Nebraska Prairie Dog Trip
Posted: Tue Jun 09, 2009 7:52 pm
On May 27th, my youngest son, Ethan, and I left home by 6:00 A.M. to head to Nebraska to shoot prairie dogs with our good friend Dave. Ethan had just gotten home from college the week before and we were able to work the trip in before he started his summer job. Ethan got to go with us the first year we went but hasn’t been back till now. Lucas normally goes and he and Dave turkey hunt while I run the camera and then we complete the trip shooting prairie dogs, only this time it wasn’t going to work out for him.
I took over 500 rounds of 204’s loaded with 39 gr. Sierra B.K’s, over 350 rounds of 204’s loaded with 32 gr. V-MAX and 150+ rounds of 22-250’s loaded with 50 gr. V-MAX’s. for a total of 1070 rounds. There was a possibility we might have three days of shooting and I wanted to make sure I had enough ammo to last. We ended up shooting 548 rounds all together.
We had a 10 hour drive and arrived at Dave’s mother’s house around 5:00 P.M. after a brief stop at the Hornady plant in Grand Island so I could pick up a new hat. It was only two blocks off our path. They are building on and the lady at the front desk said they have been working on it for almost a year. Just looking from the outside, it looks like a big addition.
Dave’s mother had invited us to stay at her house which made it a lot closer to where we would be shooting than the motel we usually stay in 50 some miles away. Going to her house is like going to visit family, we have always felt very welcome there and did I mention that she also is a GREAT cook.
Dave arrived later in the evening and we made plans to get up early and try to call in a coyote the next morning. We went out to one of Dave’s spots, set up the FOXPRO and sat up on a bluff overlooking a big hay field with the rising sun to our backs and the breeze in our faces. A cool front came through during the night and the temperature was a chilly 40 degrees. I hadn’t expected that and had several layers of T shirts on. We didn’t call anything in but it was such a beautiful morning with patches of fog rolling across the field, cock pheasants crowing all around and the song of the Meadow Larks coming across the hills.
We packed up and headed back to the house around 8:15 to get ready to shoot dogs and to meet Dave’s friend Len from his rifle club. The weather was the best I think we have ever had out there for shooting dogs. The high was in the low eighties and a light northwest breeze.
Here is the first day’s shooting crew.
L-R, Dave, Len, Ethan and I
Most all of our shooting is done lying prone since it’s not real handy to carry a shooting table around the pasture but Len had an interesting fold up chair-table setup that was fairly light to carry. I may have to check into something like that before next year, my elbows and neck could use a break. I watched Len make some 400+ yard hits with his 204 off of it so I know it works.
Getting ready to shoot.
Ethan had one dog that just wouldn’t come up on the mound and would only show its head. Finally after the shooting had slowed down a little, Ethan said he would just take a head shot on this dog at 88 yards. The impact of the bullet pulled the dog up out of the whole and flipped it onto the back of the mound. He was shooting my Savage 12VLP with 32 gr. V-MAX averaging a little over 4100 fps second according to my chronograph.
Most of our shots were less than 300 yards but I did manage to shoot one at 470 yards with my CZ 527 Varmint shooting the 39 gr. S.B.K. and one at 395 yards with the 22-250. Not far compared to what a lot of guys shoot but we were having fun watching them blow up on the closer ones.
Here’s one pup that kept chirping at us so Ethan put the silent treatment on it.
We shot till about 8 pm and then headed back to the house for some homemade stew that Dave’s mother had made and to meet Dave’s brother Pat, and Pat’s daughter Lillian. She wanted to go with us the next day to shoot some prairie dogs.
We said our goodbyes to Len and I think I could spend all day visiting with him about guns. Maybe he‘ll shoot again with us next year, hope so.
The next morning was as beautiful as the day before only it was to warm up to around 85 degrees. Pat and Dave got Lillian set up and Ethan and I moved on down the ridge to do a little shooting.
The second day crew. L-R; Dave, Pat, Ethan, me and Lillian
Lillian and Pat
One of Lillian’s prairie dogs.
Lillian looking for another prairie dog.
Here’s the scene from where Ethan and I were shooting.
I was using my Savage M 12FV in 22-250 that morning and it seemed I couldn’t miss. Ethan tried it and seemed to also be hitting very well with it but returned to the M 12VLP so he could watch the hits through the scope.
Some 22-250 carnage
We shot till around 8 p.m. and noticed a cloud front heading our way from the northwest.
It was a beautiful ending to a great day of shooting and a great trip. Ethan and I headed out the next morning around 6 am after we said our goodbyes and thank you’s for another great trip. It was good to get to visit with Dave, Pat and there mother again.
I took over 500 rounds of 204’s loaded with 39 gr. Sierra B.K’s, over 350 rounds of 204’s loaded with 32 gr. V-MAX and 150+ rounds of 22-250’s loaded with 50 gr. V-MAX’s. for a total of 1070 rounds. There was a possibility we might have three days of shooting and I wanted to make sure I had enough ammo to last. We ended up shooting 548 rounds all together.
We had a 10 hour drive and arrived at Dave’s mother’s house around 5:00 P.M. after a brief stop at the Hornady plant in Grand Island so I could pick up a new hat. It was only two blocks off our path. They are building on and the lady at the front desk said they have been working on it for almost a year. Just looking from the outside, it looks like a big addition.
Dave’s mother had invited us to stay at her house which made it a lot closer to where we would be shooting than the motel we usually stay in 50 some miles away. Going to her house is like going to visit family, we have always felt very welcome there and did I mention that she also is a GREAT cook.
Dave arrived later in the evening and we made plans to get up early and try to call in a coyote the next morning. We went out to one of Dave’s spots, set up the FOXPRO and sat up on a bluff overlooking a big hay field with the rising sun to our backs and the breeze in our faces. A cool front came through during the night and the temperature was a chilly 40 degrees. I hadn’t expected that and had several layers of T shirts on. We didn’t call anything in but it was such a beautiful morning with patches of fog rolling across the field, cock pheasants crowing all around and the song of the Meadow Larks coming across the hills.
We packed up and headed back to the house around 8:15 to get ready to shoot dogs and to meet Dave’s friend Len from his rifle club. The weather was the best I think we have ever had out there for shooting dogs. The high was in the low eighties and a light northwest breeze.
Here is the first day’s shooting crew.
L-R, Dave, Len, Ethan and I
Most all of our shooting is done lying prone since it’s not real handy to carry a shooting table around the pasture but Len had an interesting fold up chair-table setup that was fairly light to carry. I may have to check into something like that before next year, my elbows and neck could use a break. I watched Len make some 400+ yard hits with his 204 off of it so I know it works.
Getting ready to shoot.
Ethan had one dog that just wouldn’t come up on the mound and would only show its head. Finally after the shooting had slowed down a little, Ethan said he would just take a head shot on this dog at 88 yards. The impact of the bullet pulled the dog up out of the whole and flipped it onto the back of the mound. He was shooting my Savage 12VLP with 32 gr. V-MAX averaging a little over 4100 fps second according to my chronograph.
Most of our shots were less than 300 yards but I did manage to shoot one at 470 yards with my CZ 527 Varmint shooting the 39 gr. S.B.K. and one at 395 yards with the 22-250. Not far compared to what a lot of guys shoot but we were having fun watching them blow up on the closer ones.
Here’s one pup that kept chirping at us so Ethan put the silent treatment on it.
We shot till about 8 pm and then headed back to the house for some homemade stew that Dave’s mother had made and to meet Dave’s brother Pat, and Pat’s daughter Lillian. She wanted to go with us the next day to shoot some prairie dogs.
We said our goodbyes to Len and I think I could spend all day visiting with him about guns. Maybe he‘ll shoot again with us next year, hope so.
The next morning was as beautiful as the day before only it was to warm up to around 85 degrees. Pat and Dave got Lillian set up and Ethan and I moved on down the ridge to do a little shooting.
The second day crew. L-R; Dave, Pat, Ethan, me and Lillian
Lillian and Pat
One of Lillian’s prairie dogs.
Lillian looking for another prairie dog.
Here’s the scene from where Ethan and I were shooting.
I was using my Savage M 12FV in 22-250 that morning and it seemed I couldn’t miss. Ethan tried it and seemed to also be hitting very well with it but returned to the M 12VLP so he could watch the hits through the scope.
Some 22-250 carnage
We shot till around 8 p.m. and noticed a cloud front heading our way from the northwest.
It was a beautiful ending to a great day of shooting and a great trip. Ethan and I headed out the next morning around 6 am after we said our goodbyes and thank you’s for another great trip. It was good to get to visit with Dave, Pat and there mother again.
Gary
I'm jealous enough for the whole forum............