HuntnShoot: I should have mentioned (remembered!) that on those rare days when I know I am going into the dog hair timber (thick forests of young and medium aged evergreens where visibility is limited) I take along my Tikka T-3 Rifle in caliber 338 Federal with Zeiss Diavari 3x9 variable scope shooting Federal factory ammo - the 185 grain Barnes Triple Shock bullets.
So far this month I have sighted in two Elk Rifles for "busy" (lazy?) Elk Hunting friends both were in caliber 300 Winchester Magnum - one of these 300's was a beautiful old Browning Safari bolt action with the three step barrel - I have always liked these old Browning's - this one the owner had just put a new Zeiss variable onto.
Thankfully that old Browning had much weight to it and that tamed the recoil of that 300 Magnum noticeably over the other Rifle which was a Browning A-Bolt with lightweight fiberglass stock - that thing kicked!
Good luck all.
Hold into the wind
VarmintGuy