Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Elk Hunting What rifle did you set foot with on your rookie elk hunt?

Sporterized $49 Turkish Mauser 425 yard shot on a cow elk. Using 185gr rem corelokts that performed flawlessly. Double lung shot.

I was about 35 at the time.

left hand rem 700. 6.5x55 120 ttsx 300ish yards dead cow

Jennings bow

Rem ADL 25-06 with a 90gr varmint bullet 1979. Never saw one but learned a lot.

Open sights.

I carried a bow my first elk hunt, second one too

340 weatherby mark V deluxe version fed 250 gr nosler partitions. Shoots clover leafs at 100. It's done 3 elk hunts but never spoke.

I read all the magazine hoopla on how big and tough elk are and how long the ranges can be, I went with a 28" barreled custom 338-378 WBY firing the original 250 gr Barnes-X bullets at 3350 fps. , had a small sandbag in my pack and a {merge together} range finder. lol

Shot my bull, [4x5] at 30 yards in the dark timber, could have hit him with a damn rock.

While dressing my bull a nice 4x4 velvet mulie crossed up a couple benches above me, popped him with a bloody trigger finger, lol, in those days you could buy a bull elk and mule deer tag over the counter, it was Colorado circa 1994, a fine hunt it was.

Model 70 30-06 with 180-grain Remington cartridges -- Don't recall the bullet type. Got my first elk three years later. Got buck fever the first year and missed. I couldn't squeeze the trigger, couldn't ever get a sight picture I was comfortable with. My big brother got tired of waiting on me to shoot and killed the elk. lol

Pre 64 Mod 70 .338 Win handed down to me from my father. 210 GR nos partition. Northern New Mexico. Didn't see an elk but proved we could survive a five day mountain snowstorm.

Ruger Model 77 tang safety 30.06 with 180 grain Nosler Partitions. Worked great on a 200 yard shot.

Remington M700 7RM that my grandfather won at some event in the 70s. I was the first to take it hunting, and have taken all my first of a species with it. Now I just need to draw a moose or sheep tag to add a few more "notches" to it.

I was in my 30s and bought "the elk rifle" for the trip - wood stocked Rem 700 in 338 WM. Developed a load with 250 gr Partitions over the summer. I squeezed ever last ft/sec from the load and recall it running right at 2700. It killed out both ends. I never shot an elk with it. About day 3-4 of that trip I decided a 10 lb wood rifle in 338 wasn't needed or appreciated after hauling it around. That trip started me down the looneyism trail - I knew I didn't need a 338 to kill an elk and 10 lb rifles in the mountains suck.

My next adventure was a SS Abolt in 300 WSM. Liked it well enough but wasn't overly fond of the 'recoil pad'. Traded it for a Kimber Montana in 300 WSM. Discovered 300 magnums in light rifles recoil a bit. Then went to a SS Rem 700 DBM 30-06. Didn't like the DBM so traded it for a Rem 700 in 300 saum. Worked well enough but started to really grow fond of M70s. Sold the saum and bought my current M70 EW in 300 WSM. Still have a SS m70 30-06 in the back of my head so doubt I'm done yet......

First elk hunts were with PSE bows.

Only "rifle" hunts were with 54 TC Renegade and Green Mountain barrel, 545 grain big conical, can't recall the brand, maybe no excuses?

Both bows and MZ shot extremely well, never had a clean shot on any of the hunts.

1996 western CO Uncomphagre NF. This Missouri boy was carrying a push feed model 70 338 Win mag with Burris 2-7x shooting Barnes X 210 gr. I tracked a group of elk through scattered snow patches all morning. Penciled one through a big cow at a trot at about 60 yards. Luckily penciled right through the heart. Exit wound not much bigger than .338 inch.

On my first Elk hunt in CO, I had a Ruger #1 in .280 with a 3.5-10 x 50 Burris. I killed my first Elk in MT with a Marlin 336 .35 Rem. I did kill Elk, Antelope and Deer with that #1, before switching to a A-Bolt II .280.

Excellent cartridge choice.

First one was with my Rem 700 BDL 7mm RM LH. Next will be with a similar one in 7mm STW or an A-bolt in 300WM LH

My first elk was with a 338 WM... I'd read all the gun-rags (pre-internet) and had concluded elk were nearly armor-plated.

After killing a couple with the 338 WM, I decided they were indeed flesh and blood and I might as well carry a lighter rifle that I enjoyed shooting, so my elk rifle evolution (or devolution depending) started.

I'm currently sitting quite satisfied with the 308 Win as my primary elk rifle. I'd be equally happy with a 270 Win.

I see no need for anything heavier or harder kicking...

Remington 700 bdl 270 winchester