Just got back from my Montana Elk hunt, got a spike in the Elkhorns between Boulder and Helena Montana. We saw a few bigger bulls in thick timber that we couldn't get a shot on. We had a great trip and good hunting weather, had about 4-5 inches of fresh snow. Shot this one with the 6.5 Creedmoor at 650 yards, made a good kill. The kill shot went through the rib cage behind the shoulder and jellied the liver, he didn't drop right away and stumbled and quartered towards me, I put another one in his front quarter before he dropped, when I skinned it, the one that hit the front quarter only penetrated the hide and barely stuck in the muscle. I think the 6.5 is suitable to the task, but shot placement is definitely critical. Looks like if you put it in the sweet spot, it will drop it (the one that went through the rib cage was a through and through shot, but the one that was a little forward did not penetrate the shoulder muscle) Here are a few pics of the trip.
