Just was wondering how far you guys shoot at game. I try to make all of my hunting shots 25yards or less. I am comfortable up to 35 when shooting in my back yard.
Same as you
20yards max right now
Same thing, 20, 25 yds hunting with these old eyes, more and things start to open up. I practice up to 40 yards sometimes for fun out to 60, makes things tighter up close :)
I generally practice at 20 - 25 yards in my back yard but prefer my hunting shots to be around 15-18 yards,
I try to keep my hunting shots 25 yds and under.
5 steps or less
I am more concerned with hunting than shooting
It depends; however, my average shot distance on deer is around 14 yards.
20-25 practice. 15-20 hunting
All my animals taken are between 7 and 25 yards. I practice beyond that but I can really see the arrow dropping off after 25 yards so I stay under that.
Under 25 yards.preferably under 15.
Of my eleven elk, closest was 8 yards, furthest was 21 yards. Deer out to maybe 25. I try to set my stands for 15-18 yard shots on whitetails as it seems beyond that they are more likely to jump the string, closer the downward angle gets chancier for a double lung shot and it's easier to get busted by noise and motion.
20 yards and in for me.
I like 12-18 yards.....if things were perfect, and they never are, I would shoot out to 21-22 yds.
well ... I hunt from the ground so too close is just often too close. I guess I like from 12 to 25 yards, my comfort zone anyway. Just shooting around, I like 0 to 40 I guess.
Bob.
This has a lot a whole lot to do with where you live; if you hunt from a ground blind; if you hunt from a treestand if you spot and stalk; and if you practice out to long ranges.
In the east and in the west - if I put up a treestand it will be to provide me with a shot under 25 yards- and too: with a ground blind.
If I am spotting and stalking; in open country with lots of distance practice- my range is not known until after I shoot; and pace it off.
I once saw a herd of elk walk by an opening for a clear shot in some brush. I shot over a calf elk; and then under a cow elk in less than a minute- the size differences threw me off as to distance.
Bears- I am up to 17 kills and I have never shot over 20 yards; all but one shot have been at or under 15.
My first deer with a bow - it headed towards me with a bunch of deer; and then it fell behind- in the one day absence of hunting; the farmer had torn down the fence row the deer walked down to get to where I was at. The buck was confused - and so was I- I had no idea the fence was gone either as I walked in - in the dark.
So the buck was walking away- and I knew it was out of range; so I shot my rubber blunt way past and over it - to try and turn it around. It stopped and then continued; and I shot again over and past it by 15 yards. It turned and came to me; where I made a fine shot at 16 or so yards.
I tried that again when bowhunting here in Idaho; I had a herd of over 100 deer walk by me at ten yards; followed by a P&Y buck. Then one doe that apparently was in heat - ran back to where they came from- an open hillside.
The buck followed. So I shot my rubber blunt over the doe; and she headed my way. Then she turned and headed back towards the hill again. I had been glassing that hill; watching the deer herd walk down it- and had just walked down it a half hour before.
I remembered my first deer taken- and tossed a broadhead tipped arrow way past the doe- and it smashed against a rock; and the doe turned and headed my way again.
The buck was hot on her - then she turned again and ran over towards the hill; and I took another broadhead out and shot that arrow as far into the air as I could: to get to some rocks on the hill. I really wanted to get a shot at that buck !
Well that arrow went up; waggled in the wind; stopped; and came straight down.
It hit that doe right between the shoulders and dropped it right in its tracks. :banghead:
I saw down in disbelief; as the buck walked past me at ten yards.
I gps'd the position I was in; and went to where the doe hit the dirt- it was 187 yards.
I am ashamed of that shot- and so proud of the 20 and less yard shots I have made !!!!
Shoot when you feel total confidence.
20 yda and under for me.
I try to keep all my shots 20 yards and under.....did take a doe one time at 31 steps.....it just felt right and she was meat in the freezer.....I also missed a large pig at 9 steps.....go figure.....
I hunt from an ATV and still let them pass over 20 yards.
I can shoot tight groups out to 25yd but i love that 10-15 yd shot.
If the shot feels good I take it practice at all yards and angles back to 45. when I set myself up for deer it is for 20 and under and for elk size game 30yrds. When stalking I dont range if I feel it I will take it sometimes close dose not feel good either so I wont take it. Widow
Most of the deer I've taken have been 20 yards or under. I did take one at 40 yards. The field was wide open and I had practiced a lot at that distance. The situation was the best you could hope for with no cover. The shot was good and she was meat in the freezer. But that's the last at that distance.
20 yards is a long shot for me! I prefer them 10-14 yards and set up all my stands for that shot.
QuoteOriginally posted by Brian Krebs:
This has a lot a whole lot to do with where you live; if you hunt from a ground blind; if you hunt from a treestand if you spot and stalk; and if you practice out to long ranges.
In the east and in the west - if I put up a treestand it will be to provide me with a shot under 25 yards- and too: with a ground blind.
If I am spotting and stalking; in open country with lots of distance practice- my range is not known until after I shoot; and pace it off.
I once saw a herd of elk walk by an opening for a clear shot in some brush. I shot over a calf elk; and then under a cow elk in less than a minute- the size differences threw me off as to distance.
Bears- I am up to 17 kills and I have never shot over 20 yards; all but one shot have been at or under 15.
My first deer with a bow - it headed towards me with a bunch of deer; and then it fell behind- in the one day absence of hunting; the farmer had torn down the fence row the deer walked down to get to where I was at. The buck was confused - and so was I- I had no idea the fence was gone either as I walked in - in the dark.
So the buck was walking away- and I knew it was out of range; so I shot my rubber blunt way past and over it - to try and turn it around. It stopped and then continued; and I shot again over and past it by 15 yards. It turned and came to me; where I made a fine shot at 16 or so yards.
I tried that again when bowhunting here in Idaho; I had a herd of over 100 deer walk by me at ten yards; followed by a P&Y buck. Then one doe that apparently was in heat - ran back to where they came from- an open hillside.
The buck followed. So I shot my rubber blunt over the doe; and she headed my way. Then she turned and headed back towards the hill again. I had been glassing that hill; watching the deer herd walk down it- and had just walked down it a half hour before.
I remembered my first deer taken- and tossed a broadhead tipped arrow way past the doe- and it smashed against a rock; and the doe turned and headed my way again.
The buck was hot on her - then she turned again and ran over towards the hill; and I took another broadhead out and shot that arrow as far into the air as I could: to get to some rocks on the hill. I really wanted to get a shot at that buck !
Well that arrow went up; waggled in the wind; stopped; and came straight down.
It hit that doe right between the shoulders and dropped it right in its tracks. :banghead:
I saw down in disbelief; as the buck walked past me at ten yards.
I gps'd the position I was in; and went to where the doe hit the dirt- it was 187 yards.
I am ashamed of that shot- and so proud of the 20 and less yard shots I have made !!!!
Shoot when you feel total confidence.
Would have loved to see that. What a shot!
Any yardage that feels right in the woods.
Practise up to 80 yds or so.
I like to keep my shots 15 to 20 max in the woods.I practice a little further shooting targets but rarely past 30 yds.Stump shooting is a totaly different story.Any thing I can reach ill shoot at!
Whatever feels right at the time. Wacked a Rabbit at about 50 once. Drew back and things just felt right so I loosed.
SteveB can you consistently hold a pie plate group at 80 yards?
If so that is amazing with trad equipment.
I was watching my Fred Bear vidieo's and it said "The archer must get within 50 or 60 Yards to make an effective shot" So I need more practice.
QuoteOriginally posted by THE PIG STICKER:
SteveB can you consistently hold a pie plate group at 80 yards?
If so that is amazing with trad equipment.
Did I infer that I could?
I don't try to calculate the distance prior to shooting. Instead, I try to determine whether I think I can hit the animal lethally with a high degree of certainty. That usually means my shots will be less than 30 yards, with most of them significantly less than that. I still think the best way to practice for hunting is by shooting at various distances between a point as far away as I can consistently hit and a point just a few yards away from me. For me, trying to think of the distance to the target, especially when hunting, is a recipe for disaster.
Allan
amar911 I agree with you i dont think about yardage. But yardage is always in my mind after the shot.
25 yards and in! I can shoot farther but don't like to. Ideal shot is 15 to 18 yards. JMO! Jason
I pratice out to 25yrds, but I prefer my shots to be at 15yds or less. At 15yds i hold on what i want to hit, at 20 hold 6inch's high, and at 25 a foot high.
My average shot distance is probably 23yds. My favorite shots are 10yds.
I'm in the 20 yd and under category.
20 and under is comfortable. 25 is a bit far.
25 yards or less. I particularly like 5 - 10 best. Got two elk at 5 yards....
Really stretched it on the one I bumped off with my Lee Signature Hunter last year, 22 yards. The shot was longer than the blood trail, which was 20 yards...
My longest kill shot in getting onto the last 20 years has been 25 yards, and that includes using compound sights/release...
I went through all my successful harvests a few months ago and if I recall my average kill was about 14 yards. I think the range was from 3 yards to 32. I really have to be feeling good to attempt a shot longer than 20 yards.
Most of my practice is at varying distances from about 6 to 28 yards. I should do more shooting at the close ranges...and also more at 28-40, though I don't intend to try to increase my hunting range (just thinking it would make me a better shot overall).
I've had a trio of long kills with sticks (28-30-32), but have certainly passed up a lot of shots in the 20-30 yard range because I didn't "feel it" at the time.
15 is nice, but 20 is very reasonable right now. I have been working hard and hope to be proficient to 30 so I can consider a 25 yd. shot next year. We will see. I always set up for 20 and under anyway.
My longest shot ever was 35 yards,but most of the time I just try to get as close as I can "within reason".
That nomaly turns out to be around 15-20 yards.
What makes the most difference in shot distance to me is the type of country I'm hunting.
Most of it is fairly tight bush and where you first see the animal will usualy be where you shoot from.
That 35 yard shot was in open country an it took me over an hour to get where I was,there was no real thought about the distance,35 yards to me is not an issue if the conditions are right,and in that case they were.
Shot a hog one time at 45 yds. Double lung hit and he went about 75 yds before expiring. Had a buddy standing behind me and watched the whole thing. He started yelling you hit him, you hit him! I practice at longer distances all the time so the shot was not out of my range. That being said, I didn't know it was 45 yds. If I had known, I probably wouldn't have taken the shot. Shot a couple of deer at 27 yds and one elk at 30 yds. All my other deer and hogs have been under 20 yds. Everybody has their comfort zone. I like to practice long range shots just because it makes the close ones that much easier.
QuoteOriginally posted by T Folts:
20yards max right now
Ditto
Bisch
I'm Not Ted : Some shot? LOL I missed the mountain!
I also like to shoot out to 50-60 yds, for some reason i love to watch those arrows fly through the air.
Im not sure if thats good or not but for me it makes those 25yd shots seem a little easier to make.
If I could always get the perfect shot it would always be in the 18-25yd range.This gives me a good angle from my 20ft high perch. :) Of course it does not always happen that way and sometimes you get those 30 and 10 yd shots.I am much more subject to take the 30 yd shot from the tree than the 10yd shot.On the ground I would love a 10 yarder however. :)
up to 15 for my effective range.. :archer:
I try to always set up for twenty at the most.
I am new to trad, I have only been shooting for 3 months and I just finished my first Javelina hunt here in AZ. I wanted to get a shot at under 20 yards, preferably 15 or less and just couldnt get that close. I have hunted with compound for years and still will but this is the first year I havent gotten a javelina in the last 10 or more years. Trad is definetly a test for me right now, but I am really enjoying the challenge
Ron
.....to me its more a matter of being close to the animal. I want to smell it nasty breath if possible. Most of my kills are less then 15 yards. If I wanted to kill at long ranges ... I'd be a Airforce "DRONE" Pilot in USA taking out the "BAD GUYS over in Iraq ! ( not saying its a bad thing ..GO USA !!!)
Killed a ground hog at over 40 yards and a coon at about 35 yards. Missed two deer this year at under 20 yards, figure that one out.
.... must like eating "hog and coon" better ...lol! Anyway ...good shots!!!
QuoteOriginally posted by 1/4 away:
I generally practice at 20 - 25 yards in my back yard but prefer my hunting shots to be around 15-18 yards,
same here.
QuoteOriginally posted by Brian Krebs:
I'm Not Ted : Some shot? LOL I missed the mountain!
Bet the doe didn't think that... :knothead:
It depends on the moment. When I've been well practiced and confident and the weather has been fair, I've killed whitetails well beyond 30 yds. Other times, when the shot just didn't feel right, I've past on them at 10. How accurate do I feel? Do I feel unrestricted, or is it cold and I'm bundled and bound up? Am I standing loosely or contorted to make the shot? Is the deer moving and what is its angle? Do I have 2 seconds or 2 minutes to take the shot? How open is the shot? A myriad of considerations rush through the mind at the moment.
I prefer 10 - 15 yards....I practice out to 50 yards or so, but like some others have said will only take a shot over 20 or so yards if it feels just right....
the little sow hog i stalked and killed that's shown in my avatar was hit in the lungs and nicked the heart at about 13 yards, she traveled about 15 yards and was dead in literally a few minutes. it'd be boastful for me to say that a 13 yard shot is a 'gimme' for me, as lots can happen on the hunt and i was blessed with what i'd consider a clean, fast kill. praise God.
all i can say is i'll assess every shot opportunity at whatever distance the quarry is, and make an ethical decision - and if the green light is on, i don't really think distance, i think 'spot' and concentrate on just that.
also depends if the hunt is ground or air based. different distance/aiming thinking for me if i'm up a tree. same is true for those wired texas whitetails!
when my game is on, 30 to 35 yards can be fine. in the best of all worlds, 15 to 20 yards inspires much more confidence of a good hit.
oh yeah, those short little 5 yard shots can be every bit as tricky as a 35 yard one! ask me how i know! :D
I am returning to trad hunting this year and don't feel the need to estimate yardage at all. When I practice, I set the target up and move around at various distances but I never step them off or range them. I see the target, draw the bow, and instictively alter my hold point to what feels right then I let it fly. I am hitting the target pretty successfully and am growing more confident every day. As a newbie, should I be concerned with exact distances in hunting situations?