THEY JUST KEEP COMING . . . AND COMING . . .AND COMING . . .

Memorial Day 2016 -- I took the morning off and met up with Mr. Bob at his Chizzler Reaper trailer in Iron County, Utah.  He and I started the adventure at around 8:30 a.m.  The chizzlers were already there in scrambling around big time numbers waiting for us, and eating lots of alfalfa.  We loaded our .22 LR caliber rifles and started to "reap" them in vast quantities.  Bob and I went straight to work.  We didn't really get to chat and reminisce of olden days reaping chizzlers.  We were surrounded by targets and the more we shot, it seemed, the more they came up out of their underground hides (condos).

Bob is all business.

103 Yards from the squirrel-o-matic

A whole condo complex taken out.

We shot for 2 1/2 hours.  I kept loading my 3 magazines (2 ea. 10 round and 1ea. 5 round) and then would concentrate on each individual shot.  Focus for the shot, hold on the appropriate stadia line on the vertical crosshair, allow for Kentucky windage if necessary,  hold breath, press trigger consistently and follow through.  I was hitting the critters at from 10 to 134 yards with good consistency, over 70% I think.   I was not there to waste ammunition -- I was there to waste chizzlers.  Chizzlers were being reaped by the dozens.  Bob and I finally had to take a break at around 10:30 a.m.  The number or potential targets had not subsided to any great degree, but our fingers were sore from loading magazines and my scope eye was tired and needed a rest.  {You probably don't understand scope eye tired, but hours of concentrated eye use behind a spotting scope looking for game or targeting chizzlers while hunting will make your eye rather fatigued.  Actually, it is a lovely experience.}

I took a few old Herd Bulls in my efforts.  They are big targets but they don't go down easy to a 22 LR.  I had to head shoot some of  the monster chizzlers to anchor them.  I like to get the old ones out of the gene pool.  They are too big, they eat too much, and they have an attitude.  They seem to think they are wearing tiny kevlar vests or something.  They come and go as they please in their world, they knock around the smaller chizzlers, and they are cannibals.  Yes, they eat the dead ones or almost dead ones that are shot in their proximity.

red outline for cannibals

By 11:30 a.m. I was exhausted. My trigger finger has a slight blister, my shooting eye is exhausted, and I was more or less, out of ammo.  I had fired 300+ rounds of 22 LR.  I congratulated Bob on a wonderful shoot.  I packed up my gear.  I took these photos.  I drove home.  What a day !