Long range Hunting /shooting what does it mean to you ?

[Furguy]

Long-distance Hum.
I JUST got back from shooting what I conciser long distance.
.3 miles, 1500 feet, 500 yards, whatever you want to call it. It's a LONG way.
Longer than I care to walk out and check the target for sure.
I set up a life-size target of a coyote, printed on letter paper, It takes 14 sheets to print it out with feet, tail, and ears.
38 x 44" is the target backer.
To look at it without a scope you say crap that's a LOOONG way.
The wind was blowing, can you get your hands around that? in Montana?
Maybe a 45* ish and like 18 mph. Hard enough to blow my target over just before the first shot.
I Just tested 12,220 gr 8mm rounds with different powders and loads.
I found a match that at 100 the bullets almost all touched, and around 2950 fps according to the book.
I had the 8 zeroed at 3" high at 100 yards which is dead nuts center at point-blank of 240 yards with the 200 gr Barnes up around 3100.
That is what I was shooting, I adjusted the parallax to 500 yards, Put the third hash on the coyote's nose.
Shot 3 times, when we checked that put a left to right string about 5" with less than a 1/2" up or down Center coyote but up at ear level. I was surprised at the drop or lack of it. I know in my heart if I had used the second hash it would have been dead center coyote.
I was going to do it again after the check but my buddy shot his 375 Ruger and he hit the supports and blew the target over and we could not stand it back up.
I was a happy camper. Come to find out he had aimed over the target and off the target into the wind. His bullet dropped the 44" target and them some and the windage was well over the 38" wide target.

All that said:
500 yards is a LOOONG shot with any gun in the wind, in the field.
My 6mm and his 6.5 CM at that range and wind was lucky to hit the 11 1/2 sq foot target backer.

Remember: Four boxes keep us free, the soapbox, the ballot box, the jury box, AND the cartridge box

[Weasel]

That's reaching out there alright. I'll take a poke at a coyote if it is stationary and broadside out to 300+. I won't always hit them, but I've been surprised several times over the years.

[porcupine]

Furguy, thanks for sharing your long range shooting report. Always interested in what others are doing.