What's the dumbest thing you've done while hunting? Mine was today. Got to the spot where I needed to debark and make my entry into the woods. Took the keys out of the ignition so the truck wouldn't "ding" warning me the keys were in the ignition and through them in the center console. So determined to be quiet, I opened the door and accidently hit the door lock button with my elbow. I quietly shut the front door and went to open the back door to remove my hunting clothes! I now know that I am in a predicament. My cell phone was sitting on top of the console. Everything to hunt is in the back seat. My only way to communicate was in the back seat with it. I'm a half mile away from my stand and a mile and half from the house. I know what I have to do and am not looking forward to it. But I have to hurry as it's 4:00 PM and I wanted to be in stand by 4:30. I hoof it out of the woods, across the crop grounds, over a fence and up to the house. The door is locked! My wife's car is there, but she is not answering the door bell! I look around and there she is a couple hundred yards away working on one of her gardens. She of course wants to hear a story and I don't have time to tell it. I finally convince her to give me her house key, run back, grab the extra truck key. I expedited my return to the truck and am now sweating enough that I think "there isn't enough scent-lok or scent away in the world to cover this up!". Spray down, put my hunting clothes on and spray down again. I pretty much run to my stand and get up in it. I look at my watch and it's 5:05 PM. "Not too bad", I think. I sat in the stand where two creeks come together and the deer cross all the time and I didn't see a single deer all evening. After last light, I crawled out of the stand and slowly made my way back to the truck. As I walked, I recapped my stupid moves: 1. locked my keys in the truck; 2. didn't nut it when I got back to the truck; 3. ran to the stand (and probably sounded like a freight train coming through the woods; and 4. went to my stand probably still smelling of human.
Yes Id say that was a bad day :D lmao!! I have locked my keys in truck many years back but luckly had a screwdriver rolling around in the bed. I pryed the sliding window apart,,, yes it did damage the frame :D Several years ago I was 3/4 of a mile back off the road with my summit climber. I failed to tie the two together (the rope between the two) I was 25' up, it was dark, I wanted the stand a little more turned so I hooked my feet on the plat form to slide it around tree, It let go and went ALL THE WAY TO THE BOTTOM OF THE TREE leaving me sitting 25' up. no cell signal where I was. Im not even going to get into detail how I got down but when I did I was covered in sweat from head to toe
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My dumbest moment? That's a tough one to pick, but it happened on one November morning in 2005. I had been on a nice 130 class 8 pointer the last 2 days. I had seen him on a Friday and Saturday afternoons, and then came Sunday morning. I got nestled into a stand 100 yardsoff a clover field and at dawn I had a doe come in. I shot her. Dumb move #1...because following here was a stud of a 10 pointer that blew right on by me. Over the next hour I had 4 bucks come through. One was another 10 pointer but never offered a shot at about 30 yards out. About an hour after I shot her I decieded I would go get the work started with her (she was laying on the hill), and I lowered my bow down. As I am packing my gear up I look and here comes Mr. 8 Point. I hurry up get my bow back up, nock an arrow, and he is now at about 5 yards when he finally spots me. Runs out about 40 yards but no shot. I will never forget the sinking feeling I had when I saw that guy coming towards me....oh wait I got relive that feeling again Sunday afternoon. This is just one of the many, as I could probably right a book on what not to do. I have definantly learned some things the hard way, and I still am to this day. Anyways here are 2 pictures I got of the 8 point in 2006. This was a year later and he was a 9 pointer. I had run ins with him again in '06 and '07.
Can I just have my own thread? LOL I dropped my water bottle in KY in 2007 which spooked 6 bucks i had underneath my tree. 3 were shooters.
See here: http://forums.bowhunting.com/showthread.php?t=8243 on top of that, when I finally got to the stand, following fresh wet tracks in the dark the whole way... I realized that the 2 bottom steps that I pull to stop the stand from being stolen are back in the truck! Along with my tag line! So I manage to monkey my way up to the 8' high first step (in neoprene waders mind you!) get to the last step before the stand (exhausted!) and my bow drops out of my sling 15' to the ground!!! Now I have to climb back down at which point I realize that 2 of my broadhead shafts and my brand new flu-flu are broken; I say F it, I'm hunting from the ground!! When it got light I managed to find a couple big spikes in an old WWII bridge abutment and use those for climbing pegs to get into the stand. I get in the stand, clip in and nock an arrow. Whew! "Hey I need to reach out and snap off that branch for a better shot over there." Poink... there goes 1 of my 2 unbroken arrows to the ground. Now I'm 15' up in a tree (and up a creek!) hunting brown bears with a single arrow. I hope those damn gremlins are all used up and have a massive hangover after the party they had with me on Sunday! Luckily I've got a good sense of humor. :/
I don't know where to begin.... My #1 would have to be when I forgot to take my quiver and arrows hunting with me. I was practicing before heading out. I always shoot with the quiver off so I had it set aside. Got a phone call that I had to take. Phone call lasted longer than I wanted and I was in a hurry to get to stand by the time I finally got off. Grabbed my stuff and bow, threw it in the truck and off I went. Got to my land and i have a LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONG HIKE to my stand through some nasty junk. One of those stands you like to hunt but despise getting there. I got there, climbed up, raised my bow and went to grab an arrow. Left it back where I was practicing. No way I was going to have time to head all the way back in and then back out so I just sat there. Thank God I didn't have a stud walk by at 20 yards. Might have scarred me for life. I did have a bunch of does in range though.
Last year, i missed a doe in a brand new spot from the ground in the morning, that evening i went back with my brother and camera. We had 2 1.5 year old bucks come past at 5 yards, and in the excitement i took a shot at the biggest (8 point), i hit him but never recovered. No idea what i was thinking there.
wo ..there are so many I drove an hour to my hunting spoy ....walked 1/2 hour to my stand spot ...realized that I must have left the band to my stand in the car ....walked all the way back to said car ...no band ...walked all the way back to spot ...soaking wet with sweat and now its light ...put stand on tree as high as I can to justget off ground .....no confidence .... see squirrel ....shoot squirrel ....he runs off, Iget down to look for him ..... I hear crunching behind me .....130" 8 pointer walkin 10 yards from stand ....no shot as I am looking for a squirrel ..... most of you guys could hold my jockstrap when it comes to mistakes in BH
dropped my bow out of the tree last year..broke the sites right off, thankfully thats all that broke...but a stupid move...had to climb down and get it....
Thank God for computers-there certainly wouldn't be enough trees for paper to account for all the stupid things I've done. Yeah, I've locked the keys in the truck in the middle of Nebraska (home several hundred miles away). I've had things fall from stands. I've forgotten my licenses. Heck, in all the excitement, I've even left my bow behind (me too Jeff). Funny thing Rob, I do the same thing with my steps. Two weeks ago I crossed the Platt River in my chest waders and realized I left my three steps at home. I monkeyed up the tree in the neoprenes. I have forgotten to pack knives-field dressed and skinned a bear in Ontario with a Swiss army knife you connect to your key ring. I've left both arrows and broadheads sitting on the table... LOL...lots of good memories.
On the brighter side, after cutting and splitting two cords of wood yesterday and then my little walk, I got on the scales this morning and had lost 4 lbs yesterday. The flip side to that, I forgot to set my alarm last night and woke up this morning at 7:10 AM! Oh well, I guess I needed a morning of rest before cutting and splitting the last cord for the order I have on hand.
Too many to count, like leaving my release at the truck. As for locking keys in, I have a Ford EXP and it has a keyless entry keypad. Saved my a$$ many times. But the problem is you get careless if you're driving another vehicle!
My dumbest moment came this past sunday. The Sky was as clear as could be, temps around 36 degrees with a 2 mph west south west wind. I got to my spot a little later as day light was barley starting to peak and I was in a hurry getting dressed. Got to my stand climbed up and got settled in when I realized I forgot my release! Tried a test shot at a puddle using fingers but not even close. I sat till 9 30 watching deer before I slipped out of the stand.. very dumb moment
Gary, I remember driving into camp and the look on your face as you relayed that story to me :D I felt for ya bud!! and thats the biggest white oak tree I have ever seen where it happened at. comming back to KY ???
