There are some pretty good YouTubers on this very subject. I’d recommend watching them. I carry a 44mag usually. I give the spray to my wife. We always stay together in the woods.
Be that as it may bear spray will usually (90%) deter a bear. If you don’t hit the bear in the right place guns don’t work either.
Guns work very well, if you actually fire the gun.
Most of the stats about guns "not working" are when the gun is not fired.
Access problems are about the same for bear spray and handguns, or rifles and shotguns if they are carried in the hands.
I like the idea of one person armed with spray and the other with a sidearm.
“If you don’t hit the bear in the right place guns don’t work either.”
True...I’ve heard lots of stories of bullets hitting a grizzly skull at a shallow angle and ricocheting off. I hear that angers the bear.
I hear shot placement with a rifle or pistol gets a bit tough when a bear is charging you and is 15 feet away. You get one chance.