I hate to sound like a broken record, but Saturday was another GREAT day for pottin’ prairie poodles in North Dakota. The temperature was about 50º around 8:00 a.m. but it eventually got up to 97 degrees in the prairie dog patch! The wind, again, was mostly 5 mph and under!!! I had to drive on about 10 miles of road construction where the speed limit was 25 MPH!!! There was another 4 or 5 miles with a max speed limit of 45 MPH. So, my journey of about 85 miles took a bit longer than usual. The dog towns I had in mind for today’s hunt are on private property and I hadn’t hunted in this town since October 10, 2010. There is a creek that I have to cross to get to this dog town and it has been running pretty full this year. I tried to get to this dog town on July 14, 2011, but the creek was running way too fast and it was far too deep to attempt a crossing.
I drove down to the area, west of the dog town, that I thought would give me the best chance to cross the creek without drowning myself and got out and inspected the creek bank and tried to find a place where I could descend the steep bank without killing myself. I spotted a partially washed out beaver dam and also located a place to climb down the bank to the water’s edge. I parked my pickup at 10:13 a.m. and got my stuff ready and at 10:35 I left the pickup and headed to where I would try crossing the creek. The rifle I had along today was my .17 Tactical and my reloads were filled with 24.7 gr. of Varget, topped with Danzac coated 30 gr. BTHP Kindler Gold bullets and fired off by Remington 7½ primers. The casings I use are the Dakota .20 Tactical Lapua casings. The bank was steep and I could only take small steps along the steep edge and still maintain my balance. I finally made it to the place I chose to cross the creek at 10:45. Here’s a look at the creek bank I had to descend and part of the beaver dam.
I checked around on the creek bank to see if I could find a sturdy branch to use as a walking stick to help me keep my balance as I crossed the creek, but there were none available. Now, I had to take off my hunting boots and slip into my chest waders. I checked my watch to see what time it was when I first entered the water and it was 10:52. The creek bottom was slippery and not very level. My feet would sink into the creek bottom about 8 inches or so each time I took a tiny step. The water was moving fairly fast so besides fighting the uneven, slippery creek bottom I also had to fight the force of the rushing water to keep my balance. Here’s a closer look at where I crossed the creek.
I was wishing I would have been able to find a stick to help me keep my balance. I had my backpack on my back and had my rifle slung over my right shoulder. I had a couple of instances where I thought I was going tip over and take a bath, but managed to keep my balance. I got a little over halfway across and finally grabbed hold of a sturdy stick from the beaver dam to help me keep my balance. I made it to safety on the other side at 11:02 a.m. I said to myself, “THAT WAS EXCITING!!!” I also thought to myself, “You get to do this again on the way back to the pickup!!!”
I walked eastward up off the creek bottom and looked around to find a spot where I could sit on a downed tree to take off my chest waders and get my hunting boots back on. I was sweating like a stuck hog at this point. My glasses were tough to see through because of all the sweat that had run down my forehead onto the lens. That was too much excitement and too much work for this old man!!! I got my waders off and boots back on. I still had about 400 yards to walk to get to the dog town and the temperature was rising rapidly. I decided to put my sweat band on my head so I would look like a Hippie!!!
I crept up the creek bank and wiggled through a bunch of brush to get into position to shoot some prairie dogs. I took my first shot at a prairie dog at 11:25 and went 4 for 4 while shooting from a seated position and resting my rifle on my shooting sticks. No more prairie dogs came back out of their holes, so I walked back down to the creek bottom to get out of the heavy brush and to stay out of sight of any wary prairie dogs and began walking over to the east side of this area of the dog town. The grass along the creek bed was quite high and all of a sudden I thought I heard a wren scolding me, but upon listening to the sound carefully, I finally realized the sound was coming from a rattlesnake located about 4 feet from where I stood. I couldn’t see it because of the dense grass and brush. I set my backpack down and got my shooting sticks out and started to look for the rattler. Finally, I spotted some movement in the grass to the west of me and spotted his head and then his body as he slithered away from me heading towards the water. I thought about following him to try to dispatch him, but seeing how steep the creek bank was, decided the better part of valor would be to just leave him alone and thank my lucky stars I hadn’t been bitten.
I finally got around to the east side of this section of the dog town and finally noted how much dense vegetation had enveloped about half of this area of the dog town. Mounds were abandoned and weeds and grass were thick and tall. This used to be an excellent spot for pottin’ dozens of prairie dogs without having to move around much. I was able to shoot 4 prairie dogs from this one mound and checked my watch and it was already 12:15—slow action! By 12:30 I had only shot three more shots, the last one was only 15 yards away. Here’s a photo of the entrance wound on the 15 yard shot—a tiny hole in the skin. The exit wound was GIGANTIC!!!
The bullet seemed to exit at a 90º angle to where the bullet entered the chest
I had been in the dog town for a little over an hour and had taken a total of 11 shots and killed 11 prairie dogs. I took out my Caldwell Wind Wizard at 12:40 p.m. and the temperature was up to 82º and there was a very slight wind out of the WNW.
I was close to the spot on the creek where I used to use a beaver dam to cross the creek so I checked that dam out and it was still intact and might be usable for a crossing later this year. I decided to head way over to the extreme east end of the dog town and used the creek bottom to keep out of sight of any sharp-eyed prairie dogs. I had walked about 400 yards when I heard that familiar rattlesnake rattle. This had to be a fairly big rattler because the sound was extremely loud and low pitched. I had stopped walking and looked toward the source of the sound and saw the heavy grass and brush moving where I assumed the snake was located. I decided I would not pursue this snake either and decided maybe it would be a good idea to get up off the creek bottom and walk up where there was more direct sunlight and less dense grasses and brush. The sound of those rattles sure gets the heart to pounding and the adrenalin rushing.
It was about 1:20 p.m. when I left my backpack in the shade of some brush and crawled up out of a little ravine to see if I could get a bead on some more PDs. I had taken a total of 15 shots by then. I found two good spots around this ravine. I took 5 shots at each spot and hit 9 prairie dogs and missed one. I had taken 25 shots by this time and nailed 24 singles and had one missed shot. I decided to get back into the shade and have some trail mix and drink some water before heading west so I could get over the ridge to the north of me and shoot some prairie dogs in a little valley up off the main prairie dog town floor. I also spotted a couple of blossoms and stopped to take a photo or two.
I had some excellent shooting from this little ridge. I shot 12 shots without having to move anything other than my gun barrel. By 2:45 p.m., I had taken a total 44 shots, missed on 2 shots, nailed 2 doubles and hit on 40 singles for the day. I took out my Caldwell Wind Wizard to see what the temperature was. I had some trail mix and drank the rest of my water and when I checked the temperature on the Wizard it told me that it was 97º and there wasn’t a breath of wind. It was HOT!!!
I was up on a ridge overlooking the prairie dog town and snapped a few photos of the trees with their leaves turning to fall colors and of the magnificent buttes that surround this prairie dog town. My pickup seemed a long ways away, but it was still a welcome sight. The pickup is in the center, left to right, just above the tree line.
I started back towards the creek crossing at 2:57 p.m. and spotted my pickup sitting up the NW of the creek crossing as you can see in the photo below.
I had my chest waders back on by 3:12 and was down at the water’s edge by 3:20. I got my backpack slung on my back, my rifle slung on my right shoulder and picked up my walking/balance stick and started across the creek. I hit the other bank by 3:26 and was back up at my pickup at 3:35. The climb up the steep bank was pretty tough on this old man, but I made it. I decided that it was time for my late, late noon lunch and after lunch I took a 30 minute nap. I really needed that nap because I was plumb tuckered out.
The last time I was out PD shooting I tried to get to a new dog town, but a deep ravine stopped me. I had checked a satellite view of that area on Google Maps and it looked like I could get to the dog town from the east. So, on my way back home, I tried to find that dog town. Unfortunately the two-track ended about a mile before I got to the dog town, but that put me right in the middle of a new-to-me dog town. The little critters were pretty leery, but I got off 6 shots and hit on 5 and missed the last shot at 302 yards. So, for the day, I took 50 shots and missed on 3 shots, had 2 doubles and hit 45 singles. I was one tired hombre when I got home, but I set my rifle up in my vise and started the barrel cleaning process before hitting the shower.
I drove down to the area, west of the dog town, that I thought would give me the best chance to cross the creek without drowning myself and got out and inspected the creek bank and tried to find a place where I could descend the steep bank without killing myself. I spotted a partially washed out beaver dam and also located a place to climb down the bank to the water’s edge. I parked my pickup at 10:13 a.m. and got my stuff ready and at 10:35 I left the pickup and headed to where I would try crossing the creek. The rifle I had along today was my .17 Tactical and my reloads were filled with 24.7 gr. of Varget, topped with Danzac coated 30 gr. BTHP Kindler Gold bullets and fired off by Remington 7½ primers. The casings I use are the Dakota .20 Tactical Lapua casings. The bank was steep and I could only take small steps along the steep edge and still maintain my balance. I finally made it to the place I chose to cross the creek at 10:45. Here’s a look at the creek bank I had to descend and part of the beaver dam.
I checked around on the creek bank to see if I could find a sturdy branch to use as a walking stick to help me keep my balance as I crossed the creek, but there were none available. Now, I had to take off my hunting boots and slip into my chest waders. I checked my watch to see what time it was when I first entered the water and it was 10:52. The creek bottom was slippery and not very level. My feet would sink into the creek bottom about 8 inches or so each time I took a tiny step. The water was moving fairly fast so besides fighting the uneven, slippery creek bottom I also had to fight the force of the rushing water to keep my balance. Here’s a closer look at where I crossed the creek.
I was wishing I would have been able to find a stick to help me keep my balance. I had my backpack on my back and had my rifle slung over my right shoulder. I had a couple of instances where I thought I was going tip over and take a bath, but managed to keep my balance. I got a little over halfway across and finally grabbed hold of a sturdy stick from the beaver dam to help me keep my balance. I made it to safety on the other side at 11:02 a.m. I said to myself, “THAT WAS EXCITING!!!” I also thought to myself, “You get to do this again on the way back to the pickup!!!”
I walked eastward up off the creek bottom and looked around to find a spot where I could sit on a downed tree to take off my chest waders and get my hunting boots back on. I was sweating like a stuck hog at this point. My glasses were tough to see through because of all the sweat that had run down my forehead onto the lens. That was too much excitement and too much work for this old man!!! I got my waders off and boots back on. I still had about 400 yards to walk to get to the dog town and the temperature was rising rapidly. I decided to put my sweat band on my head so I would look like a Hippie!!!
I crept up the creek bank and wiggled through a bunch of brush to get into position to shoot some prairie dogs. I took my first shot at a prairie dog at 11:25 and went 4 for 4 while shooting from a seated position and resting my rifle on my shooting sticks. No more prairie dogs came back out of their holes, so I walked back down to the creek bottom to get out of the heavy brush and to stay out of sight of any wary prairie dogs and began walking over to the east side of this area of the dog town. The grass along the creek bed was quite high and all of a sudden I thought I heard a wren scolding me, but upon listening to the sound carefully, I finally realized the sound was coming from a rattlesnake located about 4 feet from where I stood. I couldn’t see it because of the dense grass and brush. I set my backpack down and got my shooting sticks out and started to look for the rattler. Finally, I spotted some movement in the grass to the west of me and spotted his head and then his body as he slithered away from me heading towards the water. I thought about following him to try to dispatch him, but seeing how steep the creek bank was, decided the better part of valor would be to just leave him alone and thank my lucky stars I hadn’t been bitten.
I finally got around to the east side of this section of the dog town and finally noted how much dense vegetation had enveloped about half of this area of the dog town. Mounds were abandoned and weeds and grass were thick and tall. This used to be an excellent spot for pottin’ dozens of prairie dogs without having to move around much. I was able to shoot 4 prairie dogs from this one mound and checked my watch and it was already 12:15—slow action! By 12:30 I had only shot three more shots, the last one was only 15 yards away. Here’s a photo of the entrance wound on the 15 yard shot—a tiny hole in the skin. The exit wound was GIGANTIC!!!
The bullet seemed to exit at a 90º angle to where the bullet entered the chest
I had been in the dog town for a little over an hour and had taken a total of 11 shots and killed 11 prairie dogs. I took out my Caldwell Wind Wizard at 12:40 p.m. and the temperature was up to 82º and there was a very slight wind out of the WNW.
I was close to the spot on the creek where I used to use a beaver dam to cross the creek so I checked that dam out and it was still intact and might be usable for a crossing later this year. I decided to head way over to the extreme east end of the dog town and used the creek bottom to keep out of sight of any sharp-eyed prairie dogs. I had walked about 400 yards when I heard that familiar rattlesnake rattle. This had to be a fairly big rattler because the sound was extremely loud and low pitched. I had stopped walking and looked toward the source of the sound and saw the heavy grass and brush moving where I assumed the snake was located. I decided I would not pursue this snake either and decided maybe it would be a good idea to get up off the creek bottom and walk up where there was more direct sunlight and less dense grasses and brush. The sound of those rattles sure gets the heart to pounding and the adrenalin rushing.
It was about 1:20 p.m. when I left my backpack in the shade of some brush and crawled up out of a little ravine to see if I could get a bead on some more PDs. I had taken a total of 15 shots by then. I found two good spots around this ravine. I took 5 shots at each spot and hit 9 prairie dogs and missed one. I had taken 25 shots by this time and nailed 24 singles and had one missed shot. I decided to get back into the shade and have some trail mix and drink some water before heading west so I could get over the ridge to the north of me and shoot some prairie dogs in a little valley up off the main prairie dog town floor. I also spotted a couple of blossoms and stopped to take a photo or two.
I had some excellent shooting from this little ridge. I shot 12 shots without having to move anything other than my gun barrel. By 2:45 p.m., I had taken a total 44 shots, missed on 2 shots, nailed 2 doubles and hit on 40 singles for the day. I took out my Caldwell Wind Wizard to see what the temperature was. I had some trail mix and drank the rest of my water and when I checked the temperature on the Wizard it told me that it was 97º and there wasn’t a breath of wind. It was HOT!!!
I was up on a ridge overlooking the prairie dog town and snapped a few photos of the trees with their leaves turning to fall colors and of the magnificent buttes that surround this prairie dog town. My pickup seemed a long ways away, but it was still a welcome sight. The pickup is in the center, left to right, just above the tree line.
I started back towards the creek crossing at 2:57 p.m. and spotted my pickup sitting up the NW of the creek crossing as you can see in the photo below.
I had my chest waders back on by 3:12 and was down at the water’s edge by 3:20. I got my backpack slung on my back, my rifle slung on my right shoulder and picked up my walking/balance stick and started across the creek. I hit the other bank by 3:26 and was back up at my pickup at 3:35. The climb up the steep bank was pretty tough on this old man, but I made it. I decided that it was time for my late, late noon lunch and after lunch I took a 30 minute nap. I really needed that nap because I was plumb tuckered out.
The last time I was out PD shooting I tried to get to a new dog town, but a deep ravine stopped me. I had checked a satellite view of that area on Google Maps and it looked like I could get to the dog town from the east. So, on my way back home, I tried to find that dog town. Unfortunately the two-track ended about a mile before I got to the dog town, but that put me right in the middle of a new-to-me dog town. The little critters were pretty leery, but I got off 6 shots and hit on 5 and missed the last shot at 302 yards. So, for the day, I took 50 shots and missed on 3 shots, had 2 doubles and hit 45 singles. I was one tired hombre when I got home, but I set my rifle up in my vise and started the barrel cleaning process before hitting the shower.
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