In Iowa we have the great decisions. Do I take my muzzleloader or my shotgun during the Shotgun seasons? The answer to that question depends on how you hunt and who you hunt with. As for myself I lean towards the muzzleloader.
The reasons for taking my muzzleloader are my own reasons, but the big one is accuracy. With my rifle and 115grains of Blackhorn 209 pushing a 290grn Barnes or 300grain TC Shockwave (depending on which I have sighted in), I feel more confident that a magazine full of sabot slugs, or worse the good ol' fosters---another story for another blog. With my TC Endeavor I just feel "better" (kind of a warm fuzzy thing) knowing that I can hit what I aim at out to 200yards or more. Last year on a deal sale I purchased a Savage 210F 12ga. bolt action slug gun. Shooting Hornady SST slugs the best accuracy I could get with that slug gun was 1 1/2inches at 100yards, vs. the .891 that my TC Endeavor shot the last time I was at the range. Accuracy is important to me and that is one reason I like my muzzleloaders.
I spent some time at the range recently and learned that at 175yards my rifle and load are only dropping about 2 inches. I would have shot 200 but didn't have the range to do it, so that is coming up in the near future. From a steady rest I am confident that I can cleanly kill deer at that range, again provided a steady rest and still target. The farm which I hunt, most of the shooting is done from a blind or stand and a rest is readily available especially during the shotgun seasons, where either the deer are not being pushed or the neighboring ground is being pushed and the deer are using the ground I hunt for cover.
As I only have an antlerless tag I also shoot for meat, and I have found that I am more likely to take more percise shots when I only have the single shot afforded me by the muzzleloader.
The who we hunt with; I hunt either alone or with my father, possibly one other person in the mix, we don't drive the deer as I stated above. Those who hunt in large parties, and there are many of my friends in this group, often trade their muzzleloader in for shotguns.
So no matter what you decide to use this year, make sure it works for you. Be safe and careful.
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