fi fteen yards across the top. On this fl at table-like area were several large rocks and a few tall bushes. Now if I were to take myself and my stuff to the top of that knoll I could shoot in all directions, plus enjoy some shade. That is just what I did. I climbed the knoll with caution
as I had no interest in sharing it with a rattlesnake. An interesting discovery awaited me on top of the knoll. In the center of its fl at top was a hole. This hole was at least three feet deep and was long (and wide) enough for a grown man to lie down in it. The large rocks that I had seen were arranged around the edge of the knoll. There were a few tall bushes growing be- tween the rocks. They provided some shade for the hole. I found that I could shoot in any direction and never leave the hole or the shade. I spent the rest of the day in this location. No prairie dog was more than
250 yards away. I would shoot until the barrel needed to cool. While it was cooling, I would move my equip- ment to face a different angle, get a drink, and eat a snack. I lost count of the number of dead dogs, but there weren’t many misses. The only thing missing was a friend with whom to share the experience. With all of this turning, my boots
had begun to scuff the dirt in the bot- tom of the hole. Something caught my eye and I used a small screwdriver to uncover the fragment of an old rifl e cartridge. It was not a whole cartridge so I could not determine the make or caliber. My only thought at the time
was, “Neat!” But my rifl e was cool and the dogs were barking ugly things. I ran out of ammo before I ran out of prairie dogs. It was one of the best days I’ve had in a prairie dog town. I hiked out, stowed my gear,
and drove away before the sun went down. I decided to stop at the ranch house and report in, which always seemed to please the rancher. He in- sisted I stay for supper. While we ate he asked questions about my day. I think he really wished he could have been with me all afternoon. I described the knoll and hole where I had spent the afternoon. I was in for a shock. “Do you know what that is?” he
asked. “That is a rifl e pit. I have at least four of them on my place.” He contin- ued, “My best guess is that someone once fought Indians out of that hole.” Because he is less than fi fty miles from the Custer Battlefi eld this probably is a safe assumption. The following summer the rancher and I returned to this prairie dog town. After a great afternoon of shooting prairie dogs I stood atop the knoll with the rifl e pit. Here are some of my thoughts. My favorite western writer is
Louis L’Amour. I wonder if that old rifl e pit could tell a better tale than Louis did. Did the person who dug that pit get out alive? When he rolled those rocks into place were people shooting at him? Did he run out of ammo or water? Unless they overran him there was no way to approach that pit under cover. There was nothing to hide behind for more than 200 yards in any direction. Were there prairie
dogs there then? If so, there was no tall grass. Was he armed with a single- shot or a repeater? Did his Springfi eld Trapdoor jam as had those carried by the 7th Cavalry? If only this mound could talk! From this spot I had held off
several waves of prairie dog attacks ... but they weren’t shooting back.
We have learned that the following members have passed away. We at the offi ce extend our condolences to the families of these V.H.A. members. They will be missed afi eld by family and friends.
Allen Drake — Colorado Gene Schurman — Montana Leonard Gault — Oregon Dale Giese — California
Bob Harvey — Nebraska Jerry Dinius — Indiana Frank Bruins — California Bruce Wichern — New Jersey
www.varminthunter.org
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