I HATE hunting public!!!!!!
 

Last Monday had a guy bump the bird I was set up on off the roost at 6:30!!!! Had another guy set up about60 yards away from me and acted like that was fine and dandy, nothin wrong with it!!, but yesterday toped it all off!!!!!!
I was set up by a power line path, big, open, mowed path that the birds have been heading toward shortly after flydown to strut untill the hens get there. Well, Im the only truck parked around there and I pulled in an hour and 15 min. early to check and make sure. I have 3 toms roosted from 100-about 80 yards away on the side of the ridgethat Im on the top of,gobblin their heads off! 178 gobbles between the 3 just on roost in about 15-20 min. It was awesome! Im givin little tree yelps and they are just eatin it up!!! Double gobbles and one tripple. I shut up untill flydown and cut into em on the slate cause they flew down away from me toward the bottom of the ridge. Im callin with the slate and my mouth call to sound like multiple hens and here at least one comes.
I got him on the way. Goes from about 125-130 yards to about 80 and BOOM BOOM!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Some other yahoo sliped inbetween me and the bird or came and set up in between us well after I started calling. Unless he hiked all the way up in there without a truck that mornin, he came in after I did!
Im tired of public land huntin. I need to find some private property to chase birds on.

RE: I HATE hunting public!!!!!!
 

lol, right on. i leared my lesson years ago. i buy plat books and call up / nock on doors all the time.

RE: I HATE hunting public!!!!!!
 

Man, 178 gobbles in 15 minutes is sick.

RE: I HATE hunting public!!!!!!
 

know what you mean, except I got cut off on private land. it doesn't mattter to some folks, some people just don't have ethics period.

RE: I HATE hunting public!!!!!!
 

I hate to hear that.Some people just don't have any ethics. I just started hunting public land this year. I would imagine that the loud mouth toms are part of the problem. Its like an loud speakeryelling out "COME HUNT HERE"

I was fortunate enough to find a tight lipped bird who only gobbledonce to go to roost, then once the next morning after the flydown just before I shot him. :D

RE: I HATE hunting public!!!!!!
 

Sucks, but its the reality of the situation. On public land its the game you play sometimes. You aren't going to be successful unless you: A) walk 3 miles in and 3 miles out or B) are an ass hole and set up on people/truck scout.

With birds going off like that... you couldn't honestly have expected anything else could you?

RE: I HATE hunting public!!!!!!
 

Last year during the 2nd week of the season I had a bird that I had worked for about 40 min circle around me and another hunter, who also came in after I did and had to know I was there, sent a load of number fives right past me. I stopped hunting for the rest of the season after that. I now have access to private land this season. There are some really scary people out there. That makes the 3rd time in 27 years. The first two were during deer season. I really enjoy archery season:D

RE: I HATE hunting public!!!!!!
 

Sometimes public land ends up workin in your favor though like 2 years ago i was hunting public land
and other hunters pused 2 jakes right to me(But i missed[:@])

RE: I HATE hunting public!!!!!!
 

In Pennsylvania, we often spoke about " Them Ohio Hunters"
The same way you are right now.

Public hunting is just that - public.

You can't stop another person - just because you got there first.

I once had a flock all lined up and then my brother didn't show up to hunt them until 9:30 AM on the first day.

When I got to where they were, there was two other hunters sitting under the hemlock tree that I planned on using for a turkey stand.

My brother suggested that we make a big circle around them guys and when we got 100 yards down in the woods - we came to a string of posted signs and could go no further.

Then we heard Boom, Boom, Boom!

We followed the posted signs to the edge of the field and were walking along, fat - dumb and happy when a large Tom stepped out from the golden rod. I shot and my brother shot - only he only had 3 shells for Turkeys and he blew his wad right off.

That turkey ran back into the hunters that was posted under the Hemlock tree and they got him right off the bat.

Two large Toms for them and nothing for us.

The other hunters admitted that the turkeys were hung up at about 80 yards all morning and if we wouldn't have showed up and moved them around - they never would have came into shotgun range.

I have to agree with most people on here and just say that if you walk a couple of miles back - you will not have those problems.

If you road hunt and know where they are - chances are - others will too.

RE: I HATE hunting public!!!!!!
 

Sometimes private ain't no better. My bud was hunting his land lease and some yahoo on an ATV shot his deke while he was working a bird this weekend. The guy was apparently a guest of someone else on the lease. My bud took some flying bark off a tree that got hit. Luckily he didn''t catch any pellets himself.

RE: I HATE hunting public!!!!!!
 

Yes, hunting "public" can be significantly more challenging than shooting birds/deer in someone's pasture. But, to paint another picture, there's always the guy who sets up almost within sight of his vehicle, just asking to have another hunter wander into him. Not so much a problem during deer season, thanks to blaze orange clothing requirements, but can get kind of spooky with turkey hunters.

The more difficult the terrain is to hunt, generally the fewer hunters you'll find there.

RE: I HATE hunting public!!!!!!
 

not to get off this topic,same has happened to me on deer hunting.

i hunt same spot for over 40 years.
1 year i got sick and out of state hunters came in and took spot i hunt.

the next year i went to spot to hunt and was told i could not hunt there.
they put their ribbons on spot 2 days before season.

so, evey year those 2 hunters sit next to me 30 yds away for 3 days in deer, i dont moved and they dont also.

this is way it is now..

first, i hide my truck in turkey season as best i can and make it look like i am hunting in another area.

if they see my truck, they know turkeys are here.

i had over 9 trucks stop where i hunted 1 year.

i have privateland and its just as bad..

only thing i do is not hunt on weekends and i HIDE my truck,i park at camps and WALK 2 miles down road to my spot..

YOU HAVE TO DO THESE TRICKS NOW.

what disturbed me more this year here in pa. was ALL the RIFLE shots i heard.

they are using rifles on turkeys in spring gobbler,if caught they say they are COYOTE HUNTING.

our sport is being ruined by what you just said and all people OUTLAWING using rifles and shooting turkeys for their 6 year old kids. and then getting another one with their tag.

this is world now,they act like TED NUGENT ,i have to get meat ,oh great meat at any cost.

RE: I HATE hunting public!!!!!!
 

That is insane, honestly I have for the most part always hunted private land. Actually up until this year I have only hunted public land for turkeys twice. I have walked out to the edge of feilds before and seen someones dekes in the corner or near the edge, and maybe for a split second thought they were live turkeys, but as soon as I give it a second thought it registers to me they are decoys andI walk away.
I never really thought somefool would actually take a shot at a decoy ( in GA we only use shotguns and bows, not rifles but still) Man if that ever happened to me I am afraid I would go into a rage beyond control.
Horizon...... if that man still has a tooth left in his head after that then youy are a man of great composure. I could not say the same about myself.

RE: I HATE hunting public!!!!!!
 

this is why i always put a big tree behind me when calling.

if some nutty shoots at least tree will catch most pellets.

this is also why i think the PGC is crazy for not requiring orange while moving in spring turkey season.

they say no accidents, so its ok, i hope they are right.

i STILL wear my orange whenever i am walking.

i know many hunters that were shot for turkeys over last 50 years and lot were never reported.

get that big tree behind you when calling and you will be much safer if shot at.

last year a kid here shot his dad in head for turkey,lucky kid was using no.6 shot, if it was no.4 he would have been dead.

never EVER put a kid behind you with a loaded gun.
:eek:

RE: I HATE hunting public!!!!!!
 

Not fun hunting public land I agree. But here in PA. land owners don't know their rights and other jerks think they can kill a flock of turkey the NWTF released in your area, just cause they think any animal on their land is their's and nobody elses.