I'm surprised by the enthusiastic response for 30-06. I hadn't really considered it. I've spent a lot of time reading posts from people like Formidilosus and Big Stick, and much of what they say makes sense to me although I get that Big Stick bothers some people. They've got me drinking the 6.5 creedmoor kool-aid, and I even have one of the 6x SWFA scopes (it is great even though I almost never dial). My hunting partner is very skeptical of me using my creedmoor rifle on elk. But obviously I'm open to new ideas, or I wouldn't have asked this question.
My creedmoor rifle is heavy compared to lots of hunting rifles (weighs about 8.75 lbs all up). This is great for recoil, and I don't mind carrying it. I think maybe something lighter could be a good direction to go... use my current rifle for practice and as a second rifle, and maybe get something lighter for hiking around or for my wife to use. I'd probably go with another 6.5 creedmoor just to keep things similar and so that the lightweight rifle wouldn't be a big step up in recoil. Of course any rifle gets quite a bit heavier with these SWFA scopes.
