Chat with Mark Strand

[Gopherlongbeards]

There are a few groups of urban turkeys around northeast Minneapolis where I live. Last week there was a tom and a jake hanging out in back of the McDonalds a few blocks from our house, so naturally I had to pull in and mess with them for a bit. I grabbed a mouth call out of the glove box (what, lots of perfectly normal people keep turkey calls in their car year round. No I don't have a turkey problem, no matter what my wife says...) and sat there yelping, purring and cutting at them for 10 - 15 minutes. I never did get either of them to gobble or strut, but they both came over to the car looking around and the toms head/neck went all bright red/blue/white. Of course it was pouring rain during this. I have seen several hens around the area before, but these were the first toms/jakes. Hopefully I'll be able to find where they're roosting this summer. There are a few parks and a cemetery in the area, they have to be in one of those places. These birds are pretty habituated to people, they usually let you walk right up to them as long as you don't pay them much attention. Should be fun to watch and listen to them this summer.

[charlie elk]

grabbed a mouth call out of the glove box (what, lots of perfectly normal people keep turkey calls in their car year round. No I don't have a turkey problem, no matter what my wife says...) and sat there yelping, purring and cutting at them for 10 - 15 minutes.

Seems like perfectly normal behavior to me. How else is a guy to practice his calls?
If by some stroke of bad luck you don't have a call in your glove box. Take a ballpoint pen apart and use the barrel like you would a trumpet or wingbone call.
One time I forgot my calls during the season and came across a bunch of turkeys; that was the moment I figured out the pen call trick to kill one of those birds. Never figured out how I forgot my calls that day and quit thinking about it as I Snoopy danced around my dead gobbler.

[Gopherlongbeards]

A ball point pen? seriously? You need to get your own show Charlie. The turkey whisperer or something like that, it's almost not even fair...

[charlie elk]

A ball point pen? seriously?

I'll try and get a short video demonstration posted.
Not sure how successful a show of me yelping with a pen would be. Not too many call makers would sponsor it.

[MarkStrand]

You guys are bringing back some old memories for me, with the DIY turkey call talk...
My dad used to do the ball-point pen thing, too, partly to bug me, because he knew I didn't want him to use it out in the woods. It sounded OK but not great, in my opinion, so that just caused him to do it at every opportunity. He used to "make" those calls, also using gaudy colored fat straws, and blow them in restaurants, at wedding receptions, you name it. Now that he's gone, I miss him doing it... I have his old hard-case call box, and in there are a few collections of such contraptions.
He also used to ask for extra wooden chop sticks at Chinese restaurants, and bring them home to craft homemade flair-tip strikers. Some of them sound remarkably good, and as I have become an old softy, I bring one of them with me and use it regularly, and when turkeys respond to it, I can hear him laughing like he used to do around the campfire at night. Every time I go out in the woods, I try to bring one thing from his vest with me.
Charlie, I would love to see a video of you demonstrating your talents on the ball-point pen! Bring it on... I promise to let you use it out in the woods!

[ticklishtompro]

Charlie, that is something I have not done yet is forget my calls, but I can relate. One time I was taking out a youth and we were half way out to the spot we were going to hunt from and I relized we had left the gun in the truck!! No pen could take it's place, although we could have thrown some shells at them I guess.

Mark, some great memories that you mentioned and taking those things with you makes each hunt that much more special, weather you shoot one or not! I am a little jealous as my father didn't hunt and I got a little later start hunting in my life as my older brother got me started deer hunting. But I actually got him turkey hunting. Still have some great memories and traditions that we have started with my nephew and my daughters. Those are the hunts I hold the most special.

Randy

[dewey]

Hey Mark did you see the Star Tribune article from Sunday May 27th talking about the spring turkey license decline from the last two years?

We have been discussing it under the Minnesota thread if you have any thoughts on the matter.

viewtopic.php?f=62&t=14241

Dewey

[charlie elk]

My dad used to do the ball-point pen thing, too, partly to bug me, because he knew I didn't want him to use it out in the woods. It sounded OK but not great, in my opinion, so that just caused him to do it at every opportunity. He used to "make" those calls, also using gaudy colored fat straws, and blow them in restaurants, at wedding receptions, you name it. Now that he's gone

Did he get any birds in with the pen? If he did it should not have bugged you too much. My kids have never cared how I got the bird in, just that it came in. Many times I have gotten the "what the heck was that look". Sometimes the really different turkey "like" sound is what does it. Some of the plastic coffee stir things work better than the straws.
Had I heard any turkey sounds in a restaurant your Dad would have called me right in to enjoy some victory cakes with you all.

I would love to see a video of you demonstrating your talents on the ball-point pen! Bring it on... I promise to let you use it out in the woods!

I did a video of it yesterday but can't get it to upload,I'll have my web lady (Mrs elk) get it up for me this weekend. If I thought it would call in a bird you'd be hard pressed to stop me..

that is something I have not done yet is forget my calls, but I can relate. One time I was taking out a youth and we were half way out to the spot we were going to hunt from and I relized we had left the gun in the truck!! No pen could take it's place, although we could have thrown some shells at them I guess.

I have killed squirrels and rabbits with a blow gun, but unfortunately a pen barrel is just not the right caliber.
More accurately I did not forget my calls so to speak; as I was on my way out to hunt something else. There was a group of toms in a field I had permission to hunt. Then I discovered the box call usually kept in glove box was missing, there was the pen. I got out rushed the toms to break em up, only one peeled off a different direction from the rest. I set up in a hurry wearing a blue and black plaid flannel shirt, smeared a bit of dirt on my face, the shotgun was mod choked loaded with #6 Fiochhi pheasant and sometimes as in this case the turkey gods of the hunt smile on you.

[turkey junky]

yeah charlie i killed my 1st 1-3 turkeys with mod choke & 2 shots apeace lol then i got in a tom close & got it with 1 shot i then missed then next bird i shot at rolled it twice & it got away then i learned i should get a turkey choke!!!??? i called so much & so bad i dont know how i really got turkeys to come in??? i think it was the different weird sounding hen that maid the turkeys come in for a closer look???

yes my father has a old camo hs strut box call that i can not really make a good turkey sound on to my ears but he can play that call like its make n music & turkeys love the call i give him that what the hell was that sound look all the time then get my gun up & ready as lots of times turkeys will follow!!!??? lol we call the call the ol moma hen
or the OLD B**** hen call depending on if he shot a turkey & we didnt that day... lol the call is older then me i think 25-27 yrs old lol maybe it aged with time...

[MarkStrand]

Hey Mark did you see the Star Tribune article from Sunday May 27th talking about the spring turkey license decline from the last two years?

Dewey... I must say, I did not see that article... will go in there to the other forum when I get a minute and get caught up on the numbers, and see the discussion thread. That would be interesting to know more about. Thank you for bringing it to my attention!