I've hunted all over the US,,and Canada,,while I don't have a 243 I know several hunters who have,,and I know of 2 guides in Canada that carry a 243,,and have killed Elk and Moose with them,,I also know of guys who shoot 300 win mags that wound deer every year,,the key point is bullet placement,,if you can't shoot,,you can't kill deer consistantly,,and I've gotten over 300 in my life using anything from a 17 HMR to a 300 mag,,which I had taken on a Canadian hunt where I could have shot a moose too, 2 of my fav calibers are the 7mm08 and the 280 Rem. But as I said,,I know of several folks who use a 243 that are deerslayers,,in NC you can harvest as many deer as you want,,all you have to get is extra tags from the state,,and we have almost 4 mths of hunting if you include bow season,,good luck this year everyone,,