Public land turkey hunt highs and lows ends in change to my

[keb]

Well just got back from my turkey hunt, was a great hunt and a nightmare. 2nd day called in a gobbler to 10 yards got busted drawing, later that day called in 2 jakes to 15 yards got busted drawing. No blind just ghillie jacket and a longbow.


I decided to take a blind and decoys the 3rd day, hunting public so I was not sure how they would respond to a blind and decoys, thats why I opted not to use them at first.


Very steep area for Missouri humped the blind and gear 1.6 miles back on a ridge, no gobbling they were all 2 ridges over. I break down, make the hump. Pop out on an old logging road, and a gobbler gobbles 75 yards away around the bend.


I threw the blind up stuck it in the tree line, put the decoys in the road, yelped twice he gobbled and came running to my decoys attacked the jake and knocked him off the stake. He freaked out was at 4 yards facing away I shot him in between the legs a bit low above the tail fan. It made a loud whack and hardly penetrated. I tried to put another on in him at 25 and missed.


He goes 50 yards and enter the tree line, walking pretty normal slow but not wobbling, then 5 jakes show up and I hear them fighting and purring right where I last saw him, I'm thinking he is down they are on him. I wait half hour blood trail all the way to the tree line he went in, but no bird I looked for 3 hours under every log, brush pile nothing.


I sold my longbow this am, I'm done giving it up, switching back to wheels, It's the most ethical choice for me at this point, I don't even want to shot at an animal with a trad bow, I got target panic with it bad. The range of the weapon is not a problem all my shots have been under 15 yards, high percentage shots. I killed a deer and turkey my 1st year so I know it can be done.
But right now, it's not working, maybe this winter the small game is what I will do, but I'm not going to go out and risk mortally wounding more animals to get better and to prove a point to myself I can do this right now.


I been bowhunting 20 years, and have never had the respect for game that I do when I started trad, you gain a whole new respect for them, when you let them get very close over and over and go after them with primitive gear. My Journey was not a waste I am a better person, hunter and outdoors man for it.

But I'm ethical obligated in my mind to walk away right now. Most of you guys here are public land hunters, and not that animals on managed private lands don't deserve respect, they do. But a full mature public land animals is a warrior, deer,elk, turkey what ever, they are even more special in my eyes, they deserve better than what I am capable of right now.

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[BassBoysLLP]

Sorry to hear about your struggles. A lot of good lessons and wisdom in this post. Thanks for sharing.

[Bigdaddy-yoyo]

sorry to hear that Keb

[BigHunt]

bummer to hear.....I gave up bow hunting turkeys because of this ...

[Jackson Marsh]

That's a bummer Keb....you gotta do what you gotta do. I've been messing around with a recurve for less than a year, never hunted with it and unless I improve I will not hunt with it.

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[HoosierG5]

Good post. Sounds like a good decision if you think its best.

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[JoeRE]

Sorry to hear about the struggles you were having. What kind of BHs were you using? I have heard of two instances where guys I know shooting at the back of a turkey (as it faced away) resulted in very little penetration and the arrow essentially bouncing off, both mechanical BHs and I think the blades hitting the angle of the back made them essentially kick off. I hope you are able to get back in the groove with a compound.

In my experience a giant expandable right through the thighs on a broadside bird is just the ticket for turkeys. You can miss 1-2" in any direction and its still flop flop dead. Never lost one with that shot. I use a ghillie too. I tried shooting smaller heads and hitting them other places but all that ended up with a lot of disappointment like happened to you. Back when I started trying to kill one with a bow 15 years ago the advice was aim for the wing but on a turkey - that was stupid advice and a lot of guys had birds run off with a broken wing myself included, a sure death sentence, as a result of that advice.

[keb]

I was shooting a 41lb reflex/deflex hybrid long bow, 205 grain zwickey two blade on the front of an easton axis trad shaft plenty of power I must have center punched the bottom of the breast bone. I've killed a bunch with a compound, mechanical and fixed blade heads.

What's crazy I have not shot a compound in 3 years, till last week. In 3 hours I was shooting pie plate groups at 60 yards. It feels like cheating to a degree after 3 years with the stickbow. Some stuff is going to pay this year.

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