Night ops

Nature gives to every time and season some beauties of its own; and from morning to night, as from the cradle to the grave, it is but a succession of changes so gentle and easy that we can scarcely mark their progress.

- Charles Dickens -

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It didn't start out as night operations; I got there in daylight. However, as it usually does, the sun set and I had to operate in the dark. That's problematic without the right equipment.

Thermal vision scopes are available and legal here, (and they are incredibly good), but for me the cost is preventative considering how much I'd use it. Half of my shooting is done in daylight or twilight conditions as daylight saving time runs for half the year so to spend $8,000-$10,000 on a thermal/night vision scope doesn't seem a good spend.

When I cull on the farm I do so alone. I like the peace and quiet and don't have to worry about the integrity of others; you know, if they know when and when not to take a shot, firearm safety and just generally. Getting a bullet in the head would probably ruin my day.

The problem with going alone, and with night ops in particular, is that holding my light and shooting is difficult. It's impossible really.

I have two Nitecore MH40 GTR's, which are good for 1000m. Of course, at 1000m there's not really enough light to shoot by but I don't cull at that range anyway. They are tough, powerful lights and I'm very happy with them,

Because I'm alone I mount one to my scope with an adaptor clamp. It hold the light securely and aims it down range so when looking through the scope the point of aim, the crosshairs, are right in the light spot. But therein lies the issue.

_{These images above, taken by me a year or so ago, show the set up - It's not the best way to do it but without spending piles of money it does the job, if only barely.}

There's always loads of particles in the air, moisture, dust and other stuff like bugs and pollen floating about. The naked eye doesn't see them usually. When looking down a scope, through a tunnel of light, it's all one sees. The light picks up on every single thing and reflects back into the scope and therefore the eye. It makes sighting targets difficult.

The issue is that the beam runs along the trajectory of the scope, meaning the scope looks down the length of the light beam, within it. I don't have much choice though.

If I had someone else there they would be able to scan for targets then illuminate it from an angle off to my side which would mean my scope doesn't pick up all the particles in the air lit up by the beam. It would be clear and I'd be able to take the shot without issue.

Last night I took a shot at about 200m on a big target; the head, about half the size of a human head was not all that clear due to the beam issue above but I took the shot...and there's the another issue.

When I fire the rifle shoots flame which is generated by the ignition of the gun powder. It follows the bullet out of the muzzle and is followed by smoke which the light illuminates and I can't see a thing through the scope at all. That means I can't watch the target fall. In fact, I lost it altogether. It just disappeared. That meant I had to trudge up the big fucken hill and see if I could find it. Typically I see the target go down and confirm it through the scope but in this case...Who knew? I don't usually miss but in these conditions, the light issue, I wanted to confirm.

_{My culling rifle system taken last night. You can see the golden light to left of the image, the sun was almost down. Note, the light isn't attached yet.}

I took five last night, all confirmed and dispatched quickly and humanely.

There was a sixth, that one I mention above, however I could not confirm it. I feel bad about that as it's not my way. I went up there to look for it but it was nowhere to be found. Admittedly, the grass is knee high, brownish and it was pitch black but even casting about with my light didn't reveal the downed target. It could have been hidden in the grass, a depression, a shadow from the light, behind a rock...I don't know. I don't feel good about it though. I'm almost positive it went down, but...I have some small shred of doubt and I don't like that.

After that I packed up; I saw others, heard them hopping about too, but I wasn't prepared to take the shots considering the last one I'd taken. I'll be going back tomorrow night, despite the forecast of rain all day and in the afternoon, and have asked a friend to come along. He's going to hold the light for me and I'll probably let him have a shoot too. We'll see.

I enjoyed my night ops and as I drove out, the main picture at the top of this post, I thought about the possibility of a thermal/night vision scope. I'd really like one as it would mean I can shoot without light and depending on how world events go I'll probably have a secondary use for it. I'm not afraid of the dark so being out in the middle of nowhere in the dark doesn't bother me; what bothers me is not killing cleanly. Depending on how things go tomorrow night with my mate, an avid shooter, I may take him along each time as a spotter, at least in the winter months, so I can avoid the situation that occurred last night.