Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Elk Hunting Is a 300 yard self limit too limiting?

Yes, you'll have that occasionally.






With those ballistics I can hit targets much smaller than an elk, at ranges beyond 300 yards. It's not my shooting skills that are the subject here though.

It's your unqualified statement "Sight your rifle in at 200 yards and you are in good shape to 300 with a standard scope," that's the topic, and like I pointed out above, it ain't necessarily so.

I don't hunt nearly as much as many on this forum, but I've shot a couple of Colorado bulls using the 168 TSX BT in a .308. Worked very well with a 200 yard zero at ranges of 266 and 319 yards, even if muzzle velocity was only about 2,700 fps.

Using a Bog-Pod and holding a little below the backbone in the 300 yard realm is not a particularly difficult job.

I wouldn't argue that point. As long as you know the range, the drop, and where you need to hold.

IMO, that's different than "zero at 200 and you're good to 300."

The majority of elk I've taken and seen taken were under 300 yards. That said, I've taken elk at 350, 400, 411 and 487 yards and passed on many other opportunities that were over 300 yards. Most of the elk, if not all, could have been taken cleanly with a .308.

Take a rifle that you shoot accurately. If you are going to set a limit at whatever range, practice out to that range at least and then some if possible. (I've found practicing at longer ranges build confidence and ability at shorter ranges.) I highly recommend a laser range-finder as judging distances in the mountains can be tricky.

Good luck to you!

Definitely a good range finder... Many flatlanders, like myself, often don't come close to accurately estimating range by eyeballing in mountainous terrain.

Most Western hunters don't "eyeball" range very well either, no matter what the terrain.

Eyeballing across a draw is tricky and most hunters are way off. My laser is always WAY off.

My self-imposed limit for a shot is 300 yards...but last year I took a shot a bit longer than that. I would not have taken the shot had I not had a competent buddy with me who walked me through it. I practice at ranges longer than 300, conditions were near perfect for the shot, I was prone, and he was there as a spotter and kept updating the range for me.

Perfect answer? No. I will add I would rather take a 350 yard prone shot with no wind over a 125 yard offhand shot any time.

There is a ton of good info, advice and related experience in this thread. Very good work IMHO.

As noted, there is no single right answer to the OP. Most hunters seem to want the closest shot reasonable. That includes me - believing those reports on average elk kill range. I will go LR only if the circumstances are favorable and compelling.

In preparing for such, know your rifle completely as well as your own certain capabilities. Take shots at ranges where you have tested yourself/rifle/load with good results. Learn to accurately estimate distances with your eyeballs - game-sized targets at set distances have helped me with this.

300 is only limiting if you can shoot well further.

~300 is fine from a solid rest, chances are that you will be inside that. The vitals on an elk are the size of a garbage can lid so there is some room for error.

My first elk kill was with a guaranteed 2 MOA rifle. At 400 yards I knew the bullet would hit within 4" of my aiming point from the berm rest I had. I dialed the yardage and took out the arteries at the top of the heart.

Arteries? I usually go right for the aorta if I'm inside 1,000 and there's no wind.

I have always set up so that I have a 300 yard circle ranged in advance and had my rifle sighted in so that everything in that zone was point and shoot without having to think. Not thinking just shooting works better and faster for me. Most any solid field rest will allow me to be accurate at 300 yards with no additional preparation required - no need for pack, sticks, bipod or laying on my belly to put 3 into a pie plate sometimes they stay inside a cigarette pack.

Many hundreds or thousands of practice rounds is about right for 300 yard accuracy in high adrenaline hunting situations. If you practice at longer ranges and know your equipment shots at 500 yards on calm or at most breezy days are pretty routine but are never Point and shoot without thinking. We practice out to 800 yards every year and at that distance a pie plate is in trouble but not a guaranteed hit by any means.

As a less experienced elk hunter with less practice and not as capable rangefinder and scope I passed on a few bulls and that drove me to get better tools and practice with them. My limits today are almost double what I felt good with 20 years ago. But my goals haven't changed - I still want to get within 300 yards and not have to think just shoot.

In my opinion an 8" target with 100% hits should tell you your personal limit.

In other words, the range you can hit an 8" paper plate five shots out of five will be your limit.
So obviously this will vary from different positions and different conditions.
If that's 100 yards from off hand then you should not fire at an elk over 100 yards offhand. If you can place all 5 rounds into the plate at 500 yards from prone, your limit from prone should be 500 yards. And so on and so on.
Only practice will improve your marksmanship and will also show you your personal limits. Be 100% honest with yourself and it will save you a LOT of grief in the field.

Well said mr szihn.

I believe his post says 'hundreds OR thousands'......

Everyone knows you are way better than me at everything.

Yep. Including hyperbole.

Sight in for 200 and see how far you drop at 400. Being from the SE myself, it is always surprising how quickly 300 yards comes up. The key is a great rest.