I had a young man considering his first rifle purchase ask what about the 6.5 creedmor for an elk rifle as that is his goal in a few years. I told him it was maybe the best cartridge going for targets, a good deer killer and an unnecessary handicap when hunting elk. I like the 300's with good 180 grain bullets to maximize my chances both near and far.
I suggest the 30-06 with stout 165-180 grain bullets is a really nice starting point for elk guns. We hunt black timber less than 20% of the time and sage oak brush or similar the rest so 11-550 yards has been what my experience with extremes has been. The 6.5 can certainly do most of that job but why go with less rifle than optimum. I do understand that many members of the younger generation don't like discomfort but half a second of recoil a few dozen times doesn't seem too bad to shoot a good elk load.
