If I can't stalk in to under 150 yds due to terrain or noisy stuff, The conditions have to be right for each individual case over that distance, 400+ plus would be a rare occurence for me, My last chance on a 400+ plus presented itself after a long slow grinding pursuit over Scots bog & brash, I was too badly trashed to hold steady, so I let her go.

saefire, You are funny!! For me, groundhog hunting(shooting)starts at 400 yards. Playing the wind,knowing the projectiles ballistic capabilities(flight and end result..............red mist and/or pieces flying off carcass) is something that is not very well taught at the bench...........accuracy part is, end result is not. GHD PS: I shoot these distances at least once a month if not more.Used to reguarly shoot 400 yards on a daily basis but had to "fire the help" and the rifle range land was part of the severence package!!

I feel comforable at 600yds with a couple of my rifles.
I did shoot my Zerba at 300yds in Africa.

For me it's 350-300 yards otherwise I am not hunting as I like to.

Like others I chose 200 because 250 wasn't an option, though I've made a few kills out toward 300. My maximum confident effective range depends on the wind, the rifle, the light, the scope, the cartridge I'm using, the terrain, available shooting positions, local hunting pressure, and what kind of day I'm having. All that said, my favorite deer woods offers shots measured better in feet than in yards.

Wind as has been mentioned is the biggest deterrant. In calm conditions 10mph or less I am good to go with most of my rifles out to 300yds on anything from shunks to deer. With a couple of others I am confident on out to 500.

Throw in a few more mph of wind however and both ranges will drop by 100yds easily if not more.

With handguns I keep to within 100yds or less most of the time, but with a good rest and a pack of feeding hogs, I have stretched it out a bit further with a couple.

my rifle has 9" of drop at 300 yds. I'm zeroed for 200 and practice out to 300. That's all the terrain here can afford though shooting further (at targets) is quite appealing, just not possible here. Most moose are shot inside 150 yds, and deer/bear inside 75 yards.

My moosey spot allows me shots around the swamp out to 400 but I'd never get the animal out. 300 is my limit.

Rem. 700 P, .308 Win. Leupold Mark 4, 6.5 - 20x 50mm, Mil-Dot, 168 gr - 175 gr. bullets, Hodgdon 4895. Off a bench, I'm MOA out to 600 yds. Then the bullet goes sub-sonic, and bullet drop heads south, wind is no longer my friend.

I voted early = 300.

But having read over all the comments, wish I had not voted!

For me any ONE range limit isn't correct.

As, it depends on which rifle I'm using and what I have to rest it on!

I voted 300 but I'll say that anything over 250 free hand is a hell of a shot.

My longest field shot was a doe whitetail at a ranged 444 yards. I was in a tight sling and 16 years old, and still should not have taken the shot. Too damn far!

Ed

200 yards. On saying that, I have taken 4 goats with 5 shots at 425 yards - map measured and checked by foot pace. Why ?, I knew the range and had zeroed the .308Win rifle on a known distance range at 300 and 500 yards and it was dead calm. And the first goat went down with the first shot.

Not so much a matter of range really, I shoot within 200 just because this is where the shot becomes easy. If the game is within 500 there is often plenty of opportunity to sneak in for a close shot.

I took a 250lb boar last summer on a stalking hunt at 2 meters, i.e. 2.5 yards. I saw the boar walking towards a farm, knew that he would turn back, so I ran some 500 meters to take a position in his tracks. The last 100 I took the effort to go slowly and silently and well, we kind of bumped into each other. He never saw me as I took the shot.

What I'm saying is that it's OK to take shots at whatever distances one may feel comfortable with, but the fun starts at close range - just like anything else in this world. A long shot would have turned this outstanding occasion into a mere long shot.

Hitting a met.sil. @ 550yds is one thing, but cleanly killing is another. I voted 400yds, but that would only be no wind & a good field rest prone. My longest shot, 325yds on a bull elk. You can almost always get closer or just don't shoot. I know, lot's of guys have heavy, long range rifles w/ itergalactic telescopes, but I don't hunt that way. Even if reliable hits are made beyond 400yds, the right bullet has to be chosen as most rounds are running out of gas much beyind 400yds.

I have a 300 mag that is very accurate out to 1000 yds. Also, my 6.5 X 55 SW will shoot under a foot at 1000 yds. But like someone said earlier, you have to practice, practice, practice. You need a good scope with adjustable turrets, a good range finder, and you need to know how to dope wind. Beyond that you need to know how much energy your bullet will have left at the terminal range to be sure you can make an ethical kill. Even though my rifles will shoot paper at those ranges, I would say my max range is about 500-600.