Well, since you asked, I would go with a Remington 700 Mountain LSS in .30-'06, likely with a 2-7(or 8)x 3_ scope.

I'm very partial to Remingtons - they just seem to fit me like nothing else. I currently have a 700 CDL in .30-'06 with a Zeiss Conquest in 3-9x40 perched atop it in Leupold Dual Dovetail rings. It's a wonderful setup, and I took a nice 6x5 with it in October. After draggingthat riflethrough some nasty-a$$ scrub up in BC, though, I'm thinking that saving some weight & barrel length might not be such a bad thing after all. The Mountain LSS is 2" shorter, & roughly 1 lb. lighter. Some weight could also be saved in the scope and rings, too.

The .30-'06 can get the job done well, though I won't deny that the .338 WM would add substantially more oomph. However, shooting a 6½ lb. rifle chambered in .338 WMwould be too rich for my blood, recoil-wise. I'd consider a Remington Model 7 CDL in .350 Remington Magnum, but that rifle weighs nearly as much as the Model 700.

I'm absolutely in love with my Conquest, but a smaller scope in 7x or 8x would still be perfectly adequate even well past the '06's range. I'd consider the Conquest in 2.5-8x32, or the Nikon Monarchs, Brownings, Bushnell Elites, or even the (gulp!) Leupolds in the same magnifcation range. Ilovemy Dual Dovetail Rings, but if Talley Lightweights or something else would offer me the same secure hold with a weight savings, I'd consider those.

Such a setup wouldn't be ideal at the range: the barrel would heat up very quickly, & that kind ofscope wouldn't be my 1st choice for shooting targets at 200 to 300 yards. However, the gun would come up lightning-fast, be quite accurate, have enough guts to quickly harvest everything save for the biggest bears, be manageable in recoil thanks to the excellent R3 pad, slide easily into a saddle scabbard, handle the weather very well, not be overly bothered by being drug through the brush. Most importantly, it would fit me like a glove.

The only down side I can see is that the bolt wouldn't lock in the closed position with the safety engaged, like the Rugers, Savages, and probably some others do. That became more than a slight annoyance during my forays into the brambles.

But, that's MY choice. What's YOURS?

FC