Sometime (when it's not way past my bedtime) I'll post pics of nice old rifles, as I find them possessing of far more character than the plastic stocked models so popular today. While synthetic stocks can serve a practical purpose I consider them highly over-rated for the minimal degree of accuracy afforded. I much prefer the feel of hand-rubbed walnut or birch, in my hands and raised to the cheek, over anything extracted from a mold.
A couple of weeks ago I was walking through north Idaho timber with my son J.R. and Savage 99 levergun. Mine is in .308 Win, although my great-grandads was in .300 Sav. We were looking for deer, but one can only be so sneaky with a curious 3 year old in tow. Nevertheless we came upon a clearing and spotted a NICE whitetail buck. The Savage 99 lept immediately to my shoulder, but the deer was departing nearly 100 yards away, bounding through tall grass and thin trees such that I couldn't hold cross hairs on him, much less feel good about a shot. The buck was so graceful, majestic and beautiful I simply couldn't make myself risk wounding him, so I never pulled the trigger. J.R. and I watched in awe as he ran another 50 yards, hoping he might stop for a second or two before disappearing over the ridge, but the wise animal just kept going. Oh well. We hoofed it back to the rusty '69 GMC under a glorious sunset with joy in our hearts. Fresh venison would have been nice, but bonding with my son after such a long time in Iraq was even better.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment