What to carry for an antelope hunt.

[1shot]

I've been invited on an antelope hunt next year in Colorado. Since I live in Ohio I don't have a lot of need for big game rifles. I have a Rem. 700 VFS in 308 and a sporter weight Rem. 700 in 7 mag. to choose from. Both are sub MOA rifles. Are either of these suitable for the task, or should be looking for something else?

 

[Shawnba67]

How far can you shoot and hit from real field conditions? I will be honest for me its under 300yds closer to 2.Unless its offhand then its about 100. Find your number, then pick the rifle thats the best match.
6mms are widely used.

 

[Mark W]

I used a Rem 700 VLS in 243 Win on my Colorado antelope hunt two years ago. My buddy used a 1st Rem 700 Milspec chambered in 308. Both of them worked just fine. I don’t think the animal is particularly hard to kill so I would take the one I was most confident in hitting the mark with and was comfortable carrying.

 

[Rem06]

I've been invited on an antelope hunt next year in Colorado. Since I live in Ohio I don't have a lot of need for big game rifles. I have a Rem. 700 VFS in 308 and a sporter weight Rem. 700 in 7 mag. to choose from. Both are sub MOA rifles. Are either of these suitable for the task, or should be looking for something else?

i use a 6.5x47 Lapua in Wyoming 650 and 855yds and got beat by a 7REM Mag at 917yds. either will be fine.

 

[people]

Both will work just fine. You will want to bring them both just in case one rifle fails.

Remember to check all your connections.

I also think they are not very hard to kill

 

[Bc'z]

I'd run the either with lighter bullets

Both will work just fine. You will want to bring them both just in case one rifle fails.

Remember to check all your connections.

I also think they are not very hard to kill

Not to mention they come with a beautiful aiming point built into their coat

 

[Ledd Slinger]

Antelope are small and go down easy. 308 and 7 Mag both have more than enough power to do the job.

Great advice to bring both rifles. I never travel for a hunt with just one rifle in case of a failure.

My advice would be to make sure you are proficient with both rifles at long range. Antelope are plains animals and they have amazing vision. Equivalent to about an 8X binocular. They have a good sense of smell too, but their main defense is sight so they like the open where they can see things coming from a long way off. There are some places I hunt antelope where getting closer than 400 yards is a hard challenge. Other places, sometimes 200 yards is possible. Just depends on the terrain.

A bipod is a must as well. It gives a stable platform for field accuracy at long range and is great for keeping your rifle out of the dirt when belly crawling into position for a shot. Stay low and out of sight.

 

[284winner]

I've been invited on an antelope hunt next year in Colorado. Since I live in Ohio I don't have a lot of need for big game rifles. I have a Rem. 700 VFS in 308 and a sporter weight Rem. 700 in 7 mag. to choose from. Both are sub MOA rifles. Are either of these suitable for the task, or should be looking for something else?

I had the same question as I know these animals are smaller than white tails, I know they are not harder to kill. My question really was what range can I expect to be at for a shot. I've seen shows where kills are at 1000 - 1200 yards and some where they are under 400. Certainly a .260 or .284 caliber rifle will handle those and all between. Out to 800 i suppose the 308 will shine at this task as well. I really think in the 308, the real question is what's the best bullet for longer range efficiency in game that size. My decision was the 155. It .46 bc at around 3000 fps worked well accuracy wise for me on targets. Looking at the numbers still good for antelope at those longer ranges (1900 fps/1100 ft lbs @ 800 yards) and pretty flat for a small case cartridge.

 

[Rem06]

168 gr VLD Hunting .308

 

[seymour fish]

I've been invited on an antelope hunt next year in Colorado. Since I live in Ohio I don't have a lot of need for big game rifles. I have a Rem. 700 VFS in 308 and a sporter weight Rem. 700 in 7 mag. to choose from. Both are sub MOA rifles. Are either of these suitable for the task, or should be looking for something else?

Go with superior wind drift characteristics as it’s liable to be plenty windy. Either is more than enough for antelope

 

[spencerhenry]

There is no need to shoot farther than 350 to 400. They will most times let you walk to within that distance. If not, use some terrain to your advantage.

 

[5spd]

A plain 125g jsp & the 308 will drop em like a fly swatter.
My longest shot was 325 yards, my average range has been 125 yards.
All my 6mms have a 6-13" bipod on them and I carry shooting sticks which come in handy when you are on a side hill & cant drop to a prone position. Both are steady. You can pretty much walk fairly close to them if you can use the terrain between you & them.

 

[JimT]

The real challenge in hunting pronghorn is not how far you can shoot, but rather how close you can get.

 

[M-61]

When I lived and hunted in Montana (years ago) my choice was a .257 Weatherby. There weren't really any range finders in use then as I recall but that .257 is really a FLAT SHOOTER!

 

[Bc'z]

To answer the op's question.
Water
Snickers bar, provided you can eat peanuts
Sharp knife.
By the looks of your screen name, what ever you decide to shoot will get the job done.

 

[1shot]

Thanks @bc’g,
That is exactly the reason for the questions/due diligence. I would like to be ultra prepared for the most difficult shot and know when to pass before making a bad shot.

Lloyd

 

[Drop Port]

I've been invited on an antelope hunt next year in Colorado. Since I live in Ohio I don't have a lot of need for big game rifles. I have a Rem. 700 VFS in 308 and a sporter weight Rem. 700 in 7 mag. to choose from. Both are sub MOA rifles. Are either of these suitable for the task, or should be looking for something else?

Either will work fine if you shoot to the conditions. Talk to the person who invited you and see what to expect for that area. Where I hunt wind is the limiting factor, everything grows sideways. My first goat was taken at 560 yards with a 300WSM 100% confident and one shot. Later that day I wouldn't have been comfortable taking a shot at half that distance.

 

[Stingray]

When I lived and hunted in Montana (years ago) my choice was a .257 Weatherby. There weren't really any range finders in use then as I recall but that .257 is really a FLAT SHOOTER!

I'll second that. Still shooting my dad's 257 Weatherby Magnum. Light weight rifle with little recoil and flat shooting.

 

[ebb]

All of my lope kills were with a 25-06. Before I went I read Jack O'Conor's book, that was what he recommended. Worked OK for me.

 

[Bc'z]

When I was a young teenager living in Wright Wyoming. Dad brother n me were sitting on a hill side enjoying a snickers bar having a drink of water. We'd put in quit a few miles that day.
Any how as we were sitting there talking about some of the animals we had seen that day, a 15" buck with 4" diggers popped up over a hill and started walking towards our location.
Well the old man levels him at 75 yards shooting a browning 30-06 Leopold 3x9
Remington factory 165 core lock.
Now that goat resides in Ga. And I think the old man still has same box of ammo he used that day by our last conversation.
So you see if it weren't for the snickers and water we'd have never gotten that animal