Readers may have noticed that I’ve been out a bit lately. I’ve been busy on hunting trips.
The deer was an 8-pointer taken at Groton Plantation with a 6.5 Creedmoor. He was shot straight through the chest. He pivoted directly towards me and I knew it was take the shot or lose the chance on him forever. The hog was taken at Groton with .444 Marlin. He had tusks. I can’t say enough for the power of the .444 Marlin. If you ever wonder if you’re bringing enough cartridge for the game, you don’t have to wonder with the .444 Marlin. Recoil is a thing, but only when you’re sighting in the gun. When harvesting game, recoil is irrelevant. It may as well be a 22LR. You don’t feel a thing. Maybe next year I’ll use a 45-70 with a Marlin rifle to see how that compares and contrasts.
I would in fact recommend Hornady 265 grain jacketed, bonded flat point versus the Hornady Lever Revolution. I just like it better.
You know how sometimes a hog will roll over and the legs look like he’s swimming? That doesn’t happen when you’re using .444 Marlin. It’s a quick, ethical kill.
There is nothing more fun than southeastern quail hunting. The dog handler was extremely good, and the dogs were great.
“Trooper, Star, get over here and get on them birds. Trooper, find birds. Trooper, hunt birds. Trooper, you’re a lying dog. There’s no birds over here. Trooper, come here and get on birds. Trooper is staying. Trooper is locked up on point. He’s right, they’ve coveyed up. Whoa Trooper, hunters, get over here, Trooper and Star are both locked up on point. Hunters, get over here. Good shot, nice shot. Trooper, dead bird. Trooper, go get that bird.”
At which point I saw Trooper swim into a swamp and get my bird, and on to the next single, or pair, or covey, for two and a half miles. I harvested a total of a dozen quail.
If you have a problem son, or a son or grandson who is bored, or into trouble, there is no greater antidote than something like this. Who wouldn’t like to see deer, hogs, snapping turtles, lizards, turkeys and quail? And see fantastic sunrises in the morning as a testament to the creation God gave us as a token of His esteem? I saw turkey at virtually every sit, and a lizard visited me in every stand I sat.
In my last sit I saw six does and a 4-pointer and 6-pointer. As a disciplined deer hunter I had to let them walk. That 6-pointer had good genetics and was chasing does. I’ve seen 6-pointers that didn’t do that even during the rut, but this boy will be a nice 8-pointer next year, and if I don’t take him next year maybe he’ll be a 10-pointer the following year.
This is the perfect solution to the feminized, communist education camps we call schools. In schools the state believes they own the children. During hunting, you can make it clear that men can do men things and it’s okay. No one owns them. And it’s okay to study the difference between 6.5 Creedmoor and .444 Marlin. And it’s okay to harvest deer with your favorite AR-10, or a bolt action, or a lever action, or any rifle that works for you.
So, fathers and grandfathers, get busy. This is what you should be doing with your boys. They may have to shoot a 20 rather than 12 gauge.