Very real possibility that I may be moving to the Yukon, Whitehorse to be precise, for a few years and I am naturally more than a little bit excited about the hunting and fishing opportunities. I have been planning to reduce my firearms collection to fewer better guns anyway so here's what I suspect I will be bringing with me and looking for a little input on anything I may be missing or overlooking.
12 gauge remington 870 28" vent ribbed barrel and 18.5" smooth bore slug barrel
.223 Remington 700 bdl Varmint, back and forth if I should swap this for a model 7 predator that I may hunt with more but how much would I really hunt with a .223 remington up there anyway?
7mm rem mag ruger m77 tang safety, 2.5-10x40 Bushnell elite 4500 series and a B&C stock that feels good in my hands.
Some sort of rimfire and perhaps a 20 gauge of some sort.
Should I bother with a medium bore of some sort? I am sure someone will be along to recommend a .30-06 or .300 magnum with a 200 grain partition or accubonds as a do it all North American big game rifle. Part of me wonders if a .338 win mag really offers anything other than higher cost over a .300 win mag and a premium 200-220 grain bullet? Should I bring my .243?
What is the wing shooting like up there, my favorite hunting is probably waterfowl and roughed grouse a very close second sometimes beating it when I have a dog that knows the game.
I would consider bringing your 223 and 243, the 7mm Rem Mag can handle anything else big. A 20 gauge single shot is nice to have along for grouse and your 12 gauge can handle waterfowl and bear protection by swapping barrels. I don't know if you handload but a 35 Whelen or 9.3x62 would make a nice heavier gun, Tradeex in Ontario has some nice 9.3x62's for sale that are pretty inexpensive.
You may consider a light fiberglass stainless gun for goat, sheep and caribou like a Tikka T 3 in something like a 270, 270 WSM or 30-06. The Barrett Fieldcraft looks awfully good too but is more expensive. A short powerful lever gun like a Marlin Guide gun in 444, 450 Marlin or 45-70 might be nice to carry for bears and moose, I don't like how the Marlin's fit me so my choice would be a Browning BLR in 358 Win or 450 Marlin for that purpose. If you need to sell a gun to fund a purchase then move either of the 223 or 243 and keep the one you like best.
