After Boomershoot, I may just go to the Gallatin Valley near Bozeman, Montana.
Gopher reincarnation explains prolific presence
New to the Gallatin Valley, I am also new to gophers. While I was gone recently for ten days, gophers overran my place. My second-floor windows and balconies provide great views of wildlife outside, including the numerous rodents politely called gophers.
In February and early March, before leaving, I had shot a total of 150 gophers. My first day back I shot 68! Busy elsewhere the next day, I shot only seven. The following day I shot 35. All this I did without leaving the house, as the varmints have me circled.
I am enjoying shooting, much to my surprise because I have never had an interest in guns or killing. I never even wanted a gun when I was a part-time federal agent, though my colleagues in the agency took great pride in their guns.
Shooting does not seem to impact the gopher population. My elderly neighbor, who has lived here for seventy-some years, says that is because more gophers are waking from their winter slumber. But there are many more gophers than gopher holes, even if calculated on the assumption of two per hole.
I’m thinking the 308 may be too much for the little buggers though. Maybe I should bring my scoped 10/22?
Found at MT Politics
Ya gotta keep it up, or they’ll develop a hive inteligence & dig the foundations of the house out from under you. I recomend an AK clone with an RPK drum. More time between reloading breaks. Of course, back in New Mexico, we used to just chase the Prairie Dogs (A fancy name for Plauge Rats) with 4x4s or chip golfballs into their holes. (The whole state is a sand trap!)
I associate hereabouts with some members of a SageRat shooting club. Most of these guys had as much moolah in their 22 Mag rimfire bolties as you have in your “reach out and touch someone” rifle. If you are going to keep a RKC (Rat Kill Count), and stay solvent, you are going to have to come down in caliber. Also, the report of that rifle is going to scare some landowners who wouldn’t think twice about leting you shoot a rimfire.
.22 LR is very sporting on ratz, as you need to be able to reach out to 150-200 yards, and that’s a bit much for a LR, even out of an Anschutz.