Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire What's the closest shot you ever took on big game?

Grab ‘em by the ears and hit ‘em with a rock.

LOL. Someone will be along shortly to whine that your hunting over bait.

Basket 8 pointer, 10-12 yards, looking straight at me in the treestand, trying to figure out what I was, trying to blend in with smaller cedar trees below me. Head to toe camo, face netting, etc... and I blended in with the tree branches behind me.
Reflex Highlander compound bow, 100gr Thunderhead broadheads.

Brown bear at two yards, several deer at about the same.

Fork horn this year. 10 feet.

4 steps on a cow elk shot with a 54 caliber round ball. Came around a tree and there she was. Not sure the actual distance but 4 steps took me to the first blood. She went about 60 yards and piled up. She was my first elk with a muzzleloader.

Ranch lady called a few years ago, there's a spike buck caught in the hogwire fence by the house here, would you come and help me get him loose? OK be there in 10. Got there, he'd gone haywire in a panic had a compound fracture and cuts. Schidt, damn, hell, she says, I guess we just gonna have to eat 'im. She gets her rifle, does the dirty deed at 6 foot right in the earhole, we're skinning the poor little guy, and she, a woman of few words, looks me in the eye and says, I know you're going to talk anyway...so if people are going to hear about this, I'd appreciate if you'd mention I'd made a hell of shot at least.

One mule deer buck, middle of forehead, son's 308, ~5yds. (Antlers fell down to the sides)
One mule deer buck, rear of left shoulder, 243, ~7 yds. Lost much meat on the right shoulder, due to bloodshot.
(Shoulda used the Blackhawk .45)

Straight down one hand shot 12 ft up in a tree dink 8pt 30-06

10' on a charging wounded buffalo the other hunter had gut shot several times. It fell dead on top of me and broke some bones in my back...spondylolisthesis now...it hurts all the time and gets worse with age.

Shot a Javalina with an arrow at about 2 yards one time......................

Several deer within 5 yards of my tree over the years.

Does shooting hogs that are in traps count?

In high school shot a 4 point whitetail with a bow at three feet on the side of a haystack. He had been chased there by coyotes. Shot as he got up from between the bales.

Similar here a couple of times. Though seemed closer by a couple of feet. Amazing to have a leg shaking uncontrollably with buck fever & still manage to have them continue to come in & allow me to make a shot.

Remember when I wished for more self control & now I wish I still got that jacked up when they get close. Buck fever happens after the shot, now for me.

Also whitetail deer, straight down under my treestand.

Archery black bear, straight down from 15 feet

I have shot several deer within 50 feet while on the ground, closest I can remember are a couple bucks (40 years apart) that came trotting down a trail, stopped and didn’t have time to think, “Oh schitt.” One with.45-70 and one with 16 gauge slug. Have shot quite a few from close up from tree stands in the woods.

Killed a doe several years ago that was less that 20 feet from me

2021 Crossbow kill @ 15 feet.
First day out, chained a Summit tree seat to a tree at a good crossing.
Sat down, didn't like the setup. Got up to shift the seat on the tree and presto, here he comes.
Walked right to me like he was on a string. Game over, first day out.

but if you have to get spondylosteis thats the way to get it! ( sorry face)