Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Long Range Hunting Why long range?

This is not a dish, I respect all types of hunting, but I'm having a hard time personally trying to justify the reasoning for long range hunting. It might be old age thing or hunting style/old fashion thing, but what are you guys justifying as long range, 300 plus 400 500 600 plus. I like shooting up to 500 yards (longest range we have) and can consistently hit what I'm shooting at(5" groups). I do not fell confident enough to shoot at animals that far. Any small error and judgement and the animal is wounded. What do you guys do to reduce the risk of wounding animals, beside the obvious high power tack driving gun/scope combinations. I have a few of those.

Why long range? Guess you haven't hunted coues wt in S. Az. While there are some bowhunters that have gotten close, most of us prefer to glass across canyons. You can find far more animals glassing the long canyon slopes from the opposite side than tromping around. The big guys are very spooky and run at any movement closer than 440 yds. I'd rather shoot an unsuspecting animal than one that is closer and running.

As for what do we do? My friends and I practice on jackrabbits and the occasional coyote. Lots of field time to become very familiar with the harris S style bi-pod and prone shots on the rough desert ground.

If you miss the gong then you are not consistently hitting..... IE not good enough.

Its done with LOTS of shooting and the right rig/gear.

Why? some just because. Others just in case... you never know the situation, and if I want what I see, why not utilize it.

My one decently long shot was run out of cover and time on a caribou, plane coming in etc..... could I have walked away? Yes, did I want to? no. So I used my skills from shooting iron sights only out to 1000 yards since 91 in competition.... it took me years to become confident ( positively KNOWING I'd hit correctly 200% of the time....) at 300 yards, but slowly realized given decent conditions and knowledge, 600 plus was really easy.

Jeff

It isn't everyone's cup of tea...IMO, game animals deserve lots more than being shot at from long distance, but to each his own...

Game animals deserve more than "being shot at" from any range... azz! They deserve precise shot placement no matter what the weapon or the range. I'm much more likely to put a bullet through both lungs at 600 yards... than some Wal-Mart monkey with a bore sighted '06 taking running shots at 50 yards. Yet, somehow that's acceptable, and I'm the bad guy?

If you can't, then don't... period. If you can, then only you can decide if it's "your cup of tea". Seems to me there was a little incident involving tea a couple hundred years ago... and the whole point was that we didn't want anyone telling anyone else what kind of tea to drink (figuratively). Don't throw a little back-handed insult, and then justify it with "to each their own"... one or the other.

Tightloop-I can't tell where you're from, so perhaps you could enlighten us where you live and what you hunt and under what kind of conditions?

I'm kind of curious about it.

Many thx

Dober

I'll shoot at something at 1K just as happily as 5 yds and dont need anybody to tell me its unethical.
Heck I know a guy who thinks its unethical to hunt with a rifle and tried to push it on me......it didnt work! and to boot he had a 160+ inch whitetail go by him during gun season (while he was using his ethical archery equipment) at 75 yds..........guess who's laughing now!

Cause its fun.

"Any small error and judgement and the animal is wounded"

That would make bow hunting and muzzle loading pretty unethical too.

any small error in judgement is bad at any range... regardless the weapon.

Its why one of my pet answers about shooting at what distance is, given any day and or situation, if I"m 200% confident then I shoot. THat can be 50 yards or MUCH further.

Jeff

Live in Spring, North of Houston...hunted all over Tx, Mexico and western Canada for deer, the Rockies for Mulies and elk...killed enough of those for now unless it is better than any I have previously shot. Also went to Africa in '00, would like to go again, so saving my coins.

Nothing against those who really can hit the vitals of a deer sized target at 400+ yds, just my opinion that it is more in line with what I think hunting should encompass to get into a position that allows you to be certain of your shot placement. And no, I do not shoot or practice shooting at more than 300 yds, guess that is my self imposed limit, beyond that I am not certain of my shot placement; can't read the wind, mirage or work the trigger like Don Geraci or Lones Wigger. Nor do I try to impose my personal restrictions on others. Any form of legit hunting is no more ethical or moral than any other, just as I stated, it is not everyones cup of tea. Not bashing anyone for their personal likes or dislikes, I just don't see what is so appealing about taking a really long shot on game when you possibly could get closer.

I don't see what's appealing about tripe... but plenty of folks eat that stuff every day. I don't see what's so appealing about high fence hunting, or hunting over a "food plot" (bait), or sitting in a tree stand, or using hounds, or clubbing baby seals... but if that's your kick... have at it.

Sometimes you can't get closer... sometimes you can, but it'll take so long you don't know where the critter is going to be when you get there. My half-mile limit probably isn't much different than your 300 yard limit... I don't have to take that shot unless everything is in my favor... same as you. Ain't any difference between a guy who kills game at 800 yards and a guy who kills it at 8... except for a little trigger time.

The reason I have put some effort towards becoming proficient with my tools- high powered scoped rifles- out to XXX yards, is that I have found myself in situations where it was the only game in town. One springs to mind.

My bud Jerry lucked into a big herd of elk at dusk in a big meadow. He killed a spike at about 400 yards; the herd bull was too far away and it was the end of legal light. Shot it right through the heart BTW. But what was interesting, was that he'd seen where the elk had come from, down this long draw from some reprod where they were bedded down about a two miles from the meadow.

So I hiked down into that god-awful hellhole of a meadow, then back up and into that long valley/draw thing. I set up on one side of it, figuring the elk would either run me over, or they'd come down the other side. And sure enough, they did... at dusk... about a dozen of them. By the time they came down it was past legal light so I just watched as best I could.

I was in a really great little "hide" complete with a chest-high fallen log as a rest, and I was rock-solid. I was shooting a very accurate .338. This was before I'd done any long range shooting, though, and I didn't have a rangefinder. Now, I would say that the opposite hillside ranged from 200 to about 500 yards, with my "shooting" zone about 350. My plan at the time was to hold on the top line of their back, which would have worked... but...

So, long story short, it prompted me to get off my butt and learn my rifles, buy a rangefinder, and practice practice practice, so that the next time I was in such a situation I would be prepared.

I'm heading to this ranch in Colorado this year. My buddy took this pic from up a hillside where he was retrieving a dead mule deer. The ranch owners usually hunt the hillside from the opposite side for obvious reasons. I don't know the range, but this sure looks like a moderatly long range opportunity too, for someone who has done their homework.

Where in Colorado is that ranch, the butte in the background really looks familiar...

Wow. Good passionate response. When I mean slight error, is that 1 inch off at 100 yards is nothing out to 300 yrds, but that error is magnified to a wounded animal at 600 or 1K. I shoot thousands of rounds a year (except this one. House building). I try to shoot eddie biddie groups. Lossing concentration on 1 shot of a 5 shot string turns a group to be proud of, in to trash. I have a personal comfort zone of 200 free hand and 300 from a rest (stoney point shooting stick). Anything over that and I try to get closer. In saying that, I hunt where there is usually enough cover to make that happen. I also bowhunt for moose and elk. I also have a personal limit of 40 yrds of comfort. So saying small errors there make it unethical for bow or muzzle loader is irrelevant because a most shooting is done under 30 yrds. A small error at 20 yrds also get magnified at 70 yrds.

Anyway, I don't think it is unethical, I just want to see want you guys do to ensure repeatable hits, not for your personal justification. Anyone can justifiy anything. I re-read me opening remarks and I see how it could have been taken as shot across someones bow. I have the problem at longer ranges. But that is all relevant. What I consider a long range, might be an extreme range to one or a close shot to someone else.

After reading the response, it looks like it comes down to and always will be. Practice, Practise, Practise. I just get frusterated at some guys that come down to the range with the latest and greatest laser beam and huge scope. Shoot 20 rounds at 100 yards and are automaticaly 1000 yard elk slayers



Dan

shoot lots and lots.
I try to go every weekend and my yardage will vary, just like it does while hunting. constantly fine tuning, shrinking those groups to be as tight as possible. and knowing limits. everyone's is different. I grew up bow hunting, I've killed LOTS of whitetails with a bow. now I don't have as much time in the field to hunt, so I need every advantage on my side. scouting, planning and my rifle that I can shoot a cantaloupe with at 500+ consistently.
all greatly increase my odds, I know guys who try for the long shot. not me, I just like to have the ability should the need arise. plus I can cover way more area, and it changes the way and where you set up. I still like getting a 100 yard shot, but anything else is just a little further to walk to retrieve is all

Hell its fun., 0ld school. If you can hit 100 @ 1" you can hit 1000 @ 10".

bigcat hunter... really?

Tightloop, it's near Mancos, which is near Durango. Unit 741.

Dan

I speak only for myself... Shooting enough to be good, I averaged around 8K rounds a year.... MOre than the 20 you speak of. I don't know ANYONE that shot 20 rounds that proclaims to be a 1000 yard shooter, those types don't even think you can come close at that range....

And as an aside, 1 inch groups at 100 don't make 10 at 1000, thats extremely rare.... You dont' know whta they'll be at 1000 unless you shoot them there... the only way to practice and find out...

There was a comment about 1 shot out of 5 goofs up a group. But hunting is a 1 shot group... Its your call, you wait, wait for conditions, wait on the gun to go off etc.... the body is relaxed..... there is much more to it than simply shooting a bit... I've had animals walk off before I made a long range shot. My far shot so far, the guide kept saying hurry up. Well there is NO hurry up in long shots, or any shot for that matter....

For those that want to cast stones, realize that with bowhunting, the sound of the shot reaches the animal 3 times faster than the projectile.... giving the animal plenty of time to move... yet bowhunting is fine with most folks(and before anyone gets edgy, I have over 100 bowkills of hogs/deer etc... and I prefer to bowhunt over anything. And Its probably why I like longer shots, 300 yards and under, I've said before, the animal has no chance whatsoever... its a done/sealed deal.... vs with a bow, you often never know if you could even get to full draw....)

Jeff

Practice

Shooting "eddie biddie groups" doesn't have anything to do with first shot hits at extended range. If you've never done it, no one can explain it to you. It's like trying to tell someone who's driven an automatic all their lives how to drive a stick... without actually showing them. It seems complicated... but it's really not... and after some practice it becomes fairly routine. With quality optics, accurate firearms, and some practice... you'd be suprised how easy it is to hit 2 MOA targets even at 1/2 mile... regularly. You should get out there and try it.

By the way, your off-hand limit of 200 yards is much further than mine... I never shoot off-hand. I practice it... but I'm just not good at it... I understand that, I accept that, and I'll pass up shots that require those skills. Personally, I'm much more likely to wound a critter at 75 yards moving in the timber... than I am with a 600 yard poke on an animal that has no idea I'm there. Does that mean I'm less skilled and have no business in the woods? Of course not... it means I have a different skill set than you... yet it's just as likely to result in meat next to my potatoes as your skills.

Just because the range is inside of someone's "self-imposed limit"... doesn't mean that the shot is a good one.