Home Forums Hunting & Shooting General Big Game "Out west" fact or fiction?

I'd say my average is way under 200. Longest is in the low 300s (I think 319 if I remember right). Shortest about 10.
Mule deer aren't too difficult to stalk in anything other than short grass prairie.

The popularity of magnums out west has as much to do with elk hunting as anything.

My favorite mule deer rifle is a .25-06 Remington 700 CDL, topped by a 6x Leupoold, flinging 115 gr Nosler Ballistic Tips at 3120 fps. Zeroed at 300 yards.

But I've also used a .50 cal traditional muzzle loader and a .44 mag handgun. As well as other modern rifles.

Shots have ranged from roughly 20 yards to 400 yards, with the average likely around 200 yards or so.

Get good with your rifle. Be in decent shape, and come on out to tag a good muley buck!

Regards, Guy

Very true and pretty much the same in my area.

When my kids started hunting, I figured 250 was as far as I wanted them shooting when we went after mule deer bucks. The most enjoyable and memorable part of their first several buck kills was the stalking and sneaking to get within their range. In every case, even with novice hunters, we were able to turn what could have been 350-450 shots into sub 220 yard shots. In some cases we stalked bucks just to get within their 250 yard limit just to see if we could do it, but passed looking for something a bit better.

Longest shot - 400 yards give or take with a 30-06. Closest was 30 yards with a 30-30 Marlin. Most have been between 125-200 yards for me.

I'd say my average shot at deer is under 200.
Antelope is probably closer to 350, but that is because of their chosen habitat in these parts. As was previously stated, they use distance for defense, and have not yet adapted to modern firearms, so they are quite comfortable with people at that distance.
Elk average under 300, with plenty of opportunity for longer shots.
I use standard calibers, 270, 280 or 6mm Rem, mostly, but do use a couple of .264 WM's. Usually 6x scopes and 10x binocs.
One thing I have noticed is that kids seem to prefer longer shots. Probably has something to do with hunting from quads, and pushing animals further in front of themselves.

Here it really depends on which unit you put in for. I've hunted the canyons where you have nothing to hide you. Sneaking up on something is almost impossible. I'll sit and wait in the rocks for a whole day if I have to, until something good comes along:



Longest 1 shot kill in this canyon was 690 yards (648 with angle comp on), second longest 1 shot kill in this canyon was 600 yards with angle comp on. With these shots, I was using a very accurate 300 wsm and 7mm rem mag. I wouldn't shoot a big game animal at this distance if it didn't shoot like this:


I've spent a lot of time shooting past 850 yards, or I wouldn't even attempt a 648 yard shot on a big game animal. I also grew up in Nevada where I took many 500+ yard shots on yotes, deer and jackrabbits. Practice is where it's at:






Now, where I hunt elk in the timber, it is totally different. My shots average 85 yards...

I've been hunting mulies in Oregon for 30-some years. Lots of bucks, I've been very fortunate. Like others have said, there's wide open country and there's tight lodgepole, both hold deer.

Longest shot 425, but that's the only one over 300.

Waaaay more under 200 than over.

.30-06 mainly, 7mm-08 more recently. 6x scope. One .348.






P

About 20 years ago a Navy buddy of mine wanted to come to Montana and hunt antelope. Having no rifles, he asked me what to buy. I told him to get a good 30-06 with a Leupold Vari X III in 2.5 x8. He got a stainless Ruger in 30-06 and a 6.5x20 or some such because the gun dealer in Memphis told him he wouldn't be able to hit antelope 'way out there' with 'only' a 2.5 x8.

He shot his antelope at about 130 yards.

I think my longest shot was 358 long paces and if I hadn't screwed the pooch on the first shot at 200 yards my longest would be considerably less. I primarily hunt deer and antelope in the broken country in south east Montana and it is usually pretty easy to get fairly close. My closest shot was also an antelope at 37 paces. I've shot several deer and antelope at less than a 100, but most in that country seem to be between 150-225; pretty rarely more than that for me.

The opportunity for long shots is always there, but if you study the situation, you can almost always get closer, at least in my limited experience anyway. YMMV.

Hunted WA, OR, and ID with a rifle and my closest was about 20 yards, longest 430, average around 170. I'm sticking with a fixed 6x since most of my shooting was done around 5-6x anyway

Amazing bucks. Man, what a day that must have been!

A veritable "truckload of deer."

I have taken Mule Deer bucks from 30 ft to pushing 400 yards. The 30ft one was with a .284 Winchester with a 2-7X scope and the longer with a 30-06 and a 3-9x scope and 7mm Rem Mag with 3-9x scope.

The longest range finder shot I can recall was an antelope with a 270 Win and a 3-9x scope. 360 yards.

These were unwounded deer. I have stretched it on wounded deer.

I don't think I have shot over 150 yards on whitetail.

When I was young there were people using 308 Savage 99s while hunting the breaks. Heck we used 30-30's too since that was what we had. We always got our winter meat.

Arns: Yes that was a good time! We actually killed them over 3 days, but two on the same day.

That picture was taken when we packed them from the barn into the truck for the trip to the butcher.


Here's a little better picture of the racks after we got the heads off at the butchers. That 3x3 was a very large, old deer.

Be sure to hang it 10' up in a tree so predators can't get it.
I read that a lot by those who've never hunted the west.

FWIW here is probably my best.....taken with a 7x57 at 75 yards with a 4x scope...

Ingwe: Beauty!

With a 7x57! What a surprise!!

Killed more deer with a 7x57 that with anything else. Our elk season runs concurrent with deer,so if I was in country with both, I packed the big gun.


Another 7x57 victim...





and another....





And Ingwewifes best...100 yards, .30-06




Both of mine were taken with a Leupold 1.5-5X VX-III

Hers was a VX-2 in 1-4X

Ha! Very nice Grasshopper!

You really have to love this stuff, no!?

I love "KISS"!

I had a damned good run Bob...too old to climb the hills and drag the beasts back down now!

Another 7x57 buck for you Bob....little scope again.





The 7x57 / Leupold 1x4 combo even worked in open country for antelope...





Love that country....