We all have heard that you never get a second chance to make a first impression. That may hold true for big game hunting too. You may not get a second chance to make a second shot on the big elk, so you got to make that first shot count. So how important is that first shot? To me, it is THE most important shot you take at the range.  I look at it very carefully for a long time through my spotting scope.  Every time I go to the range, that first shot is the one and only one I will be very critical on myself. If it was opening day of deer season and a shooter buck comes walking up and you took aim at him, would you have hit him with a lethal, ethical, humane shot? Where would you have hit him?  Now look at that shot again…..did it hit within an inch of dead bulls eye? That first shot you just made holds a lot of clues to your success for the next hunting season.

For the last 10 years when I would go Elk Hunting, I would load up my gear, clothes, boots, food, and the rifles. My last stop before getting on the Interstate and heading west would be at the Range and put up one target for each rifle at 200 yards. I would not put my spotting scope out or my rest. I would get out an old wooden block I used for years and lay the rifle on it, and fire one shot at each target. Then I would put the rifle back in its case, put it back in the truck and walk down range and pull the target and look at where I hit the target. I am glad to report that all of the shots for the last 10 years would have found its mark on the elk. One rainy year, I went down and did have to use staples on the target because it was so wet, but the bullet stuck dead center, one quarter of an inch to the left of center.  Once I got to Colorado, I would check it again, make any adjustments necessary.  Then I was ready….I thought.

Leaving East Tennessee at 800 ft at 50 degree arriving in Hesperus, CO at 8100 ft above sea level and 20 degrees F, 20 mph winds can change your point of impact and velocity dramatically. What a change after 30 hours of continuous driving! The world is a different place out there.

Let’s say that I am taking out west a 300 Winchester Magnum and using a 180 grain bullet for that Elk hunt. Let’s look at the facts on that all important first shot.  According to my chronograph, which I trust more than any manual or velocity printed on a box, my first shot is clocked at 2923 fps. The second shot is 2977, third shot 3025, forth shot is 3053 and the fifth and final shot is 3051. My average muzzle velocity is 3005.8 fps, but that is at 804 ft above sea level.  At Sea Level my ballistic coefficient is .501 for a 180 grain Sierra GameKing with a muzzle velocity of 3005 fps. The temperature at the range is 65 degrees F.  

Now we are at 8100 ft above Sea Level, the temperature is 20 degree F and snow on the ground and you have a 20 mph NW wind in your face. First of all, the good news….you have gained almost 20% in bullet efficiency, it is faster by as much as 150 fps due to the elevation in Colorado. The bad news is that due to the temperature being so darn cold, you will lose at least 75 fps off your velocity. Then you have the first shot from a cold barrel which could affect you velocity as much as 100 fps or more. The wind factor, uphill/downhill factor, and don’t forget the biggest factor of all – the human factor – you!

If you are doing the math in your head like I am, then you say well I am only loosing 25 fps, is that all?  Why should I re-sight back in; I don’t need to. Most of us don’t take a chronograph on our hunts to see what the actual velocity is out there versus home, but maybe on the next one I go on I will do that….but I have always checked my zero when I get to where I am going. There are a couple of intangibles here that we need to look at. One is your confidence, and the other is your outfitter's confidence in your ability. When you check your zero, the outfitter will be right there with you checking you out. With outfitters, I have learned you better be able to walk the walk if you talk the talk. They can size you up in a hurry at their range.

Making that first shot count is the most important shot of your hunting trip, so at your home range, practice with a purpose, wait 10 minutes between shots and think of every shot you take as your first shot and make it count the first time. Look that first shot over, save and review your targets. In 6 months when you are on your hunt, the world will be a different place. Think about that shot now that you are going to make in 6 months. Think it all the way through.

Hitting a big elk at 200 or 300 yards is not that hard if you have been shooting at 200 yards all summer in preparation of your hunt, but factoring in shooting uphill or downhill present plus the distance and the wind can be more of a challenge that one might think. For the first 6 year of going west, I hunted up in the Craig, Colorado area in the White Snake River National Forest.  It was nothing but uphill and downhill shots, plus 300 yard shots were very common. Not only did you have to be in physical shape, your rifle had to be set up for that critical first shot. With everything to considere: distance, temperature, uphill/downhill, elevation variation, things can make that first shot a lot harder than one might expect. Sure, you should not have a problem hitting a huge elk, but can you make it a clean, lethal, ethical shot on the first shot. That is your responsibility as a hunter.  You will never get more than 3 shots on an Elk, if you are lucky maybe, but most of the time you will have only one, the first one.

When you buy or load up your ammo that you will be shooting out there, buy or load up 40 to 50 rounds. Go to the range and shot at least 20 rounds up in 3 shot groups. Let your rifle cool down after each shot. Don’t shoot just at 100 yards; shoot 200 and even 300 yards if you can. Make as many trips to the range as you can before heading out ,and the first thing you do when you get out west is re-zero your rifle. Chances are it is going to shoot high due to the elevation change. Before you go out West, you are going to have to think about and visualize your shot, know your rifle and caliber inside and out. Think about all hunting and shooting scenarios now, don’t wait till you are in one and make the wrong decision. Know what it will do at distances and conditions you think you will have to shoot.

Going out west for antelope is another story all together. You don’t have to factor in uphill/downhill angles, but the wind is a bigger factor than the uphill/downhill angle. You will be shooting lighter weight bullets that the wind can affect more than you elk round. I took an antelope at 318 yards in a 22 mph cross winds! The second shot was at 340 yards. I had to put the crosshairs of the scope in blue sky. I had never done that before. The bullet drifted 4 to 6 inches more than I had anticipated. When I field dressed him and checked out the shots, they were further back than I had thought they would have been.  You may ask how did I know it was 22 mph cross winds, I carried a wind meter in my pocket and when I got out of the truck to put a stalk on the antelope, I pulled the wind meter out of my pocket and took readings before starting on the stalk and had a chart on the buttstock of my rifle of drop and drift. You got to think of those things before you pull out of your driveway.

No matter what you are hunting, your terrain will change; your hunting conditions are always changing, and a few days of walking, climbing, and glassing take place before you find an animal that you want to take. Now the stalk is on, and then you are in place. You are breathing heavy; your pulse is racing. Guess what comes next; that first shot. You have been busy carrying the hunk of metal around for a couple of days, now it’s time to put it and you to the test! You find a steady rest and look through your scope and with every heart beat you crosshairs are jumping all over the place. You squeeze off the trigger….what happened? Did you get him? Did you miss him? Is your next feeling one of great pride and joy or one of sadness and wondering what happened? Either way, you will always remember that shot.

Last year while on Safari after each animal was recovered that I had taken, I studied the point of impact of each animal. Did I hit the animal where I had intended? How off was I and did I miss my mark? I also looked at the amount of tissue damage that the bullet caused. Then I would look for the remains of the bullet to see how it expanded and how much of it was left.  I think every hunter should do the same.

So how important is that first shot when it comes to crunch time? You never get a second change to make that first impression of big game with your rifle. You be the judge of that. I would hate for you to plan 6 months on a hunting trip, spend all the money on the hunt, walk miles and miles, day after day just to come up and miss that Bull Elk, Mule Deer or Antelope of a lifetime just because you did not plan or think about that first shot 6 months ago and how important it is. Good Luck on your hunt, because if you did not plan and think your shot through, then you will need luck, lots of it; but have a safe hunt no matter what happens. 

By Miscellaneous Authors

This section is for articles published by a host of amateur authors. Some of these authors are former staff members but many of them are just regular people that had an article in their heart they wanted published. Here at TalkHunting, we believe everyone has a message and we try to accomodate that when possible.