I won't shoot 500 yds but I use a single trekking pole. With a little practice, I can lay it against my leg while kneeling or sitting, grab it and a bush in one hand for a rest, or improvise any number of positions to use it. It's also very useful for hiking over rough ground. The drawback...aluminum poles are very noisy when whacked against rocks. Carbon poles are much quieter. Keep the rubber tip on. The metal tips are also very noisy.
This is my intention for my Oct elk hunt.....to shoot from a trekking pole. I've shot a lot off various single stick arrangements, and find it highly effective and simple to use.
Whatever you use, make sure to spend some range time shooting at distance with it to be sure all is working as expected prior to the hunt.
