why are so many guys so worried about thier sellected caliber choice?
a great deal of time and effort and MONEY seems to be spend by guys trying to find the ULTIMATE ELK rifle and very little on aquiring the SKILLS like tracking,correctly reading topo maps,your game ANATOMY,glassing,shooting accurately from field possitions, calling, and locating ELK.
Im quite certain I,(and most guys) can kill ELK with damn near any caliber from a 270 win-378 weatherby,given the correct ammo(having done it in the past)as long as the range/penetration limitations are factored in .
now Im not about to say your caliber choice is meaningless, because some choices have advantages, but I seriously doubt your caliber choice is the one major factor in your success on any ELK hunt,and having a rifle that shoots a few inches flatter in trajectory at 500 yards is all but meaningless on most hunts, its far more important you can hit accurately with your equipment at 200-300 yards than at longer ranges simply because statistically , far more ELK get shot under 300 yards than over 300 yards
grab that 30/06-375 H&H you currently own,and spend more time at the range PRACTICING FROM FIELD POSSITIONS,NOT FROM THE BENCH! youll be far ahead , rather than worrying about your choice
Yep, couldn't agree more. Practice, practice, practice with what you're going to hunt with in field conditions. Then, practice some more.
What most people should
really worry about is getting in shape and physically fit enough to hunt elk.
If ya poop out 'cause you're outta shape on day 3 in the saddle below the ridge that leads to the basin where Mr. Blondie Butt lives, I don't care what kinda ultra, uber, super duper magnum ya got, someone else (Me <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />) is goin' home with the meat and ivory. (His rifle sure had some "purty" wood, though.)
Worry less about your caliber, learn to shoot what ya got and
worry more about how many minutes you can do on a stair-stepper/elliptical/ treadmill machine.
You'll kill more elk.
