Saturday at the Property with Two of the Kids

An Early Start

We headed out to the Sandilands early in the morning, hoping to beat the midday heat. We've had a good amount of rain recently, which was great for the property but not so great for the bugs. The black flies were especially bad this year, and they started biting earlier than usual.

A Little Work First

Once we arrived, I unloaded the side-by-side and the kids' ATV so they could ride around while I tackled a few jobs. My first task was installing a jack stand on my new tow-behind flail mower. After getting everything hooked up, I gave part of the property a quick mow before calling it good.

Time to Go Shooting

With the work out of the way, it was finally time to do some shooting.

I had packed my recently converted CZ 457 .22 LR along with the kids' Red Ryder BB gun. My oldest has had a few sessions shooting paper targets, but this time I decided to make things a little more interesting by setting out a few empty Coke cans.

Despite the relentless black flies, he had a blast punching holes through the cans while my five-year-old watched from the side-by-side.

Sighting In the CZ 457

Once he'd gone through a hundred BBs, it was my turn.

The plan was to sight in my newly converted CZ 457 .22 LR, then see how it grouped with Federal Champion bulk ammunition. I was excited to see how the rifle would perform in its new caliber.

Between each 10-shot group, the kids helped pick up empty casings. Before long, the heat started catching up with them, so I fired up the truck and let them cool off in the air conditioning and hide from the flies while I finished the ammo test.

One More Ride

By the time I packed up my shooting gear, I figured the kids would be ready to head home. Between the heat and the bugs, it seemed like they'd had enough for one day.

I was wrong.

They insisted we go for one more ride down the trails before leaving.

My oldest led the way on the ATV while my five-year-old climbed into the side-by-side with me. We spent some time exploring the property and checking on the trails.

With all the recent rain, the trails were starting to get overgrown, which was a good reminder that I have a brand-new flail mower waiting to tackle the job. One of these weekends, I'll have to take it for a proper run down the trails.

Wrapping Up

After the ride, everyone agreed it was time to head home. We loaded up the ATV and side-by-side, packed away the rifles, and started the drive back.

It was another successful day in the Sandilands—a little work, a little shooting, plenty of time with the kids, and another reminder of why I always enjoy spending time out there.