Well, my vote goes for Bear Spray. I spent a bit of time talking with various "Woods Folks" in many bear areas (Maine, Canada, Calif etc) and they mostly say they are carrying spray.
Yes, they know all the arguments, but slowly they seem to be leaving the heavy iron at home and packing a $30 can of spray.
It seems to be a statistics game. Factor in the very remote likelyhood of a bear attack with the skills of the (even trained) shooter, and the actual effectivness of the weapon or spray, the spray seems to be gaining supporters.
Gloria and I switched to spray several years ago and have been carefully watching the discussion and results. Take a look at the following URL. On the left there is a question about carrying a rifle.
http://www.alaskanha.org/bears.cfmI did a google search and found strong proponents of both firearms and spray. But neither is 100% effective.
Next summer, Gloria and I will be taking our RV into a remote unoccupied part of Maine. We will stay on a "Blueberry Barren". She grew up in a near by town. Family goes back many generations in the backwoods of Maine. Lots of bear there. They like the blueberries (so does Gloria).
Bear are becoming a problem there. Bear encounters are increasing as humans enter bear areas and bears enter human areas. Even in the remote parts of Maine, bear are loosing their fear of humans.
In the RV we will have a short barrel 12 ga and a .223 Kel-tec. But We will EDC spray.