Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Canada What's the perferred deer cartridge for guys in Canada?

There are a couple of things that most people forget about talking firearms for deer, black bears and moose. The biggest factor is where they hunt. There's a heck of a difference hunting whitetails in the prairies (the plains, for our friends in the US) versus most of eastern Canada in dense deer woods. Prairie ranges are a lot farther. They need the reach.

The second is the age of the hunter. Most, but not all hunters under forty have been bamboozled into buying overpowered rifles. Hunting magazines make promises of better, more successful hunts with magnums or some of the new chamberings. A magnum or larger, flat shooting rifle like a 25-06 might do well in western Canada, but it's a waste in Ontario or in most of eastern Canada.

Bigger cartridges kick more, the ammunition costs more and are more expense to shoot for reloaders.

Western Canadians may have to worry about brown bears or grizzly bears, so they might want something with a little punch, when they're in bear country.

Writers should educate their readers about rifle selection. Hunters should do their own homework and not depend solely on what they read. Ad men and full page colour spreads should be eyed with suspicion.