thinking about the trip prior to all the details or showing up, I was considering a Semi auto 308. The Parks guys up here carry Rock River 308s, and in my mind a 16” - 18” 308 shooting 185s would be perfect for higher volume.
The 10mm with dangerous game loads is a proven killer, no drama there. In fact I pretty sure Karin’s April Moose kill was with that, about 40 yards out, put him down pretty quickly and removed the threat.
I honestly think a 300PRC style caliber is plenty but you really only need 22” for a barrel especially if you run a Proof. The pencil thin barrels while accurate heat up too fast to get good with. You need a lot of discipline to limit your round count in order not to heat it up. think the opportunities that a set up like this opens up is far better.
you definitely have to look at your terrain, how open it might be, the threats in the area, bears, your intended game, Caribou vs Moose, etc, as a Caribou can be taken with a 6.5 even a creedmor.
As I noted in Jacob’s podcast, I think the closest percentage wise to a one cailber solution we have is the 6.5PRC. That caliber will take any game, you need a bit more speed for Moose, you want about 3k fps, but I would suspect 2950fps would be fine. (Haven’t run the numbers). But a 300PRC is definitely an Alaskan Caliber and will take anything. I think this idea we need 8LBS rifles vs say a 12LBS one is nuts. If you are quibbling about 4LBS when you consider what you can do with it, you have no clue and need to get stronger. Even as small as I am, I have no issue moving around with a little heavier set up. It’s part of it.
The 1800s Carbine is past it’s prime unless you are hunting bigger game in thick, really thick, brush. I want options and I can easily snap shot a different caliber. The Lever action needs to be paired with a Red Dot and not much else, beyond maybe a 1x- X. Either 6x or 8x for identification when you get the drop on something.
Also for backcountry hunts, especially when you have a options, you want a suppressed .22… we certainly had the ability to hunt and eat grouse. Other stuff too, a suppressed .22 would be a nice addition.
It’s really no different than picking your clothes to wear. I put more thought into my dress than my firearms, and it Mattered. The weather was a mix of warm and cold, with the potential to get wet in the river or have it rain constantly on us. We watched the snow decent from the mountain tops to the base by the end of the Week. The 10mm was plenty to be honest, nothing will keep marching towards me if i start pumping solids into your head.
Being comfortable is super important if you ask me, keeps the mind clear and attitude positive, so we’ll focus on our clothes then say, give me a big gun regardless of it’s actual capabilities. The gun choices needs-to be more dynamic.
She did her homework with regards to her Browning. That was the most common advice she received, why because people think success is measured by the pound. If you go out and regardless of the story you get something you are considered the guy to ask. Heck the woods are full of animals, success is really about location. But now let’s talk identification and Angles. I need to identify the right combination of details, Antler size, tines, etc, but at the same time I want to increase my possibilities by reaching out further. I saw a lot of stuff around the 350 - 450 Yard mark and honestly none of them have any real clue I am there. At 225 the Moose saw me when I went to retrieve my camera, but at 450 when I had a Cow across the river she had no clue and didn’t care. Same with the bison, at 100 yards they stare you down, at 300 they can careless. I even see it on my range with the Antelope, they will hang out around 500 or more yards away, but inside 300 they run. We can be shooting and they will wait for us at 500. Even on the range in AK, Moose cross beyond 600 yards all the time. They just lumber across the range without a care in the world.
Look at the weapon system like we look at our clothes, to me that the bet comparison.