Have fished Northern NM a bunch and would be way more worried about 2 legged predators than a bear confrontation.
Good analysis. Probably 100 times more likely to encounter an aggressive dog or human than a bear. He’ll want a fairly light and compact one for easy carry while fishing.
I guess I live in “bear country “. A bird feeder on the deck won’t last a week. We’ve had them at the back door slider a few times. I usually carry a 43x but it’s not because of bears. They’re just not that big of a threat.
