In your neck of the woods I would prefer 6mm, either Creedmoor or 243 Win with light 22-inch barrel, could go 20-inches. For flat shooting out to 400 yards on game hunted from VA to FL a 25-06 Rem with 24-inch barrel (100-115 gr quality bullets from 3,300 fps-3,100 fps) would be just the ticket. Would not use anything bigger than 6.5mm if hunting that part of the country. No need for magnums, but if I wanted one it would be a 257 Wby in lieu of 7mm Rem Mag.
