What I did on my spring vacation

[allaboutshooting]

Very nice, Gary. Quite a trip.

Thanks,
Clark

[Treerooster]

And to think, you were about to give up on WI , don't even think about it- Unless you want to kill half as many turkeys.
Congratulations on a great spring hunt.

You got that right! The 2011 season in Wis may have been one of my worst hunting trips ever. In 2 weeks I never heard a gobble on land I could hunt and experienced the worst hunting pressure in all the years I hunted there. 1 year later and it may have been the best hunting trip ever. What a difference a year makes...eh? Not a lot of birds but certainly more. And hardly any other hunters along with the ability to purchase unsold tags.

I think the mild winter with more bird survival along with less hunting pressure, as evidenced by the unsold tags, was the reason. The fact that the birds were extremely cooperative may have helped too.



I am sick of the heat and the sun and the drout and smoke from fores. Bugs ain't bad though...I think they are all dried up. Hoppers might get out of hand...time will tell.

Looking for Sept 1st and the start of dove season...then teal...then ducks...then Wisconsin

[charlie elk]

What a difference a year makes...eh? Not a lot of birds but certainly more. And hardly any other hunters along with the ability to purchase unsold tags.

Yea, a lot hunters get discouraged too soon one bad year is not indicative of the next one being bad. You are right there are many variables that affect a season. The number of broods this summer is very high. IF- favorable turkey conditions continue, this fall and 2013 spring are going to be phenomenal.

I toured some potential farms I've been invited to hunt in Marathon county yesterday; OH MY Goooodnesssssss! Lost count of the turkeys Vic and I saw, at least 200 of the buggers. The farmer says the field carp (turkeys) need thinning, he might be right -so I discussed it with Vic,

What are we waiting for!.jpg (38.3 KiB) Viewed 220 times

of course he was ready to get em yesterday.

[Treerooster]

I feel like Vic...ready to get em yesterday.

[Jellyhead]

Hey Charlie: need any help carrying your gear...your calls...maybe water for Vic?

Lost count at 200? It doesn't get any better than that.

[charlie elk]

Hey Charlie: need any help carrying your gear...your calls...maybe water for Vic?

Vic drinks a lot of water between turkey chases and breaks if the farmer allows me to bring a partner you just might get a job as water bearer.

I feel like Vic...ready to get em yesterday.

You both have my sympathies.
Did you apply for your fall WI license yet? I am getting reports of good poult recruitment all the way up into Baron County. So I assume your area is going to have more turkeys too. Sounds like the WI turkey committee is going to cut the fall permits in unit 4. No word on how big the cut. I don't understand their thinking there were 8261 permits unsold at season end in 2011.

[Gopherlongbeards]

Only 2 months to go till the fall season opens in WI.

It looks like unit 4 will still have 15,000 fall permits available this year. Good news for me, that's where I'll be hunting.
http://dnr.wi.gov/topic/hunt/documents/fall.pdf

I already applied for one in the lottery and will most likely pick up a few more during the season. Have been seeing a ton of broods across the river here in MN as well.

[charlie elk]

t looks like unit 4 will still have 15,000 fall permits available this year.

If you read the fine print at the bottom it says

The above permit levels are FINAL. However, fall permit levels may be revised following reviews of new population data.

The word I have is the turkey committee is still deciding. I hope zone 4 stays the same, the population is up I think way up. Only 652 turkeys were killed in 4 last fall which in the big scheme of things is insignificant, unless it is a turkey laying dead at the end of Vic's nose.

[Treerooster]

I feel like Vic...ready to get em yesterday.

You both have my sympathies.
Did you apply for your fall WI license yet?

Yep...'bout a month ago.

Should've waited until now...would've helped with the turkey bends.

[stankyolgobbler]

Great season recap!