My only real bragging right is the bull elk I downed in Colorado, the Presidential Range, in October a few years ago at 560 yds. Was with a guide, spotted a herd across a saddle on another mountain top, altitude just under 13,000 ft. The guide had great binoculars, much better than mine, and picked out a bull lying in the mountain grass. We crawled on our bellies as close as we could get without being seen, and that was 560 yds from the bull, as shown on the guides laser range finder. Took the shot from prone, bi-pod plus forearm on my backpack. Aim point was about 18" above his back. Would have been a one shot kill if the bull had been standing, but since it was lying down, the body "flattened" out, and the 7mm STW hit just under his chest and broke both a front and back leg that were folded underneath. The bull got up and made it over the top and about another 200 yds down the mountain, where I then dropped him with a second shot. Quartered and boned him out, and the guide and I then packed out the meat and antlers down the mountain, a 6 hour trek at night, no trail to follow. Absolutely exhausting.
The gun is an all-weather stainless, fluted barrel, Weatherby Mark V, 7mm STW, sighted in at 2" high at 300 yds, Leupold Vx 3, 3.5-10. At that sighting I was able to place a 5 shot group in a 3" circle from a sandbag bench rest. Trigger pull is inperceptible. This is the finest rifle I ever have owned or shot. I now changed the sighting to 1" high at 200yds, essentially flat out to 300ds, and use it for deer hunting. A little over-kill, but the gun is an absolute joy to handle and shoot.
