By Jim

December 13, 2015

In 2015 I was lucky enough to draw a cow elk tag on the Jicarilla Apche Reservation in New Mexico. This hunt was scheduled for December 11-13. I decided to take a chance on getting a shot within the range I was comfortable shooting my Marlin Outfitter chambered for .444 Marlin. I sighted in at 3 inches high at 100 yards as recommended on the box of Hornady .444 LEVERevolution ammunition I was shooting. This ammo tore a ragged hole containing five shots in the sight in target at the range on the reservation. Less than an hour into the hunt, my hunting Partner Paul had his cow down and our guide had me lined up on a nice cow standing in a clearing at a little less than 300 yards. I knew this was a long shot for my rifle/ammo combination but had the confidence in both to be able to make a clean and humane kill at this distance. Holding about 12 inches above my desired impact point, first shot missed slightly high. I corrected my hold over and a subsequent squeeze of the trigger placed the shot directly through the neck just in front of the front shoulder. The cow dropped upon the impact of the 265 flex tip and never moved. This was the quickest and cleanest kill I have ever witnessed on any elk. This was the first time I had used this rifle/ammo combination on an elk hunt, but it won' be the last. Thank you Hornady for providing hunters with the quality ammunition to make our dreams come true.