LASER FREE ZONES have been established on portions of the course. Use your reticle to determine range and make the shot. ALWAYS HAVE A BACKUP PLAN WHEN THINGS GO WRONG.

1) 2- BORETECH CLEANING RODS; (ONE FOR BRUSHING ONE FOR PATCHING)

Montana is shaping up quite well. I just returned from 10 days of working on the property with heavy equipment. We now have a GREAT road with culverts installed on the main entry. There is access to the far side of the Coulee and the road can be used with either a pickup truck, UTV, or better yet, my UBCO bike. I was amazed at how quickly you can move dirt with the right equipment. Large excavators, graders, skid steers, belly dumps, and side dumps were employed to move thousands of yards of dirt. The next trip we will be taking building supplies, a Quonset hut, targets, benches, and supplies to prep for possibly holding classes in mid-late September if all goes well. Photo shows fresh rock being spread on the fixed-range sites. Cement slabs that are 10'x40' will be set to the left and will be covered with an awning.

It is easy to become lax after years of hunting and taking hundreds of animals without incident. Deer, elk, antelope, caribou, and coyotes can impart serious wounds and often death if we fail to make sure of their demise. Seldom does this occur in North America, provided the hunter does his/her job in approaching the animal from the rear and taking the necessary precautions (touching the animal with the muzzle or stick/rock) to make sure it is dead. Rubbing doe-in-heat scent on your clothing and chasing whitetail bucks can be another issue.

The big problem we face is when we hunt DANGEROUS GAME ANIMALS (animals with a bad attitude, or those who see us as a protein source). This will include but is not limited to: bears, big cats, cape buffalo, lions, leopards, elephants, hippos, crocodiles, wild boars, etc.

These four-legged critters will/can send you to the PEARLY GATES IN A HEARTBEAT if you fail to exercise proper caution in dealing with them. When wounded, or finding you between them and offspring, or an escape route, a mauling can be in your future.

Every year there are deaths or serious injuries in Africa when the hunter fails to do his/her part in ensuring the animal is down. Most PHs are very cautious when dealing with dangerous game, and adhere to the proper protocol to keep a client safe. Normally, it's the client that freezes, short cycles the rifle, panics, runs, or a hundred other combinations that result in death or injury.

Bad habits like failing to cycle the bolt after every shot, are commonplace, and fending off a bear, hippo, or cape buffalo with your buttstock seldom works. When training hunters for dangerous game, I try to induce stress, demand rapid bolt cycling drills, as well as implementing moving and shooting scenarios. If we do not train under stressful situations, we are apt to fail under dangerous situations.

Shooting school student Louis Baum has just returned from another successful African hunt for crocodile and hippo. Louis is a dedicated hunter who takes the craft seriously when he's in the field.

Hippos kill a large number of natives a year in Africa and can be a real menace if you are between them and the river. Those huge tusks can put 2-inch diameter holes in you with a single bite, much like a paper punch. Bears and cape buffalo often charge if the hunter is in sight when shot. Thick brush, willows and tangle can often deflect your follow-up shots, increasing the adreneline rush you get from a charging animal. Now the storyline becomes YOU or HIM.

So what's the best method to prevent such injury or loss of life? There are several things in my opinion: understanding dangerous game anatomy and incorporating multiple shots once the animal is down. Breaking down the running gear is a wise consideration; shoulder shots that also penetrate the heart/lung cavity also work well. Brain shots, only when the shooter is capable and the distance is short, preferably 100 yards or less.

We all like to brag on single-shot kills. However, when dangerous game is sought, I feel it is imperative to put additional shots into them, ensuring they will not resurrect as you walk toward them with an empty chamber.

Louis performed this technique on the hippo he shot; he made a perfect brain shot (the hippo was DRT after his first shot) but he followed up with 3 additional neck-shoulder shots, ensuring the animal never made it to the water or him.

Ammunition is cheap compared to EMERGENCY ROOM VISITS and/or a burial site in a foreign land.

NEW FFP SCOPE

Bring your favorite 22, your son/daughter or your hunting partner, and sign up for the "PAINT THE TOWN RED" prairie dog shoot.

Staying health conscious is more important than ever, and one's diet plays a big role in how we feel and how long we may live. Most newsletter subscribers are healthy and have a tendency to eat the right foods. Red protein being high on the list for those who hunt and fish in the great outdoors.

A problem can arise if we fail to draw a tag for our annual hunt for deer, elk, or antelope in our given area. An empty freezer can create a bit of disharmony in the family unit if not corrected.

Say good-bye to supermarket-quality meat laden with red dyes, artificial hormones and a diet of "who knows what" that is prepared on a large scale to feed the masses. TANTRUM FARMS and the Hammond family take great pride in the production of grass-fed, hormone-free black Angus beef. On a good year, they run roughly 650 cows on the ranch; carefully selected 2-year- old cows are set aside for butchering.

All meat is processed at the family-owned USDA-approved facility and is dry-aged to perfection. The Hammond's take great pride in their efforts to supply your family with the best table fare you can buy, and at a reasonable price. You can choose specific cuts of meat, dine on your favorite rib-eyes, sirloins, filets and know you are feeding you and your family quality grass-fed MONTANA BEEF.

With winter just around the corner and the holidays fast approaching, take a minute to look over their website and place your order.

Shipping is done via FEDX and UPS to your door.

When ordering, if you talk with Corrine, have her share her story as to the naming of the business. I found it quite amusing.

Tell her you found out about them in the NEWSLETTER, and with a little arm-twisting, she might throw in a surprise.

(She's one sharp cookie and can spot a silver-tongued dude a mile away, so bring your A-Game and create a lasting relationship for red protein)

With COVID issues subsiding it may be a good time to enjoy some KIWI hospitality and venture to the SOUTH ISLAND and vacation with Richard and Sarah Burdon at Glen Dene. Great fishing and hunting opportunities abound: red stags, tahr, chamois and feral hogs await the eager sportsman. The scenery is off-the-charts and a memorable vacation is just a phone call away. Richard and Sarah will make you feel like long-lost relatives returning to the fold.

Louis Baum with a large male hippo killed with a surgical brain shot and additional follow-ups, ensuring a DRT memory with no potential for a trip to the ER. On any DANGEROUS GAME animals I reccommend one or two follow-up shots to prevent resurrection. Why run the RISK of ending a beautiful hunt with a foolish mistake; ammo is cheap when compared to a foreign burial plot.

One of several shooting sites being bladed off for the shooting school. These overlook the BIG COULEE, allowing shooters to "FIND" targets and engage them.

Better bring your "A" game; the wind and difficulty in finding targets can be a challenge!

Meet CJ Hadley, the human dynamo and editor/publisher of RANGE magazine. I had the distinct pleasure of meeting her and spending some time with her in Carson City, Nevada. CJ is to private property rights what the NRA is to protecting our gun rights. If you own property or plan to in the future, you need to understand the evil forces that are plotting to take away that right. RANGE magazine will bring you up to speed on the latest legislation. The land grabbers and their motives will affect you accessing State and Federal land as well as your own piece of ground. You'll also read interesting articles on early pioneers, ranchers, wolves, water rights, etc. CJ has agreed to send NEWSLETTER SUBSCRIBERS a FREE sample of the magazine when you call the office. This is a magazine that will delight in more ways than you can imagine. RANGE magazine gets a 5-STAR rating from yours truly.

541-439-5155! hollandguns.com