In the summer of 2002, I went to scout camp to visit one of my sons. When I arrived, I learned that he was at the shotgun range. I had only shot a shotgun a few times in my life, and wasn’t that impressed with the sport. However, as I watched him shoot, I thought it looked fun. When the boys had finished, the instructor, a man named Walt, asked me if I wanted to shoot. I hesitated a little (sore shoulder from a baseball injury), but he said, “It’s a 20 gauge and doesn’t have a hard recoil.” The next thing I knew, I was pointing a 20 gauge semi-automatic downrange hitting 19 of 20 clay targets. Not bad for a novice.
I came home from camp and bragged a little to my shotgun shooting buddy, Chad, who got all excited and took me to a small gun store on Fremont Street and advised me to buy a certain used shotgun. “But it’s a 12 gauge and will kick a lot harder than a 20 gauge.” I countered.
“Believe me, with this gun, you won’t have anything to worry about.” he replied. And he was right. The Remington 1100 doesn’t have the vicious recoil of other shotguns.
I reached the ripe old age of 40 before I got my first shotgun. Since then, I’ve enjoyed shooting thousands of rounds through it with friends and family trying to make up for lost time.
Though shooting is prohibited in this area, I think the shell makes a good micro geocache container, and this spot seems as good as any to place it. Feel free to share any shotgun stories you may have in the online log.
Cautions
I suppose a car could make it on this dirt road, but I would take a high clearance vehicle. A 4X4 isn’t needed unless you go through to Lake Mead Blvd. There is at least one washed out area that might be a little too much to handle for a two wheel drive. Remember water, phone, spare tire, and to tell someone where you are going and what time you’ll be back. Always pay attention to desert critters that could be an issue whenever you’re in these parts.