The old adage for hunters was “get as close as you can, then get 10 yards closer.” That’s still valid, despite today’s fascination with long-range shooting. Equally valid, and perhaps more important: “Get as steady as you can.”

To a large degree, it’s stability, not distance, that dictates the practicality of an accurate shot. In field shooting, the ethics. If you aren’t steady enough to be certain, don’t take the shot. There are lots of ways to acquire an adequately stable shooting position and, in most situations, multiple options. Sometimes, one of the four NRA shooting positions (prone, sitting, kneeling, standing) fill the bill perfectly. Other times, a handy rock or tree fills the bill nicely.

A sturdy bipod is almost as steady as over sandbags on a bench. This is a Harris bipod, long the gold standard. While a great bipod, it’s not light, and attaching takes a bit of time.

Given a choice, I’m mostly a “pack-over-a-rock” guy. Sometimes, that choice doesn’t exist so, like many of us, much of the time I carry a shooting aid, something extra to add stability. Here are three systems worth considering.

African Shooting Sticks

In Africa, this is how it works: the tracker, with the best eyes, leads, carrying shooting sticks, a simple tripod, legs joined at the top. The professional hunter (PH) follows closely, with you third in line. When the tracker nears an opening, he spots a three-toed “gazork” on the far side. He then sets up the sticks and…