Well, I had a very interesting hunt that went from great highs to lots of frustration....and a few lessons learned.
Lesson #1 Don't attempt to switch to a new load unless you have plenty of time to test it.
I had been using a nicely accurate load in my 260 using the 140 Amax. But like most of us I couldn't leave well enough alone and thought I'd test the 140 Berger VLD hunting. One of my test loads shot little bitty groups up close so I loaded some more up and thought I'd test out the long range performance. Only thing is the only time I had with work schedule to go shoot was the morning of the day I was leaving to go hunt. So I went out anyway and shot a group at 1000 yards to verify and calibrate my data cards. Much to my surprise I shot the best group I've ever had at 1000 yards, 3 shots measuring 3.214"! This would be one of those highs.....I was feeling supremely confident and those goats were in trouble!
Next I went back to about 425 yards and shot at a steel target there....miss. Hmmm, miss again....and again, and I am now out of bullets I brought with me to test. Now, not so confident....not sure if I completely missed the wind call, or if I put bad data in my ballistics program or what the heck happened, but went from top of the world to oh crap!
Lesson #2 Pack well ahead of time so you don't forget crap because you're hurrying.
Pretty self explanatory lesson....but here's what happened. I rushed home from the range, and quickly cleaned my rifle and packed up my stuff. I grabbed my 338 Lapua and threw it in the truck just in case my 260 really was off (my plan was to shoot it at camp to check zero and try to shoot something at around 300 yards). Finished loading the truck and tore out of the driveway. Got to camp, got set up and prepared to go shoot my rifle. Bullets....where are my freaking bullets! Was convinced that I had forgotten to grab my box of bullets. I am now pretty disgusted with myself....until I go to grab a sweatshirt out of my bag and find that I had put my bullets in my clothes bag. Good news! Load up a magazine and grab my rifle to verify zero and look down and hmmm.....something doesn't look right. Yup, forgot to put the bolt back in my rifle after I cleaned it. SOB! So far this hunt isn't starting well....at least I grabbed a back up rifle.
Next morning we woke up and headed out. Saw lots of antelope and made a couple of stalks but couldn't get on any decent bucks. And then I find the one I want. Put a sneak on him and got to 170 yards and the only shot I had was him standing there facing directly at me. I really didn't want to put a 300 grain Berger out of that Lapua end to end through an antelope so I passed waiting for him to turn for a broadside shot. He then decided he didn't like being there and left in a hurry. Now I'm really mad I didn't have that bolt!
Next morning we went back to the same spot and hunted for that buck, but never saw a single antelope. So we searched around and saw a few does but the bucks had disappeared into the timber.
Lesson #3 Marry a good woman.
I called my wife and told her to go out to the garage and look for my bolt by my cleaning supplies. Sure enough it was there. So, being the amazing woman that she is she drove it over to my parents house an hour and a half away with 2 small children and a new puppy so that I could come get it between the morning and evening hunts. She is a saint!
After picking up my forgetten and very important piece of equipment I went out to see if the gun was on. I set out a target at 360 yards and dialed it in and touched it off. Bullseye. Confidence restored! Headed out that evening and couldn't locate the antelope. Then when we were driving to the other end of the ranch where we had seen the big buck I wanted we jumped a decent buck and 5 does in the timber. They were running but we knew about where they would exit the timber and tried to beat them there and set up. We were successful in that but while waiting for them we glassed the meadow to our East and spot the buck I was after! Now I'm excited.
We put about a 3/4 of a mile stalk on it and finally got to a position where we could see the group again. They were at 420 yards. I couldn't shoot prone due to the sagebrush and terrain so I had to stand and use the top of a fencepost for a rest, which wasn't as steady as I would have hoped for but it will work. The buck was standing quartered away from me. Held for a shot that would enter back behind the near shoulder and exit through it's chest. Touched off the round and the buck drops in his tracks! We start celebrating, and giving high fives and then I see an antelope half walking/half running towards us....a quick visual through the scope and it's my buck. He's bleeding profusely out of the right side of his neck. The buck stops and my Dad said, I think he's going to die right there as he came to a stop, now about 300 yards away. I wasn't going to take a chance so I put an insurance round out there and it connected with a very commanding THWAP and the buck dropped, again. This time he didn't get back up.
He's not a monster by any means, but for the unit I was hunting he's about as big as they get. I was very happy with him and it was a very memorable hunt!
Lesson #1 Don't attempt to switch to a new load unless you have plenty of time to test it.
I had been using a nicely accurate load in my 260 using the 140 Amax. But like most of us I couldn't leave well enough alone and thought I'd test the 140 Berger VLD hunting. One of my test loads shot little bitty groups up close so I loaded some more up and thought I'd test out the long range performance. Only thing is the only time I had with work schedule to go shoot was the morning of the day I was leaving to go hunt. So I went out anyway and shot a group at 1000 yards to verify and calibrate my data cards. Much to my surprise I shot the best group I've ever had at 1000 yards, 3 shots measuring 3.214"! This would be one of those highs.....I was feeling supremely confident and those goats were in trouble!
Next I went back to about 425 yards and shot at a steel target there....miss. Hmmm, miss again....and again, and I am now out of bullets I brought with me to test. Now, not so confident....not sure if I completely missed the wind call, or if I put bad data in my ballistics program or what the heck happened, but went from top of the world to oh crap!
Lesson #2 Pack well ahead of time so you don't forget crap because you're hurrying.
Pretty self explanatory lesson....but here's what happened. I rushed home from the range, and quickly cleaned my rifle and packed up my stuff. I grabbed my 338 Lapua and threw it in the truck just in case my 260 really was off (my plan was to shoot it at camp to check zero and try to shoot something at around 300 yards). Finished loading the truck and tore out of the driveway. Got to camp, got set up and prepared to go shoot my rifle. Bullets....where are my freaking bullets! Was convinced that I had forgotten to grab my box of bullets. I am now pretty disgusted with myself....until I go to grab a sweatshirt out of my bag and find that I had put my bullets in my clothes bag. Good news! Load up a magazine and grab my rifle to verify zero and look down and hmmm.....something doesn't look right. Yup, forgot to put the bolt back in my rifle after I cleaned it. SOB! So far this hunt isn't starting well....at least I grabbed a back up rifle.
Next morning we woke up and headed out. Saw lots of antelope and made a couple of stalks but couldn't get on any decent bucks. And then I find the one I want. Put a sneak on him and got to 170 yards and the only shot I had was him standing there facing directly at me. I really didn't want to put a 300 grain Berger out of that Lapua end to end through an antelope so I passed waiting for him to turn for a broadside shot. He then decided he didn't like being there and left in a hurry. Now I'm really mad I didn't have that bolt!
Next morning we went back to the same spot and hunted for that buck, but never saw a single antelope. So we searched around and saw a few does but the bucks had disappeared into the timber.
Lesson #3 Marry a good woman.
I called my wife and told her to go out to the garage and look for my bolt by my cleaning supplies. Sure enough it was there. So, being the amazing woman that she is she drove it over to my parents house an hour and a half away with 2 small children and a new puppy so that I could come get it between the morning and evening hunts. She is a saint!
After picking up my forgetten and very important piece of equipment I went out to see if the gun was on. I set out a target at 360 yards and dialed it in and touched it off. Bullseye. Confidence restored! Headed out that evening and couldn't locate the antelope. Then when we were driving to the other end of the ranch where we had seen the big buck I wanted we jumped a decent buck and 5 does in the timber. They were running but we knew about where they would exit the timber and tried to beat them there and set up. We were successful in that but while waiting for them we glassed the meadow to our East and spot the buck I was after! Now I'm excited.
We put about a 3/4 of a mile stalk on it and finally got to a position where we could see the group again. They were at 420 yards. I couldn't shoot prone due to the sagebrush and terrain so I had to stand and use the top of a fencepost for a rest, which wasn't as steady as I would have hoped for but it will work. The buck was standing quartered away from me. Held for a shot that would enter back behind the near shoulder and exit through it's chest. Touched off the round and the buck drops in his tracks! We start celebrating, and giving high fives and then I see an antelope half walking/half running towards us....a quick visual through the scope and it's my buck. He's bleeding profusely out of the right side of his neck. The buck stops and my Dad said, I think he's going to die right there as he came to a stop, now about 300 yards away. I wasn't going to take a chance so I put an insurance round out there and it connected with a very commanding THWAP and the buck dropped, again. This time he didn't get back up.
He's not a monster by any means, but for the unit I was hunting he's about as big as they get. I was very happy with him and it was a very memorable hunt!
!
