Here is my 2022 Utah general archery bull from Monday night. I sat a treestand over a waterhole that my brother has been scouting for his OIL shiras moose tag. I had several cow/calf moose come in and then this bull wandered in at around 6:30pm. Made a great shot and he only went 30 yards and piled up (G5 Montec CS 100 grain fixed blade head)
Pack out sucked bad but my Brother bailed me out and helped me get it done-it was all worth it for sure and I am already missing the elk woods!
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Your story about you sitting in that stand over night reminds me of a Turkey hunt I had when I was young and really a dedicated turkey hunter.
A friend told me about a place he Turkey hunted in National Forest open to the public. Said he had herd a lot of gobblers in the area. As soon as I got off work that evening. I went there to see if maybe I could roost or kill one. Had a couple hours to hunt before dark.
As soon as I made my first call I got a gobble back. Eventually that dude was gobbling up a storm. I just knew he was going to come in. After about an hour of that and me going half way down the mountain to him , instead of him coming up the mountain to me. And the fact I was running out of day light fast. I thought I had better try to close the distance at a faster pace.
Well it ended up with me about a mile down the mountain side. At which time the gobbler quit gobbling. Figured he had flew up on the roost for the night. Sun setting, me looking at an extremely steep rugged hike up the mountain, in the dark, in an area well known for big diamond back rattle snakes. After working all day. Well I was beat. Knew I was within a 100 yards of where the gobbler had to be roosted.
After weighing the pro’s and con’s I decided to just hunker down right there for the night. Man was it cold that night. Next morning as it started getting day light. Squirrels began stirring, birds chirping a little. Then all of a sudden that gobbler fired up. Never heard him fly down. But I figured he had so I called to him and man he was hammering those gobbles out.
Had my gun pointed ready to nail him. Waited, no turkey, quit gobbling. Thought for sure he was slipping in quite was why he wasn’t gobbling. 20 minutes went by no gobbling. Clucked real soft and he fired back up triple gobbled, every time I called he would gobble. But he wasn’t coming in. Wasn’t 60 maybe 70 yards from him. Couldn’t see him. Kind of rugged foot hills and branch streams. Thought maybe he didn’t want to cross a stream or something.
So I switched my location a little bit. Called to him and he fired back up again. Still wouldn’t come in. This went on close to an hour. Then I heard what sounded like a screen door slam. Turkey quit gobbling, a dog started barking ? I thought what to heck. I stood up saw this older white haired gentleman walking toward where the turkey had been gobbling, dog following him. I walked up on top of the little knoll in front of me and boy was I surprised.
The turkey was a bronze tame turkey in a pen with some chickens that the man was headed over to so that he could feed them
You talking about feeling like a fool. Well I sure did. The man never knew I was there. I hiked back up the mountain and went home very tired feeling like the biggest fool ever born.
Now what I done was totally different than sitting on a stand over night. I like getting in my deer stand way before day light. Never have stayed over night in it. But knock on wood I will never pull something as foolish as I did that day again.
