Thanks guys there is some really valuable advice in here. I appreciate the ethics of the hunters on this site, the attitude where I grew up hunting would have been, "just fire at fur" or "throw enough rounds at it and something will hit it". I thought I would get at least a couple of replies like that, I was pleased I didn't.
Being a bow hunter I constantly have to pass on shots that are outside my skill limit, sometimes it hurts but it has to be done, so I am pretty familiar with letting the big one walk to get a crack at him another day. I got into bow hunting specifically for the challenge, in Tennessee we hunt heavy bush out of tree stands so rifle shots are 50 yards or less and off of a rest, which is a good way to get antlers on the wall, but has more to do with where you hang your stand as opposed to hunting skills. I use riffles for moose, bear and elk, which is why I have a small collection, but have never pondered long range shooting until I found this big cut that has so many bears in it.
I only moved up to Washington in July, so hunting this big country is still something I have to get my head around. This country is the real deal, hiking miles up mountains through bush so thick you can't see, dealing with wind, rain, snow and whatever else the weather gods throw at us, butchering game in the bush and hauling it out on your back, this stuff is like a drug to a hunting addict. A far cry from relaxing and drinking coffee in a deer stand while waiting for the big one to walk out and sniff your decoy.
Anyway this thread has helped me a lot. My ethics are in the right place, I don't take shots at animals I am not confident I can take cleanly. I just got a couple of earfuls when moose hunting in Canada two weeks ago for passing on a bull at 50 yards that was dead away from me, but he walked off and never gave me any better angle. There was no way to put a clean shot into it so I passed, and I would do it again, though I might keep my mouth shut at camp the next time
I think the issue I have is not respecting/understanding the skill required to reliably shoot a rifle at distances that long, this thread has opened my eyes a little. Based on the feedback I think some of you could sense my ignorance. Yes I did believe that I could run down to Dave's spend a few hundred bucks on gear and a day practicing the shot and be ready for it, you may all laugh at me now
Anyway this is really exciting stuff, a new challenge and 9 months to figure out if I am up to it! Should fill in the off season gap nicely. Hopefully I can get some more feedback from the panel to help me get ready for it.
Rifle: I agree with the responders that suggested the .338 win mag for the long range shots, of all my rifles this is the one closest setup for this kind of thing. I shoot a Tika T3 with Leupold Mark 2 scope and rings. My preferred round is the Hornady GMX in 185 grains, though I do shoot the 225 as well.
Range Finder: I have the Wildgame unit, this one is going to need an upgrade as it doesn't pick up reads outside of 200 yards. It has been fine for bow hunting, but not going to make it here. Any advice on models people have had good success with at longer ranges would be appreciated.
Ballistics calculator app for smart phone: I have seen this on TV but have no practical knowledge here. I do carry a smart phone in the bush as a backup GPS, but if someone has a recommendation for iphone or droid smart phones let me know. I usually tape the ballistics table for my load to the stock of my gun so I can glance at it when I need it, but that does nothing for elevation and wind.
Cosine angle indicator: No idea on this one, does anyone have some advice on equipment like this they have had good success with? I know that bow hunters use range finders that compensate for the angle and display a shot distance corrected for the angle, anyone ever seen something like this for long range rifle shooting?
Wind is still a mystery: Still not sure how to account for this other than practice, but there was a mention of a Kestral Weather Station, or gauging mirage with a spotting scope. I don't know a damn thing about this but will start with some research here, pointers would be appreciated.
Anyway thanks for the tips and I would appreciate a few more
