I Know This Is LRH... But What Is The Shortest Distance You Have Taken A Live Target?

[Dr. Richard Gray]

Wasn't deer hunting or big game. I live and grew up in deep Southern Illinois. Loved to groundhog hunt on our farm to keep these varmints from destroying the foundations of buildings and and the holes in the hay fields actually broke the front axle on one of our tractors. So, I would hunt them every chance I got. We had one at the cattle barn that I was never able to get a decent shot at with the rifle. I had my Ruger Super Blackhawk .44 Mag with this day and just peeked around the corner of the barn there he sat, about 5 ft. from me. It was an awkward position and I had to duck the rcoil when I pulled the triger but I got rid of that varmint.

 

[C-130 Dude]

I live up in the Ozark Mountains and there are trees everywhere here, therefore we get extremely few shots past 100 yds on deer, but that also means that deer can come right up on you in no time without you even realizing it.

My shortest shot that I have ever taken a whitetail deer is about 5 feet! Yep, 1.666 yds with a crossbow. What is your shortest shot?

View attachment 569619 This isn't the doe I shot at 5ft, but it shows how close they get.

Wart hog. 30 feet. 1966. Browning Safari in .375 HH. I was 10. It nearly broke my sholder, was bruised for weeks.

 

[A/1-61]

coyote, about 3 feet in a hollow log, 270, bull elk 7 yards bow

****, same thing happened to me. Called in a coyote and wounded it. Followed the blood to a hollow log. Stuck my Browning A5 in to move some leaves and saw a pair of glowing eyes and white teeth about a foot from the muzzle. Had a three inch buckshot in. Pulled the trigger and the glowing eyes extinguished. Took about fifteen minutes to get up the gumption to pull it out. I can still see those eyes when I think about it.

 

[Clovis Man]

Used to live in SE Louisiana. Skulked upon a whitetail and shot him from about 20 feet away.

Had a wild turkey brush against my elbow once while I was sitting against a tree, but I wasn't NEARLY fast enough to get him.

 

[Pdyson]

Back in 97 while training at Ft Meade the Maryland DNR opened up a refuge for bowhunting as an over abundance of deer had destroyed their habitat. They had browsed the trees to the bark. as high as they could reach. They only allowed 30 hunters in at a time so I had to wait for someone to come out, before I could go in. Finally my number came up at 4pm on a rainy foggy day. I put my climbing stand on my back and cut a trail. Every where I went I ran into Hunter Orange. Rather than ruin someone else's hunt. I walked back to the parking area, went up the tree line about 100yds stepping into the woods about 15yds and not seeing anyone, I climbed the first straight pine tree I found. I hung the bow on a hook, strapped in and while taking my gortex off, I dislodged an arrow from my quiver which "klanked" off my stand and fell to the ground. When I looked down I saw two yearling does and a spike right below me. The does skittered back into the woods, but none of the 3 looked up. The spike took a couple steps toward the clearing and was watching a hunter getting into his vehicle. I nocked an arrow leaned as far forward as I could and shot a 125gr Muzzy straight down through the dark brown stripe of his spine between his shoulder blades, the arrow exited between his front legs and nailed him to a rotten log. He didn't kick or run, he just dropped right there. Around 18 to 25 feet it was both my shortest bow shot, and also my shortest blood trail. I thought, man I wish Texas whitetails were this dumb.

 

[Dbevans12]

Closest moose I shot was 20 yards. I passed on this guy at 10 yards

 

[Pdyson]

LOL......Yea, I would not recommend jumping down on one, especially at our age now.

Like you, my throwing arm now isn't the arm of that young 20 something I was then, but back in those days, I spent a fair amount of time throwing a lot of various weapons. Let me just say, a good, balanced and very sharp spear is extremely deadly. I handmade one with a 10" African style steel blade point that was about 2-1/2 inches wide at its center and very sharp. Few, if any, arrow heads bled a deer faster, but I always kept the potential throws fairly short.

I have a good friend that booked a bear hunt in Canada way back, a year before the Towers fell in NY. He told the guide up front that he planned to use a spear he made with a Coldsteel spearhead. I guess he thought he was kidding, even after the guide asked everyone around the campfire the night before the hunt what they would hunt with the next day. He didn't say anything. However when he saw the spear the following morning he was shocked into reality. HE WAS SERIOUS. Then he said I don't know if it's legal or not. My friend said I told you it was my plan and you took the money. So let's go. So he climbed into the stand in the tree closest to the bait barrel and the guide lay half a fresh beaver carcass at the foot of the tree. He speared a big one that evening and it ripped out the spear and ran off about 20yds away. It was getting dark and he had no other weapon. The bear had quit moving but he was scared to climb down. He waited as long as the failing light would allow before he climbed down as quietly as he could and quickly grabbed the spear before making sure the bear was dead. He told me a word for the wise.
If you ever go hunting dangerous game with a Spear, take two spears.

 

[C-130 Dude]

I have a good friend that booked a bear hunt in Canada way back, a year before the Towers fell in NY. He told the guide up front that he planned to use a spear he made with a Coldsteel spearhead. I guess he thought he was kidding, even after the guide asked everyone around the campfire the night before the hunt what they would hunt with the next day. He didn't say anything. However when he saw the spear the following morning he was shocked into reality. HE WAS SERIOUS. Then he said I don't know if it's legal or not. My friend said I told you it was my plan and you took the money. So let's go. So he climbed into the stand in the tree closest to the bait barrel and the guide lay half a fresh beaver carcass at the foot of the tree. He speared a big one that evening and it ripped out the spear and ran off about 20yds away. It was getting dark and he had no other weapon. The bear had quit moving but he was scared to climb down. He waited as long as the failing light would allow before he climbed down as quietly as he could and quickly grabbed the spear before making sure the bear was dead. He told me a word for the wise.
If you ever go hunting dangerous game with a Spear, take two spears.

Was that guy trying to get back to his Neanderthal roots? Maybe having a big gun on your belt would have givin him a little assurance and let climb down that tree earlier. More power to him.

As a matter of SOP for me, I always carry a pistol when I hunt no matter what I'm hunting or whether it's bow, rifle, shotgun, or pistol. It doesn't matter. ...But spear season, ha!

 

[Terry Lightle]

Did shoot a bull moose at 6 yards with my longbow and wood arrow.

 

[DarryH]

About 6 inches, yup, 6 inches. Had a twelve gauge in my hands, and walking through an area of outbuildings on the farm, I stepped on a board and a rat popped out. I didn't even think, I pulled the trigger with the barrel less than 6 inches from my shoe and the rat. STUPID!!! But I survived and the rat didn't. I was so close his hair was smoking!!!!

 

[GBA1776]

I built this for a grizzly hunt but the Covid pandemic hit and my trip got canceled.View attachment 569637

Grizzly huh? What was a lion unavailable? Holy cow man you are NUTS! And I mean that in the best possible way.

 

[C-130 Dude]

About 6 inches, yup, 6 inches. Had a twelve gauge in my hands, and walking through an area of outbuildings on the farm, I stepped on a board and a rat popped out. I didn't even think, I pulled the trigger with the barrel less than 6 inches from my shoe and the rat. STUPID!!! But I survived and the rat didn't. I was so close his hair was smoking!!!!

Did that shot cut or burn your toenails with it? Remember the old movie, "Kingrat"? Yum. Course, all you would have harvested at that range was spray and mush.

 

[DarryH]

Did that shot cut or burn your toenails with it? Remember the old movie, "Kingrat"? Yum. Course, all you would have harvested at that range was spray and mush.

It was right beside my foot, one handed no less, 28" full choke!!!! I is STUPID !!!!

 

[Craig Miller]

About 5 feet straight down. I was in an elevated blind in South Texas about 40 years ago and, right at legal light, I heard a noise directly below me. I leaned my head out the window and looked down to see a giant doe eating something on the ground.

Grabbed my rifle, leaned out the, thankfully rather large, window and shot her straight through the neck at the base of the skull. Largest whitetail doe I have ever killed. Weighed more than the 10 point buck I shot later the same morning about 130 yards up the Sendero.

When my Dad showed up, he looked at her and said "That's convenient. Let's load her up and get back to camp." I responded that we had to get "the other two" as well. He just stared at me for a couple seconds, blinked, and started laughing. I really miss him.

Oops. I forgot to mention the cull buck (spike on one side) I shot 80 yards up the Sendero the opposite direction. Killed out in one morning.