Several weeks ago I headed out for multiple days to get away from the house and to knock out a few video projects I had going on. Marley and I loaded the Jeep and made way to one of my more frequented locations that sits at around 5800' elevation.
We arrived fairly late in the afternoon and setup a primitive type tarp shelter under a sparsely forested area. Typically this time of year it gets up over triple digit temperatures but this particular day was only into the high 80's with a slight breeze, what I would call excellent camping weather.
For this trip I did bring several rifles to use over the few days of being here, one of these was the New Western Airguns Rattler chambered in .30 caliber. I received this rifle from AOA to field test and provide feedback and support to them as an end user. This is a gun I have much enjoyed my time with and although its not a gun I enjoy carrying due to weight, it does have some advantages over a few others. This rifle can produce up to 180 fpe but I feel as though it's most enjoyable to shoot in the higher power levels between 120/140fpe that it produces very easily.
Aside from producing such a massive amount of power it can also easily configure to just under 50 fpe that works well for small game such as rabbits. I have previously been doing lots of shooting with this gun on the higher end of the power levels but for this trip I decided to turn it down to shoot the 44gr JSB's to 730 fps. This produces just about 52 fpe, good for shorter range small game and will yield near 80+ shots, more than enough for an evening rabbit hunt. haha Marley and I set off away from camp into the nearby foothills that does tend to be loaded with Cottontails.
We made our way out of the tree line and headed up a faint animal trail that took us into the higher foothills where we immediately spotted a few Deer.
Now as dry as this location looks it does in fact have several prominent water source's not far from here, one being a small pond and the other being a creek that are both fed from a natural spring. I think the fact this is about the only area for near 70 miles that has water it tends to be a bit busier with the animal activity. We spend lots of time here and have still yet to explore all of it as it is extremely rugged and fairly dangerous during the summer months. Carrying plenty of water and trying to find any shade you can to take breaks is really the key to maneuvering these areas. Marley and I found a nice spot to sit down that both gave us some block from the sun as well as giving a nice overlook of the area below. Typically when the evening comes and it starts cooling down it when you see the most animal activity, this goes especially for Rabbits.
Marley and I sat for about 20 minutes or so just scanning the area where I finally spotted a Cottontail moving about next to some sagebrush, it slowly moved out into the open where I made a headshot at 42 yards.
Typically for my use .30 caliber is a bit much for Cottontails at such close range but I really think this is where the beauty of being able to turn the gun down comes into play. Marley is funny because she's not really used to hunting this close, when she ran out she bypassed the Rabbit thinking it was much further. After a minute she realized it had been much closer and was able to tractor it up in her typical retrieval.
I packed this guy up, we hiked around a little more but didn't really see anymore activity with the Rabbits. For me regardless of the hunting it's still nice to get out and hike around with these guns and really learn how they perform under different conditions away from a bench.
Thankfully it was starting to cool down that made for a very enjoyable hike back to our camp, I love how the sun comes through the trees.
About three years ago I upgraded to a 12volt refrigerator that has for me been extremely helpful for multiple days in the field and being able to keep everything cold. Before I was limited to using regular and dry ice that worked ok but did require me to use a much larger ice chest, so this has been a good deal for me to conserve space. My favorite part of these days is to sit and enjoy the beautiful sunsets, it's to me a highlight.
After a long day it was nice to cook up some dinner, relax and just have a nice quiet night away from the city. I setup a small cot that worked well for us, heck I could sleep like this every night if it wasn't for the many responsibilities I have at home.
We had a great trip and I really do enjoy sharing them with others as I realize some aren't as fortunate to be able to get out on the regular. Enclosed is the video of this trip that I hope some will find well documented. Cheers, Dana
We arrived fairly late in the afternoon and setup a primitive type tarp shelter under a sparsely forested area. Typically this time of year it gets up over triple digit temperatures but this particular day was only into the high 80's with a slight breeze, what I would call excellent camping weather.
For this trip I did bring several rifles to use over the few days of being here, one of these was the New Western Airguns Rattler chambered in .30 caliber. I received this rifle from AOA to field test and provide feedback and support to them as an end user. This is a gun I have much enjoyed my time with and although its not a gun I enjoy carrying due to weight, it does have some advantages over a few others. This rifle can produce up to 180 fpe but I feel as though it's most enjoyable to shoot in the higher power levels between 120/140fpe that it produces very easily.
Aside from producing such a massive amount of power it can also easily configure to just under 50 fpe that works well for small game such as rabbits. I have previously been doing lots of shooting with this gun on the higher end of the power levels but for this trip I decided to turn it down to shoot the 44gr JSB's to 730 fps. This produces just about 52 fpe, good for shorter range small game and will yield near 80+ shots, more than enough for an evening rabbit hunt. haha Marley and I set off away from camp into the nearby foothills that does tend to be loaded with Cottontails.
We made our way out of the tree line and headed up a faint animal trail that took us into the higher foothills where we immediately spotted a few Deer.
Now as dry as this location looks it does in fact have several prominent water source's not far from here, one being a small pond and the other being a creek that are both fed from a natural spring. I think the fact this is about the only area for near 70 miles that has water it tends to be a bit busier with the animal activity. We spend lots of time here and have still yet to explore all of it as it is extremely rugged and fairly dangerous during the summer months. Carrying plenty of water and trying to find any shade you can to take breaks is really the key to maneuvering these areas. Marley and I found a nice spot to sit down that both gave us some block from the sun as well as giving a nice overlook of the area below. Typically when the evening comes and it starts cooling down it when you see the most animal activity, this goes especially for Rabbits.
Marley and I sat for about 20 minutes or so just scanning the area where I finally spotted a Cottontail moving about next to some sagebrush, it slowly moved out into the open where I made a headshot at 42 yards.
Typically for my use .30 caliber is a bit much for Cottontails at such close range but I really think this is where the beauty of being able to turn the gun down comes into play. Marley is funny because she's not really used to hunting this close, when she ran out she bypassed the Rabbit thinking it was much further. After a minute she realized it had been much closer and was able to tractor it up in her typical retrieval.
I packed this guy up, we hiked around a little more but didn't really see anymore activity with the Rabbits. For me regardless of the hunting it's still nice to get out and hike around with these guns and really learn how they perform under different conditions away from a bench.
Thankfully it was starting to cool down that made for a very enjoyable hike back to our camp, I love how the sun comes through the trees.
About three years ago I upgraded to a 12volt refrigerator that has for me been extremely helpful for multiple days in the field and being able to keep everything cold. Before I was limited to using regular and dry ice that worked ok but did require me to use a much larger ice chest, so this has been a good deal for me to conserve space. My favorite part of these days is to sit and enjoy the beautiful sunsets, it's to me a highlight.
After a long day it was nice to cook up some dinner, relax and just have a nice quiet night away from the city. I setup a small cot that worked well for us, heck I could sleep like this every night if it wasn't for the many responsibilities I have at home.
We had a great trip and I really do enjoy sharing them with others as I realize some aren't as fortunate to be able to get out on the regular. Enclosed is the video of this trip that I hope some will find well documented. Cheers, Dana
Last edited:
