Up close and personal

Brad1974

FNG
Joined
Jul 22, 2024
Messages
86
I recently had a discussion on here regarding long range shots on mule deer and got some great feedback, but now I'm interested in going the other direction... I'll preface this by saying I am in no way anit-long shots. But as impressive as those long shots are, I am just as impressed (or even more impressed really) by the guys who get extremely close. I am an avid hunting podcast listener and there were a few that really stood out, with one being an old guy named Jerry Stout, a trad bow ule deer hunter. The podcast host asked him something along the lines of "what is your max distance you'd shoot at a mule deer, about 20 yards?" and his answer was "20 yards?... no, I'm a better hunter than that". Another guy I believe was Brian Koelzer, who is a trad bow hunter who had quite a few mule deer kills that would be measured in feet instead of yards. That kind of hunting is simply awe inspiring to me.

So my question is, what is the shortest shots you've taken on mule deer?
Was it with a gun or bow?
how did/do you do it? (tricks/tips/tactics, spot & stalk, ambush, etc)
What type of terrain and what time of the season? do you think that plays a big part of why you can get that close?

My closest was a spot & stalk on a bedded mule deer, & the shot was 30 yards. It was in high desert wyoming on sept 5th. Then on October 31st this year I tagged a whitetail buck from 12 yards away, but that was definitely not something I planned.
 
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