The snow crunched as we slipped through the frozen woods. We had crossed the track of a foot-dragging whitetail buck in full rut mode. The timber was semi-open with some scattered spruce thickets. We trailed along with the wind in our face, hoping to get a glimpse before it spotted us. Too late, the doe spooked, and exited stage left — taking the buck along. As they fled, the rifle in my hands instinctively came to shoulder, cheek down on the stock, as the 1x scope gave crisp clarity to the departure but no clear shot.
The rifle was brand new. I’d received it a couple days before, taken a few shots to sight it in and since it was late fall deer season where I live in Montana, I couldn’t wait to take it into my favorite hunting grounds looking for a buck. That’s a bit risky by some standards, taking a new rifle to the woods. However, the rifle was one of the first of its kind produced by the manufacturer, and it was, by design, already an old friend — one
