Because hunting the ground floor of the Bogue Chitto National Wildlife Refuge can put you face to face with deer or hogs, it’s important to consider a few small details that can put the odds of a close encounter more in your favor.
Bogue Chitto veteran hunter Alan Williams says he can see deer out to about 70 or so yards in most spots that he ground hunts, but most of his shots over the years have been measured more in feet than yards.
“I’ve got a buddy who hunts with me down there who shot at a hog at 7 feet, and all he did was blow mud all on the side of that sucker,” Williams laughed. “Turns out, he was using those see-thru scope rings.
“If you shoot at an animal at close range with see-thru scope rings, you better use the iron sights on your barrel, or you’ll shoot under that animal. That’s exactly what he did.”
Although the close quarters of Bogue Chitto might be the perfect opportunity to use iron sights rather than a scope, Williams says the variable-power scopes available today do an excellent job of allowing a hunter to zoom in or out on his target.
“I use a 3-9×40 scope,” Williams said. “To me, that scope down on your barrel gives you better accuracy with it from short distance to farther out.
“Most of the time, I leave my scope dialed down close to the lowest power because that makes it easier for me to find the animal in my scope when I pull up on one.”
Williams went on to say that while he thinks a .30-.30 with open sights might be an ideal rifle for hunting Bogue Chitto, he hunts with a .270 with a 130-grain bullet. He feels this combination gives him a flat-shooting rifle with very little bullet drop from 50 to 200 yards.