A snipe hunt

Origin

Imagine a moonless night in the woods, the air thick with anticipation and the buzz of unseen insects. This is where the legend of the snipe hunt began, a classic prank often played on unsuspecting novices during camping trips or hunting excursions. Eager newcomers would be handed a burlap sack and a flashlight, told to wait silently at a "snipe hole" to bag the elusive, fast-flying snipe—a bird notoriously difficult to catch even with proper gear. The seasoned pranksters would then slip away, leaving their gullible target alone, patiently waiting for a bird that would never come, forever tying the phrase to any futile, impossible, or deceptive quest.