The fall hunt is close at hand, time make preparations

The special hunt permit drawings have been held and the results have been published. Joe and Sam know they will be hunting branched-antlered elk,

Jane and Josephine know they will be hunting trophy deer and the Smith family all drew second-deer tags. Now what?

Generally hunters know where they will be hunting and when they will be hunting. We still have the Raffle Permit Hunt drawings, but the deadline for buying the tickets is about 15 days away, July 13.

The common notion is hunters dream about hunting throughout the year and I suspect it is true.

The missed shot also appears as a nightmare throughout a lifetime. I know this is a fact.

A well-built elk camp

A hunter never stops planning for the next hunt. Those who are a part of large groups who camp together for the entire general elk season will check all of their equipment, even though everything was checked when put away at the end of the last season.

I visited a well-established elk camp on a trip across Colockum Pass years ago. The camp cooking area was made up of three large Army-style tents hooked together to make three rooms.

The middle area was the kitchen, one side was the dining room and the other tent was a recreation room.

There were several sleeping tents for individual family or friends. Each was equipped with a wood stove for heat and some had straw for the floor or even carpet.

This was a top-notch camp, with members of the group arriving a week early to set it up and staying a week after the season to break down. It was obvious this equipment required years to acquire and years of planning.

Access to land

Contacting landowners for a place to hunt should be high on a hunter's list. Even if you have hunted the land before, the landowner needs to be contacted.

Now is the time to knock on doors with cold calls. A hunter may be refused permission several times and then receive permission when they least expect.

One tool is to take a hunter's resume along. Include your name, address, hunting experience and even a reference or two.

Present this resume to the landowner during your introduction.

Spend time at the range

Is the rifle still in good shape and hitting the target in the correct spot? A trip to the range will find out. All the rifles used for hunting should be tested.

Shooting at different ranges will also be of assistance. The Boyd Mordhorst Range near Ephrata has 25, 50, 100 and 500 yard ranges.

This long range also has targets at 200, 300 and 400 yards. If a hunter has been tempted to shoot deer and elk at long ranges, take a few shots at this rifle range to see if you could hit a critter at long distances.

There are several computer programs for hunters to input certain parameters about the cartridges they shoot, along with current temperature, wind, elevation, angle of the shot, etc. and the program will provide information about where the round will hit at various ranges.

My .270 hits three-inches high at 100 yards. The zero is therefore 238 yards. It hits three inches low at 300 yards.

This way of thinking allows the hunter to aim for a lung shot out to 300 yards and still make killing shot.

Bird hunters would be smart to shoot a round or two of sporting clays to test the shooting eye.

Equipment

Knowing for sure if the animal is at 150, 250 or 350 yards is vital information.

My contention is most hunters shoot over an animal, because they estimate the range as being at a greater distance than the reality.

Range finders are becoming a necessity for the prudent hunter these days.

They make a great present for those who don't have one.

Again, if a hunter knows the bullet will hit three inches low at 300 yards and knows the exact distance to the animal is 275 yards, placing the crosshairs just behind the shoulder should provide a killing shot.

Get in shape

I am aiming this part of the column at myself, but all hunters should make sure they are in physical shape for the hunt.

Walk around the neighborhood, shoulder the pack, and get on the treadmill and lose a few pounds.