Elmer’s 600-Yard Shot …
Miracle, Mystical or Marksmanship?
Elmer Keith was larger than life itself. To others, he was a blow-hard gun writer full of manure. Certainly, his reputation far exceeded his size 5 cowboy boots and mere 5’ 6” height. What Keith lacked in physical stature he more than made up with his ever present 6” brimmed Stetson cowboy hat and cigar. That, along with an extensive list of shooting feats and knowledge made Elmer Keith famous, or infamous, depending on which side you fell.
This would be a pretty accurate depiction of what Elmer Keith looked like, proned out, shooting at the mule deer buck.
Shot Heard ‘Round the World
One of Elmer Keith’s greatest and most controversial acts is the alleged shooting of a running mule deer buck at 600 yards. Are you kidding me?! No one can do that! For the record, I have no doubts about the authenticity or accuracy of those shots. We’re all born with given gifts; Keith was shooting a six-gun.
Keith grew up hunting grouse and rabbits with a .32-20. sixgun. Later, he competed on the Idaho National Guard Rifle team, competing at Camp Perry several times. He routinely shot out to 600 yards or more on different courses of fire, so he was familiar with what 600 yards looked like. Secondly, he knew the terrain very well from which the miraculous shots occurred.
Lastly, Keith shot the same gun, a 6.5” S&W .44 Magnum and ammo, just days prior to the hunt, with friend Judge Don Martin. Elmer said, “I spotted a rock at what looked like 500 yards from the road. I told Don to stop the car and turn off the motor. The rock was about 3 feet long and 18” high.
“I rested my arms out the window, held up some front sight and tried it. It was low. I held up more front sight and managed to hit the rock the next five shots. Judge Don Martin said I seen it, but still don’t believe it.”
If you can’t believe a judge, who can you believe? Both Keith and Judge Martin paced the distance off to the rock.
Elmer Keith with a 6.5” .44 Magnum.
Sight Picture
The unknowing, and there are many, ask how Keith ever saw the deer at that distance while holding well over the animal. These people surely haven’t read anything he’s written. Rather than using traditional sight alignment, with the front sight level with the rear sight, Keith raised the front sight above the plane of the rear sight, perching the target on top of the front sight.
During the infamous shots, Elmer said, “On the first shot, I held up all the front sight, or nearly so, and the shot was low. On the second shot, I held all the front sight, and part of the ramp. The buck shook his head, and I thought I hit horns.”
Keith struck the buck in the jaw. The buck ran down the hill, towards Elmer to 500 Yards.
“Again, I held all the front sight, and a little of the base and squeezed one off,” he said.
The Set Up
Keith was hunting on the Kriley ranch, with his friend, Paul Kriley, near Clear Creek. Near days end, Kriley and Keith topped a ridge. A smaller ridge is 300-400 yards away, and above that ridge, they spotted a band of 20 deer about a half mile away, with two nice bucks among them. Keith told Kriley to take his rifle and go to the next ridge, so he’d be 500 yards from the deer. “Kill the biggest buck for me, I’ll stay here and act as a decoy,” he said.
Kriley killed the first buck and started shooting again. Keith went over to the next ridge where Kriley was. The rest of the deer went up over the next ridge, with the wounded buck following.
“Is there any harm in me getting into the show?” Keith asked.
“No, go ahead,” Kriley responded.
Keith had to lay down prone, for if he topped the ridge to get into his reclined Keith position, Kriley’s rifle barrel would have been next to his ear.
Keith said, “Shooting prone with a .44 magnum is something I don’t like at all, the concussion is terrific.”
Kriley shot and missed, and then Keith tried. With Kriley spotting through his rifle scope, Keith’s first shot is low. At the second shot, the buck made a high buck-jump, and came back towards Keith, shaking its head. The next shot, the deer dropped out of sight. It took Keith a half-hour to walk to where the buck was last seen. When he got there, he saw where the buck rolled down the hill about 50 yards, bleeding badly, and his tracks leading over the next ridge.
Keith hit the buck with two out of the four shots. The deer was recovered over the next ridge, dead.
Remington factory .44 Magnum ammo when it first came out.
What Would You Do?
Many speak about the ethics of attempting to shoot a deer that far, with a handgun no doubt. But remember, the buck was already crippled. Keith said, “The front leg was a-swinging” from Kriley’s rifle shot. What harm could happen by shooting at an already wounded deer? Wouldn’t it be more ethical to put the animal out of its misery? The two men put a lot of effort into recovering the deer, and they did.
Keith ended the incident by saying, “I wrote it up as it happened and have been called a liar ever since, but Paul Kriley is still alive (at the time) and can vouch for the facts.
Pictures from an old GUNS Magazine article Keith wrote with his good friend Judge Don Martin.
In Summation
Elmer Keith grew up like few of us ever will. That is, with a sixgun glued in his hand. Rather than playing with an iPhone, Keith entertained himself by shooting rocks at long distances, learning the trajectory of his guns.
Keith was blessed with excellent eyesight. I’ve never seen a picture of him wearing spectacles, not even cheaters, later in his life. Lacking formal education in ballistics, Keith had a strong intuitive knowledge on why things behaved the way they did, and he was usually right. He also experimented with handloads. Yes, he blew a few guns up in his early days, but he learned from it! I would bet my last dollar he made those shots quite confidently. There will never be another Elmer Keith.
