This is the slow time of year for outdoor-minded people. As mentioned before, we have anglers polishing and sharpening hooks in their tackle boxes.

We have fly fishers checking their fly boxes checking on the size and types of flies used during the past year. The missing flies are those which have been lost to fish, meaning the fish preferred this type and size of fly.

More flies may need to be acquired, by tying or purchasing, to fill the gaps in the fly box.

Hunting ammunition

It is said a hunter needs only one round to notch the annual tag. Yeah, right. A hunter will be well challenged to take only one round of ammo on a deer or elk hunt.

The hunters who have been reloading their own ammunition may well have plenty of ammo left from the last hunting season to carry over through the next season.

There are hunters who purchase 20 rounds of ammunition or reload the same and expect this amount to last for 10 years. This very well may happen. However, my attitude is there is more to just reloading for hunting.

A hunter who has a load in the books, or acceptable to his rifle, which is hitting the target where the hunter desires, why work on other loads?

The answer is simple. Why not?

There are hundreds of loads available: Different bullets, different bullets, different casings, different powder, etc. A hunter can work up a hunting load, to be used only for deer and elk hunting, but work on other loads as well, such as a load for coyotes or general target shooting, etc.

If the hunter hasn’t produced the perfect load so far, or one to satisfy the hunter’s consideration of a perfect load, now is the time to work on this load.

Of course, a hunter could work on the load in July or August, which is a month or so before the regular season. This is a good time to work on another load or to confirm the present one.

Why work on another load? There are other bullets and other powders and other targets. Yes, a regular deer and elk load is good, but a hunter or shooter can have loads designed for time at the range, shooting at paper targets, and, therefore, instructing youth in the shooting sports.

Remember, the shooting sports involve having fun at the range. A family can spend a few hours shooting .22 rounds and the price will be small.

Reloading involves many facets, including shotgun, rifle and pistol. My focus is on rifle reloading.

Tomorrow: Reloading continued.