# How close of a shot have you had.



## fixed blade XC-3 (Sep 11, 2007)

Ole 0neI's thread got me thinking about some of my past shots. I've never had a shot closer than 30 yards. I've had opportunities, but never pulled the trigger. I called in a great bull in Wyoming to less than 10 yards but didn't have a good shot at his vitals.  He knew something was up and bolted out of there. :x 

Id love to here about your close shots and the stories behind them.


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## Snipe (Dec 4, 2008)

I was 14 first big game hunt built a ground blind(a few sticks and brush just off a trail) got there plenty of time before the sun came up. I fell asleep waiting for the sun to come up. When i woke up there where deer everywhere. A 2 point was about 20 feet away, yea feet. I was so freaked out that i shot under him. Didn't get another shot that hunt.


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## nickpan (May 6, 2008)

Closest was about 10 feet max. From treestand huntin bears. Couldn't look through my peep because all i saw was brown fur. Really cool experience


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## TEX-O-BOB (Sep 12, 2007)

Most the critters I've shot with a bow have been within 20 yards. But one hunt counts as the closesed encounter I've ever had. I had a doe tag for the Chalkcreek area and was sitting in an alfalfa field behind an old farm implement waiting for the deer to feed out into range. About an hour into it this doe entered the field from the far side and worked her way straight towards me. She just kept coming and coming until she was standing there 10 FEET away just munching away. I could hear her chewing. I had my bow at the ready and was pulling back on the string slightly for what seemed like hours waiting for her to turn and give me a shot. I knew at a distance of 10 feet she would pick up any movement and most likely bolt. So I thought, "well, if I start my draw while she's facing me, when I come to full draw she'll turn to leave and I'll just punch her through the ribs." Since I shoot a recurve and my draw cycle is pretty fast and snappy I thought I could probably pull it off. Easy-squeezy, right? Well, I waited till she had her head down and started drawing my bow. Before I knew it I was at full draw and all she did was pick her head up and look right at me. So, there I was with a 69# recurve at full draw, and a doe at less than 10 feet facing me with that "deer in the headlights" look. I'm sitting there shaking like a dog sh*tin peach pits and we're having a stair-down. Just as I was about to blow a blood vessel she slowly turned to leave. I focused on a hair about mid-chest and I let the arrow go. Would you believe she _almost_ got out of the way. :shock: :twisted: Just as I let the string go, she ducked and turned to run. Unfortunately for her the 160 grain Snuffer caught her right behind the ear and she dropped like a sack of spuds right in her tracks. Lucky? You bet your sweet ass! But, I'd rather be lucky than good any day... 8)


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## berettaboys (Sep 21, 2007)

My first archery kill was at six yards on a cow elk. My hunting party was pushing a small canyon, I was about 200 yards up into the timber almost ready to drop out to the truck. With nothing to do but go back to camp an eat a sandwich for lunch I decided to stay put where I was and be the last one to drop out to the truck. After sitting there for around ten minutes and watching a few deer run past I figured everybody was probably dropping out to the truck right now so I would put my pack back on and head out. Just as I was putting my pack an I flash caught my eye so instinctively I dropped my pack and grabbed my bow. Sure enough it was a cow and a calf coming right for me at about 80 yards away. The only thing separating us was a quaky aspen, so I waited a second and then draw my bow using that quaky so they couldn’t see me. Then sure enough they came past that quaky and the cow spotted me and stopped right there to see what I was. At six yards broadside, every one of my pins covered her vitals, and I actually lost train of thought while being amazed that I was that close to her, so I lined up my middle pin in the middle of her vitals causing me to shot a little higher then I wanted, but still putting her down about sixty to seventy yards away. It was pretty awesome


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## middlefork (Nov 2, 2008)

18 yards


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## Anaconda Pintler (Oct 29, 2007)

TEX-O-BOB said:


> Most the critters I've shot with a bow have been within 20 yards. But one hunt counts as the closesed encounter I've ever had. I had a doe tag for the Chalkcreek area and was sitting in an alfalfa field behind an old farm implement waiting for the deer to feed out into range. About an hour into it this doe entered the field from the far side and worked her way straight towards me. She just kept coming and coming until she was standing there 10 FEET away just munching away. I could hear her chewing. I had my bow at the ready and was pulling back on the string slightly for what seemed like hours waiting for her to turn and give me a shot. I knew at a distance of 10 feet she would pick up any movement and most likely bolt. So I thought, "well, if I start my draw while she's facing me, when I come to full draw she'll turn to leave and I'll just punch her through the ribs." Since I shoot a recurve and my draw cycle is pretty fast and snappy I thought I could probably pull it off. Easy-squeezy, right? Well, I waited till she had her head down and started drawing my bow. Before I knew it I was at full draw and all she did was pick her head up and look right at me. So, there I was with a 69# recurve at full draw, and a doe at less than 10 feet facing me with that "deer in the headlights" look. I'm sitting there shaking like a dog sh*tin peach pits and we're having a stair-down. Just as I was about to blow a blood vessel she slowly turned to leave. I focused on a hair about mid-chest and I let the arrow go. Would you believe she _almost_ got out of the way. :shock: :twisted: Just as I let the string go, she ducked and turned to run. Unfortunately for her the 160 grain Snuffer caught her right behind the ear and she dropped like a sack of spuds right in her tracks. Lucky? You bet your sweet ass! But, I'd rather be lucky than good any day... 8)


I vote coughcoughcoughbullshiiitcoughcough that you TEX have ever got a 69# recurve to full draw much less held it there!!!! :lol:


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## TEX-O-BOB (Sep 12, 2007)

All right you mouthy Montana moose turd! :twisted: 

You know, I ustacould pull that pig back to my face, but I'll be the first to admit I'm likin my little 45-50 pound bows lots better these days...  

After all, I can still bury an arrow to the nock in an elks chest with em. How much weight do ya need past that?


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## Anaconda Pintler (Oct 29, 2007)

Was the word "ustacould" inscribed on the golden plates? :mrgreen:


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## shedhead (Feb 2, 2009)

Well the closest shot I've ever had was 7 god **** yards. This fat healthy jerky two point buck was out in a nice hay feild just eaten away. He was with all his lady friends and I put the stock on him. So there was this f****** dirt hill right. I belly crawled up there sat in front of this sage bush and that f****** buck came within 7 god **** yards. I pulled back and I killed that little f*****. I'm not going to lie he was delicious. I've hunted over 25 god dame years and i won't ever forget about my f****** dirt hill that saved my ass. :mrgreen:


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## longbow (Mar 31, 2009)

Spike elk at 4 yards, whitetail at 8 yards and a bear at 13 yards. All on the ground. All the rest have been shot at clear the hell out to 20-30 yards.


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## Treehugnhuntr (Sep 7, 2007)

5 ft. Cow elk.


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## TEX-O-BOB (Sep 12, 2007)

fatbass said:


> shedhead said:
> 
> 
> > Well the closest shot I've ever had was 7 god **** yards. This fat healthy jerky two point buck was out in a nice hay feild just eaten away. He was with all his lady friends and I put the stock on him. So there was this f****** dirt hill right. I belly crawled up there sat in front of this sage bush and that f****** buck came within 7 god **** yards. I pulled back and I killed that little f*****. I'm not going to lie he was delicious. I've hunted over 25 god dame years and i won't ever forget about my f****** dirt hill that saved my ass. :mrgreen:
> ...


No kidding potty mouth! You even had me blushing there for a minute. All the poor little Mormon boys are in the fetal position sucking their thumbs about now. :lol:


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## fixed blade XC-3 (Sep 11, 2007)

TEX-O-BOB said:


> All the poor little Mormon boys are in the fetal position sucking their thumbs about now


 :lol: Is this True Elk22hunter, Treehugnhuntr and IWAB? :mrgreen:


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## swbuckmaster (Sep 14, 2007)

5 yards was the closest and 30 or so was the furthest. average is 20 yards or top pin! :mrgreen:


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## TEX-O-BOB (Sep 12, 2007)

Hell, it sounds like you need to just break all those other pins off yer bow. Or just go traditional. 8)


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## BPturkeys (Sep 13, 2007)

Man, one time I reached out and slit ones throat as he ran by...but that wasn't ever the closest one. While sleepin out under the stars so as to get a early start on the elk opener one year, a three point bull come up and layed right down beside me, thinkin I guess I was part of some heard or somethin, well anyway, I only had to roll over, throw a quick hitch around his neck with my ammo belt and cinch it up tight. Next morning, there he lay, tongue hangin out, deader than a doornail!


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## Anaconda Pintler (Oct 29, 2007)

I have woke up to some that smelled that way to BP! :wink: :mrgreen:


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## proutdoors (Sep 24, 2007)

460 yards. I just hold a little high.


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## dkhntrdstn (Sep 7, 2007)

15 yards and did not let the arrow go.  :evil: :twisted:


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## MarkM (Sep 7, 2007)

Closest kill was about 20 yards. The closest miss was about 15 yards, every pin was on that damnm deer, I don't know how I managed to shoot a foot in front of him. 

The closest I have ever had an animal come to me was a doe that sniffed the end of my broadhead. 

And one the coolest was a group of three little two points that came up to me as I was sitting on the ground reading a book while bowhunting one year. I was holding out for something bigger so I made no move to try and get my bow, I just sat there holding my book watching them get closer and closer. The lead buck got to about two feet from my stretched out foot and you could all of a sudden see his eyes get big as he realized I was sitting there. He jumped and the funny thing is they only ran off about 20 yards and sat there for a good five minuites trying to figure out what I was. Very neat experience.

Mark


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## PYdoehunter (Aug 6, 2009)

Hey everyone, first time on this website. I read posts for hours yesterday. Amazing information on here. My closest "experiance" wasn't a shot, but when I actually got stepped on by a three point buck when I was 15. We were hunting in SW Idaho and my Dad and his friend were driving deer twards my brother and I on the other end of a large Aspen patch. Being a teenager, I didn't do well in the mornings, and decided I had some time before anything woould be coming my way, so I took of my pack and laid back behind some sagebrush. Next thing I remember was hearing the sound of hooves beating the dirt and getting louder, followed by a thud on my chest. I woke up thinking it was my brother hitting me, but upon looking down the trail I happened to be laying on was a three point high tailing it out of there. Needless to say, when my Dad emerged from the trees scratched and sweating and asked if we got that buck, I had to admit, that HE actually got me. I have a picture at my parents place of the scrape and the bruise on my chest the next day. My brother did shoot a nice six point bull last year from eight feet. It ran past him and almost stepped on his wife who was cow calling from the sage brush 50 yds behind him.


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## lone hunter (Jan 23, 2008)

There have been a number "could of had shots" but two shots that were very close on deer. Many years ago, when archery was either sex statewide and you had a seperate archery tag, I took a doe on the last day at approx. 2 yards. She came by on the other side of a sage brush. Again, in a distant past, I shot a small 3 point at whatever distance it was from one bounce. Probably less than 3 yards. This is that story. I was sneaking up on a herd of elk in some tall quakie willows and grass. Along came this buck walking right at me. I hunkered down hoping he would pass me without spooking the elk. Of course he came right to me. I was "hiding" behind my bow. He came up to me bent down and sniffed me. He took one jump and stopped broadside. I made the quick decision "I have been trying to shoot one all week, now I get the chance" I raised up and shot. I did not need much aiming. All hell broke loose. The elk herd was bigger than I thought, and there were two more small bucks behind him. I later did recover him, after finding my boots which I had dumped to stalk.


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## bowhunter3 (Oct 18, 2007)

my first archery kill was at 20 yards, tiny little 2 point


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## duckhunter1096 (Sep 25, 2007)

Great stories! 

Tex......Please don't apply that "Rather be lucky than good" on your taxidermy work!


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## TEX-O-BOB (Sep 12, 2007)

duckhunter1096 said:


> Great stories!
> 
> Tex......Please don't apply that "Rather be lucky than good" on your taxidermy work!


Some days and with some birds it's the truth...


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## eyecrazy (May 4, 2008)

first bow kill was 15 yards on a 5x6 bull he just kept coming straight on then turned broadside and down he went on the spot. I have guided kids on the youth hunt that the farthest shot was maybe forty yards.


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## .45 (Sep 21, 2007)

Spike.....20 yards.....25-06 ......uh, heart shot !! :lol:


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