I have been handgun hunting for 3 decades and have taken a lot of game, usually between 50-75 yards. I was gifted a hunt on a high fenced lease west and just a little north of Austin. There were 5 of us from the company I was working for that went and I took my favorite scoped Stainless Ruger Redhawk in .41mag. I have handloads that are much more accurate than any factory loads I have shot out of it. so I loaded it in the Zero Haliburton style case with a box of handloads. I also brought along my .308, just in case the lease operators would not allow handgun hunting. On the way into the lease I spotted a mature Black Buck Antelope that was an easy Boone & Crockett trophy and decided to take him if possible. After having to prove that I could truly shoot the handgun, the lease operators signed off on me using it to hunt. I was in a blind 75 yards from the feeder and the black buck ran past the feeder for three days straight without ever stopping. Since I don't believe in shooting a running animal, I decided to get out of the blind and take up residence next to a huge oak tree and since I was fully covered in pretty much the same camo I was blended in efficiently. After the 4th day one of the other hunters was able to take the black buck from another blind about 500yards behind me. I had decided that it was not to be for me, when three large Fallow Deer started strolling across in front of my location at about 170 yards. I knew I could not shoot that far and guarantee an ethical kill, so I got on my stomach and crawled within 103 yards from them. They kept looking my way but I was slow enough that I did not spook them. There was a Chocolate, Blonde and Spotted and I decided I wanted the Spotted but they were walking in unison with the spotted in the middle, and so I decided to try something to see if I could get them to split up. I whistle loudly and the Chocolate & Blonde stopped but the Spotted took two more steps before stopping and this allowed the kill zone to be past the nose of the Chocolate. I quickly pushed up a pile of dirt and used it as a gunrest and put the crosshairs on the Spotted allows heart and squeezed the trigger. The 240gr Federal Hydrashok handloads traveling at 1450fps hit the animal just where the crosshairs were placed. He took two more steps, blew blood out his mouth and nose and collapsed and died. There were 10 hunters at the lodge and they all hopped into their vehicles and came down to see their first handgun kill. This was by far the biggest animal I had taken with a handgun and the farthest distance as well. I had taken one whitetail doe at a little over 90 yards but this was the farthest for me. Here is the mount and gun laying on the Fallows cape I did it with.
