It has been a tough turkey season. I've hunted every day except two, and called in six gobblers during the first two days, but only called in hens until today when I scored on a nice 2-year old bird. He had a 9¾" long and 7/8" spurs. I called him in with a turkey call I made.
On my way to the spot where I was going to listen for the gobblers to wake up, I flushed a bird on the edge of a field at about 5:05 AM. I could see it silhouetted against the dark sky, and was looking for a beard dangling against its chest. It wasn't real big and I was pretty sure it was a hen.
At 5:12, a gobbler sounded off along the edge of the field about 100 yards or more from where I was. So, I tucked myself against a multi-trunk beech tree about 15 feet inside the woods, and when he flew down at 5:40 I began calling. He wasn't the gobbler that came in, however. This gobbler was a little closer. I couldn't see him when he flew down, but before long he was in sight and in full strut coming my way.
Twice while I was calling him in hens flew down and landed right in front of him, but he totally ignored them, and kept coming to my call. At 6:11 AM I filled his head with lead him at 34 yards.
They're fun to watch, and when everything is going right you can read their minds. "I'll make myself real big so she can see me. Where is she? Maybe I need to do it again. OK. Maybe if I walk over here. How about here? Where is she? OK -- what if I walk a little closer. Maybe if I stretch my neck up I'll see her, and she'll see me." Once his brain got lead poisoning, I couldn't read his mind anymore. Now on to #2.
Steve
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