After taking 4 different animals with 4 different guns back in August & September I had plans to take a Montana white tail with one of the same guns but using a different bullet. I really wanted to use a new 41 magnum 212 gr HP since I hadn't taken anything with this bullet. Last Monday me, my oldest son & his 2 youngest son's made the trip north where we bought doe tags over the counter for $75 each.
In all the years I've hunted Montana I've never been skunked but we ended up hunting on a ranch that had more rules than an IDPA match & we did get skunked. I was really disappointed with the way the ranch "manager was running the place since the owner had recently died.
Be there at noon, sign a whole bunch of papers, a bunch! Be back at 2:30 & get in a tree stand, no walking allowed, no shooting on the way in or on the way out. Stay in the tree stand until dark, no exceptions, no lead or jacketed bullets, solid copper only. No shooting of yearlings or button bucks. Make a one shot kill as much as possible, duh! I'm sure I'm forgetting something. Anyway, we saw ONE buck, no doe's & then had to go back & sign out in order to get out.
Yesterday I went back by myself & for sure I went to another place that my friend Alejandro knew about. I had my 41 magnum stoked with the powder coated 212 gr HP's & the place looked really good. As usual I also had my scoped 10.5" 357 Maximum in my Barranti NWH rig. The Maximum was loaded with a Miha 185 gr powder coated HP loaded on the toasty side, just the way Fermin likes them.
I can tell you right up front, the water in Montana is cold! We had to wade 2 different streams, twice, coming & going. That's not fun in November. Anyway the ranch was covered with pastures, big Cottonwood trees, brush, tall grass, etc. Ideal country for white tails. I got set up with my back to a big Cottonwood & watched a big 5X5 buck slip through the heavy brush with a smaller buck just behind him. Alejandro had spooked them & they were slipping away. It would have been a pretty easy shot.
He saw 5 more bucks but no doe's so we moved north 1/2 mile into some heavy brush & more Cottonwoods & spotted a large doe just about to walk into the timber we were in. We crouched down & I quickly set up my shooting rest. The doe caught our movement & I had to go for the 357 Maximum, she had went full alert. She bobbed her head up & down maybe 3 times trying to make out what we were, things were happening fast. I really wanted to use the 41 magnum but didn't think I had time to make the shot, it looked long.
I didn't know it at the time but Alejandro was videoing me as I broke the shot. The doe was facing us straight on, no time to range it until later. I held dead center & in the photo's you'll see that's exactly where it hit. The 185 HP knocked her flat, she got up for about 1 second & then back down. I ranged the big Cottonwood just in front of her later, it read 114 yds so she was about 117 yds give or take. I'll try & get the video posted tomorrow. Five animals with 5 shots with 5 different revolvers, nothing like hunting with six guns.











Dick