i would go lever action in a .35 whelen. If your shots are 50 yards open sights should work. Nothing worse for me than carrying my 30.06 with a 24" barrel thru the brush. My 30-30 works great for that. Keep in mind that if you are in the brush, and you need to make a quick shot, you need a good handling gun and a short lever action is just the ticket IMO. i would even go so far as to say that a 30-30 would be fine too. I can get boxes of ammo for $11 and it's available everywhere and certainly take down what you are hunting. You can always use the new lever ammo by hornady if you want 30-30 ammo to fly further and flatter should you need to make shots at 125 yrds plus....