Personally, I like the heavier guns. I have two Springfield custom rifles built by my father that both weigh between 10 LBS and 11 LBS, as best I can weigh on the bathroom scales. One rifle is in .25-06 the other in .30-06 (a "sporterized" .30-06 Springfield is the most accurate description in that case). I like the fact that the extra weight dampens the recoil of these rifles, even though these are not reputed to be "heavy recoil" cartridges. I plan to do a backpack cow elk hunt this October in SW Colorado, above 10,000 feet. Maybe I will change my thinking after that hunt, but I suspect not. As one poster said, what is the difference of carrying it around your belly versus on a sling or in your hand? If I like the cow elk hunting -- this is a first time trip -- I'm thinking about getting a Winchester .338 Mag, and I'm pretty sure I'll want to have some mass in that rifle to dampen out the recoil.