I got my first elk in 61 a cow in NE Oregon, and have missed three seasons since. I have been blessed with great success. I started out with a 30:06, then moved up to 300 WM, and have experimented with a few other cartridges. Last week I took a cow at 266 with one shot, from a 7 mm AI. I frequently feel blessed to have spent all of those seasons in the woods.