Get a youth model 20 gauge and load it with TSS. Super lightweight and easy to maneuver. Also very easy to put in your pack on longer hikes in and out.
Ive shot 100 grain Core lokts, Federal Blue box, Hornady Interlocks, And Winchester Powerpoints.
Stay away from the Winchester "power points"
I Prefer Hornadys
Also if you have time later in the year, make a trip to AZ. Gambels and Scaled quail were a great hunt and it was easier to find birds than I had anticipated.
I have a Benelli Montefeltro 12 gauge, along with a Tristar Upland hunter OU 20 gauge.
Both are great guns and affordable. I picked up the tristar for 400 and the Benelli was just under 1k