Went to the Gateway Dynamite Shoot in Gateway Co. this weekend. It is located an hour south of Grand Junction, Co. near the Utah border. Attendance was down for this one, but they still ran over 200 shooters thru all day. Light rain started at noon and lasted all afternoon.

I managed to hit 15 charges this time (my PB is 21), but the winds were always switching making a beverage can size target difficult to hit. One of the old geezers running the line accused me of "cherry picking" the closer charges (125-150 yds.) and told me I had to start shooting at the farthest ones. Well, excuse me. But at two dollars a trigger pull and ten dollars awarded for every one hit, wouldn't you? "No problem" I said, and proceded to explode them , too. Hitting one off hand at 250 yds. ain't easy.

We left at 3:30pm to head north to meet two friends at our antelope hunting unit just south of Baggs ,Wyoming. It rained the entire 230 mile ride up there. It also rained all night, too. Didn't let up till 8am Sunday.

I hit a doe at 9am at a distance of 290 yds. A single shot from the sitting position put her down quick. But my friend Bill, who had waited 12 years to draw a buck tag, got an exceptionaly nice buck with his .257 AI custom rifle. He made the hit at 325 yds. resting off his pack.

Sorry if the photos offended anyone, it's hard to de-sensitize these types of images.

All told, Sara and I put 710 miles on the F-150. We hit rain , sleet, and some snow going over the various passes. The next dynamite shoot is May 2009, you can bet on me being there..... Time for bed.

http://s190.photobucket.com/albums/z94/ ... /?start=20

http://www.gufd.org/dynamite.html

Good heavens Bob! Aren't there rules against that much fun in one weekend?! Congratulations on a good time and a good hunt!

Looks like a lot of fun Bob....

Jealousy.... On both the Match and the beautiful kills. That buck is going to make an incredible mount.

Bob259 wrote:Looks like a lot of fun Bob....

Yeah, Bob.....this kind of fun should be against the law. I cant explain the thrill of hitting one of these things. First you see a brilliant 3 foot diameter white flash, smoke, flying debris, dust...etc. Then the shock wave and noise hits you. It is deafening with out ear protection. It always sets off car alarms in the parking area. And then the blast bounces off the several surrounding canyon walls futher adding to the thrill. The whole town knows when someone scored a hit.

This is probably the most fun that can be had firing a rifle.....next to silhouette that is . Nah....it's more fun.

Not alot different than Silhouette really, especially that off-hand match.

Pretty cool... pretty cool... Matter of fact, may even make target resetting even easier... Nothing to find and put back...

Explodouette?

Bob, Why didn't you post a picture of the gut pile? Since you did the shooting, did Sara do the cutting?

Although Sara has shot her share of game animals, crawling around inside a critter with a sharp knife, up your your armpits in blood and innards, ain't her idea of fun.

Like taking out the trash at home, gutting an animal is my chore regardless of who shoots it.

Dropped the carcass off at the local processor, I am no longer cutting my own meat. No time and no helpers anymore.

Bob Mc Alice wrote:Although Sara has shot her share of game animals, crawling around inside a critter with a sharp knife, up your your armpits in blood and innards, ain't her idea of fun.

Like taking out the trash at home, gutting an animal is my chore regardless of who shoots it.

Dropped the carcass off at the local processor, I am no longer cutting my own meat. No time and no helpers anymore.

There's the reason I stick with pest critters! Make a clean shot, make sure they're dead, and leave the carcass for predators! May have to revise that thinking now that doc has me off red meat, though - lean game meat may be on the menu...

BlauBear wrote:There's the reason I stick with pest critters! Make a clean shot, make sure they're dead, and leave the carcass for predators! May have to revise that thinking now that doc has me off red meat, though - lean game meat may be on the menu...

Better idea.. buy a fishing pole and a few crab traps

BlauBear wrote:There's the reason I stick with pest critters! Make a clean shot, make sure they're dead, and leave the carcass for predators! May have to revise that thinking now that doc has me off red meat, though - lean game meat may be on the menu...

One of my father-in-law's best friends has been off read meat for about 10 years now due to heart issues. The first year he was miserable. The next year he filled an elk tag and a deer tag. He's done the same every year since. Even though he's in better shape now (chasing elk can be lots of exercise) and could eat whatever he wants, he still doesn't eat beef because he doesn't like the taste after having elk on regular basis. Maybe you can get an elk hunting trip written off as a healthcare cost.

crab traps

Remember, Bob, we're landlocked...Only crab traps around here walk around on two legs and ARE NOT good for your heart health...

Kitty

jneihouse wrote:

crab traps

Remember, Bob, we're landlocked...Only crab traps around here walk around on two legs and ARE NOT good for your heart health...

Kitty

After I wrote that I figured someone would throw that in and I was wondering who it would be.... Guess who was first on that list

Bob, Was that Doe Speed Goat tag a drawing or over the counter? There used to be quite a few goats between Chevlon Canyon Lake and Winslow on a dirt road in Northern Az, they had been shot at so many times that when you stopped your vehicle to take a look at them, they were off and running. I guess the poachers finally figured out the lead on them because the last couple times I've been up that way, I didn't see to many, unless the Coyotes or some other critter or disease got them.
On the red meat, I just joined the Vytorin crowd myself.

Meds sure do help, but this last episode was an instant red meat cure. Lean game meat is supposedly alright but none of it sounds good just now.

Kitty's too right - once you move inland crab traps are to be avoided but I thought it might be fun for Bob to discover that for himself when he moves to Arizona.