This past weekend, my hunting partner, his dad, and I made our annual pilgrimage to central Oregon for our deer hunt. We hunt is the Maupin Unit, in and around the town of Grass Valley. Hardly anyone puts in for this unit as it’s 98% private land. But we’re fortunate to know a few of the ranchers who are willing to open their homes to us for a long weekend.
Saturday morning, we were up before first light and took off to some of the areas we know that have held deer in the past. We parked and hiked in, rifles in hand, in search of “one buck deer with visible antler.” Mile after mile, the sound of our boots and truck tires yield only what we call “propeller heads” or props for short; mule deer swiveling their ears resembling slow propellers.
I’m shooting my Savage Model 16 stainless in .300 short mag. using a 300-yard zero. I’m shooting 200 grain Hornady ELD-X bullets at 2,770 fps. This load holds to a half minute for me. Here’s a typical 5-shot group:
On about our fifth or sixth walkabout, we ran across a herd of five deer. I spotted one buck in the group through my binos and lasered him at 330 yards. The other guys told me he’s too small, hold off, he’s not big enough, etc.
When I initially saw the buck, I had a flashback to my last trip to Africa. I was there for kudu and gemsbok. On my first hunt there we spotted a 55-inch kudu, but my guide said, naw, we’ll get you one that pushes 60 inches! I reluctantly held off, figuring that he knew the area much better than I did. We never saw another kudu that trip.
I had violated my own rule: never pass up a shot on the first day that you’d be willing to take on the last day.
So I told my Oregon buddies that I was going for it. I would have shot him on the last day. I took a braced position, held dead on and put the squeeze on my 2.5 lb trigger. When little Mr. Fork Horn was in my cross hairs, I didn’t hesitate.
And as I came out of recoil, I watched as he pivoted in place and tipped over. Buck Down!
After hiking to where he lay, I saw my shot was a few inches low. I turned around and lasered the fence post I had used as a rest for my shot — 420 yards. That was almost a big error. My first laser must have hit some of the tall grass.
The bullet appeared to exit in two places. One piece went out the right “arm pit” breaking the forward leg. The larger piece blew out the sternum, taking one lung with it.
After gutting, skinning and removing the lower legs and head, it was time to wash him off and hang him in the cool night air to get a glaze on the soon-to-be delicious venison.
This year, the only steaks I’m taking are the tenderloins and the back straps. After gleaning about 10 pounds of jerky, I’ll grind up the rest adding 5% of pork fat for a decent amount of venison burger.
The rest of Saturday and Sunday only yielded the group two more bucks. We saw them about a mile out and they were at a full run from something. My friend and his dad grumbled on the way home about not shooting the first buck seen. It just solidified my rule about passing up shots on the first day.
Oh, and here’s a convenient tip: Dodge truck dashboards have a great feature. Not only do they have handy cup holders, but they have two very convenient muzzle holders, too.
Next up, elk hunting after a pack trip by horse and mule. Aim small, miss small.
My only thought when I first started carrying was the worry that someone would see it. Then again, I wasn’t then and am not now an armed security guard swing his balls around.
I’m not a trophy hunter. If it’s opening day and he/she/it is legal to shoot, it gets shot. Passing up hamburgers in hopes of finding steaks is a false economy.
So far the fires here in CA haven’t hit my favorite quail spot. So far. But the roads into have been shut. Hoping that changes this weekend.
My final retirement rapidly approaches and I’ve been looking into taking an archery class or 2 to help keep me out of trouble while the missus still trudges off to work.
I hate having to unsubscribe from email lists… but, but… it’s a Henry…
now theyre talking high capacity magazine bans
thats in addition to banning bump stocks…
and limiting the number of firearms that can be purchased in a month
and ammunition limits will be not far behind
i said this on *oct 2*:
“if somebody was going to do a false flag operation for the express purpose of getting certain hot button items banned that the gun grabbers hate that operation wouldnt look significantly different than what just happened”
and that was before all this other stuff started happening that doesnt make any sense to anybody like timelines changing and creepy press conferences and eyewitnesses disappearing and dying and STILL no motive
does anybody with at least 2 brain cells to rub together really believe anymore that the same government types that allowed or by omission of action caused ruby ridge and waco and fast and furious and garland texas to happen wouldnt be totally ok with what just happened in las vegas if it furthered their agenda
please…
this whole thing has all the earmarks of a trap
and if were dumb enough to fall for it by just going along with any more gun control like a bunch of pansies then were dumb enough and pansy enough to not be gun owners in the first place because were too dumb and pansy to be entrusted with the responsibilty that the 2nd amendment really entails
He doesn’t trust himself to carry a gun? Good. I don’t trust him either. In fact, I believe that he has no right to own a gun, and he should be permanently prohibited from having one.
Because that’s exactly what he wants for me.
If you’re a socialist or, Heaven forbid, a communist then you’re every bit as guilty as every communist dictator that has engaged in democide. To the tune of 162 million people in the 20th century alone.
And that’s still not counting war deaths, either.
See how that works?
“Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Harvard Business School researchers ” . . . GET PAID TO SH_T SOMEONE OUT A SPECIFIC ANSWER.
IF AN ANSWER IS SH_T OUT, IT’S SH_T.
F the ivy league tools.
F the evil POS (D).
I will not shed a tear in fact just the opposite, I will rejoice when Fake News’ WP mouthpiece, Colbert King, becomes a “crime statistic” of his own dysfunctional community.
well if I lived in Georgia I would vote for that guy. and the first thing I would ask him to do is look into that stupid study that proves waiting periods are so good. like the elderly couple who was bothered by a gang that went to the police only to find they could not do anything about it. so the husband goes to get a gun only to find out there is a 5 day waiting period, so he complies and waits, on the third day of the waiting period the gang makes the wife watch in horror while they kill her husband. this was a letter to a gun magazine written by the wife (WIDOW) back in the 80s or 90s , so what did the waiting period prevent? how did it save lives? this is just communist propaganda spread by the sick communist society we have in this country. and we need to do something about it. they want to chip away little by little so they take away all the guns and then the power leaves the people and falls right into the new communist government.
A Mech Tech 10mm upper / Glock lower costs less, has more utility and power, and is much easier to find ammo. This is hideous, expensive, and .30 carbine ammo kills it for me. Pass.
Found him!
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2017/10/18/las-vegas-guard-jesus-campos-surfaces-on-ellen-degeneres-show.html
9/11 was an inside job.