I just returned from a successful cow elk hunt with Boulder Creek Outfitters in Idaho. The day my partner and I arrived we were paired with another man from Idaho. This fellow had apparently hunted elk quite a bit in the northern part of the state and he sounded quite experienced. He said he had previously killed several 5x5's.
Our first actual hunting day found us in a truck with quite a long, early drive to our hunting ground so we visited to pass the time. Our guide asked us at what distance we were comfortable shooting. My buddy and I asserted that we were comfortable shooting at around 300 yards but preferabably a shorter range. The other man from Idaho said he was after a nice bull and was comfortable shooting at 500-600 yards as he had this Leupold scope which he could twist the elevation dials and adjust his impact point for various ranges. His new Browning rifle could put 3 shots into a six inch circle at 500 yards. As he said, his "rifle is accurate out to 500 yards. I've practiced at 500 yards and I can make the shot. My range finder also adjusts for horizontal elevation distance to the target and my scope dials are matched to my particular bullet and load."
Well, you guessed it. That morning he had an opportunity at a nice 6x6 bull at something approaching 525 yards across a canyon. It was raining slightly, some blustery wind, and he was prone using his bi-pod attached to his rifle laid over his back-pack. The elk were moving slowly across the hill side slightly below his horizontal elevation. He fired three shots and missed all three. His first two shots were called "high" by one of the guides.
He couldn't figure it out. He admitted he wasn't steady using his bi-pod over his pack, necessary due to the tall grass. It was raining denying a clear visual on the elk. It was windy. He wasn't sure he was ranging the correct animal due to the rain, and extreme distance. He had made the necessary scope adjustments. Thre may have been other possible reasons for the miss too but I have forgotten them.
There you have it. The trials and tribulations of shooting at game at long ranges in real life situations.
