Bears: pistol beats rifle

[model 70]

went hunting this weekend for black bear. hauled that .270 all over and realized a few things....

my deer rifle is a pain in the butt to haul in and out of canyons.

my scoped deer rifle is a poor choice for extremely low light shooting.

rain drops on scope lenses make it hard to shoot

any rifle sucks when it doesn't leave both hands free and hangs up on brush when it's slung to your back.

for these reasons i'm looking for a pistol for this type of hunting. i think it will be much better with a pistol straped to my hip when climbing or leading dogs out of the bottom of a canyon.

so...what are some of my options?