How close have you taken game?

I still hunt and any shot is usually close. I keep the wind in my face and can get pretty close. I've taken a few deer with a handgun inside 20 yards but my 2007 Kentucky bull elk hunt was by far the closest shot yet. As if being drawn for 1 of 75 bull tags from over 31,000 applicants wasn't enough. This was the first elk to be taken in Kentucky with a handgun! Something about a bull elk up close and a 44 mag revolver make it hard to forget!

It was unusually hot and very dry and I just couldn't get close enough to this bull for 2 days. He was always with 7 cows, a 5X5 and a spike. And it was just way too dry to be sneaking around. So I checked the wind and set up on a little bank covered with briars overlooking a water hole on the edge of a field at the mouth of a hollow. I ranged a cedar in the field at 105 yards for a max distance shot. I rested my shooting sticks on my knees to keep them handy and hung my shirt on the briars to provide a little shade. Nothing to do but sweat and wait.

The bull eventually comes off the hill bugling and is heading straight toward me and the water hole. Another bull up the hollow begins bugling and my bull goes up the hollow towards the other bugling bull. Crap! Whatever happened I don't know. But a little while later I hear bugling, crunching and I see tips of antlers! He's coming down the hollow on my side and due to the briars on the bank he's going to have to get RIGHT in front of me before I can get a shot.

When he's there, he's level with me and within 7 yards! I'm lying on my back, arms outstretched across my knees and I give him 330 grs. of Garrett's fine lead. He runs about 20 yards into the field and stops. I can tell he's going down but I stand up and offhand put another round into him and he tobbles over.

It's hot, I've got a bull on the ground, and I'm alone. I snap a few pics off the tripod, field dress him, winch him onto my 4wheeler trailer, fill him with all the ice I have from my coolers and I'm off to the slaughter house within minutes.

The green ear tag and number means this bull was an Idaho elk released in Kentucky in 2003. We're having our first bear hunt Dec. 19 and 20th and I'll be out with my 44. I hope you see my story in the LONGEST shot thread!
http://www.huntingpictures.net/photo/014168

great bull, and great story! wish there were that close when I was in Colorado in September for bow season. I shot a woodchuck at about 2 yards with a mark II when I was younger closest for me

Probably a rabbit. Never measured distance back then but likely under 10 yards
Closest deer was a doe whitetail around 20-30 yards standing offhand with a center-grip XP chambered in 7.82 Patriot (150 NBT's at 3001 fps).

Cow elk 15 feet! .375-06 JDJ Encore. Had a scope on it but too close. First and probably only point and shoot that I will ever do!

Recoil

Whitetail doe - 12 feet...straight down...from a treestand! Ruger Redhawk .44 mag

From the ground, killed 2 deer in Nebraska in cottonwood drains several years ago with my r***e in .300 Win Mag. One 8-point and one 9-point - furthest shot was 13 yards. Got real close, playing the wind and scent control. Never traveled again without at least one short gun!

Whitetail doe at 2 feet, maybe 3....I was in a climbing stand, she was under me. Was using 45LC blackhawk and 185 gr HP.

With my r###e 6ft a huge 8 point why I deceided to switch to a revolver. Last year 2 7 points 10ft away same gun. Need to put the rifle down and just purchase my revolver Ruger SBH Bisley Hunter 44 mag.

5 foot shot at a 125 pound wild boar with a 2" 22LR. The pig was with a group of 7-8, he was the smallest (by choice). He was lying in a brier patch in the middle of a corn field in Springfield, NC. The wind was blowing and we were able to crawl into a position above the little spring that fed the mud hole. I pointed it below the ear and pulled the trigger, he stiffened then started squealing like mad. I backed away pulling the trigger and firing at moving grass as I retreated. I fired all nine shots and hit him 7. I was 19 and a Paratrooper with the 82nd Airborne...dumb but FUN!!

Bill in OR

An 8 point whitetail at about 15 yards.

Whitetail doe at 20yds with a 6.5TCU.

The closest was a ragged horn whitetail buck with a Hoyt AlphaTec. Range was maybe 12 feet straight down. Used the same bow to take a doe later in the year at 18 feet...nearly straight down.

Closest gun shot was a doe with 10" T/C .44 Magnum and iron sights. Gave her 310gr of BBT cast bullet at 15yds.

My favorite blind to hunt faces down a property boundary. Last year I shot at a doe maybe 95 yards out and missed cleanly. she jumped across the fence onto the neighbors place but stayed in sight. For the next 40 minutes the doe slowly walked back towards me staying across the fence. Jut when I thought I was going to cry out of frustration she hopped back across the fence right in front of me. My .41 mag contender barked once and she hit the ground. It was 13 steps from the back of my blind to where the doe fell. So I'm guessing the 210 grain XTP was still scooting along pretty good at impact.

I am not sure how close.

I was hunting from an old tire against a tree along the edge of a field. A small buck came walking along the field edge.
The buck never saw me there. aimed my Knight lk93 and pointed it at the buck couldn't aim iwas to close. when I got the deer it had powder burns around the bullet hole and I got splattered with blood.

Mountain lion at 5 feet.....not lasered! I was up in the tree with it.
Several rattlesnakes right off the muzzle.

This is my lion, he wasn't very happy when I climbed in with him.



Feral hog, 9 inches, how do I know, because thats the length of the blade I stuck him with.



Dick

Three years ago I shot a Red Fox at about two feet. I was using a rabbit in distress call & the fox walked right up to me & smelled my boot & I blew a fist sized hole threw him.

I've killed a deer from about 3 ft. with a bow and probably about the same on a grey fox. Handgun kills have been a little farther at about 10 ft. Couple of those.

Closest shot was 2-3 feet. I was hunting a hedgerow for charlies with the DW 357 Max. I saw one run into the tall grass from about 20 yards. I got the gun in front of me in the ready position and slowly stalked me way towards the hole in hopes the charlie might stick his head out or had not gone all the way down the hole yet. I get to within a few yards and I can see the hole with nothing out and about. I slowly ease up to the hole and look inside. The hedgrow is elevated about a foot and a half where the hole was. Nothing there, just before I turn to go he comes up from down under and stops dead in the botton croock of the hole about 1 foot down from the edge and stairs right at me. All I had to do was move the gun up about 6" and squeeze the trigger. DRT at the level of my feet.

When I was younger and deer hunting with a shotgun, as I was not old enough to use a handgun I had a very close encounter. I was sitting at the base of a huge oak tree. I was tucked into the base between two big roots with my left leg extended along one of them. With the wind in my face and a clear shot down the hill at a well traveld trail I waited. From the left a see movement at about 10 feet. It's a deer, a button buck no less coming right at me. I froze, the deer walks right in front of me. As he steps over the root and my shin I can hear him breathe. I had a fleeting thought to reach out and slap him on the ribs but did not. As I watch him walk away without a clue I was there I rethought the idea I had. There was a good chance if I had spooked him in all the comotion of him trying to leave at warp speed he might have kicked me in the head. All in all that was an awesome experience close up with a creature of GOD.

Hey Sixshot, you are having entirely too much fun

Closest Shot was a 6 point Buck about 10-15 feet right in front of my ground blind. He was chasing doe's. Shot him with my Ruger Accusport Bisley in 45 Colt. That was what hooked me on handgun hunting.

Bo

Under 10 yds. on a Limpopo Bushbuck in South Africa, using a .454 Casull FA revolver.

My closes shot was a clean miss with a rifle...
Was coyote hunting one very cold winter day in Oregon. Sitting against a big pine tree in my winter camo with the call's speaker about 50' away. The crows heard it right off & were circeling around low & you could hear the air go thru their wings as they flapped them in flight. A light rythimic sound. I was about half asleep after 20 minutes or so & I heard another crow coming over from my left... Turned out it wasn't a crow. It was the pitty patter of cotote feet on the frozen snow. I first saw him from the corner of my half open eye when he was about 15' away. He kept coming at a slow trot, eyes fixed on the cotton ball on a piece of thread swinging in the breeze near the calls speaker. Like Tiggers deer, this coyote actually hopped over my legs going from my left to my right! Now I'm shooting a Ruger #1 in 6mm with a Leupold fixed 6x on it & I'm right handed, so things got kinda awkward as I tried to turn to get a shot at about 10' with a 6x scope. I saw hair & squeezed... That bugger really picked up the pace, but he was actually peeing himself as he was running. Still he ran over & without even slowing down knocked my speaker over with his mouth on the way past. I was laughing so hard I couldn't get the gun reloaded before he made the brush. My shot was a clean miss. The only trail in the snow was yellow, & not red!
Probably the most fun I have ever had alone in the woods.

15 feet doe rubbing on my tree stand steps. Had to shoot>

I have seen those scenarios RE: stabbing a pig at nine inches. The ranch where Gary shot his elk has those hunts: DB Hunting Ranch. You pay the price and they furnish you with a "hog sticker" knife, the dogs, the guide, and the pig. Oh and you get to keep the hog sticker knife.

The dogs bay the pig and they are trained to go in and grab a piece from each end and hold it for the guy to stab it. What fun! Pretty challenging too I bet.

Badger at about 10 feet. Squeeked him out of his hole. Taurus 24/7 Pro 40 S&W.

The real challenge for me was not getting bit by one of those dogs! What they do is bay the hogs with several dogs & then release a couple of pit bulls, the run in, grab the hog by both ears & they won't let go. You pick a spot, wade into the pile & find something that looks like a feral hog & poke him gently behind the gristle plate.....actually not very gently. I had a good, big knife on hog #1 & a good, small knife on hog #2, me & this second one weren't getting along very well, he didn't like getting poked with that 4" blade, the big knife was busy 15 yds behind me on another hog.
After dragging me & both dogs for a ways they got the other knife up to me & I settled him down pretty fast. We have it on video, perhaps the wildest thing I've done....at least for a while. I was very nervous about both the pit bulls, they were mean, big & nasty!

Dick

My closest big game animal was a bighorn ewe at 18 feet with a recurve.

Well with a handgun 12yards white-tail doe.Closest big game animal 16 5/8inches custom cut 30-06 Browning.The animal ...a 17yr old 350lb black bear.Yes dogs were involved,but only 2,hounds,not catch dogs.INTENSE,yes SCARY,yes,FUN...after it was all over it was extremely exhilarating.

44 mag at whitetail doe, approx. 6-10 feet.
She jumped up from behind a blowdown right beside me, as I passed.
My revolver was already drawn, so I shot from the hip
sideways at her,(still think more out of fright), hit her in rear hip, she fell, I aimed this time, hit her in neck and killed her instantly.
Really shook me up. Supposed to be "hunting". If it had been a big-cat or bear, I'd have been lunch.

3-4 feet at a doe with my 7-30 Waters...

Bout 10 yards on a 150 class white tail. Just after I'd got a 2-6X variable because I'd passed on some others bigger when my 2X didn't seem like enough! Since then every deer I've shot w/that variable on it has been under 75 yards set at 2X.

Do finishing shots on hogs count when you are only a couple of feet away?? LOL! I think my closest shot with a revolver was about 10 yards on hog in Florida.

7 feet here-about 4 steps but they were downhill then up lol

this one is about 12 feet

the fi9rst one on this clip was about 5 feet-lol

the first one here is about 4 big steps

Wow hog stickin sounds like fun. I shot a doe this year at 15 yards with my rrh 44. Also this last year I had a nice 7 pointer walk up to the ladder I use to get in my stand and rake his antlers on a small tree next to it. The worst part was it was one of those doe only seasons. When I was 13 it was my first year hunting, I decided to sit right on a fenceline. A doe walked right along the fenceline and walked within 5 feet of me,then spooked. I don't know who was more suprised me or the deer.

This year I shot 2 nice Does at 12 yards in about 1/2 second, hunting on the ground, was cool. SBH Hunter .44 mag, open sights.I didn't know I could thumb the hammer that fast, one went 40 yards, the other 60. I was shooting 310 gr. WNFP GC True Shot Hardcast bullets and 21 gr. H-110, my Boar loads.