Best caliber for a first deer rifle in thick woods?
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Hunting heavy timber, shots under 100 yards. .30-30, .308, or something else?
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In thick woods your shots are short and fast, so you want something handy, low-recoil, and hard-hitting up close — not a long-range magnum. The classics still win: .30-30 in a lever gun is light and quick, .308 does everything and ammo is everywhere, and .350 Legend is a soft-shooting, hard-hitting modern option that's great for newer hunters. Any of those will cleanly take a deer well past the distance you'll actually see one in heavy brush. Pick the action you'll enjoy carrying and practice with — fit and confidence matter more than the last 100 ft-lbs of energy.