So I spent yesterday reloading for and shooting off the back porch a Mauser 30/06 that I hadn't had time to play with. Real nice rifle. I got a 130 grain Barnes load worked up that shoots 3/4" at 3100 fps, 1 1/2" high at 100. Life is peaches, maybe even with cream.
Fast forward to just after day light today as I'm carrying said rifle (rather than one of my trusted 99's, there's my first mistake!) when I come across Mr. Big Bear. 100 yards. Complete miss.
No bear. No hair. No blood. Hours later, scoured entire mountaintop, no bear. Up, down and sideways, no bear. I bumped another bear, actually a small sow and cub while searching the other side of the mountain, but no Big Bear. Cursing under my breath that I wasn't carrying the 99F 358, I move down the ridge.
A mile later I watch one trot sideways at 125 yards across a burned and partially regrown hillside after he spots me. He's a shooter size-wise, a little smaller than the first one, but I'm still smarting from my earlier miss, so I watch him go all the way to the timber without firing. If I woulda had a 99...
After doing some glassing downhill, I decide to go on up and see if I can kick him out of his bed. 2 hours later as I approach the top of the ridge, he stands up at 40 yards to see who interrupted his sleep. Aimed for the base of the neck/top of chest to break his spine. Have taken 2 or 3 with this shot. Mauser barks, bear drops down and trots off, untouched. 40 yards. No bear. No hair. No blood. Scoured the mountaintop, down the other side, down this side, no bear.
You can all say whatever you want about my shooting now, I've earned it. I'm guessing I hit hair each time, rather than meat, but I never found a thing.
The lesson for me is to keep using the Savage 99's I'm so familiar with until I can get some bolt action time. Even then, why bother. The 99F 284 reaches way out there, why do I even mess with bolt guns?
It was a bad good day hunting.
