Handgun Hunting Afield

Today was opening day for my wife, Jessica Rhodes. She has a deer and antelope tag here in Wyoming and we gave it a go!

We started the morning chasing deer in some steep shale hills. It was just below freezing when we started the morning as we made a two mile walk in and then climbed a few hundred feet on all fours to crest the slick and loose stone shale hills. As we crested the top we spotted a dandy buck mule deer that we tried our best to get on for several hours.

As morning rolled on, the temperature crept above 70 degrees and the wind was building. Distant wildfires were making glassing tough due to the smoke. So what does one do? They pack up and go chase speed goats.

We made the hour and a half drive back to Jess’ antelope zone and began looking for an antelope buck. It took less than 30 minutes at 1:30 in the afternoon and we spotted a tall buck laying solo in the middle of a flat.

Antelope often times bed in large flat areas to give themselves more time to react to danger. With them being the fastest animal in North America this gives them ample time to get away from predators.

We needed to get within a reasonable range of this buck and with him being in a flat we had little options. Behind him there was a set of hills that could possibly get us closer to him. We struck out on foot and made about a 1.5 mile button hook through the hills to get as close as possible but there was a snag. When we climbed over the last hill the buck was still 600 yards away. My approach is always to lengthen the stalk before lengthening the shot.

We employed a common tactic to cut the distance on antelopes. We went forward at an angle to the buck. This makes it appear as tho you are not pursuing them. We were wide out in the open on the same flat as the buck. We made it to 350 yards and then we ran out of cover.

We began weighing the options and field judging the buck some more. There was no option to get closer for a revolver shot and this buck was too big to pass.

If you have followed my wife and my hunts online for a while you have seen what this particular Xp-100 has taken and understand why it earned the nickname “Meat”. Meat is a 15” 6.5-284 using a 1-5 Leupold VX5. It is running the Cutting Edge Bullets MTH 120 grain.

So my wife deployed Meat for this antelope. Being on the flat she had to find some way to get above the grass. An ant mound provided 6-8” of lift which allowed the muzzle to clear the grass. She then dialed the Leupold for the 350 yard drop and let the MTH fly.

Signs of a good hit were almost immediate with the antelope taking just a quick sprint before falling over stone dead.

This antelope is almost 15” tall with the bottom of his forks/hooks well above the ears. This is generally something many look for to judge a buck for its size.

I have used Cutting Edge Bullets in revolvers and taken quite a bit of game. Those bullets performed above their weight class to the point they exceeded what ANY cup and core bullet had done from the wheelguns. This was the first animal that I have seen taken with the rifle bullets and I can say I am impressed. I believe they will follow the same path I saw the revolver projectiles go along. Fracturing technology is revolutionizing how projectiles take game. I have watched fracturing technology drop animals quicker, produce better wound channels, and increase penetration.

Below are graphic photos of the bullets terminal performance.