"Good to a thousand" mentality??

[Coach]

It is really great to hear from so many people on here that have realistic expectations and really know what their limits are - great job putting ethics ahead of ego. For those of you who acquire the ability to take long shots and understand all the variables that go into it, kudos. To those who choose not to take a shot your aren't confident in and get closer - also kudos.

 

To the ones who want to go "fling lead" or "fling arrows" without proper preparation or respect for our animals, please take up golf.

[muledeerarea33?]

I hate walking far for no good reason. If I shoot at a deer over 5-600 yards then I'll have to walk down and look for blood. Since I always walk down to check, I'd hate to do so knowing I either missed or made a bad shot and have to track an animal for miles. 500 is my longest deer shot.

[452b264]

when i was walking over to locate the buck my dad killed there was a small 2 point around 50-60 yards from me on an open, grassy hillside without even a tree on it. a side by side loaded up with hunters slammed on their brakes and shot over my head 4 times from i would guess 7-800 yards out. scares me to think about it. i was caught in a serious crossfire, had to hit the deck and army crawl over to a tree until they stopped shooting. i hate to think it, but i would bet i was in their scope along with the buck. absolutely 0% chance they didn't see me.

The bull in my avatar has a bullet hole drilled through it at about 45 degree angle on the right antler in between the first and second point, the bull was facing the shooter, the shot was 800 to 1000 yards depending on which ridge he shot from. I had scouted hard, and found three bulls in this drainage a 350 6x6, a 5x5 with mass that made the 350 bull look small and the little 6x6 in my avatar which I shot at 65 yards.

[Cell4soul]

On my hunting trip to Wyoming my buddy and I had some a-holes blow a stock for us by thinking they were "good to 1000". We we glassing and saw 4 bucks bed in this little cut. We spent about 1 hour putting a stock on the deer. We made it to just before the top of a small ridge where we intended to set up for a shot that would have been about 200 yards. We took our packs off to get ready to crest the ridge. We were about to work into a shooting position when a shot rang out, followed by 6 more shots. The shots were coming from across a valley on top of a peak. We could tell by the sound of the shot they were shooting right towards us.....we could hear what sounded like the bullet breaking sound barrier before we heard the muzzle blast. It really pissed us off. They had to know we were there. We were wearing orange and clearly in their line of sight.

 

the bucks busted out of there. About 30 minutes later we went over the saddle where the bucks had busted out and saw someone on the other side had just taken one of the bucks. He confirmed the buck was with 3 others. Buck would have scored over 190". It made me sick.

[hunter4life]

Just over a week ago I was on an elk hunt with my uncle. We glassed up a good bull at 600 yards hanging out with a busted up bull. That distance is not a go for him (or me) so we snuck in and killed him at 120. Awesome stalk down a canyon bottom, through 2 cliff bands and having to back out at 130 yards and change positions because we could only see the busted bull from the first position. It was then an hour wait for him to get up and move into a clearing to clear some brush.

 

A much more fun "hunt" than having just shot him at 600 yards. We had to play the wind, stay hidden from view and keep quiet. IMO that is what hunting is all about.

 

I am all for practicing at longer ranges. Inevitably you will make a bad shot and end up with a wounded animal if you hunt long enough. In that situation it can really help to be proficient and know your rifle for those longer shots. Remember, the deer/elk/quarry you are pursuing is not your enemy. It is an animal that is giving up its life for our food and sport. A true hunter gives his/her quarry great respect. Unfortunately, I too seem to see a lot less of that nowadays.

 

If it was an ISIS terrorist about to behead some poor civilian. Then by all means give it a shot at whatever range you are at. That is an enemy and a wounding shot is as good or better than a killing shot. The "sniper" mentality has no place in hunting. About a year or so ago B&C published a statement on long range hunting. I thought it summed everything up quite well and fits with my philosophy. I will have to try and find a link to it.

[rageinthesage]

I can shoot the balls off a piss ant from a thousand yards, just so you know...

[dse]

I think most everyone could be capable of shooting 1000 yards if they put as much time and money into it as they do their Tv. I also think I've seen 10 times the animals missed or wounded inside 150 yds by the cowboys that think you have to shoot off hand because John Wayne did it that way, as I have beyond 500 yds.

[Chimichanga]

Good read so far. I'm no expert long range shooter by any means but I sure do my best at practicing at all ranges. I also make sure to practice from hunting situations because there is a great difference between shooting off a concrete table with little to no vertical angle and shooting in a hunting situation off a pack, shooting sticks, bipod, or whatever other means.

 

During an actual hunt I always try to sneak in as close as possible without making a situation where I can spook the animal out. However, in some instances, there can be an animal straight across a canyon and 600 yards is your closest option. (For people that disagree they obviously have never hunted unit 27).

 

This past week my sister smoked a coues buck with my rifle at 850 yards one shoot dead as can be. We needed the elevation at our setup to be able to see the bucks when they stood up so moving positions was not a viable option. She had a rock solid rest from the prone position and had more than enough time to figure out the shot when it was presented.

 

The buck i ended up shooting was a totally different situation. We glassed him up way out. Closed in to 630 yards and could have attempted a shot but I knew could get a lot closer. I ended up climbing a ridge to not only get within 320 yards but I also changed my shooting angle from 22 degrees to 3 degrees. When the buck stood up to stretch his legs I anchored him down with 1 clean and ethical shot I was more than comfortable making.

 

I have put in the time, effort, money, time, time and more time to be able to take a further shot if needed. On the other hand, I'll close the distance as much as possible whenever I can.

 

I'm not trying to make an argument for either side. I know what I'm capable of shooting in a situation and if I attempt a shot then that means I'm comfortable with the variables. Each situation is different for everyone so just because you lose a wounded animal doesn't mean you took an unethical shot.

 

I enjoy reading everyone's opinion so I figured I'd throw mine out there for everyone to chew up.

 

Armand

[mattys281]

Like ole Clint said, "a man has got to know HIS limitations!"

 

Its really know different than people buying 200mph cars or motorcycles. The equipment may be capable, but if you try it you're most likely heading for disaster.

[Vixen]

Tim McGraw was doing this stuff years ago with his hickory bow, don't cha know.

[Tac]

It all depends on situation and ability.

I have had hunters kill animals on our hunts at 60 yards and say thats not where i was aiming.

Practice any distance or shots you may take, use the best equipment you can afford that has proven itself to you, and make sure you are comfortable with any shot you take.

[WHT_MTNMAN]

The further I shoot the further I have to hike to go check for blood or a wounded animal. I am very discerning now on how far I shoot.

I do like having the abilities to shoot well at long distances.

[sjvcon]

I am sure there are some folks on here that ARE good to a Thousand ... former Military Snipers, maybe some LEO's that shoot for SWAT Teams, maybe some guys who have taken some courses in LR and work at it really hard. They all have top tier guns, scopes, range finders, etc. would be my bet. Fact is, most of us are good to a couple/few hundred...a minority are good 500-700...and it goes down from there.

 

These guys that go out and shoot steel at 1000 yards need to realize that steel doesn't move a the drop of a hat. There aren't many branches, twigs or grass that can affect the path of their bullet on a range like there are in the field. Weather ... not just wind, but temperature, RH and other factors ... also affects things greatly. Taking shots that far may or may not yield results, but my bet is that for most of us it'd be a LUCKBAG shot if we got a clean kill that far away. Best case otherwise is that we miss. Worst case is that a wounded animal hightail's it out of there and we never find them ... they go off and die (what a waste).

 

My motto is that if I don't think I can get a 1 shot kill at the range I am at, I get closer. If I blow it and spook the animal, well so be it. Ideally I'd like to get up to about 100 yards if I could ... I figure if I can do better than that with a bow, why not do it with a rifle to insure the placement of the shot. Have I shot farther ... sure. But I sure don't like to. Canyon shots if they come up ... those situations.

[trphyhntr]

Minority? With a sighted in gun and proper ballistic app I can't see how anyone couldn't shoot 5-600 yards? What am I missing here?

[cjl2010]

Wind