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"What would be a good gun to bring"
The following bits are taken from Petersons Hunting of March,87.
by Bob Milek.
" BIG BORE MAGNUMS for BIG ELK "
That bull was just one of many I've seen taken with various magnums,
and the episode was just another in a long list that has convinced
me that the average Elk hunter should go into the field with the
biggest magnum he can handle with proficiency. Ive taken a lot of elk
over the years,but to be quite frank about it Ive never used anything
bigger than a 30-06. Here in Wyoming the natives with time to hunt,
favor 270s 280s 308s and 30-06's for elk, and the magnum packing
hunter is likely to find himself the brunt of a lot of ridicule
in camp.
However, more and more big magnums are showing up on elk hunts,even
in the hands of resident hunters. I'm one of those lucky few who
live right here where the elk are and have plenty of time to hunt.
But I'm not the average elk hunter. Most hunters have limited time
and many have traveled a long way and sunk a sizable chunk of money
into their trip. Maybe they'll have ten days to hunt but most likely
less.
If they see a good bull, they'd better take him-it might be the
only one they'll see. If you've done much elk hunting,you know that
the chances of a bull appearing when everthing is just right are
slim. Most likely you'll have to shoot under adverse conditions.
Your Bull may be moving straight away from you in heavy timber.
A perfect spine shot with just about any rifle would put him down,
but thats a tough order on an animal moving fast in the trees.
Most likely you'll have to drive that bullet thru a lot of meat,bone,
and innards to get it into his boiler works. Or maybe you'll spook
the elk out of the timber and before you can get to where you can
shoot,your bull will be 300 or 400 yards away. A bull elk is one
very tough customer,much harder to put down than the larger moose.
Futhermore, he does'nt always show signs of being hit. You can smack
him broadside in the chest and unless you break him down he'll go
right on running like you missed every shot. I once put 3 180 grn
bullets from a 30-06 into a spike bull standing 80yds. Not once
did that bull flinch or show signs of being hit. After the trid
shot he turned and walked into some trees. I found him 50yds away
stone dead. I'm not saying you have to use a big magnum to bag an
elk . What I am saying is that by using a magnum you greatly increase
your chances of success when the only shot you get is under less-than
ideal conditions.
Now lets get down to specifics concerning the big-bore cartridges
for elk. There are really only four big bore magnums today that
are suitable for elk under ALL possible conditions, and for which
there is a good selection of rifles,factory ammo and hand loading
components. They are the 8mm Remington Mag. this is a superb elk
cartridge particularly when bullets used are under 200grns.
The 338 Win.Mag,340 WBY,Mag, and the 375 H&H Mag. The 350 Remington
Mag ,while its a dandy short range number, does'nt have the power
required for long range elk hunting.
Hope this helped you out.
Regards,
Rick........
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RE: -.2 Sounds like some one who should learn
"TO SHOOT EM STREIGHT"
> "The mags will take em under ALL conditions" ? ? ? ?
Bet they won't perform any better in the heave brush than any of
the other cals mentioned, 30-06, 308, 270, etc;
If you can find some one with the video tape DEADLY WEAPONS look
it over. There is a section in it where they shoot several rifles
upto and including a 50 cal. bolt gun through some brush. You should
see the bullets deflect!! I couldn't believe it!!
That film just reinforced my comit to take only high percentage
shots and to work on putting it where it belongs.
Steve
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| Don't overlook Colorado. According to Colorado Outdoors magazine,
the Division of Wildlife bi-monthly, the Elk are plentiful, fat
and sassy. They claim that there are a large number of trophy bucks,
and that we have been essentially untouched by the drought of this
summer.
George
P.S. We also have a deer/elk combiner season.
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| Jeff,
The obvious response from me is, "Come on out to Washington and
we'll run a couple down!"
However, I have to confess that I haven't hunted Elk out here yet.
This will be my first year of Elk hunting. Therefore, I can't
guarantee success.
If you would like to come out here and take a chance, you are welcome
to join me. You are welcome to come out this year and try if you
like. If we don't get an Elk, we can always try Salmon :-).
Washington has a very nice Elk heard, as I understand. This state
gives refuge to two different Elk species. One is the Rockie Mountain
Elk of Colorado fame. These can be taken in the Eastern part of
the state (I hear), which is more barren than the Western part of
WA.
The other species is the Roosevelt Elk. These beasts are supposed
to be bigger than Rockie Mountian Elk and they hang out in dense
cover. You usually get a 50-100 yard shot. People tell me that
you get them by running them down. Supposedly they don't run more
than 100 yards everytime you get them up and moving. They tire
out pretty fast. The bad news is you need a helicopter to get them
out if you go in deep for them.
Just let me knoe when you want to give it a shot and I'll see you
at SEATAC.
Brett.
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re: -1
> cover. You usually get a 50-100 yard shot. People tell me that
> you get them by running them down. Supposedly they don't run more
> than 100 yards everytime you get them up and moving. They tire
> out pretty fast. The bad news is you need a helicopter to get them
out if you go in deep for them.
Learn to do a Cow call. They will not run even 10-20 yards before
they stop. When they start running give 2-3 calls and they'll stop,
even if they smell you. I had luck with this while bow hunting this
year. Only problem was the 20 yards out they stopped, was after
the 30-40 they already ran. Just out of Bow range. :-(
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