Welll after taking a nice muledeer buck and antelope buck in Wyoming with my Pro Hunter in 25-06, I got the hunger for trying a muzzleloader and ordered a Katahdin barrel in 209x50 for it. So I took off work for a couple hours Friday and sighted it in with a Leupold 2-7x33 scope in Warne steel rings. FYI never ever get a ML and not get the ball starter...LOL. Ouch that hurts the palm of the hand. Well anyway...I yesterday left house at 4AM top drive south into the snowbelt in SW Missouri and SE Kansas. Had to make my own trail back into the 300 landlocked acres I have permission to hunt with my Tacoma. I went out to sit on a logging road I had scouted before and found lots of trails prior to the snow. I saw nothing moving so I started moving slowly to a food plot below my stand about a 1/3 of a mile away. I walked a long the food plot edge for about 200 yards and bumped out two does from their bed in the cedars. I have two does standing facing me about 60 yards away. They can't wind me as I had kept the wind in my face so they stare, bob their head, stomp their foot daring me to move. I kept perfectly still with Katahdin at the ready position. Finally the started to move off after 10 minutes of me freezing in single digit temperatures. I shouldered the Encore and fired. Hit the rear doe with a Knight Ultilmate Slam Series SBT - spitzer boat tail (Barnes) 285 grain copper sabot pushed by 2 50 grain 777 pellets. I cannot believe that hole it put thru her. If you ever doubted will Barnes ML sabots expand (I know I did), well dont' worry they open as advertised. So I know am a ML convert.....if thats how much fun it is, count me in for life. Stalking on the ground, in deep snow, closer range than my long rangers in WY and the fun of having only one shot which is similar to my first love of bowhunting was a total rush. I would have loved to have had a big buck but that first ML doe will do ok for my last gun hunt of '06.
