How to check zero at elevation without disturbing game

[stretch866]

FNG here. I'm heading to Colorado from flat land. How do you guys confirm zero once in your unit without disturbing game? I'm going from 900ft to 10,000 feet. And the entire unit is up at 10k. I'll be arriving one day before the season starts. The unit really only has one access point and it will be filled with hunters heading up as I understand it. Does everyone just do it anyway? Or is there a better way?

 

[browning2480]

Find a shooting range close and go have at it. Lots of them around

 

[venado mula]

Before you get to your preferred hunting area, find a spot and fire a round, you won't spook anything. I'm sure where ever you are going there are people up in the mountains all summer shooting beer cans and such. I don't worry about one or two shots far from where I'm going in at. Hope this helps.

 

[sodaksooner]

Yeah, last year we had some guy firing an AR full auto down the road for a LOOONNNG time. Had to have burned up a grand in ammo not to mention a barrel or two. Didn't seem to bother the elk as we got into them less than a mile away across the valley.

 

[AZ_Hunter_2000]

Animals tend to know if the gun fire is targeting them vs general area.

 

[Ucsdryder]

Not sure what rifle you’re shooting but I’ve never seen a zero change at elevation. I routinely go from 5000 to 12000 and haven’t seen any reason to mess with it. Dope, yes. POI shift from travel, depends and maybe.

 

[striped1]

If you have a ballistic calculator, you can change your altitude and find a representative temp and humidity level and find what your offset is for that DA. Thus you could sight in for that DA at home and confirm at elevation when you get there with only a shot or 3.

 

[stretch866]

Not sure what rifle you’re shooting but I’ve never seen a zero change at elevation. I routinely go from 5000 to 12000 and haven’t seen any reason to mess with it. Dope, yes. POI shift from travel, depends and maybe.

It's just to confirm zero really as I'm coming from a long ways out. I have the dope for the elevation.

 

[Ucsdryder]

It's just to confirm zero really as I'm coming from a long ways out. I have the dope for the elevation.

Plenty of ranges out there. I personally wouldn’t shoot close to where I’m hunting. Lots of sage flats at the base of the mountains. Find some BLM or forest land and take a shot. It might not be at 10,000 feet but it’s close enough.

 

[stretch866]

If you have a ballistic calculator, you can change your altitude and find a representative temp and humidity level and find what your offset is for that DA. Thus you could sight in for that DA at home and confirm at elevation when you get there with only a shot or 3.

Thats my plan, I just didnt know if it was poor etiquette to be shooting the day before the season opens...

 

[striped1]

Thats my plan, I just didnt know if it was poor etiquette to be shooting the day before the season opens...

You will hear plenty of shots a day or two before season opens.

 

[dr.mooseknuckles]

I'd shoot roughly at the elevation you intend to hunt. We drove out about 3 miles from our camp site this past October to check zeros around 11,500. I think I shot each of my rifles 3-4 times. Found that they were both shooting pretty dang high from what I was expecting/anticipating. That was the day before the season. Were in elk every day. I'd rather know prior than find out the hard way.

 

[Ucsdryder]

I'd shoot roughly at the elevation you intend to hunt. We drove out about 3 miles from our camp site this past October to check zeros around 11,500. I think I shot each of my rifles 3-4 times. Found that they were both shooting pretty dang high from what I was expecting/anticipating. That was the day before the season. Were in elk every day. I'd rather know prior than find out the hard way.

The obvious issue with firing 6-12 shots 3 miles from camp is that you’re possibly/probably shooting in an area someone else is hunting. If every person on the mountain does this, well then…

I won’t say it has a negative impact on the critters, but between guys getting to their hunting location 1-3 days early and “scouting” the entire mountain on foot, and guys shooting at hunting elevations, the difference between opening day and the day before isn’t that big. I’ve elk hunted in spots where the elk make a mass migration for private as soon as the shooting starts.

Just something to think about as more and more people invade the woods.

Sage flats provide better shooting opportunities and usually won’t affect the hunting for you and everyone else.

And while I’m at it, don’t drive your stupid utv/atv all over the damn mountain before the season opens. Spotting scopes from the road will do just as much or more than tromping around/driving around where the elk are! Last year the day before the opener I had a 340” bull spotted for my wife’s rifle hunt and 2 guys “scouting” on atvs drove up a nasty 2 track atv road and the bull took off with his cows, never to return. They never knew the meadow was FULL of elk 3 minutes before they got there because every elk headed for dark timber when they heard the atvs.

I know, public land, blah blah blah.

 

[Mykolaivka887]

Animals tend to know if the gun fire is targeting them vs general area.

Yeah, wildlife is pretty much conditioned to gun fire nowadays. Everybody and their brother is out there firing semi autos, automatics and whatnot, all the time. A lot of times, the backcountry sounds like it's a war zone.

 

[dr.mooseknuckles]

The obvious issue with firing 6-12 shots 3 miles from camp is that you’re possibly/probably shooting in an area someone else is hunting. If every person on the mountain does this, well then…

I won’t say it has a negative impact on the critters, but between guys getting to their hunting location 1-3 days early and “scouting” the entire mountain on foot, and guys shooting at hunting elevations, the difference between opening day and the day before isn’t that big. I’ve elk hunted in spots where the elk make a mass migration for private as soon as the shooting starts.

Just something to think about as more and more people invade the woods.

Sage flats provide better shooting opportunities and usually won’t affect the hunting for you and everyone else.

Great thought. To clarify, we confirmed that there were no other vehicles or camps in the area (for several miles along this FS road), and technically speaking, we were in a different unit than our tag was for. Our camp and hunting area was on the border of the unit. We hunted North along the southern edge of the boundary and were East of our camp. We may have inadvertently pushed elk back towards our hunting location.

 

[Lawnboi]

It’s 6-9” long and screws on the end of your barrel.

 

[D_Dubya]

Most units in CO will have some lower elevation BLM you can verify zero in. I go from 500 feet to 10k plus every year. As others have stated, your 100 yard zero won’t change, but if you’re shooting out past 400 it will start to make a big difference in your dope.

 

[WeiserBucks]

It’s 6-9” long and screws on the end of your barrel.

Mine is 10.5"

 

[11boo]

Dig around on Google . Chances are you will be driving past or near a range.

If you are lucky, it’ll be Cameo. There is steel all over that cliff out to 600.