because PA bears are in the Laurel and swamps and not standing in fields or the wide open woods
Your father in law was dead on about that. We do drives as well. Most bears are killed 50 yards or less. Most are killed with cup and core factory loads. Shot placement is the key. Not every encounter provides for perfect shot placement. There is no ""drop them in their tracks" perfect bullets imo. Most do not travel far after the shot, some do. The one I shot in 97 travelled 100 yards after being hit with a 140 7 rem mag at less than 50 yards. I was lucky the bullet made it to the bear. Bullet came apart , numerous small holes in the wound. I assume due to the brush I was shooting through. I tracked the bear and finished it off.
