i shot a rifle the other day after a 9 year hiatus.

i missed archery deer season here in CA. working lots of long days..and trying to show-off my skills and work ethics (over compensated for sure)here in the new office. (plus i'm a damn control freak)

my friends called and told me to buy a CA tag that never sells out. so i did, hoping for a lull in my work load. my boss insisted i go, and will assign another engineer to cover my crap. this is a rifle hunt.

oh-o!! my rifles are in the back of my gun safe..i havent shot in years!! i tried to find non-lead for my 257 wtby mag and had no luck. 30-06 it is! went for the Hornady GMX 150's. even going to the gun range felt foreign. my rifle was squeaky clean (my brother loaned it to the SWAT range master and it came back surgical clean).

the Petaluma rifle range is kinda janky. i'm used to the military range at fort Bliss where i last sighted in a rifle. Petaluma had these wooden shooting "sandbags"..i used one but turned it over on it's side and covered it with carpet scraps. surprisingly steady. my first 3 shots were a clover leaf ragged hole. 1" left..elevation good. it has been so long, i had to think which way to turn the scope clicker..i damn near googled it. the grizzled old range dude saw my confusion and whispered "go four clicks to the..." i fired two more shots down the middle and went home.

i had forgotten how fun shooting a rifle is. i hope i get to tip over a deer. bowhunting has been too challenging for me. i've killed very little game with a bow. i think i am going to mix up the hunting from now on.

 

Excellent! Going after deer and bear here in NH.

 

Deer season here starts next weekend. Pumped!




Edit-OP; are you guys still allowed to even have rifles in CA?

 

well..no deer in SoCal. but on top of the mountain..got the call. all access pass to a friends ranch in New mexico..buying an OTC private land hunt.

invited the guy i was with in SoCal. he almost cried.