I fit that category. I only used a muzzleloader 2 years, borrowed it from my brother. It gave me another week of hunting and I got a small buck first day out. Old inline Traditions, 2 pellets max, powerbelt bullets, 209 and a scope. It took 4 hours to find the buck because he was long gone before the smoke cleared. After more then an hour searching, we pride ourselves on tracking skills, I had to call my brother to help. We stumbled on the blood trail over 100 yards in the opposite direction we surmised he went. I can guarantee you that 90+% of the people that call themselves hunters in that region would never have gotten that deer. But the next year I shot a coyote in the exact same spot and never found it after the smoke cleared. Blew a piece of bone out of him even. Jumped on the smokeless bandwagon years later and never looked back. However, I really only do it because I hunt with a group, they travel a great distance and have custom guns. It is a 6 1/2 hour drive for me even. But we take that time because the weather is warmer and the hunt pleasant on private properties. I am there to fill my freezer, not take the trophy of a lifetime. My tradition is with those friends and relatives and CF rifles and rabbit hunting with a beagle. I think the point about Whitetails in the East and Elk in the mountains is spot on.
