2011 Turkey Pic's

[Wallydog]

Nice story and flock of DS decoys!

Congrats,

WD

[shamalex72]

My wife's first turkey. I sat with her Saturday and Sunday but we didn't have much luck. I had to work today, so she was going out by herself this morning. I always do the calling, so last night I showed her how to yelp with a Li'l duece double glass call.

I was still sleeping when she came home, "I got a turkey, I got a turkey" she said. I think she was gone only about 45 minutes.

When she got to where we hunt, she heard a gobble. So she gets set up, puts out a hen decoy and finds a place to sit. Wasn't long and she see's two fly down. Then, she said "I chirped a couple times on the call." It must have sounded good enough, because he started to come her way. She could see he was "all puffed up" and headed towards the decoy. As soon as he was close enough she dropped him.

Even after she got home she was still shaking. It was just a little jake, but I don't think she cared what size it was. It was her first, and she got it all by herself.

Here is the one I got on Friday. He came in to the same Li'l Duece call.

[MJ1657]

Great story Shamalex.

[Borch]

Congrats to you both!

Looks like she'll be going next year for sure.

[DonBo]

That is so cool. No way my wife would even get up early enough to go with me, much less by herself. Congrats to both of you!

[shamalex72]

Looks like she'll be going next year for sure.

Definitely! This was her third year. Last year I called in a nice tom the first morning we went out. It was about 20 yards and she missed it. I think she got gobbler fever

[shamalex72]

That is so cool. No way my wife would even get up early enough to go with me, much less by herself. Congrats to both of you!

Thanks guys. It is pretty cool that she likes to hunt and fish as much as she does. I'm a lucky guy.

[mws4dux]

congrats on the birds

[engfish]

That is so cool. No way my wife would even get up early enough to go with me, much less by herself. Congrats to both of you!

+1

Awesome ending to the morning.

[123fish]

You are a lucky guy. Congrats to both of you.

[Outdoor Authority]

Wallydog, I love the dsd decoys. It seems like the birds don't hang up at fifty yards like they used to with other decoys. Not to mention when some one stops to film you shoot a turkey because they see the strutted. It was a good story to hear from a fourth party.

[Cheetah]

[Borch]

What a gorgeous bird!

I love those merriams.

Got to get out west again.

[sticknstring]

Nicely done Cheetah! Last day birds are always special.

[DonBo]

Come on Josh, it's SO unlike you to not have some sort of story to go along with your photos. Nice job on the bird though, I know you worked hard for that one.

[Cheetah]

Come on Josh, it's SO unlike you to not have some sort of story to go along with your photos. Nice job on the bird though, I know you worked hard for that one.

It takes time to type it all. See the other thread I started.

[Outdoor Authority]

Josh, nice bird. I am just waiting my time and soon I will be off chasing turkeys in Nebraska. Let's hear the story nothing better than hearing a story that goes along with a great picture.

[surewood]

First picture is my brother on the left with a Jake and my fiance with my bird on the right, and my son in the middle. Tagged out a half hour into the hunt. My bird was 23lbs, 9inch beard, and around three quarter inch spurs. My brother missed a nice Tom that morning about fifteen minutes after I got my bird. He was pretty bummed and I did'nt press him to much of how he missed. He was already low enough. Went out with him that afternoon and called in two jakes around five pm across the field and he decided to take one.

[jkcmj]

Not exactly what I was looking for to start this morning, but a successful outing in my book! 27 little grays by one tree on my way out..

[sticknstring]

Yummy! Just need some turkey breast to wash 'em down!

[benbosh]

Well after having 2 toms come in Wednesday morning and missing I finally connected yesterday morning at 11:53 AM. Heres the full story:

After missing Wednesday morning and having to work Wednesday night, I set up across the river, on the north, near the roost so I could see if they were still flying down across the river right away in the AM. Right at first light I heard 3 gobbling in the roost and could see one. Finally about 6:00 I heard some wings flopping through the trees but could still see the one. At 6:10 he flew down across the river with the rest, so I picked up about 6:30 and headed to the truck to go around to the same property on the other side of the river where I missed the day before.

I get back to the south side about 645 and he was gobbling about every 5 minutes back in the woods. I set up on a fenceline where I did Wednesday morning and called a few times and shut up. After 20 minutes of gobbling off and on he went silent. 10 minutes after he went silent I look across the hill to the south and see 2 dogs running and of course they run right down the fenceline towards me. They came up to me and hung around for a bit and then ran off back into the woods right where the tom was gobbling. I was a bit ticked off at that point and knew he wouldn't be coming anytime soon now so picked up thinking maybe they chased him back to the other side of the river.

On the walk back I could hear a chainsaw across the river somewhere near where I was going to hunt. I drove by and the farmer that rents the field from the land owner was cutting up a tree that fell into the field over winter. I went home and ate quick and headed out back out about 10. I head back to the south side of the property walking slowly and stopping often to listen for gobbles and using locator calls and nothing. I also noticed that the farmer also came to this side of the river with his 4-wheeler, I thought it couldn't get any worse. I start heading along the fenceline in the field to where I was set up earlier, get to the spot where I set up to listen and nothing. I figure I'll just set up over the hill to the north and call every 15-30 miuntes and wait. I get 50 yards up the hill and he lights up a gobble 75 yards away over the hill right where I was planning on sitting.

Luckily right where I was there was about a 10 foot clearing in the brush on the wood line for a path to a treestand on the edge. I quickly put a decoy out, clear a little bit of brush, get situated and call softly every few minutes. After about 10-15 minutes of calling I hear leaves rustling coming towards me. I slowly look straight to my right just inside the woods and see the back end of a hen leaving. Could this day get any worse? I thought it was over right then. I then look back to the field and through some brush I see a big bright head slowly coming towards my decoy. Got the gun up and waited. He cleared the brush in front of me put the sights on his head and let'er rip. Dropped him right in his tracks.

23.5 lbs 10 inch beard 1 1/16" and 1 3/16" spurs

[bigbucks]

Hadn't had much luck with my turkey season going into this morning, the next to last day. Didn't hunt a couple days due to a bad sinus infection I'm still fighting, missed work Wednesday. Had my blind set at at a neighbors. Sat there for an hour or so last night, nothing going on, windy. Pulled it down, packed up, walked the property calling, nothing. I'd talked to another landowner friend from the blind to verify some boundaries on his property & realized I'd left out a pretty good corner, so I went & checked that out, but couldn't raise any gobbles there either. Tuesday night I'd set my cousin's blind up in the night pasture at "the farm" (uncle's). I hadn't hunted that at all as I'd been sick Wed & it rained Thurs, so decided to sit there before work this morning.

I got in there about 5:15, should have been in by at least 5:00, probably could have seen a beard on a bird already @ 5:15. Heard gobbling right away, two different birds both on the South side of the swamp. Any that don't know I was of course on the North side... Did hear one way to the West & also possibly one way North, but by 6:15 all was quiet. Decided I'd sit until 7:00, pack the blind up & look around quick before heading home to change for work. Jumped a hen up by the West line fence at about 10 yards, she flew straight away immediately. Went to the South side & was half way across a neighbor's huge meadow, when I cleared the crest & could see an eagle sitting on a deer carcass down just North of the old house, on the South side of the field. Wait that's not an eagle on a deer carcass that's a fanned out gobbler. [PoorWordUsage]! Now what? I'm 200+ yards from cover in all directions!

I scrunched down & headed back NE until I was below the horizon & I'm brainstorming what to do. Do I now go straight East to the pines then South down the edge he's on & try to sneak towards him or get in position to call to him? I'd just read something that said turkeys prefer to come up hill to calling vs. down hill. Wait I should go NW & get to the point of the woods just over the crest from him & call to him. He'll be 250 yards or so away. He's already at full strut & appears to be alone. He should come right in. So that's what I did, probably took me about 5 minutes from seeing him to being in position up against a popple tree about 12" in diameter on the East side of a rockpile with some scattered brush & saplings between the bird & me. It was thin enough I could pick holes to shoot through or if he came East enough there was a nice lane. The crest of the hill between he & I was about 40 yards, but he'd have to come a bit more before I'd have a wide open shot. I was wearing my turkey vest, so I unlatched the flip down cushion & plopped my keester by the tree with my back to it & my legs stretched out SSE. I kicked away the leaves & grass around my feet so I could adjust without making noise. I yelped a few times & he gobbled once, as did another previously unknown bird a few hundred yards behind me in the woods, down near the swamp probably. I didn't hear or see anything, so thought what the heck this is a mature bird, he could have spooked & gone the other way for all I know. I hit my challenging jake gobble call a couple of times, yelped a few more with the box call, nothing. Brought the binos up to see if I could catch feather tips over the horizon, maybe, not sure, wait, Holy Cow there's the blue head right there coming over the crest of the hill. I've been sitting probably 4 minutes. I said he's toast! Thank you Lord! I'd been praying that it would come together & I could get my bird before Friday night so I could go set blinds for my cousin & his son, as Saturday's their only day to hunt. At this point I figured he was mine. He was all puffed out in full strut, doing the little rotating move to make sure his challenger could see how big & bad he was. He got where I could have shot & was debating on it, when he turned again & I could tell he was going to come into my lane so I brought the gun up & waited. When he stepped clear & turned so he was giving me a side profile of his head his day got a LOT WORSE. Boom! Feathers flew & down he went kicking & thrashing. I stepped it of at 33 yards. I took these pics & then went home & put him in the lovely gold fridge in the garage.

I didn't weigh or measure yet, but he'll go 20 lbs or so, beard's in that 8-10" range. I'd say the spurs are probably 5/8 & 3/4's, the one is definitely a bit longer. He's not a monster bird, but he's a nice mature Eastern gobbler 2-3 years old is my best guess. 3+ days of hunting frustration, plus a few frustrating days trying to get my son a bird 10 days ago, even though he only would hunt twice & bang 10 minutes that make it all worth it.

[mws4dux]

Great stories and birds guys!!

[benbosh]

Thanks, it was quite the adventure. Its only my 3rd year turkey hunting and with eating tag soup my 1st year and shooting a jake last year then having that guy come in full strut at 12 yards and missing the day before, the addiction of turkey hunting really kicked in full bore and couldn't be happier.

[Borch]

Wow!!!

What a couple of great hunts!

Way to hang in there guys and end up with a couple of very nice birds.