well I guess it was over due. I have had a perfect track record for the last 10 years. The last bird I missed was in April 10 years ago. Today I put another in the miss column. I worked a bird starting at 6:50 this morning and finally got him in at 10:15. I was in some thick jungle , not my choice but his. Everything was perfect except that. He gobbled maybe 12 times the whole morning. Finally could hear him drumming and he was drifting to my left. Had gun on him when he hit the best opening I had. He was in full strut standing in the opening around 27 or 28 yards. That was about the max distance I could see. I clucked and he dropped out of strut but took one step when he did. I had a basketball size hole to shoot him through and felt really good about it. I pulled the shot a tad and I knew it when I did. Away he went living to see another day. I walked to where he was standing and backtracked back to the tree I was set up at. Yep about 15 yards from the set up I found a 2" sapling that was cut in half. I had a great time though and will be waiting for him or his buddy to gobble in the morning.
Great story and close encounter. Get im next time!
Bummer of a way to start the season. Hope you make it up tomorrow.
Happens to the best of us! At least you got that out of the way for the next 10 years.
Thank you for sharing. Will make for a great hunt and story when you battle with him and you win. I sometimes find these hunts better than the fly down, gobble, bang hunts. Would you be so kind as to share what call you were using? And I hope for your next hunt to be safe and successful and look foreword to a story with pictures.
Great story, tough shot. I give you credit for sharing that. I respect that, most guys won't talk about a miss. Anyone that turkey hunts has them in their black book whether they reveal it or not. You will nail him next time. Be safe my friend.
I really enjoyed the story of working him most of the morning , that's a win in my book any day. I hate you missed, but i do agree he lives to get hunted another day . Good luck again tomorrow morning. That gobbler has a new name , the sapling Tom ...
It's always sporting to fire a warning shot informing them that season has officially started.
Thanks for the replies guys. I am not ashamed to admit to a miss. It does not happen to me often but I am sure it will again , I just hope its another 10 years before it happens. I was actually using a Watkins fiddle box. Its a new one I just got a few days ago. I am certain I did not cut a feather. Im upset about missing but crippling one is gut wrenching to me. People love to post hero pics. I do too , but seldom does anyone post about a miss. I learned more about the terrain this bird is in due to searching for him. Even though I knew it was a clean miss , I always comb the area out to about 150 yards. I know where I will be before daylight in the morning and I will switch calls. I have a feeling there is another gobbler or 2 around there even if he tight lipped.
Quote from: guesswho on March 14, 2020, 04:35:06 PM
It's always sporting to fire a warning shot informing them that season has officially started.
Haha. Thats a good practice. I like educated birds better anyway.
I had this very thing happen to me last year in Ky., but my gobbler flew up into a tree and sat there putting....no I didn't shoot him out of the tree! I set there hoping he'd come back down and gobble, but he flew off across the valley after several minutes.
Amen, Greg is right, working a bird and having the patience to sit that long takes talent and skill. Great hunt, good luck tomorrow, the shooting lane is now clear if he hits it again. Be safe, can't wait to see a pic of him.
Great story, I can certainly relate to the missing and have cut a few saplings myself. You know I remember those birds just as well as those I've killed. In the end, it's all about the memories.
Amen, I think our turkey guns cut cleaner than the best hedge trimmer. Be safe :agreed:
It happens to everyone, smooth missed one at 25-30 yards that my buddy smoked backing me up, and it was a stud bird. Another Buddy of mine had one come several hundred yards down a dirt road to us and went nose to nose w decoy at 12 yards and he missed him 3 times. I still had gun in my lap from calling, still scratch my head on that one. Get him tomorrow Jody....
Great Story! Great Hunt! Sorry for the miss though. Seems when we are caught up in the throws of the Hunt, we normally look right through that 2" sapling or that 4" fence post. If you haven't done this yet, it's only a matter of time. Good Luck tomorrow and the rest of the season.
That's why they call it hunting.
I missed 2 separate birds on the same day about 10 years ago. That's after patterning before season etc. Worse thing was I didn't have a spare gun and was 3 hours from home.
First one I thought it was me,second one I didn't care if it was me or the gun I was going to switch guns before a bird ran off crippled.
I plain and simple couldn't get use to the sights on the gun.
Went to a scope and haven't missed since.
Sounds like a fun hunt regardless. Good luck tomorrow. Aim small...miss small... :icon_thumright:
It happens, good job on the 10 year streak.
It sucks that you missed, but thanks for sharing....lots of hunters wouldn't.
Sounds like you had a great hunt with the exception of a kill and my hats off to you for staying with him for 3+ hours....with not much gobbling. I've hunted birds like that and I know how hard it can be to stick with them, when they aren't really vocal. Just about the time he hasn't gobbled in awhile and you're thinking "he's gone...I get outta here and go find another one", he gobbles and you think "ok, another 1/2 hour".
Good luck tomorrow!!!
hate that Jody, but it was a good hunt and a great 10 year run, I wish I could say the same, I have made way to many misses, the last tree I cut in half I drug it back to the truck and carried it back to camp!
Sad news! Get him next time
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So you get to eat steak tonite instead of turkey,,and still had turkey hunting action,,sounds like a good day.
Sounds like a great morning up until the end!! Wish you good luck and open shots in the morning!
Disappointing for sure, but a fun hunt none the less. Get them in the morning!!
Hope to hear about a success in the morn. This is a sleep loosing thing for me .
I can relive in my head every one I ever missed.
Not saying how many :toothy9:
But its gonna happen . Sounds like you had the morning we dream about though .
Missed one in the wide open at 20 yards a couple of years ago. He moved his head just as I was squeezing trigger and I tried to move with him, big mistake. Hang in there, anyone that hasn't missed, hasn't hunted very long.
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Happens to everyone eventually! If it hasn't.....then you just haven't hunted long enough! Get back after him tomorrow....and good luck!
We all miss sooner or later but i'm sure you had a great time calling him in and the time in the woods
Sounds like a great hunt with the wrong outcome. At least you went ahead and got the miss out of the way. Now, you can get back to connecting for the next decade. Good luck the rest of the season. I'll bet you don't miss the next one.
Jim
Great story, thank you for sharing the details. A few years ago I had a perfect set up with one coming in from my right side, right handed so that was good. The set up is in a circle of live Oaks with some bushed on my right so I had great concealment. The bird arrives in front of me at about 20 yards, gun up shot made, bird is running off. I had already been thinking of how I was going to cook him. After the miss I was scratching my head trying to figure how I missed that easy shot. Took a closer look at the terrain which was slightly angling down with knee high grass. When I looked at where he had been walking I found there was a drop and he must have steeped down when I shot so I shot over the top of him. At least that is my excuse
May not have gotten the turkey this time, but you gained a great hunting story for a lifetime!
I look at it this way - you got ALL the good outta of him (other then fried turkey nuggets) AND an added bonus. He's still there to hunt again another day.
Jody it's been couple of days, been waiting to hear what happened on 2nd day?
Quote from: JeffC on March 17, 2020, 08:02:47 PM
Judy it's been couple of days, been waiting to hear what happened on 2nd day?
Appreciate it but my name is Jody. I heard one bird gobble on the roost twice. Hunted until one and never struck a bird. Guy hunts on lease with me heard zero. Weather has been really wonky. Reports are same around me. One day they gobble ok and the next day or two they are tight lipped. We know that there are at least a dozen gobblers on our lease. Between him and I we heard them . He hunted a couple days with his son during youth week and had multiple birds on different days hammering. I dont think its quiet right yet but its getting there.
I had one coming almost 200 yards across a field a couple of seasons ago and just enjoyed the show as he strutted towards my dekes. Rather than wait for him to get to 20-25 yards at the dekes, I decided to take the shot at 30-35 as he was walking and shot right over top of him, follow up shot as he was running and missed a second time. watched him run to into the woods. Just shook my head...
Sorry Jody, autocorrect, and I missed. Thanks for updating, trying to hunt thru you guys that are able to. Still 30 days, 19 hours till I can get out, but who's counting. Good luck stay safe.
Quote from: JeffC on March 18, 2020, 08:26:14 AM
Sorry Jody, autocorrect, and I missed. Thanks for updating, trying to hunt thru you guys that are able to. Still 30 days, 19 hours till I can get out, but who's counting. Good luck stay safe.
Hope you have a great season. We feel the same way when our season is coming to a close and yours is just starting lol.
Quote from: eggshell on March 14, 2020, 04:44:41 PM
I had this very thing happen to me last year in Ky., but my gobbler flew up into a tree and sat there putting....no I didn't shoot him out of the tree! I set there hoping he'd come back down and gobble, but he flew off across the valley after several minutes.
I'm surprised this didn't draw some comments about the ethics (or laws) regarding this. Rather than hijacking SnD's thread, I am going to start another one to get some opinions.