Home Forums Hunting & Shooting General Big Game bs aside...lets hear about your "lucky" shot

All,

It's time to fess up and (with pride and ability set aside) spill the beans! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

What was your luckiest shot...one that ended an argument, bagged a critter, or was "pulled off" that could never be repeated again in a million years?

I have it under good accord that this will never be used against you! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

best,
bhtr

Got a few.

Alabama, 1968, shot a dove at about 90 yards with a Model 1100 12 gauge on a snap shot � just threw the shotgun up and fired . Hit it with 1 pellet in the head, near as we could figure. Anyway, it folded up and went down at at almost 90 degree angle to it�s previous flight path like it had run into an invisible wall.

South Florida, about 1969. Used to wear a Buscadero (fast draw) rig to carry my Single Six .22. Cottontail jumped up about 25 yards ahead and starts running, ran behind a big palmetto. It ran through a small clearing between two palmetto bushes, maybe 6-8 feet between the two, some 35-40 yards out. As it emerged from behind the one palmetto, still at a full run, I drew and fanned one shot from the hip, hit it perfectly right behind the shoulder killing it immediately. P.S. Gave up on that rig when my friend tried a fast draw and shot himself in the leg.

Tweety bird in a tree at about 125 yards, at least it was 125 big steps to get to it. Used a Ruger 10-22 with a Williams peep sight, one shot, offhand. I hit it at some kind of angle as, at the shot, it was thrown sideways violently like it had been swatted with a baseball bat.

Not trying to get on a high horse but don�t have any good �lucky shot� stories on big game as I never took a shot at a large game animal that I wasn�t at least 99% sure was going to be a first shot kill.

Last Minute Muley

Based on a true story.

Rick

"Based"? Is that like the Hollywood interpretation of history? <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

C'mon, the guy asked for "bs aside" which is what my stories were. I swear I did not embellish any fact in mine by more than 10 yards. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

Jim I remeber one very lucky shot you did not mention, big spiraled horns (hint hint) Ok maybe not lucky in the sense we are talking about here.

Well, let's just say the yardage was conservatively recounted in the tale. If you want the truth, you'll need to talk to Mike. He's in Glendive, MT.

The rest of the story is pretty much factual, with some license taken for (hopefully) dramatic effect.

It was quite a hunt.

Rick

have had several with my ruger single six in 22 mag as I carried it for years.

best one was while my uncle was having a hard time sighting in his 22 rifle and scope. I was riding him hard about it and offered that I could do better with my pistol. He called me and I did, one shot perfect dead center from 50 yards, he never said a word and I didn't even think about firing another one.

First moose I ever shot was with a '06 in a JC Higgins model 52 (I think). I was 15 at the time. Open sights - the kind that you usually find on a handgun - real wide. Covered the whole moose until he turned broadside. I lifted the rifle up to where the moose disappeared, squeezed the shot of and the moose fell down. Range 400 long yards. Bullet - beats me, I grabbed a handful from several boxes of left overs -- 150 to 220 grainers - PSP to RN. Bullet struck that bull in the hump, and he dropped where he stood. Finishing shot required.

Lucky - sure. Happy - you betcha.

Two green wing teals at 35 yards - one in the creek - one shot in the back of the head at 30 yards - one on the third shot on the wing at 35 - 40 yards - with a Browning Challenger pistol in 22 LR. Tasty filled with orange pieces.

Shot a steel ram at 100 yards once with my model 10 S&W 4" service pistol - 38 spl - hollow base wadcutter - 2.3 grains of 231 powder. Held over the ram by about three feet, the bullet bounced off the ground about 10 feet in front of the ram, ricocheted and toppled the ram. The next shot - - - - - - never happened. I stuck my revolver back in the holster, and left the range. Skill ? ? ? ? ? Not on your life! Blind luck.

Had a friend that was a very good shot that told me once people kept accusing him of being a lucky shot. He told me the more he practiced, the luckier he got. Maybe there is some truth in that.

Flying woodpecker at 15 yrs shot from hip with pellet rifle. Long long long ago and very far away. Stupid stunt it was.

Brent

Since you asked . . . . .

Dragonfly at 75 steps off the top of a tall blade of grass w/ a 22 Hornet (Remington Rolling Block Action) with open sights. The durn thing epxloded and the grass stalk was unscathed (except for bug guts).

The other shot was on a Wild Boar offhand at 200 yards. I was shooting a 308 Savage 99e (economy) with open sights. The Boar was uphill from me with his head down, rooting and feeding.

I held a little high, on the chest/shoulder area and pulled the trigger.

The 150 grain Remington green Box Core-Lokt hit the critter where the spinal cord exits the Brain.

The pig was dead before it hit the ground.

Lucky, lucky shot. I would not try that shot today.

BMT

Shot a pigeon once with a .22LR while it was flying away from me at about 50 yards. Lucky snapshot. Also head shot a gopher at 100 yards with the same .22. I paced it off, and it was 100 yards. My jaw dropped when I saw the thing doing the "funky chicken" through my scope.

SS

A 400+ yard poke at a Virgina woodchuck with a British 303 and open sights. Couldn't see the chuck, but the mound he was sitting on was visible. Two of use fired simultaneously, the other with a 22 rim fire mag. Of course there was an argument as to who dispatched the unlucky whistle pig. We posted the poor critter and found my slightly mushroomed pill under the far side skin. Must not be much left in the 303 after it reaches out a bit. Probably couldn't duplicate that now using a whole box of 20 rounds.

Luckiest shot? Easy, and it wasn't even with a gun.

Had a rabbit that was raiding the veggies out of the garden before we could get 'em. Little bugger came out during the middle of the day while us kids were at school and in the dead middle of the night. Folks wouldn't let me stay up and stake him out with a flashlight and the .410...

Got off the bus and coming up the hill one day after school, early dismissal, and there sits "peter cottontail," right at the end of the row of peas and having himself a feast.

I stoop down, pick up a good throwin' rock about half the size of a baseball, and kinda egg shaped, and let fly. The rock is about half-way there when I think "dang, I might have him" - or something to that effect. WHACK! The rock, no lie, catches him right in the back of the head. Lights out, and dinner (for me <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> ) is served.

Stepped off later at a good 40 paces.

Luckiest shot I have, and probably will ever, make.

"V",

<img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />
I once set astride a log with a pocket full of rocks and the desire to "pop" a ptarmigan. After ten minutes and a sore arm, I remembered my geography lesson on Australia and the "throwing sticks" the aboriginal hunters used. I picked up a likely lookin' stick...hauled back...and...missed! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />
Got him with the second though! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" /> Best tastin' bird I ever had! (A twelve year old is easily impressed, eh?)

best,
bhtr

This is a no-$hitter - luckiest shot I�ve ever made.

A Navy buddy and took our kids out for some rifle handling practice to McCain Valley east of San Diego. My daughter was 10 and his son was 8. We both had 10/22�s, I had slapped an M8 6X duplex on mine just for looks and to maybe sight it in during the trip.

All of us walked on the dirt roads and in the bush for about an hour watching the kids keep the muzzles in a safe direction. Then we spotted a ground squirrel sitting up on a boulder about 250 yards away. Bets were place between the buddy and I, a coin was flipped and I got first shot. He offered his shoulder as a rest and I used it because the sage was waist high. Elevation, way up, windage, way over, hold the breath and squeeze the trigger. I, and everyone else thought it was a miss then after about 4 seconds the squirrel tumbled down the rocks toward us. The kids ran to get the critter while I got a high five.

We walked back to the car and I set up a pop can so we could plink for a while. My 10/22 took 5 rounds with adjustments to the scope after each round just to hit a pop can at 15 yards! The shot on the squirrel was pure darn luck.

My luckiest shot was with a bow, not a gun. I was in 10th grade, and my buddy and I were out stump shooting with the 70lb longbows we made in wood shop. Anyways.....we're walking across this mowed hay field, and in the fence row, which is now about 75 yards away, sits a red-winged blackbird. I had a Judo head tipped cedar shaft on the string, and stop and say "watch this" to Paul. I drew back and let 'er fly. As soon as I released( and this is something I've experienced numereous times shooting "instinctively" ) I said to myself, " holy [bleep], I'm going to hit it! "
We watch the arrow arc perfectly to the target, and POOF! Center punched that sucker! Couldn't duplicate that shot in a million years, and it was witnessed to boot!

Jeff

Shoot at enough stuff and some goofy stuff will happen... Shooting signal shots with a 308Norma in an FN mauser with a nifty 3x Leupie. A string of cormorants were flying low across the water in the right direction to shoot and still get a signal across that I was ready to be picked up, and about to die of hypothermia! Swung out on the lead cormorant and dusted him at well over 200 yards...

Had a gray fox in a trap and a high school teacher and his son with me. Fox pulled out at the last second. On about the third bound I had freed up my Ruger 22 pistol, slapped in the clip and slammed the action closed. The shot was from the hip and caught the fox betwixt the atlas and the axis...

Jumped a flock of wood ducks from a creek under a railroad trestle. Tripled on drakes and while looking down for my empties saw a silver fox getting out of his bed, so I dusted him.

With a witness I shot a Booner Sitka deer going over a distant ridge... had missed him once at close range... had ONLY the head to shoot at and from offhand, at a later ranged 200+ yards I poked him right under the eye as he looked back over his back at me.

A friend shot at a gorgeous black bear across a beaver pond. I was sure the bear was mortally wounded. The bear proceeded to run up the mountain side, away from us. We kept shooting and the bear kept running. At ridiculous distance the bear turned broadside to cross a slide. At my shot he dropped and tumbled. Autopsy revealed a single bullet at the base of the skull.
art

I was muzzleloader hunting way back. we going to post for a drive and the walk up hill was straight up. I was a lot younger then most and I and my cousin reached the top first. just then, two doe broke over the hill full bore down. I don't know why, but I cocked the flintlock and aimed at the deer running down hill. I shot and she just crumpled and slid 15 yds down, pretty dramatic. The best was everone saw it, the worst is they all expected me to shot like that again.
joes

Made several over the years. As was said shoot at enough stuff and strange things happen.

One of the best was:

Mid fifties, two buds and I were duck hunting. We were in a boat in the middle of a beaver swamp. Lots of ducks coming in. We stayed out too late and dark caught us on the water. Started back to the bank. Now it is black dark, I'm telling you. Heard ducks coming in and landing right on top of us.

I told Jerry to hit the light. Right there not a paddle lenght away was a big fat greenhead drake. Of course when the light hit him he took off into the darkness. I shot somewhere up in the air.

You guessed it. Sploosh, dead as a hammer right there by the boat.


First and only time I ever jacklighted a duck.


BCR

I was dating a "tree hugging" anti-hunter (but she had other redeeming features!) and she had said she'd "accompany you" just to see what hunting is all about (thinking I'd never see anything) on a short afternoon outing.

While driving I spotted a big coyote way out in a cut field. I jumped out. She started screaming. I tugged my 25-06 Browning Bolt Action out and had to tug it away from her. By now, the coyote was sprinting for the horizon.

I took a pop while standing beside the truck. It folded. When I walked up to it...it was almost 400 paces away, and found I had split it's skull along the entire top. I carried this prime pelt back to the truck.

She said "Never again!" "If you care about me...you'll give up killing things!"

Sometimes, because of her talents, I still miss her...