If you hunt turkeys long enough, I know you've had them. Maybe it was beginner's mistakes, or maybe as a seqasoned vet you have made foolish errors.
I am not sure where to begin, there are so many to choose from.
I guess it was the morning we had three walk by us from right to left at about 35 yards. My brother-in-law and I BOTH missed. But to make matters worse, they evidently didn't know exactly what was happening because they turned and came back past giving us another chance. Yep, you guessed it. We missed again. In our defense, we had some tall grass and some light brush between us and the birds. Honestly, I'm not sure that had anything to do with it, but that's my story and I am sticking with it.
There also was the time I tried to move on a gobbling bird that was taking too long to come in. Well, I busted him about halfway between me and where I thought he was. The good thing was he had two hens with him and when I jumped him, the hens went one direction and he went another. I set up in the middle, waited a little while, and started calling. In no time the hens were on top of me. They spotted me. One flew off and the other pitched up in a tree almost directly above me. She was putting, cutting and carrying on at me. That's when he started gobbling. So I waved my arms and she flew away. I moved closer to the gobbler and started hammering back at him like the hen was doing. he gobbled a few more times and then went silent. (Let me back up for a minute and say that I am set up in the edge of a clearcut and he is on the other side. There are very few trees left standing, but there are several piles of brush and treetops.) Back to the story: after about 45 minutes passed and not hearing a peep out of him, I thought there is no way he is going to come back into that clearcut after I spooked him earlier that morning. So, I gathered my calls and stood to leave - he was strutting at inside 20 yards on the other side of a brushpile. I was too busy soiling myself to get off a shot. And to this very day, I have no idea how he crossed that clearcut without me seeing him.
I guess that is enough humiliation for one post.
I missed 3 gobblers last year, that is very humiliating to me, but the 3rd week I finally got one.
Shot about 4 feet over a gobblers head once cause I for got to put my cheek against the stock.My buddy gave me what for.I redeemed myself the next day while sitting under the same tree.
Ive got one from last year one one from the year before. First last years...
Got on a bird gobbling hot on the roost and when it came time I started calling softly and maybe 2-3 mins later there he was coming in on a string right to me I am positioned on the side of a big ridge facing the turkey uphill is to my right downhill to my left... Turkey turned behind some trees and started uphill and at a weird angle I shot and thought I had missed and i then heard a bird gobble when I shot... well I can see the bird I shot at in the brush not going anywhere just looking around and this continues for about 5 mins until the bird I shot at starts to flop and the bird who was gobbling starts beating him up. I got the bird but it wasnt instant, kinda strange but neat hunt.
the year before
One afternoon I was hunting on another property and was on a big ridge calling and heard a flock come down the other big ridge to the west coming down off the mtn to roost, well the next morning they were still there and I tried calling him in but to no avail he had too many hens. So that afternoon I got in there early between where he had came from the day before and his roost and set up. Sure enough he came in but got around me and was already downhill from me, a quick gobble cll and he was in my lap. I missed him at 5 YARDS!!! a week later I went on the same ridge at 11am and caught him without hens called him into my lap again and got him the second time.
Pulled into my spot on the last day of the season after driving an hour to get there. 4 gobblers where hammering every breath. I forgot my shells :goofball:hells . No big deal tho cause I was by myself so nobody knows about it lol
Ooh just thought of another one. Shot a bird about 730 one morning and an hour 15 minute from the truck. I thought sweet I can get back and get some work caught up. Got to the truck and realized I had left my gun propped up at the tree I was sitting again. It was almost noon before i got back to the truck. Noticed a pattern? Its not the turkeys that embarrassing me its me embarrassing me lol
My buddy and I were changing spots, as we emerged out of a wooded draw and into a growning up pasture field, my buddy freezes in mid stride, startled I look over his right shoulder through the tall grass and see a turkey, in the miliseconds that followed my brain said "jake" and "it looks kinda funny" but my mouth says "Shoot!!" in a loud whisper. In the next second I realize why my brain thought it looked funny...it was a decoy!! (I) we did not shoot, and we did have permission to hunt this property, as did others. We never did see or hear the other hunter, and I'm kinda glad one witness was enough. Always make sure of your target. :boon:
I was turkey hunting in FL one time with a well known fisherman. We had hunted that morning with no success but when we were heading out I spotted a few turkeys in front of us. I decided to try and sneak around and get in front of their direction. At one spot it got wide open but the lay of the land made it so that if I crawled I could not be seen. I needed to crawl about 50 yards to get to my set up and be able to see. About half way there I kept noticing thes small little mounds I was crawling across. Then I realized I had ants in my facemask, shirt, pants, etc... I was almost to my spot when they must have all yelled at each other that it was time to bite. Since we don't have fire ants in CA I had not been educated as to these critters. When they started biting me I hurried to my location to find 12 hens and not 1 gobbler running together. About that time I decided to relieve myself of these so called fire ants. You aint never seen a 6' 230 pound man strip so fast in your life. From my buddies perspective he was wonddering what in the world I was doing in the middle of nowhere taking all my close off in fast forward mode. I had over 50 blisters all over my body from that adventure. There were lots of laughs regarding that situation.
TRKYHTR
This happened to me 4 or 5 years ago... Had one hammering on the roost. It was a long walk to him and by the time I got within a couple hundred yards he was on the ground.. gobbling harder than he had been in the tree. I got within probably 100 yards of him and set up, really thick in there where I was hunting. I worked on him for about 20 or 30 min and he wouldn't budge. Gobbled his head off but was being stubborn. I tried different calls, slate, box, mouth.. nothing was working. Then went to soft calling him on a diaphram, purring and scratching in the leaves and he loved it. Turned my head away from him and yelped a few times like I was leaving and he couldnt take it... double gobbled twice and then shut up. I knew.. I knew.. I KNEW he was coming. Had my box call on my down leg so I slowly went to move it to the ground in case I had to shift or move to get a shot.. PUTT!! Rolled my eyeballs back to the front and he was 30 yards away and heading away in a dead run.
Had another one on an afternoon hunt make me look like an idiot. It was a late evening hunt. Stepped 3 feet away from the truck and yelped a couple of times. Immediate response. He was answering with every series of yelps and starting to gobble on his own... really heating up. Moved in and got set up... he is coming in like I had him on a string. He finally topped a little rise at about 35 yards.. put my bead on is wattles and pulled the trigger... it was the loudest click I have ever heard in my life. I got so exicted about finding a bird that fast and he was so eager to work that I forgot to load my gun.
Live and learn.. LOL :TooFunny: :toothy12: :begging:
Missed a bird on my place opening morning last year and didnt have another bird show up the rest of the year.
In 2008 we drove 650 miles to hunt Florida public land for the first time. On the second morning of the hunt I missed an osceola at 30 yards. He had walked within 5 yards of me, then flew up on a log.
The very next morning, not 200 yards from where I missed the day before, I missed another gobbler at 37 yards.
First 3 mornings of hunting Florida public land= 2 misses.
Ended up hunting the rest of the week without a shot. Talk about a long drive back.. Ruined a grand slam for me and my dad both...
I was hunting some public land some years ago with a friend that i had been trying to call a bird in for,and as you all know when hunting public land there is more to contend with than just the weary ole gobbler. So any way we had been fooling with this bird for most of the morning with no success,and i had thrown every thing i could think at this rascal.so i told my buddy we would just kick back take a little power nap,and just let every thing settle down.Little did i know that is exactly what the bird wanted to hear,got woke up to a rumbling gobble not fifteen yards behind our setup,needles to say we did not get the bird,but my friend did manage to let every one know that my calling was pitiful,but when i shut up turkey's would come running.
Quote from: turkeywhisperer on February 29, 2012, 06:35:10 PM
This happened to me 4 or 5 years ago... Had one hammering on the roost. It was a long walk to him and by the time I got within a couple hundred yards he was on the ground.. gobbling harder than he had been in the tree. I got within probably 100 yards of him and set up, really thick in there where I was hunting. I worked on him for about 20 or 30 min and he wouldn't budge. Gobbled his head off but was being stubborn. I tried different calls, slate, box, mouth.. nothing was working. Then went to soft calling him on a diaphram, purring and scratching in the leaves and he loved it. Turned my head away from him and yelped a few times like I was leaving and he couldnt take it... double gobbled twice and then shut up. I knew.. I knew.. I KNEW he was coming. Had my box call on my down leg so I slowly went to move it to the ground in case I had to shift or move to get a shot.. PUTT!! Rolled my eyeballs back to the front and he was 30 yards away and heading away in a dead run.
Had another one on an afternoon hunt make me look like an idiot. It was a late evening hunt. Stepped 3 feet away from the truck and yelped a couple of times. Immediate response. He was answering with every series of yelps and starting to gobble on his own... really heating up. Moved in and got set up... he is coming in like I had him on a string. He finally topped a little rise at about 35 yards.. put my bead on is wattles and pulled the trigger... it was the loudest click I have ever heard in my life. I got so exicted about finding a bird that fast and he was so eager to work that I forgot to load my gun.
Live and learn.. LOL :TooFunny: :toothy12: :begging:
Hahaha I did that same thing last year. I was so mad at myself...
The year before last I got a little cocky. I killed a turkey earlier in the week and never put another shell in my gun because "it only takes one shot to kill a turkey". A couple days later I called one in and wanted to see how close he would get. I missed at 6 steps he flew straight up in the air and I missed again. Then click he went back into strut and laughed at me. I just watched him.
Hunting with my Dad in the early 70's. We set up on a bird in Florida on our local WMA. We always had predetermined shooting lanes. The bird showed in mine and I dropped the hammer. The bird fell onto it's belly with it's head up (I now know that means his neck ain't broke). I walked over to get it and it started trying to get away so I grabbed it by a leg and picked it up. (I now know not to do that). Back then we didn't wear gloves. Now this was a long spurred Osceola and he starts to spin in my hand. First rotation puts a nasty cut in my palm. I let go but during his rotation he got his other spur caught in my shirt and was cutting my belly up pretty good as he flopped and spun. He was beating me with his wings and cutting me up with his spur and was working me over with his free foot as well. After fighting for my life for about 20 seconds I finally got a hold of his neck. I was a big Dusty Rhodes fan and I was desperate so all I knew to do was combine a big belly flop with a bionic elbow. So there I lay on top of a 16 lb. bird that had just about killed me, bleeding and out of breath and afraid to get back up. Then I remebered my Dad was sitting there. I looked over my shoulder at him and he hadn't even gotten up. He was just sitting there shaking his head with a priceless look on his face. I can't remeber his exact words but he said something to the effect like "Boy you can't be mine"
Last morning in Texas, a bunch of years back, get out of the truck and ease a shell into a pump. Walked down a draw and setup on a bird that I hadn't been able to call up the morning before. Not 30 min. later he is standing 15 yard in front of me, pull the trigger, nothing. I had not closed the breech all the way,tried to close it nope, tried to eject that shell and load another, needless to say I watched that bird running away at 62 mph. Left that morning driving back to mississippi couldn't even talk about it the whole ride home. I now shoot a single shot 10.
A friend invited me to hunt a new spot for me; once or twice for him; he said he knew the area. We climbed an hour just to get to the top of a ridge to listen. The first and only gobbling bird was at the bottom. So in the dark we head straight down to him. After a couple of falls on our rear ends and tons of sweat we stop at the bottom ... still dark except for a couple building lights ????? hummmm?????. My friend knew the area alright ha. We were standing at a fence surrounding a barn yard where the turkey was gobbling. Sheer embarrasment for him.
Took a buddy hunting to a spot deep in the woods off a dirt road. Told him we had to get going early as it was 2 miles back in. Sat in the dark at my secret spot for about half an hour when a truck drove by at about 20 feet. I made a wrong turn somewhere. He still laughs at me for that one.
My second hunt. A tom had come in to my calling but was approaching from behind me without me realizing it. I heard him shuffling through the leaves and saw him out of the corner of my eye. I raised my gun slowly and he watched me with his head cocked to the side inquisitively. I pulled the trigger and click. No shell in the chamber. Well, he stood there watching me from about 20 yards as I tried to shuck a shell in and get off a shot. Click again. I hadn't even remembered to load up at all before leaving the truck.
I heard a good cluck from him as he stepped away in no huge haste. It was almost as if he knew I couldn't do anything, but figured he should go ahead and leave in case I tried to throw my gun at him in frustration.
Hunted a bird for most of one season that would glide out into a field and strut with his hens. Gobble his head of on roost then shut up as soon as he touched ground. Tried every thing I could think of to get in gun range of him with no luck. Every hunter in town played with him at one point or another with no luck. The terrain of the field did not allow for a stalk so I was stumped. Finally second to last day of season I saw him head for a corner of the field that had a stone wall running beside it. So I belly crawled for 250 yards to get in position for a shot. When he got in range I poked up and put the cross hairs of right on his neck & let her rip!!!!! A huge cloud of white smoke, dust & shattered rock rolled up and blew all over me.... Scared to death I thought my gun had blown up.... I had shot a rock on the top of the stone wall at point blank range with my scope looking right over the rock and the barrel pointed right at it. Oh I was bummed out... All the time I spent trying to get that bird and to finally get a shot and blow it.... It is just a reminder to me that every time you think its all over its actually just getting started. Now every time I walk by that rock I flip it the bird and smile!!!
A friend of mine was working a bird that went silent so he quit calling also. Twenty minutes later the Tom gobbled from 3 feet away behind him. He jumped and scared him off.
My hunting buddy walked past a Tom that was hiding, flattened down on the ground with very little cover. I had to talk him out of wrapping his gun around a tree.
I had a Tom strutting in my parking space beside a barn, I parked on the other side, crawled out of the truck, got dressed in camo, snuck up to the corner of the barn and took a peek. He was still strutting, so when he had his back to me, I leaned around the corner and took a pic with my cell. I sent it to him to rub it in then stuck my shotgun around the corner and clicked off an empty chamber. Guess I deserved it.
Bowhunting spring gobblers for the first time last year. I some how managed to miss a jake five times at 15 yards before I ran out of arrrows, stood up and scared them off. I only found four of the five arrows and broke another broadhead.
:TrainWreck1:
I went and bought Magnus bullheads that week and killed one that weekend.
I personally witnessed two well known hunters that are frequently on the outdoor channel stalk and belly crawl to a bird about 400 yards that was an inflatable decoy
Quote from: guesswho on February 29, 2012, 08:53:17 PM
Hunting with my Dad in the early 70's. We set up on a bird in Florida on our local WMA. We always had predetermined shooting lanes. The bird showed in mine and I dropped the hammer. The bird fell onto it's belly with it's head up (I now know that means his neck ain't broke). I walked over to get it and it started trying to get away so I grabbed it by a leg and picked it up. (I now know not to do that). Back then we didn't wear gloves. Now this was a long spurred Osceola and he starts to spin in my hand. First rotation puts a nasty cut in my palm. I let go but during his rotation he got his other spur caught in my shirt and was cutting my belly up pretty good as he flopped and spun. He was beating me with his wings and cutting me up with his spur and was working me over with his free foot as well. After fighting for my life for about 20 seconds I finally got a hold of his neck. I was a big Dusty Rhodes fan and I was desperate so all I knew to do was combine a big belly flop with a bionic elbow. So there I lay on top of a 16 lb. bird that had just about killed me, bleeding and out of breath and afraid to get back up. Then I remebered my Dad was sitting there. I looked over my shoulder at him and he hadn't even gotten up. He was just sitting there shaking his head with a priceless look on his face. I can't remeber his exact words but he said something to the effect like "Boy you can't be mine"
:TooFunny: :TooFunny: :TooFunny: :TooFunny:
Back when I started to turkey hunt and deemed myself almost pro material ( I had killed exactly 1 bird ) I was invited on some private land in north Florida. We heard a bird gobbling and was slippin' closer, lookin' down the cut rows of a crop field as we went. Suddenly a gobbler appeared...boom. He flies off. Another and another and another do the same, step into the open row, I shoot and miss and they fly off. After the last bird is gone, the guy who invited me turns and says "nice shootin' Tex, how 'bout lettin' the next one get closer than 80 yards". I was so excited as soon as the birds came into veiw...boom, with no thought of distance. Lesson learned, calm down and know your distance limitations. I did end up taking 2 jakes, up close by the time the weekend was over and have been hooked ever since. :icon_thumright:
I was hunting Rios in Oklahoma with a couple of friends. One afternoon, a nice tom came in with some hens. I crawled through the woods to get in closer when it hit me. :o That familiar grumbling in my guts that had been with me all day. Apparently I had eaten something bad the day before, and now I was paying the price. Soon, I knew what had to be done so that I didn't soil my drawers. The bad part was the gobbler was only 80 yards away, strutting and gobbling. :funnyturkey: I was able to ease myself up onto a downed tree, using a standing tree for cover. Down come my pants, and out came an awful mess. :o And it kept coming and coming and coming. Every time I thought I was done, it started again. That's when turkeys came in from the woods behind me and roosted above me. Now I was caught, literally, with my pants down. :-[
Finally the hens out in the field flew up onto the roost, and soon after the gobbler flew up and joined them. So I sat there with my butt hanging over a log until it was dark enough to clean up and ease out of there. On the way out, I was going down a cattle trail, but wasn't using a flashlight because I didn't want to spook the turkeys. Soon, I smelled a rank odor. No not me, this was even worse. In the darkness I can just make out a dark little animal coming down the same trail I am walking out on. SKUNK!!!!! :o
I sidestepped the trail and gave him a wide berth. The next morning I was planning on going back to get that gobbler, until I found out from the guide that we couldn't hunt that property the next day. Lost opportunity. But at least I did tag out before that trip was over.
My most embarrassing hunting experience though came when I was deer hunting. I am a self-taught hunter, and read all the books and magazines I could find, and watched all the TV shows. When calling deer first came in style, I bought a grunt call and hit the woods. I figured it would just be a matter of time 'til I grunted in a buck like they do on TV. So I went to my local WMA here in Florida and set out.
I would slip through the woods, stopping in likely looking spots to do some grunting and waiting. An hour and 4 different set ups had passed, still I hadn't seen a deer. I was wondering why it wasn't working like on TV. ::) Finally I slipped to a new, great looking spot, leaned against a tree and started grunting. A few minutes later I grunted some more. Still nothing. I was looking around, trying to figure out what I was going to do next when a voice spoke from so close that I almost jumped out of my boots!! :o :o :o
I turned and looked, and there had been an older gentleman, sitting in a chair in a palmetto clump about 2 feet away, watching me the entire time! :-[ :-[ :-[ What he said still cracks me up to this day. "Are you through scaring everything out of the woods yet?" ;D Mortified, I muttered, "Yes sir. I'm sorry.", and I walked away as fast as I could. :TooFunny: I still laugh about that to this day. ;D
Man, I can't even bring myself to talk about it. I still get flash backs.
All I can say is this will be my year of redemption :smiley-char092: