Getting close is what its all about. Also, just because your rifle and cartridge state that it can each out to a certain distance, doesn't mean that YOU can.

Especially on a larger bodied animal such as an elk, it is quite frankly unethical
to try 500 yard shots. Most shooters,(even a majority of those that claim they can shoot that far) cannot effectively hit a target at that range. Combined with the lost velocity, what you end up with is a much greater chance of only wounding a animal and never recovering it.

Also, it has been my experience that quite a few of the people who claim to have shot an animal at 350 yards or 400 yards, are misguaging the actual distance.
in the wild with uneven terrain or especially all flat terrain, a 200 yard shot might seem like twice that to the naked eye.

osagejake welcome aborad. I don't know how many sites you watch but this is one sore subject and nobody wins. I happen to agree with you. Fortunatelly on this site some of the stuff that goes on reguarding this subject is not tolerated.

Another opinion: Hunting buffalo in Arnhem Land requires long distance shooting. When the buff are milling around in the middle of a flood plain and there is not so much as a shrub or tussock within kilometres, you better be able to hit a paper plate at 400 yds. The buff will be gone as fast as you can say: "Gee, would you look at that" if you try to stalk them any closer.

As it is you can spend four or five hours inching closer, fully ghillied up, sweating, bleeding and cursing (softly, of course) just to get that close. If the flood plain happens to be underwater (see below) then you have the hungry lizards to add to the equation.

My T3 300 win mag is zeroed to 300 metres specificaly for hunting under these conditions. Let it be said that I will not squeeze off a shot if I am not 95% certain of a kill. To that end, shoulder and chest shots are usually the order of the day but if the occassional headshot offers itself who am I to knock it back.

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This month's American Hunter has a couple of articles on long range hunting. They highlight some schools that focus on teaching long range hunting skills.

That looks like a water buffalo? One huge problem for me with that is being able to deliver sufficient energy and penetration at those ranges for the really tuff animals. And how do you set up shooting in a flood plain for 400 yds (less than 400 meters)? Surely you don't lay down in the lake? Maybe the 300 Ultra mag will deliver enough energy and I suppose that something on the order of a TSX would be needed in a bullet?

By the way Dehlo, welcome to the site. I cannot imagine hunting in those conditions. But then I'm getting old too!

Thanks Don.

Yep, water buff it is.

Don't get me wrong, there are other hunting environments around here.

Metres and yards pretty close. 400m = 437.4yds. Allowing an Australian's penchant for exaggeration, it's quite possible I suppose that a paper plate at 300 yds would be a fairer statement. Got kinda carried away there...

After jumping off the boat at a break in the mangroves, find a stock trail and follow it (hopefully) in the general direction of the plains. The thorny, catchy vine clutches at everything. Bare skin can actually help here as the thorns will actually slide-off better. Thongs (flip flops to the rest of you poor uneducated, not bloody g-strings) come in to their own here. I'm not advocating Genesis-naked Adamry here but sometimes less is more, y'know? It's not particularly dense, but annoying.

When you come to the edge of the plain there will be small islands of stunted trees. With care one can work along these untill a small herd of buffalo is seen. Water buff once teemed up here, but the BTEC disease eradication program eliminated 95% back in the 80's & 90's. O the rise again now though. Once spotted, I believe they have sixth sense. Many hunters of other species probably agree with me. Even downwind, when stared at, they seem skittish and prone to flight.

When as close as can be achieved geographically, you have to choose a tree fork as a steady for a sitting shot, or go prone (my fave). When flooded the ol' tree fork gets the nod every time. Hence the shorts again, which dry rapidly and don't impede walking when wet. Synthetic stocks are the go here because the benches really don't go light on the finish.

Experience tells me that zeroed at 300, what I consider to be a four hundred metre shot will incur gravity's wrath to the tune of a foot or so. When squeezing the shot I let about half of my air out and wait till the cross hairs align with my chosen point. This where I stop exhaling. When I am convinced I have the shot I take it, if not, back to basics (and breathing).

I use Remington's 180 gr Core-Lokt through my 300 win mag T3 (24" barrel), which supposedly produces 1751 ft/lbs of energy at 400 yds. It has never given me reason to doubt it or go in search of other ammo. The controlled expansion really helps penetration. And I'm really only happy with a one shot kill. If I have to chase a wounded animal I have lost, according to how I was taught at my father's knee.

Simple as that really. Just a bonus to a great camping/fishing/hunting weekend.

Ok, one more question. What does that mean in your signature?

It's a quote mostly attributed to Lucius Accius, Roman tragic poet (170 BC). It was a favourite saying of third Roman Emperor, Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus Germanicus, better known as Caligula.

"Let them hate, so long as they fear."

I like the translation.... very cool signature.

Yea, I like that too!