What is your average hunting shot distance?

[Chas1]

In these parts average is 150 or less, 200 + is rare....tons of underbrush and trees.

 

[Odin6]

Love the challenge of KS deer hunting. Could be taking shots anywhere from 25yds to 1000+yds. I have not gotten into long range hunting yet with shots only out to around 400yds due to confidence in the rifles I have previously used. However I intend to get myself into position to take some longer shots (up to 1000yds) once I'm comfortable and practiced with my newest rifle. Shots ranging out to 300yds have been extremely easy to this point and it's simply the challenge that interests me.

 

[orifdoc]

The limit depends on situation and circumstances. I've passed up 200 yard shots that seemed like a gamble and I've been very comfortable at over 600. A steady rest and the wind make a world of difference.

Over the past few years, excluding muzzleloader, my average shot distance has been somewhere north of 400 yards. That's all out west, and I've been more confident with those shot opportunities than at any previous time in my life.

 

[epoletna]

For three years, 50 years ago, I lived and hunted in East Africa. Average distance there was 300+ yards, with a memorable successful ome-shot kill at 450+ yards with my 7 mm Rem Mag.

Back in the USA, I shot a California coastal black tail at 450 yards, but most shots were around 150 yards.

Then I lived in Ohio for a while, where deer hunters were limited to shotgun slugs. Ranges there were 3 yards to 40 yards.

This year in Nevada I shot a pronghorn at 550 yards. Not a clean kill because I could not see where the bullets were hitting the goat. Turns out I was hitting him behind the diaphragm. Mortal wounds, but not a kill I'm proud of.

 

[codyadams]

Over the past few years, excluding muzzleloader, my average shot distance has been somewhere north of 400 yards. That's all out west, and I've been more confident with those shot opportunities than at any previous time in my life.

Ya, Wyoming and Idaho for us....if it's not archery, shot opportunities are generally pretty far. If you hunt the timber with a rifle where shots are generally sub 300 yards, the shots are also generally very rushed, so I would rather take a slow 800 yard shot than an off hand, running elk in the timber at 80 yards.....

 

[Buckys]

100 yards. I take about 10 critters at 80 yards for every 1 critter at about 300 yards and 1100/11=100.

 

[chindits]

Average is a goofy question when you take elk under 20 meters with a bow and 500 meters with a rifle. I'd like to set a 45 meter limit but unfortunately rifle season doesn't work like that which is probably why it bores me so much.

 

[big johnson]

300 yds. I sight everything dead on at 200. Iv'e shot deer out to 600 ,but that's under perfect conditions, we can get a lot of wind on the ranch and shooting at 500 plus yds it's not uncommon to be shooting across a couple of draws with the wind going in different directions in each draw with tall sagebrush in the draws. my rule of thumb is if the sage is wiggling it's blowing 0-8 mph and moving back and forth 8-14 mph, if it's bent over don't shoot. When it's calm the heat waves can be a issue as well .

 

[Jim Wright]

Hunting elk in kolorado I have taken animals out to 600 yards. Last two years have both been about 50 yards.

 

[Jim Wright]

I'm finding Acubond bullets are no good for short range shots at all. Two years in a row I've had shot bull elk under 100 yards with my 300 and they have run away.

 

[Beluebow]

The 17 that voted for 800+Limit....how high does the wind need to get before it is a no shoot situation for you personally. Are these 800yrd+ shots made in mild conditions....2-5mph....5-10mph......10+?

 

[Brandon Starkel]

Last couple years Antelope average out about 500 yards. Like others have said Varmints, no range limit.

 

[Deleted member 48126]

I shoot deer at 1200+

^ this is a joke btw. The furthest I've ever shot a deer was 107 yards. I've shot 20 deer in my lifetime.

 

[vancewalker007]

Just something I thought about the other day. I know this is a long range hunting forum, but honestly here in NE PA, I rarely take a shot over 250, often because we don't get a lot of places where we can see super far, or of we can see very far, it's onto another parcel of land we don't have permission to hunt. Additionally, I'm not proficient enough to feel comfortable taking a shot at anything other than groundhogs at ranges past maybe 500 yards. Maybe 600 if conditions are perfect.

I have been scrolling here a lot lately, and I've been seeing a lot of posts with pictures from this year hunting, often with captions like "28 Nosler, 85 yards". Which is fine, I personally don't like to be under gunned and don't like to be limited by range

So, just for fun, what is the average distance you get shots on game?

While we are at it, what's your personal limit on taking a shot at a big game animal? Feel free to answer either or neither

Here is my recent memory of shots I, my son, my daughter, father or wife have taken. We shoot a lot of long range steel in the wind to practice which in a lot of cases is more fun than hunting. There is always good food and wine involved afterwards as we usually do it in central AZ near AZ wine country. I would say 90% of these shots were taken in the early morning where no wind call was necessary. All these shots were one shot kills except the 934 Coues and the 500 yard Eland. My grown son fired 2 times before that Coues was hit. The first shot was a miss because the deer took about 3 steps to the next bush to feed as the trigger broke, always a danger shooting this far. Up until that the deer has stayed feeding at a single bush for minutes. The second shot hit the center line angling across from last rib on the right side exiting the left point of the shoulder. The first shot on the Eland was spot on but Eland are huge and I felt the need to shoot a second time. Shooting far in a lot of wind is not my bag so to say, it is too risky. Up to about 8 mph can usually be managed but in broken country even 8 mph can get really tricky. Most of the shots on the plains game were in very open flat areas where we could call wind much easier. Most of those shots were in 3-5mph wind. There was no wind on the Eland shot. Most of these shots were taken using a G7 BR2 as a basis of ranging and wind setup with a Kestrel for immediate wind check. We just went to Africa so I thought it would be fun to include those. Usually shots in Africa are much closer but we were hunting in the Free State that has a lot of areas that look like eastern Wyoming.

For my money I'd rather be 300-500 on Coues for rifle shots. Its far enough they don't get spooky and one can set up carefully for the shot and its close enough to minimize wind issues. On elk, well they are huge so getting in the vitals is easier so longer shots with enough rifle and the right rifle in open country is not an issue for me. Where we usually hunt elk it is prairie country so shots tend to be long. Since hunting in Africa several times I have changed my aiming points on game. My going in position is to half the animal then aim at the middle of the lower half right on the leg shading towards the back of the bone on side shots. On angled shots my archery shooting has made me think very carefully about the vitals angle before pulling the trigger but I still shoot in that lower half. Shooting high behind the shoulder is absolutely out the window for us as it can end badly, especially with archery. In the right circumstance a forward high shoulder shot is the medicine of the day when it can be made and you want the animal to DRT and not run. I've never seen anything shot in the high forward shoulder run off, its anchored everything.

Coues	340​	7mm STW
Coues	322​	7mm STW
Coues	678​	7mm LRM
Coues	782​	300 WSM
Coues	743​	6.5 PRC
Coues	512​	300 WSM
Coues	512​	7mm LRM
Elk	1092​	7mm LRM
Elk	395​	300 WSM
Coues	934​	7mm LRM
Coues	340​	6.5 PRC
Coues	295​	7mm LRM
Coues	460​	6.5 PRC
Coues	450​	7mm LRM
Coues	500​	280 REM
Coues	695​	7mm LRM
Coues	344​	300 WSM
Coues	602​	7mm STW
Coues	713​	300 WSM
Coues	448​	6.5 PRC
White Blesbok	499​	6.5 PRC
Common Blesbok	494​	6.5 PRC
Eland	500​	6.5 PRC
Black Wildebeest	305​	6.5 PRC
Zebra	235​	6.5 PRC
Springbok	235​	6.5 PRC
Waterbuck	230​	6.5 PRC
Average	505.7407​