One hunter shot during WV Spring Gobbler Season

[WVHunter129]

Got this from the Registered Herald Newspaper. It is a shame to hear of this.

One hunter shot, another charged with negligence
By Christian Giggenbach/Register-Herald Reporter

A Greenbrier County man was shot while turkey hunting Monday, according to Division of Natural Resources officials in Charleston.

Lt. T.D. Coleman of the DNR Law Enforcement Section, said William Martin, 46, of Smoot, was shot while turkey hunting in the Sam Black Church area about 8:30 a.m. Monday.

Officials have identified the shooter as Gene Heimberger, 24, of Dawson. Coleman was unsure if the two men knew one another.

"The report indicates that Heimberger did not properly identify the game he was shooting at," Coleman said. "He (Heimberger) has been charged with negligent shooting."

Martin was transported to Greenbrier Valley Medical Center in Fairlea, where he was in stable condition.

[eshoremd]

i just cant believe this crap happens

[hatracked]

You never like to hear about stuff like this but its a well needed reminder. Id like to address this Todd , it may enlighten you and save everyone some heartache in the spring woods.

i just cant believe this crap happens

Bout fifteen years ago I came to South Carolina for my first low country turkey hunt. I was hunting at Broxton Bridge Plantation on some of the very same land I guide on now. The woods , as then , are still thick , and the terrain muddy . Just ask Hawk, he'll tell you, he buried his brand new 4 wd van out there this spring.

Anyhow I was hunting "semi guided" and basically myself and the NC State NWTF Pres Charles Overton were dropped at the gate . Neither of us had any clue as to the boundies of the land but were told theres 1200 acres right there you cant walk off it before noon.

For the record this guy had sub leased Broxtons lease , and was not responsible for this guys unprofessionalism. The Varn family runs a great Plantation that many thousands of folks have enjoyed .

Charles went one way i went another. What we didnt know was we would meet in the middle around 10 am in a thick swampbottom. Around 9 oclock I finally settld down into a stake out routine . I was short on gobbles "none" to be exact and without having any clue of the birds habits I just staked out sign. My calling routine was light and I was using no deke. I dont think anyone but the "pioneers" were using dekes then.

So , Im clucking along and right at 10 am I hear a hen coming through the bottom clucking back. I yepled softly and she cutt back. I cutt she cutt. Being that it was opening day and she had the rasp of a olh hen, I figured certainly there was a drummer in tow. I got positioned and settled down on the gun in the event they made a small opening 35 yards from me.

This went on for a few minutes then I saw the hen ease through . At this point I'm getting pretty excited and Im anxiously looking for tommy. Five minutes later , I caught a black shape just about turkey size easing behind some greenbriars 60 yards out. Same path as the hen had taken. My mind was saying tom , but my eyes couldnt back it up yet , for certain. Keep that in mind , it saved Charles life .

So Ive seen an expected shape appear right where it ought to and I get ready so when the clear view at 35 happens , Im ready to shoot. I minute goes by , (not long in turkey time) and I see the gobbler shape and movement getting real close , but I still cant quite make it out. At 40 yards , I catch some color and Im now 99 % convinced it's a tom about to make the opening . I slide the safety off.

What happened next truely scared the heck out of me. On the gun safety off ready to shoot , and Charles steps into the opening. What Im seeing is his black army issue jump boots and various other pieces of clothing. I put the safety on immediately and called to Charles who jumped quite a bit himself. We both knew we had nearly just had an accident. There was alot of years of experienced hunters present , not the type youd worry about ,at least thats what most would think.

We broke several of the basic safety rules of turkey hunting that day , but a couple also saved us.

1) I was actually not in the wrong in my opinion. I was set up with a large tree backing me , with a clear shooting lane in front of me. With 100 % certainty I knew I could identify anything in that lane , which was the only place I intended on shooting. It was a safe turkey hunting set up.

Charles on the other hand made two huge mistakes , one diliberately and the other due to our lack of knowledge of the land we were hunting. Charles had wandered into my area the left side . Cant really blame him for that we were both way in the swamp and neither of us knew what connected to what. He happened on the same series of sloughs and we ended up set up on the same one eventually.

side note The vast majority of turkey hunting accidents involve tresspasers. My opinion is this is due to lack of knowledge of the lay of the land as well as lack of knowing theres a hunter in the woods with you. Hunting behind a locked gate can give you a false sense of security , in fact I think the majority turkey hunting accidents occur there. Ill have to check.

I did not expect to see another hunter. I was given 600 acres of swampland and assured Charles and i were the only hunters . Charles went right I went left.

The other rule or rules was calling while moving through the woods. Weve all done it , I have done it as recently as yesterday . Walking a four wheeler path calling every fifty to one hundred yards trying to imitate a hot hen trolling for a tom. Its a great technique , thats killed many toms for me. But, its extremely dangerous if theres other hunters present.

Charles was also "stalking " the sound of a turkey . He had heard my calling and eased in calling softly. Because of the wind and its direction, I hadnt heard his calls and been able to distinguish they were man made and moving in man distances between calls. The mix of a real hen having walked through just prior to him moving in , and the calling had me convinced there were turkey coming.The little bit of calling I heard , from this experienced turkey caller , was real to me. To both of our experienced ears we were hearing "REAL" turkey . Both of us were in serious "hunt" mode in other words. We both believed there was game in the woods with us very close but neitrher was aware of the others presence. Very dangerous situation , if you think about it you have probably been in one similar.

Anyhow gun safety saved his life so the rules didnt break down entirely. I did not fire until I was 100 % certain of my target , but I was real close .So close it still scares the hell out of me.

I've found that more often than not the hunters I guide take safety lightly and I have to demand it. Its an uncomfortable stance to take but Ive kiled enough stuffwith shotguns to know the damage is real and usually prolific. I dont want to get shot !

I also find that no one is immune ! I have great woods eyes and my senses to whats going on around me in the woods in alot finer tuned than most . I was fooled easilly by my ears , my eayes, and adrenalin. Im not immune .

I hate to admit this but as I am getting older, the vision a little blurry and the ears less sharp, I worry alot about what I do in the woods and double check much more often. I got my wake up call March 15 1990 and fortunately it never cost me anything but the embarrassment of admitting and knowing I could have shot someone.

No ones immune.

[eshoremd]

nice read john. i guess i do see how this happens, idiots! you were 99% sure it was a tom but didnt shoot. thats how it should always be for everyone. i just cant see shooting at something your not 100% sure what it is. i see a turkey in range i shoot. i see something that might be a turkey and i think probably is a turkey im not shooting till i actually see it and KNOW 100% its a turkey. these situations just make me really mad cause they could be prevented with a little common sense and respect for each other and the animal.