{"id":190924,"date":"2023-07-31T15:07:07","date_gmt":"2023-07-31T19:07:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.gunsamerica.com\/digest\/?p=182598"},"modified":"2025-12-09T08:21:23","modified_gmt":"2025-12-09T14:21:23","slug":"hunt365-take-the-shot-coues-deer-at-last-light","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gunsamerica.com\/digest\/hunt365-take-the-shot-coues-deer-at-last-light\/","title":{"rendered":"TAKE THE SHOT: Coues Deer At Last Light"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"yoast-reading-time__wrapper\"><span class=\"yoast-reading-time__icon\"><svg aria-hidden=\"true\" focusable=\"false\" data-icon=\"clock\" width=\"20\" height=\"20\" fill=\"none\" stroke=\"currentColor\" style=\"display:inline-block;vertical-align:-0.1em\" role=\"img\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\"><path stroke-linecap=\"round\" stroke-linejoin=\"round\" stroke-width=\"2\" d=\"M12 8v4l3 3m6-3a9 9 0 11-18 0 9 9 0 0118 0z\"><\/path><\/svg><\/span><span class=\"yoast-reading-time__spacer\" style=\"display:inline-block;width:1em\"><\/span><span class=\"yoast-reading-time__descriptive-text\">Estimated reading time: <\/span><span class=\"yoast-reading-time__reading-time\">9<\/span><span class=\"yoast-reading-time__time-unit\"> minutes<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.gunsamerica.com\/digest\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/Photo-1-1-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"Hunter setting up for his shot in long brush\" class=\"wp-image-182599\" title=\"TAKE THE SHOT: Coues Deer At Last Light\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Big, open, rugged country that\u2019s also choked with brush can mean long, challenging shots. This time the shot wasn\u2019t long, just steep and grassy.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><em><strong>The author finds a good coues buck at last light. He has to sprint 1300 yards and then shoot steeply uphill through a thin screen of grass. Should he take the shot?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-yoast-seo-table-of-contents yoast-table-of-contents\"><h2>Table of contents<\/h2><ul><li><a href=\"#h-coues-deer\" class=\"clickTracking\" campaign=\"hunt365-take-the-shot-coues-deer-at-last-light\" title=\"TAKE THE SHOT: Coues Deer At Last Light\" data-level=\"2\">COUES DEER<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#h-rifle-optic-and-ammo\" class=\"clickTracking\" campaign=\"hunt365-take-the-shot-coues-deer-at-last-light\" title=\"TAKE THE SHOT: Coues Deer At Last Light\" data-level=\"2\">RIFLE, OPTIC, AND AMMO<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#h-the-coues-deer-scenario\" class=\"clickTracking\" campaign=\"hunt365-take-the-shot-coues-deer-at-last-light\" title=\"TAKE THE SHOT: Coues Deer At Last Light\" data-level=\"2\">THE COUES DEER SCENARIO<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#h-stakes-getting-higher\" class=\"clickTracking\" campaign=\"hunt365-take-the-shot-coues-deer-at-last-light\" title=\"TAKE THE SHOT: Coues Deer At Last Light\" data-level=\"2\">STAKES GETTING HIGHER<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#h-coues-deer-take-the-shot\" class=\"clickTracking\" campaign=\"hunt365-take-the-shot-coues-deer-at-last-light\" title=\"TAKE THE SHOT: Coues Deer At Last Light\" data-level=\"2\">COUES DEER &#8211; TAKE THE SHOT?<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#h-here-s-what-happened-true-story\" class=\"clickTracking\" campaign=\"hunt365-take-the-shot-coues-deer-at-last-light\" title=\"TAKE THE SHOT: Coues Deer At Last Light\" data-level=\"2\">HERE\u2019S WHAT HAPPENED: TRUE STORY<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#h-conclusion\" class=\"clickTracking\" campaign=\"hunt365-take-the-shot-coues-deer-at-last-light\" title=\"TAKE THE SHOT: Coues Deer At Last Light\" data-level=\"2\">CONCLUSION<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>The sun was setting over the Sonoran desert of southern Arizona, stealthy shadows chasing its last rays from the arroyos and cholla-covered hillsides. A towering cliff topped the highest peak to my east, and as the shadow battalion marched up its base I turned my <a href=\"https:\/\/gunsamerica.com\/search?keyword=binoculars\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"clickTracking\" campaign=\"hunt365-take-the-shot-coues-deer-at-last-light\" title=\"TAKE THE SHOT: Coues Deer At Last Light\">binoculars<\/a> for one last look. There, standing in the rosy glow of the receding sunshine, was a buck. The largest buck I\u2019d seen all week, besides one that had been spooked by other hunters and made like a comet, leaving a trail of dust as it headed for Old Mexico.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This buck was standing just below the cliff among some green scrub oaks; a place I\u2019d glassed for days and never yet seen a deer. He was no monster, but this was the last hour of the final day of the season, and I was in no position to be picky. He was no slouch either, being a nice representative buck with a full frame of points. The problem was, the deer was a thousand and three hundred yards away, with three small canyons to cross en route. Getting close enough for a shot was going to require a hardcore sprint across the boulder-strewn, cactus-infested slopes of the Sonoran.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.gunsamerica.com\/digest\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/Photo-2-vers-2-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"TAKE THE SHOT: Coues Deer At Last Light\" class=\"wp-image-182604\" title=\"TAKE THE SHOT: Coues Deer At Last Light\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Glassing is the most effective way to find deer. Eight or ten hours behind glass is common when hunting the Grey Ghost.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-coues-deer\">COUES DEER<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Hunting Coues deer is very different from hunting your typical whitetail. They are a subspecies of the same genus; indeed many Arizona hunters simply call them whitetails. But their habits are nothing alike; by nature, Coues are more akin to wild sheep than deer. They frequently live in exceptionally rugged terrain. They are ridiculously cognizant of their surroundings, and they move like little grey ghosts. You might grid a canyonside through your binoculars for hours without seeing a thing, and then suddenly several deer will be standing there. Like I say; ghosts. Hunting these deer requires serious dedication, good optics, and a plethora of patience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Coues whitetails are small \u2013 the smallest of all North American subspecies except for the Florida Key deer. A mature buck might top 100 pounds on a good year, and stand 30 inches at the shoulder. This makes them a challenging target, especially when you consider the fact that most shot opportunities are longer than average distance. The big, rugged desert terrain where they live dictates that. Oftentimes, it\u2019s impossible to get closer than three to five hundred yards.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.gunsamerica.com\/digest\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/Photo-3-1-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"Hunter with his coues deer and his rifle\" class=\"wp-image-182600\" title=\"TAKE THE SHOT: Coues Deer At Last Light\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The author, all smiles with his hard-earned buck.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-rifle-optic-and-ammo\">RIFLE, OPTIC, AND AMMO<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>My rifle for the hunt was a lovely old <a href=\"https:\/\/gunsamerica.com\/search?keyword=Remington%20700\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"clickTracking\" campaign=\"hunt365-take-the-shot-coues-deer-at-last-light\" title=\"TAKE THE SHOT: Coues Deer At Last Light\">Remington 700<\/a>, built in their custom shop decades ago. This was back in the day when <a href=\"https:\/\/gunsamerica.com\/brand\/remington\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"clickTracking\" campaign=\"hunt365-take-the-shot-coues-deer-at-last-light\" title=\"TAKE THE SHOT: Coues Deer At Last Light\">Remington<\/a> turned out some nice firearms. The rifle had been custom-ordered by a left-handed fellow and was built in their \u201cMountain Rifle\u201d configuration. I usually shoot left-handed to accommodate my dominant eye. My brother was working in a gunshop when this rifle came across the counter, and he was fortunate enough to snag it for me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Chambered in .30-06 Springfield, the rifle features a slender, deep blue 24-inch barrel, a perfectly balanced lightweight fiberglass stock, and a very decent factory trigger that breaks at around three pounds. I mounted a Zeiss Conquest 4.5-14X44 scope complete with their RZ-800 reticle. This reticle has been discontinued, but was, and still is, my favorite Christmas-tree-style reticle. With it, I was accurate on elk-sized targets out to 800 yards and deer-sized targets to about 600.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For ammunition I was using hand loads topped with 180-grain Nosler Accubond bullets, sporting a G1 ballistic coefficient of 0.507 and going about 2750 FPS. This load was overkill for the little whitetails, but I\u2019ve never yet killed something too dead. Candidly, though, a smaller, faster load is more ideal for Coues deer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.gunsamerica.com\/digest\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/Photo-4-1-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"Rugged terrain for hunting coues deer\" class=\"wp-image-182601\" style=\"width:840px;height:560px\" title=\"TAKE THE SHOT: Coues Deer At Last Light\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Coues deer country is often rugged and hard to access. This is the type of terrain the author made his sprint\/stalk across. Note the bivy camp in the lower left corner.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-the-coues-deer-scenario\">THE COUES DEER SCENARIO<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Some buddies and I backpacked into an area and hunted hard for four days without a shot at a mature buck. The hunting wasn\u2019t great, but we persevered right through the last moments of the last day, hoping for luck to turn our way. That\u2019s when I spotted the buck in this story, sunning himself below the big cliff-topped peak.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>There was a little point several hundred yards below the buck\u2019s position, and I knew if I could get there before he moved I\u2019d have a shot. That point was 1300 yards from my current position, and three small canyons were cutting the mountainside I\u2019d be traversing. I may not be able to make the distance before dark set in, or the buck might take three steps and vanish into the sea of brush. Nonetheless, it was my only chance to kill a deer so I grabbed my pack and took off. My brother Joseph came with me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-stakes-getting-higher\">STAKES GETTING HIGHER<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Heaving for air, we scrambled across the desert mountainside, running wherever possible. The sun sank fully behind the western peaks, and as we belly-crawled onto our destination point I doubted that the buck would still be in sight. Much to my delight he still stood, looking like a statue. However, he had already spotted my face pushing through the grass, despite my best efforts to remain unseen. Carefully, I hit him with my laser rangefinder. The distance was under 300 yards; remarkably close for a shot at a Coues deer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Shoving my pack in front of me for a rifle rest, I found the buck in my scope. The angle was extreme, with the buck very steeply uphill from our position. There were are few strands of tall grass in front of my muzzle, but the buck was growing nervous and I knew if I didn\u2019t shoot now the only chance any of us had found in four days of hunting would evaporate. Joseph had crawled into position alongside me, ready in case I missed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.gunsamerica.com\/digest\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/Photo-5-vers-2-1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"Hunting Coues Deer is similar to hunting sheep\" class=\"wp-image-182608\" title=\"TAKE THE SHOT: Coues Deer At Last Light\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Another stalk, another year. You can see why hunting these elusive deer can be very similar to hunting wild sheep.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-coues-deer-take-the-shot\">COUES DEER &#8211; TAKE THE SHOT?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Put yourself in my desert sneakers (By the way, Danner Tachyon\u2019s are the best desert hunting shoes I\u2019ve found.): You\u2019ve traveled far, camped out of your backpack, and hunted from dawn to dark for four days straight. This is the first good shot opportunity any of your group has had, and the range is steep but comparatively short. Would you take the shot?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-here-s-what-happened-true-story\">HERE\u2019S WHAT HAPPENED: TRUE STORY<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>I took the shot. The trigger broke perfectly and I felt like I\u2019d drilled the buck. But then he was running along the slope, seemingly hit low in the body. I shot again, and then again. Joseph shot simultaneously with my third shot, and the buck dropped in a heap, finally well hit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Frustrated, I tried to assess what had happened. My first shot had hit the buck low, the second even lower, the third far back. I usually place my bullets with precision, and I felt like I was shooting well. But I wasn\u2019t hitting well. I felt bad that Joseph had to shoot the buck, but was glad we put him down.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In the fading light, I studied what might have gone wrong. One of two things occurred: Either I had a high-speed come apart and just shot poorly, or my bullets were deflecting slightly on the few fine grass stems to the fore of my muzzle. I like to think that was the case, but to this day, I still don\u2019t know the answer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.gunsamerica.com\/digest\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/Photo-6-vers-3-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"Hunter in the mountains with gun and coues deer\" class=\"wp-image-182614\" title=\"TAKE THE SHOT: Coues Deer At Last Light\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The author was sure glad to get this buck, but not happy with his shooting. No matter how experienced you are there are always lessons to be learned.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-conclusion\">CONCLUSION<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Would I take that shot again? You bet I would, but I would push my luck and hope the buck stood long enough for me to find a higher rest so my bullets would clear the grasses. I may have even needed to sit up. Good chance the buck would have spooked and disappeared. In that case, I wouldn\u2019t have gotten a shot, but that would have been better than making several poor hits before putting him down.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I\u2019ve learned it is possible to place lethal shots through a thin screen of grass or brush, but the material must be close to the animal. In this case, my bullets had to travel over 250 yards after touching those delicate grass stems, and even that slight touch was enough to change their path a bit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Or I just shot badly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>What do you think? Would you have taken the shot? Let me know in the comment section below.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-left\" style=\"font-size:24px\"><strong><em>*** <a href=\"https:\/\/gunsamerica.com\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"clickTracking\" campaign=\"hunt365-take-the-shot-coues-deer-at-last-light\" title=\"TAKE THE SHOT: Coues Deer At Last Light\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Buy and Sell on GunsAmerica!<\/a> ***<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The author finds a good coues buck at last light. He has to sprint 1300 yards and then shoot steeply uphill through a thin screen of grass. Should he take the shot?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":73,"featured_media":192158,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_specdata_upc":"","_specdata_placement":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1164,7,1217,4320,992,1256],"tags":[2723,1209,1264,1283,2620],"featured":[4084],"hunt365":[4089],"class_list":{"0":"post-190924","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-aram-von-benedikt","8":"category-gunsamerica-authors","9":"category-hunt365","10":"category-hunting-hunt365","11":"category-specialty-publications","12":"category-stories","13":"tag-coues-deer","14":"tag-hunt365","15":"tag-hunt365top2","16":"tag-hunting-stories","17":"tag-take-the-shot","18":"featured-row6","19":"hunt365-hunting"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.3 (Yoast SEO v27.3) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Take The Shot? 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Should he take the shot?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/gunsamerica.com\/digest\/hunt365-take-the-shot-coues-deer-at-last-light\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Gun Reviews and News | GunsAmerica.com\/Digest\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/gunsamerica\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2023-07-31T19:07:07+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-12-09T14:21:23+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/gunsamerica.com\/digest\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/Photo-1-1-1024x683-1.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1024\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"683\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Aram Von Benedikt\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@gunsamerica\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@gunsamerica\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Aram Von Benedikt\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"9 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gunsamerica.com\\\/digest\\\/hunt365-take-the-shot-coues-deer-at-last-light\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gunsamerica.com\\\/digest\\\/hunt365-take-the-shot-coues-deer-at-last-light\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Aram Von Benedikt\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gunsamerica.com\\\/digest\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/1b6c32ef487f841f57497be84bffb30f\"},\"headline\":\"TAKE THE SHOT: Coues Deer At Last Light\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-07-31T19:07:07+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-12-09T14:21:23+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gunsamerica.com\\\/digest\\\/hunt365-take-the-shot-coues-deer-at-last-light\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":1569,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gunsamerica.com\\\/digest\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gunsamerica.com\\\/digest\\\/hunt365-take-the-shot-coues-deer-at-last-light\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gunsamerica.com\\\/digest\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2023\\\/07\\\/Photo-1-1-1024x683-1.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"coues deer\",\"Hunt365\",\"hunt365top2\",\"hunting stories\",\"Take the Shot?\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Aram von Benedikt\",\"Authors\",\"HUNT365\",\"Hunting\",\"Specialty Publications\",\"Stories\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/gunsamerica.com\\\/digest\\\/hunt365-take-the-shot-coues-deer-at-last-light\\\/#respond\"]}],\"accessibilityFeature\":[\"tableOfContents\"]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gunsamerica.com\\\/digest\\\/hunt365-take-the-shot-coues-deer-at-last-light\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gunsamerica.com\\\/digest\\\/hunt365-take-the-shot-coues-deer-at-last-light\\\/\",\"name\":\"Take The Shot? Coues Deer At Last Light\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gunsamerica.com\\\/digest\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gunsamerica.com\\\/digest\\\/hunt365-take-the-shot-coues-deer-at-last-light\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gunsamerica.com\\\/digest\\\/hunt365-take-the-shot-coues-deer-at-last-light\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gunsamerica.com\\\/digest\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2023\\\/07\\\/Photo-1-1-1024x683-1.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-07-31T19:07:07+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-12-09T14:21:23+00:00\",\"description\":\"You have hiked a long way to get yourself a coues buck and finally found a huge one. 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