My longtime hunting partner Les Hiesler and I were shooting our big game rifles this past week in preparation for the upcoming elk season in the mountains of Colorado.

This pre-hunt practice is an annual affair, although a rather short one because we usually use these big bore rifles only for elk, and they tend to stay sighted in with little variation from year to year.

But it wasn't always that way with the Browning .300 Winchester Magnum I've shot for the past several years.

The problems I ran into with the big Browning rifle were related to the Honda ATV 4-wheeler I use scaling the rough mountain terrain where we hunt. I first mounted a commercial gun-carrying case to the Honda and thought it was a neat deal. The mounted (and firmly bolted on, I might add) case made the rifle quickly accessible and easy to load and unload.

I used the mounted case for just one year and started having trouble keeping my Leupold scope firmly attached to the .300. Thinking I hadn't correctly attached the scope to begin with, I reattached and resighted the scope in the mountains (losing a half day of hunting) and went on to kill an elk.

The next year on our elk hunt, the scope came loose again and I knew I had real trouble. After another reattach/resight job in the mountains I got home and immediately beat feet to the Shootin Shop in Abilene, where I told my tale of woe to gun guru Doyle Gray.

Gray, who mounts scopes by the dozens each year, finally said I had a set of scope rings that were either too large on the inside diameter, or either to slick inside to properly grip the scope, and went through several options. The last option he mentioned was to epoxy the scope to the mounting rings.

At first I grinned at the epoxy idea, but after reflecting on the real inconvenience of retightening and resighting the rifle in the mountains during the previous two years the idea of a permanently attached scope became even more appealing and I finally told Doyle I was ready for the glue job.

Best decision I made that year. My .300 Win Mag with epoxied Leupold scope has been an effective elk killer ever since. I normally shoot three rounds in the gun each year. Two shots to make sure the rifle is still shooting straight and true before each hunt, and then one shot to kill an elk each year. Oh, every now and then I might have to shoot twice to permanently plant an elk, but generally one shot with a 165 grain Nozler bullet will do the trick.

Has my scope ever moved within the rings, or have I ever had to adjust the scope since the epoxy job? No to both questions.

On the permanently mounted gun case on the 4-wheeler? That case no longer goes to the mountains with me. It simply shimmies and shakes too much to be a good rifle holder and I now carry the .300 on the Honda in a foam-lined, hinged carrying case that holds the gun very steady while in transport. I do have to stop the 4-wheeler and unsnap the lid on this type of gun carrier to extract the gun, but since it is now against the law the carry a loaded gun on a 4-wheeler in Colorado, having the gun quickly available is no longer a significant advantage.

I do use the bolted-on gun carrier on the Honda during quail season, to carry my pump-loading shotgun, and haven't had any problems with this setup. But I will not carry a scope mounted rifle in this carrying case again.

The first question I get from many hunters when I tell them about the epoxy-mounted scope is what will I do if the scope is damaged and requires a trip to the Leupold shop. Hey, I'll simply package the scope and rings and send them in together. If the scope is damaged beyond repair, I'll be out the cost of a set of mounting rings, which is no big deal when you consider how long I've successfully used the setup.

Doyle and I often get a chuckle out of bringing up the epoxied scope in front of some of his customers, and the discussions that follow the tale truly can be interesting.

Big Game Texas Hunts program deadline near

Time is getting short for Texas hunters to enter the Big Game Texas Hunts program for a chance to win one of the many great hunting packages offered. Oct. 15 is the deadline.

The hunt packages, where guides, lodging and meals are included in most instances, are available in drawings for $10 per chance, per hunt, and there is no limit on the number of chances you can buy. The hunts range from birds to alligators to desert bighorn sheep, and there are numerous ways to win a hunt for a trophy-sized white-tailed deer.

If the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) did not mail you an application form, they are available at your local TPWD office, or online at www.tpwd.state.tx.us/bigtime, or by calling (800) 895-4248.

Dove numbers are up again

Remember last week when I bet you a cheeseburger (or something similar) that the doves would return to this area, in good numbers, before the end of the dove hunting season. Well, you owe me a burger.

Gene Ditmore called this past week to tell about hundreds of doves that had returned to the area just east and southeast of Coleman. Ditmore was on his farm in that area, planting deer food plots, and he said the dove numbers looked as plentiful as if the birds had been there before hunting season opened.

I've also noticed a small but significant increase in doves in the area south of Abilene -- not in "hundreds" you understand, but an increase nonetheless. Dove hunting season continues in this area through Oct. 30.

Mayo and hold the pickles on the burger, please.