It seems like a dumb question... after all whether we own one rifle or 99, we're all searching for the perfect hunting rifle. And realistic or not, we mean that said rifle will efficiently kill anything at almost any distance with minimal meat loss. It will also serve as a contingency arm should any possible predator, from rabid raccoons to velociraptors, attack.
But with all those rabbit trails forestalled (hopefully)...
I have a great hunting situation that I'm starting to realize is a little complex. It's a permanent blind at the crest of a flat, wooded ridge, and it has 360 degrees of possibilities. Imagine a 4-sided structure, 12 feet off the ground, with wide sliding windows on each side. It sits right in the edge of a tree line of oaks, walnuts, and patches of cedar.
The north east 180 is open sloping field, and occasionally offers great opportunities at 50 - 480 yds. I have taken several large bucks and ample does, but I have passed on an equal number of both when I came gunned for the other 180.
The other 180 is the flat, wooded top with one large clearing. The longest shot is about 90 yds, and the best shots present right in the tree fringe. Occasionally one will walk right under the blind itself.
I can make an educated guess as to where I'll see one. When I go for an evening hunt, I anticipate a close shot, something for the 30-30 or the muzzle loader. When I shoot them that close with 7-08, the 270 or the 30-06, I lose a lot of meat. And generally speaking, the longer shots seem to present themselves in the morning. But sometimes it's the opposite. So the quandary is not having the right gun for the distance. In fact, this past season, I passed on what would have been the nicest buck to date, a very elegant 10 point. But at a little over 240 yds, it wasn't a shot I felt good about with an ancient, bolt action 30-30.
Also, a pistol for close shots is out of the questions. I trust myself to take a headshot on a doe at 200 yds (not my preference! but I have done it successfully) with a rifle! But I don't trust myself to hit a basketball at 10 yards with a handgun.
The simple solution would be to take two guns. Nothing in the regs here are against it as long as the guns are legal for the season. But I can't bring myself to do it. Is seems like a breach of hunting etiquette... eating my cake and having it too, so to speak.
So I'd like to glean a general consensus from the membership here. Do any of you hunt with more than one long gun? If you don't or don't like the notion, why?
But with all those rabbit trails forestalled (hopefully)...
I have a great hunting situation that I'm starting to realize is a little complex. It's a permanent blind at the crest of a flat, wooded ridge, and it has 360 degrees of possibilities. Imagine a 4-sided structure, 12 feet off the ground, with wide sliding windows on each side. It sits right in the edge of a tree line of oaks, walnuts, and patches of cedar.
The north east 180 is open sloping field, and occasionally offers great opportunities at 50 - 480 yds. I have taken several large bucks and ample does, but I have passed on an equal number of both when I came gunned for the other 180.
The other 180 is the flat, wooded top with one large clearing. The longest shot is about 90 yds, and the best shots present right in the tree fringe. Occasionally one will walk right under the blind itself.
I can make an educated guess as to where I'll see one. When I go for an evening hunt, I anticipate a close shot, something for the 30-30 or the muzzle loader. When I shoot them that close with 7-08, the 270 or the 30-06, I lose a lot of meat. And generally speaking, the longer shots seem to present themselves in the morning. But sometimes it's the opposite. So the quandary is not having the right gun for the distance. In fact, this past season, I passed on what would have been the nicest buck to date, a very elegant 10 point. But at a little over 240 yds, it wasn't a shot I felt good about with an ancient, bolt action 30-30.
Also, a pistol for close shots is out of the questions. I trust myself to take a headshot on a doe at 200 yds (not my preference! but I have done it successfully) with a rifle! But I don't trust myself to hit a basketball at 10 yards with a handgun.
The simple solution would be to take two guns. Nothing in the regs here are against it as long as the guns are legal for the season. But I can't bring myself to do it. Is seems like a breach of hunting etiquette... eating my cake and having it too, so to speak.
So I'd like to glean a general consensus from the membership here. Do any of you hunt with more than one long gun? If you don't or don't like the notion, why?