hunting bigger game / .22 caliber/magnum

hunterforcenturies · #1 03-11-2008, 01:16 AM

i grew up hunting all my life so i know my guns-like how great sports coach does with his/her players-and i have stories to share hunting bigger game with the smallest caliber in rifles. my own personal one: we went out in western alaska to hunt caribou, and i was given a .22 with a rifle scope mounted on it. i asked the owner what is the distance sighted for it. he replied, "200 yds". then off we went. we saw herd, and we chased them. i asked to get off at some time after watching how the herd moved. then i waited... as the herd went up hill, i ran, then they turned right (my left). i ran a few yds and positioned myself. they were about 50 yds, so i dropped my cross hairs down to their feet and knees and fired when i knew it was going to hit the torso (i crossed my fingers it did) AND HIT EXACTLY BETWEEN THE RIBS, WENT THROUGH THE LUNGS, AND OUT! IN BETWEEN THE RIBS THE OTHER SIDE!!!! the young bull stumbled and i ran down to my prey and shot right behind the ear for the kill shot. i took the advice of a local: hunt only the subservients of a dominant bull and allow the strong genes to flourish. i gave a portion of it to a local elderly couple as a gift as their gratefulness is a blessing as the locals say.... incredible story but i did it!!

silvertip-co · #2 03-11-2008, 08:14 AM

You paid to go caribou hunting with a .22 ??? Not sure how thats LRH.
I do know the native people sneak up on big game and stick a .22 in the ear and the animal goes down. Dont seem very longe range to me but congrats on your kill.

Varmint Hunter · #3 03-11-2008, 09:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hunterforcenturies

i grew up hunting all my life so i know my guns-like how great sports coach does with his/her players-and i have stories to share hunting bigger game with the smallest caliber in rifles. my own personal one: we went out in western alaska to hunt caribou, and i was given a .22 with a rifle scope mounted on it. i asked the owner what is the distance sighted for it. he replied, "200 yds". then off we went. we saw herd, and we chased them. i asked to get off at some time after watching how the herd moved. then i waited... as the herd went up hill, i ran, then they turned right (my left). i ran a few yds and positioned myself. they were about 50 yds, so i dropped my cross hairs down to their feet and knees and fired when i knew it was going to hit the torso (i crossed my fingers it did) AND HIT EXACTLY BETWEEN THE RIBS, WENT THROUGH THE LUNGS, AND OUT! IN BETWEEN THE RIBS THE OTHER SIDE!!!! the young bull stumbled and i ran down to my prey and shot right behind the ear for the kill shot. i took the advice of a local: hunt only the subservients of a dominant bull and allow the strong genes to flourish. i gave a portion of it to a local elderly couple as a gift as their gratefulness is a blessing as the locals say.... incredible story but i did it!!

The hunt that you described certainly would cross the ethetical line in the minds of many hunters, myself included. I can't remeber the last time I pulled the trigger on a biggame animal and had "to cross my fingers" in the hope that my trick shot didn't result in the lingering death of the animal.

Maybe you should have posted this on shortrangehunting.com. You may find more like minded hunters there.

linksmechanic · #4 03-11-2008, 10:15 AM

I would have been more confident throwing a rock at it!

Troutslayer · #5 03-12-2008, 02:20 PM

I don't believe this for a second. Why would an outfitter ask you to do something like that? Who sights a .22 LR in at 200 yards? How could you possibly have known the drop chart on a .22 and that you had to aim near the knees? Also, from a management standpoint taking a larger and older animal is probably best for preservation of a herd. That bull you took was probably a direct descendant of the oldest and strongest bull.

Let me tell you about the time I took an elephant with my pellet gun...