Americana Outdoors E-Magazine - December 2018

ELK HUNTING IN UTAHWITH PERFORMANCE CENTER In October’s early days of 2018, Tony Miele of Smith & Wesson Performance Center found him- self immersed in the autumn colors that were splashed across the Northern Utah landscape. In search of Bull Elk for the first time, Tony has come to Wild Country Outfitters Ranch located in the area of Ogden, Utah. “I was hunting this same ranch last year. They’ve got a lot of great animals on it. There’s probably not a better elk herd in this area than right here.” In hand, was the Performance Center’s M&P®10 rifled in the stout 6.5 Creedmoor caliber. The 6.5 Creed- moor caliber actually has more energy than a .308 caliber round at 1,000 yards, giving the operator

more knock-down power at long distances, which is good to have when taking on a 700lb Bull Elk. The first morning of the hunt begins. As Tony and his guide David start their trek, they can already hear the elk start to bugle. “It was like they were tearing up the airwaves, it was unbelievable!” Tony said. The game plan was to hike along an embankment until the wind was in their favor. Then start slowly descending and pick apart where to go. While they were glassing, a couple of cows entered into the mix. David made a few calls to calm them down and the cows settled in and milled around the