Sentiment. Connection. Snowflakes blessing a Mid-West buck pole on a crisp November day. The smell of Hoppes, bacon grease and gun powder mingle with the unmistakable scent of snow-dampened wool and wood smoke. The slap of cards on a battered wooden table joins the chorus of a crackling fire and the days’ stories. And, reclining in the wall gunrack, the timeless rifle that has been there for it all sits bathed in the flickering lamp light.
Welcome to Deer Camp.
Welcome to the past.
And, welcome to the Red Plaid Project.
This is a story that has a piece of my heart on many levels. I didn’t grow up a hunter and don’t have the rich tapestry of generational memories inherited by so many in this particular world. The only Deer Camp of which I have ever been a part was by marriage. When that construct ended, so did the family hunting camp experience.
While I have broken bread, toasted successes and shared stories in hunting camps worldwide, I have never had that physical map dot that I felt was mine. That has taught me something. It’s not the space or the place—it’s the mindset and the memories.
In that vein, I have several projects this year that have unintentionally aligned with legacy, heritage and sentiment. I believe we create that which our soul needs. I love the technology, high-BC bullets and cutting-edge design concepts that envelope the shooting and ballistic work in which I get to partake. I cherish the beautifully engineered shotguns finished with top-grade wood I get to take afield. My heart thrills at the beauty and fierceness of the handguns I get to take to the range. But above all that, there is a part of me that is craving a moment of simplicity.
I want to leave my Sitka and Kuiu in the closet and lock my fancy rifles in the gun room. I am seeking the energy of the past through artless classicality. Donning a coat of red plaid wool that smells of pipe smoke and a wood stove, I will take to the forest while an early snowfall whispers around me. With a Stormy Kromer hat pulled down over my thick ponytail, I will snuggle into the oversized collar of my coat. In the soft wintery silence, I want every exhale to be a visible path into the soul of the hunt as the brushy pine boughs clutch my passing shoulders.
If a shot presents, I want to feel the warm battered wood of a classic rifle stock against my cheek and revel in the unfettered view down an irons-only barrel or through a simple scope. And whether I am blessed with a harvest at the end of this project or not, I will give that rifle a place of honor upon the wall beside the red plaid jacket – a daily reminder of the elegance and simplicity of the beautiful heritage called hunting.
What Am I Looking For?
I want a classic platform. After evaluating old-style pumps and early-model bolt guns, I was leaning toward a lever gun. There’s something intoxicating about the sleek metal loop that is both Wild West and timeless deer rifle. Having recently gone down lever-lovers’ lane, I have to say I’m hooked. To me, lever guns invoke connection to eras past and a fierce feeling of dominance over the future. There is also something inexplicably satisfying about running a lever gun… “Ka chink, Boom, Ka chink, Boom, Ka chink, Boom.” Like Little House on the Prairie meets John Wick...
I had a lever gun in mind. Now I needed to decide on caliber. I’m looking for a caliber that excites me. It needs to be something that draws my heart and entices my mind. It also needed to be a caliber with strong ties to deer camps of the past.
So, I did what any self-respecting Millennial would do—I turned to Facebook. I asked the wonderful world of internet opinions about what rifles speak “Deer Camp” to them and their memories, mores and experiences.
The answers were interesting. I broke down the query by caliber and platform. The .30-30 Winchester and the .35 Remington were frontrunners from a caliber standpoint. Model 14s and 336s were top for platform. The newer generations mentioned .30-06 as a caliber with relative frequency. Ruger #1s also came up quite a few times.
From my perspective, the whole point of this project was to create a connection to the past where neither a history nor a lifeline to it existed. In fact, as I write these words it is our Michigan Whitetail Rifle opening day. I am alone in my kitchen with a snoring dog at my feet, a glass of Cab beside me and “shooting light” seeping through my West line of windows.
With my sons and their dad at their family camp for the weekend, a stiff 27 mph wind and no Deer Camp to go to, I elected to finish up assorted articles. This one seemed quite apropos for this evening.
Hours spent poring over my Cartridges of the World book yielded lots of options, but only one that captivated—the .35 Remington. I am seeking a Marlin model 336 in a .35 Remington.
But Why?
Let’s start with platform. The Marlin 336 has been a mainstay in deer camps for decades for a few reasons. The reliability, simplicity and effectiveness are undeniable. In fact, the 336 is the only remaining chambering for 35 Remington.
Caliber. This one took some soul searching. Many deer camp table conversations and big-buck stories later, there were two calibers that seemed to be a recurring theme in “Turdy Point Buck” tales (thanks to Da’ Yoopers). The .30-30 and the .35 Remington. The .35 Remington has significantly better knockdown power over the .30-30—the heavier bullets make a larger and theoretically more terminal wound. As a lover of ballistics, I latched onto the “heavy for caliber” bullet construct and dug deeper. The bullet options for the .35 Remington are not only quite varied if you’re a reloader, but also factory fresh from Hornady if you want a turnkey system.
Hornady launched the LeveRevolution line a few years back and it is an impressive synthesis of fun, function and feeding. The bullet shape, dimensions and materials make running a .35 Remington out of the 336 an absolute next level experience with a variety of bullet options.
Considered a medium power round the .35 Remington, introduced in 1906, is an ideal sub-150-yard whitetail or black-bear chambering. In my home state of Michigan, the average deer hunter will seldom encounter (nor take) a shot over 100 yards, making this a solid deer camp fixture.
Having no experience with either, I selected which path kind of like how I choose a bottle of wine or bourbon—the label and the name. I have a passion for .35 caliber cartridges (more on that later) and Hornady makes a fabulous selection of both bullets and assembled ammunition. Whimsy and ballistic fan girl extrapolations aside, the .35 Remington is ballistically both interesting and effective.
What Next?
The Red Plaid Project is a story inspired by timeless human fellowship in the sacred lifestyle of hunting. Sometimes, we place the greatest value upon that which we lack. Whether a hunter or not, the craving for connection to both others and the past, is a common human denominator. The Red Plaid Project melds the human desire for connection with a hunters’ passion for primal pursuit.
In our next installment of the Red Plaid Project, I invite you to the bench, the range and then the woods with not one, but two, Marlin 336s in .35 Remington. Walk with me through the search for, procurement, outfitting, and testing of, and then finally hunting with, these classically beautiful rifles.
So, grab your red plaid, percolate your coffee, stoke the wood stove and come with me on this journey. I can’t wait to share it with you!
Cheers,
Andi
