Missed!

[Spitndrum]

I went out this morning before work hoping to score on a bird right off the roost. I had what I thought was the perfect setup. To my right was an alfalfa field that the Tom's used earlier in the season as their struttung area, but lately they have been going down into the bottom of a swale. So I set up with my decoys just inside the woods on the slope towards the bottom of the swale at the edge of the alfalfa field. I was hoping the birds would fly down into the bottom, see my decoys, and work their way up to me. Well as it started to get light out I let out a few soft yelps and about get blown over from the first gobble, he couldn't have been roosted more than 50 yards from me. I sat quitely for a while and listened to this bird gobble about every minute or less. Then the gobbling stopped for about five minutes, I let out a few more soft yelps and two birds respond still on the roost. The first kept gobbling again but the second shut up. After about ten minutes the second bird starts off the roost right for the bottom of the swale. I'm thinking perfect, once he hits the ground I'll call just once to get him to look at my decoys. Before he hit the ground he changed course, and started to climb a little higher, he was flying up the ridge right towards me. When he landed he was ten feet behind me, he then walked right past my blind with his eyes fixed on my jake decoy, which was only ten feet past me. As he walked behind the tree that my feet where touching I raised my gun and leaned to the side and put the scope right where he would come out. I watched him walk right up to my jake decoy and he gave it a little push. At that point the gig was up, he knew something was wrong so I shot, at a less than ten feet. And I MISSED!

Does anybody want to knock me on the head?
I've been pounding it on my desk but I just can't seem to hit it hard enough.

[just ducky]

Don't feel bad Spit. We've all missed once or twice before, and at 10 feet, your pattern was likely so tight that a minor twitch of the barrel would make you miss. What's the rest of the story? When you missed, did you get a follow-up shot? I once missed like that at close range, but I dusted him on the second shot on the wing at 20 yds. No second shot here I'm guessing?

[Spitndrum]

Ya, I took a second shot and a third, but that was poor judgement on my part. After the first shot, I don't even remember getting him in my scope. I really enjoy using the scope, but this would have defenitly been a time not to have one.

[Bow Hunter Brandon]

Atleast at 10 feet its a clean miss the patern would be so tight that no stray pelets are going to nick him. Sounds like it was a fun time even with the miss. I hope to get that close to a few this year. I have a buddy im slowly introducing to hunting ( went duck hunting last season) he is going opening day with me. I want to get one 10 feet behind him and gobbling. :)

[Airoh]

Yeah, I was starting to think all turkeys I pointed my 870 at would lay sideways after the big BOOM!!
Not true!!:banghead3 :gaga: