Ever find a shotgun while hunting?

My little cousin was chasing pheasant this morning and stumbled across this in a heavily trafficked public hunt area. I'm curious how often this happens? I feel like camo shotguns are especially susceptible to this.

marksman1941 said:

My little cousin was chasing pheasant this morning and stumbled across this in a heavily trafficked public hunt area. I'm curious how often this happens? I feel like camo shotguns are especially susceptible to this.

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I sold a shotgun at work the other day to an older fellow who needed a new one because "I left my old one up against a tree somewhere and never saw it again". Alarming, funny, and unfortunate all at once.

That dude exemplified some life goals for me tho haha…old Indigenous grampa hunter who was just excited as could be that he was gonna go duck hunting with his kids and grandkids! his ID showed he was born 1943, I hope that when I'm his age, if the Lord sees fit to let me get that old, I'm out duck hunting with my kids and their kids too. It was awesome, just wanted the cheapest break action single shot we had but those kind of gun sales honestly feel like more of a win for me than the big money ones (especially cuz I don't work on commission )

Calvin45 said:

I sold a shotgun at work the other day to an older fellow who needed a new one because "I left my old one up against a tree somewhere and never saw it again". Alarming, funny, and unfortunate all at once.

That dude exemplified some life goals for me tho haha…old Indigenous grampa hunter who was just excited as could be that he was gonna go duck hunting with his kids and grandkids! his ID showed he was born 1943, I hope that when I'm his age, if the Lord sees fit to let me get that old, I'm out duck hunting with my kids and their kids too. It was awesome, just wanted the cheapest break action single shot we had but those kind of gun sales honestly feel like more of a win for me than the big money ones (especially cuz I don't work on commission )

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That's a bit of a dichotomy isn't it? Worrisome that someone can straight up lose a gun like that, but awesome to see him so excited about going hunting

marksman1941 said:

My little cousin was chasing pheasant this morning and stumbled across this in a heavily trafficked public hunt area. I'm curious how often this happens? I feel like camo shotguns are especially susceptible to this.

Click to expand...

marksman1941 said:

That's a bit of a dichotomy isn't it? Worrisome that someone can straight up lose a gun like that, but awesome to see him so excited about going hunting

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I had to go check my safe to make sure my shotgun was still in there! . Upon closer inspection, the gun you found appears to be a Benelli Nova, mine is the Supernova (just the comfortech stock and a bigger trigger guard I think is about all the difference). But this looked awful familiar AND I've had this exact nightmare haha, giving me of all people a CAMOUFLAGED gun….yikes…

I found an old 1930's vintage Winchester 30-30 in Colorado while elk hunting in 1987. It was rusty and the wood was all curly and split. The action was open and there was live ammo in it. I mentioned it to a game warden and he said he knows an old rancher in the area who had a ranch hand lose one of his rifles off a horse in the 1940's. The rancher still had the serial number and it was a match. I gave the rancher his rifle back and he gave me lifetime permission to hunt on his ranch whenever I wanted. Although I never went back to hunt, the look on his weathered face when he held the rifle again was priceless.

cowboy1911 said:

I found an old 1930's vintage Winchester 30-30 in Colorado while elk hunting in 1987. It was rusty and the wood was all curly and split. The action was open and there was live ammo in it. I mentioned it to a game warden and he said he knows an old rancher in the area who had a ranch hand lose one of his rifles off a horse in the 1940's. The rancher still had the serial number and it was a match. I gave the rancher his rifle back and he gave me lifetime permission to hunt on his ranch whenever I wanted. Although I never went back to hunt, the look on his weathered face when he held the rifle again was priceless.

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That's a great story! I am glad he got his rifle back after all those years

I used to do my waterfowl hunting on the Wash on the East Coast of the UK, these are tidal mudflats with many small creeks cutting through the mud which is really soft and sticky.
If one went fowling without a dog and had to chase a downed bird, it paid to leave as much equipment behind as possible and the old axiom was to stick the butt of your gun in the mud so you could see the barrels sticking up from way off.
Once my gun fell over,fortunately I found it and the rest of my gear but I didn't get my bird.
I wondered how many guns had gotten lost there, I never found one but twice found a water and mud filled back pack with shells and thermos inside so it must have happened.
FWIW I guess many of the USAF/MC pilots stationed over here in the cold war were familiar with the site, there was an old wreck on the north west side of the wash and the A-10s and other planes used to come over and shoot it up,it was a designated target btw.
I found it fascinating to suddenly see one of those A-10s connected to earth by a bright white-ish line that stopped as quickly as it started followed, several seconds later, by a long BRRRUUUMP from the distance. Another 10 minutes or so later the birds that it had scared crapless would fly my way, sometimes offering a shot or two.
Just saying.

I took my 10 years younger brother fishing many years ago when he was still in his teens. While my buddies and I were launching our boats in a backwater lake he stumbled upon an old chrome Remington Nylon 66 rimfire 22 rifle under a bridge. You'd have thought he found a gold mine he was so proud.

While hunting in VA got out of the truck to take a leak beside a tree. When I was finished I looked down and there was a Charles Daly pump on the ground. Picked it up and went to a gunsmith, replaced some springs and cleaned it up and I still have it in the safe.

Years ago a bud and I were rabbit hunting in the mountains near Gold Hill, CO. We spotted a Subaru in the snow with the tailgate open. Thinking it had been stolen, we walked up to it. I moved around to see the driver's side. A body with most of the head missing leaning against the door and a lever gun between the legs! We immediately headed into Gold Hill and called the sheriff!
Awful sight! Had nightmares for years.
Sadly his mother called me a couple of times (I guess my name and number were on record?) crying and saying "my son didn't commit suicide!" Rather upsetting for me too.

2019 hunting with outfitter with friend. Long story my guide was injured in horse wreck before we arrived so I was hunting solo for couple days until they could get replacement. Another story there. My buddy was hunting with guide and when they got back to tie up, I noticed buddy only had backpack and no rifle. So asked, "where's rifle"? OMG! Guide didn't notice! So guide went back to find it where they stopped for afternoon lunch. Could not believe it when he came out with it 1.5 hours later! What a CF! Buddy will never live it down.

Cowboy, that is great story, and YOU are a true gentleman, and a great sportsman. Well done buddy!!!! Thanks for sharing that story!!!!

About 10 years ago, an 1873 Winchester was found leaning on a juniper tree in Nevada's Great Basin National Park. It looked to be in amazing condition given the more than a century that it sat there. They believed it must have belonged to a prospector panning for gold back then. I imagine there were probably many firearms in that period that just got left behind.

ridgewalker said:

Years ago a bud and I were rabbit hunting in the mountains near Gold Hill, CO. We spotted a Subaru in the snow with the tailgate open. Thinking it had been stolen, we walked up to it. I moved around to see the driver's side. A body with most of the head missing leaning against the door and a lever gun between the legs! We immediately headed into Gold Hill and called the sheriff!
Awful sight! Had nightmares for years.
Sadly his mother called me a couple of times (I guess my name and number were on record?) crying and saying "my son didn't commit suicide!" Rather upsetting for me too.

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When my brother was 16 he was hunting in the woods and smelled something awful. He started looking around and found a dude dead by suicide in a lawn chair next to a half drank 30 rack. His story about it haunted me for ages and I never even saw it. I'm sorry you had to see that; folks shouldn't see that sort of thing.