Team 6 - Team Gobblestein

[123fish]

Congrats on the nice bird with your grandpa's bow. That has to be a good feeling. Love all the pics. I certainly do envy all you guys that have numbers of turkeys right in your areas. I have to drive thirty five miles to just to hear one.

[sticknstring]

Thanks. I drive nearly 40 minutes each way myself to hunt. There weren't any birds in my area when I started. There are a few birds around now, but I haven't been able to secure permission yet. It's worth the drive as I'm sure you know!

[eric29]

Patients finally paid off for me this morning, with a nice tom. I'll have a story and picks to follow.

[woody1975]

Congrats Stick....Nice bird and with a recurve...amazing....

I am really getting the itch...still have a week before we go back to Nebraska, so I am hoping that we can put a few on the ground.

Eric29....congrats...looking forward to the pics and story!

DL

[IlliniWalli]

big congrats, stick

awesome to get one with a bow, let alone a stick bow

great story and pix

[sticknstring]

Thanks guys & congrats eric! Can't wait to hear the story and see pics!

[DonBo]

Quite an accomplishment Stick, congrats!

[eric29]

My season started with a work meeting, that I couldn't get out of, on opening day. So I didn't get to my blind till after 5. That nite I had a nice tom called into 60 yds but held up there for a good half hour. Strutting and gobbling the whole time but wouldn't come any closer. I also had a few hens come through my set up a bit later.

The second morning started with at least a hundred gobbles in the roost but as soon as they were down it went silent. I think there was at least 7-8 toms. I ended up calling in two different toms this day for some reason they both got held up at bout 60 yds again. Both were at the same place as each other and the same as the one the first day. I also passed on four different Jakes. This pretty lady came in and hung out with my dekes for quite some time.

Her and I became pretty good friends this week. She made an appearance at least once a day and would hang out for bit. She always had gobbler on her tail too. Made me think that the new white decoy they make now isn't as stupid as I thought. When she was in the field other toms would ditch the hen they were with and chase her.

The third day was pretty similar to to second. Lots of gobbles in the am, two toms held up at the same place again, passed on some Jakes, and a few hens pass through. Frustration was really starting to set in. I know no one is hunting near me so these birds aren't pressured at all but I just couldn't get them in. I had 12 hours in the blind their second day and 14 hours the third day so I was getting a little bit tired and down on myself.

The forth day I needed a change, I figured maybe they made me out some how, so I went out extra early this morning and moved my blind. This morning was fairly quiet compared to the others. Nothing came close to me today except a hen. I did get this picture though.

I wish you could see it better but its 5 toms strutting around with three hens. I watched that for a good hour before they headed out of site.

My last day of my season was up. It started fairly quiet again, maybe heard ten gobbles this morning. After more than two hours I only saw two hens in the field. At about 8 o'clock I finally saw a tom at about 200 yds. I called and he gobbled. This went for a good 45 minutes as he made his way to me. I got him into about 30 yds and he started sticking his head up so knew it was time to take my shot.

Sorry I didn't get any good field pics since I was by myself.

Stats;11 1/4 beard, 1 1/8 spurs, 23.4 lbs

[FishinFools]

Nice bird! It's worth the effort, ain't it!! Congrats!

[nbadger23]

Stick - great story and pictures, thanks for sharing!

Eric - congrats on sticking it out. I used to think that bow hunting deer during the rut was exhausting but it's nothing compared to turkey hunting with the longer days and the fact that they are on their feet all day long.

[DonBo]

Nice bird eric! I always said patience has killed more birds for me than anything else. Way to stick with it.

[sticknstring]

Great hunt & pics eric - the reward on the last day made it all worthwhile - great bird too!

That hen is beautiful! I've only seen one smokey gray-phased bird in the woods down in NE... super cool!

[sticknstring]

Alright guys, that's 2 birds w/ Woody, Delzz, & Powerstroke still to hunt. We're in pretty good shape!

[woody1975]

Nice Bird Eric29...Congrats!

Is that hen a Smokey Grey?

Leaving next Tuesday for Nebraska with my daughter and it is sounding good. Everything has split up and a lot of gobbling on the roost and on the ground, but I am thinking that I need to keep it in my mind that we may need to go mobile if things aren't working out - sticking with it is going to be key!

DL

[Powerstroke]

I just returned from a second trip to Nebraska. This trip was me by myself. Things went VERY well! I tagged out in two days!! None of my birds are bigger than that hog that Eric29 tagged, but the stories on mine are the best part.

I'll be back to post them for everyone. Have a good week and happy hunting! I've got a ton of change going on in my life so the rest of the season is up in the air. I want to get my daughter out some more and I have several friends bugging me to get out. I love sharing this sport with everyone, but there is only one of me. I'm trying to pass on all the experience that was shared with me by several people on this site.

[woody1975]

Congrats Powerstroke....sounds like Nebraska is really heating up. My daughter and I leave this afternoon, hopefully the luck continues.

DL

[sticknstring]

Way to go stroke! Good luck Woody! Can't wait to hear all the stories.

[woody1975]

Remember to get your submissions entered! Definitely want to get credit for these birds you guys are puttin the hammer on!!!

DL

[woody1975]

I managed to bag a jake tonight....runnin & gunnin with a young lady is difficult & she decided not to go out tonight. Happy to have a bird, but tomorrow will be all about her!!

Details to follow...

[sticknstring]

Congrats woody! Hopefully your daugher can put one on the ground as well.

[woody1975]

Well first of all, this was a short trip...a day and a half. I had hoped to get my daughter a turkey and then I would go after mine. The first morning started off fantastic with birds gobbling all around us. Pretty soon we could see them coming out of the trees. We were excited!!!!

They were right where we left them the night before and they gobbled on the ground. The only problem was that they were locked on the hens and would not respond to calls or decoys at all. We hunted out of a make-shift blind and managed to pull a hen in that was walking with a Tom, but she must not have been "hot" enough, cause he went the other way. Frustrating....We started to hoof it around the other pockets of woods, but it appeared that the birds all move to the neighbors property. First morning was a blank... That afternoon, I figured instead of trying to call them in and lure them with decoys, we would set up on a travel route that we had watched them take the night before. I asked my daughter if she was ready to go....she was tired and wanted to stay back and go out in the morning....her first mistake....I got back out to the spot and tried a locator call to see if anything was around....nothing. So I sat and waited.

2 hens moved into range and milled around in the alfalfa field about 30 yards in front of me...No one behind them. About 2 hours left of shooting, I look out on the hill and 4 turkeys appear. Figuring that they saw the hens and since the hens weren't saying anything, I made a few soft purrs. They came down the hill on a dead sprint, but they appeared to be going right past me. About 30 minutes later, I hear one, then another and 2 more gobbles from behind me. At this point, I knew they were Jakes, but since we only had 1 morning to hunt and the fact that when my daughter was going to be out in the morning, I decided I would take the biggest one. They moved right down the trail behind me, but I was ready for them. They stepped out in an opening and the second one started to fan out and looked to be a little bigger than the others. I touched one off and it was all over...Slightly disappointed that it wasn't larger, but even more disappointed that my daughter decided to sit this one out. 15# 4" beard and 1/4" spurs.....I got my first Nebraska Turkey and learned a bunch.

The next morning, we had to make a decision on where to go. Either we went back to where I was the night before, or up the line fence where they came across the morning before. I chose the line fence as most of the larger Toms went that direction....Wrong decision today. We watched at 3 different groups of 2 Toms and a few Jakes followed the hens right past where we wanted to sit. We watched as they headed out into the pasture and the hen started doing circles around the largest Tom and eventually he bred her and he headed to catch up with the other hens. Thus ended our hunt, but we learned a lot, enjoyed spending time in the outdoors and saw a lot of Turkey action....Already working on next years plan!!!

[sticknstring]

Sounds like some great action! That's often how she goes when you have limited time to hunt on new properties... takes a few days to figure them out and then it's time to head home!

Congrats on your first of many NE birds!

That's 4 birds for us now - hopefully delzz can cap off a 5-5'er!

[Powerstroke]

My season has been very focused on trying to assist my daughter. After spending 4 days in NE over the youth gun opener, she had 4 opportunities with 4 shots and NO birds. Needless to say there were some tears from a disappointed young lady. That being said, she is a trooper and wants to get after it again.

I work a job where I work every other weekend as part of my schedule and I knew I would have 4 days off coming up. I pitched my idea to my wife, explained all the excellent reasons why I should go then and took her out for a very nice dinner to seal the deal.

On Friday 4/24 I worked overnight until 6am on Saturday. I was packed and ready to go, but I was way too tired to leave so I slept until noon. I loaded the truck for a trip back to the private land I have access to in NE. Its a 5hr drive. I was going to tent it and hunt by myself.

I only had 1 tag so I bought a second tag before I left. Nebraska allows 3 tags for a total of 3 toms. I left with 2 tags in my pocket. I made the trip in 4.5 hrs, I was in time for a quick evening hunt and making sure the birds were still roosting where I left them 2 weeks earlier. I passed up a lone tom in a pasture to check the hot spot from last time. Right away I was in a flock of birds, but they were still henned up and the closest they would come was 52 yds. While this is at the edge of my range, I decided to wait and not attempt a shot so close to the roost. These birds weren't going anywhere. They all flew up and I left in the dark. I roosted another flock on my way back to the farmstead.

I ate supper, enjoyed a barley pop and crawled into my sleeping bag. 5rs of sleep and a switch from night shift to day shift was going to make getting up difficult. I woke up on time and got dressed. it was in the high 30's for temps.

I decided to walk the 1.5 miles to the hunt location rather than take the truck because the birds have been so skittish. So after consuming my breakfast shake and getting my snacks together, I made my way out across the property. About halfway to my planned hunt spot I passed by the second flock I roosted and they were going crazy on the roost. I'm not one to pass up active birds at half the distance, so I picked a spot to setup and started getting responses to my morning calls immediately.

After fly down the birds continued to gobble. At least 2 toms and some jakes in the group based on what I heard, but I could also hear hens and everyone continued heading northwest away from me. SO, I quickly packed up my set and hauled tail to the north. I was working along a bluffland creek that ends on a manmade pond with a dam at the end. The pond/dam is a very common occurance in Nebraska. Using the lay of the land I was able to stay hidden and I got all the way to the dam. I could still hear the birds gobbling and I had a good idea where they had gone. I got to the end of the dam on my side. I couldn't see the birds, so I crawled out as far as I dared on the dam and planted my hen decoy on the ground in a breeding pose and placed my Dakota Decoy Jake 2-3ft behind her. I made a couple calls and got a response. I sat down and decided to wait.

After 10 mins or so, I saw several of the turkeys making their way north along the shoreline of the pond. I made a couple calls and saw some heads turn. Two toms travelling together made their way up to the dam and were looking around. I called again and they looked. Based on where I hid in the grass, I was at eye level to the decoys as I sat just below the edge of the dam and I was looking directly down the length of the dam. I saw the two toms look up and then began walking quickly towards the decoys. They both made their way right to the set. I could see them strutting and circling the dekes and I could hear them hitting the hardbody decoys. I actually had a hard time seeing which was the live bird and which was the deke. Once I was able to distinguish, I aimed at one head and pulled the trigger. That tom rolled over and never got up.

I cycled the action and stood up. The second tom ran about 10 ft and stood there wondering what had just happened. He was standing tall with his head periscoped looking for the source of danger. I leveled the bead on his noggin and dropped him too. He flopped quite a bit so I had to use my boot to keep him from flopping into the pond. It only lasted a few seconds. While I waited for bird #2 to expire I watched as two more birds walked up onto the dam to check out the commotion. THey were 6-80 yds away so I just got to watch and revel in completing my first double on the first morning of my hunt. It was only 730am.

First pic is my view from the shot and second is up close. you can see the view of the dam and the birds came from left to raight and then straight down the dam to meet the dekes.

[Powerstroke]

Let me tell you, carrying TWO turkeys back to camp is a lot harder than one. I used a call lanyard to tied up both sets of legs and through the lanyard over my shotgun barrel up to the magazine to carry the birds. It worked well. Once back at camp, I was able to get some better pics, especially using the granary building that I set up camp next to.

[Powerstroke]

SO, I got those birds cleaned up and into a freezer that the landowner has. Now I had a decision. I could be done hunting and head home, or I could buy that third tag and try to tag out over the next 2 days. Seemed like an easy choice to me, but my wife wasn't impressed.

Being I was already there, my argument won out. I ran town and purchased my third tag. I was pretty happy my "second tag" had paid off and I was feeling really confident. After lunch and a nap I went back out to locate some afternoon birds. I got near the area of the first flock I had located and made a a few calls. Nothing. I spent all afternoon looking. I finally went back to the roost area to see if I could cut them off or see if something had changed. Well, the farmer next door had been working and planting fields. Turkeys LOVE picking seed corn and those farmers make it like a buffet line.

I ended up having a hen bust me and stand 5 feet from me clucking right in my face. While very cool and intense, she spoiled my plans and the rest of the flock avoided me once again, walking right where I had sat the night before. I sat through fly up and listened to a gobblefest I haven't experienceed before. It was all spurred on by a coyote serenade.

So, saturday night I went to bed with plans of filling out before the sun cleared the hill. I woke up in the middle of the night freezing and uncomfortable. My sleeping pad was flat and I was lying on the ground. I tried to inflate it again, but I could hear the hissing. I added some additional clothing and the blanket I brought and tried to sleep. Needless to say I overslept by an hour and felt like dump. I got dressed and drove the truck to the bottom where the big flock lived. Of course I was late and there was no way I could get into position. I decided to setup between two flocks and see if I could call either one to the middle. Of course both flocks went their seperate ways and I was left all alone in the middle.

I spent the entire morning chasing gobbles and only saw a single hen. I was getting pretty discouraged. I decided to take a drive around the area and check the other farms I had permission on. I made my way past all the fields and farms and could not turn up a turkey or a gobble. As I made my way back towards the farmstead I was camped at, I spotted a tom following a hen in an alfalfa field. They were walking towards the road over 100yds out.

So, I put into motion the plan I've been working on all spring. I parked out of view, grabbed my shotgun and an old turkey fan I had lying around. There was a large rise between me and the tom so I ran up the hill and got near the crest. The alfalfa was 10-12" tall. I belly crawled to the crest and made a few yelps on the diaphragm call. I saw the tom break strut and look towards me. I used the fan as a decoy and began moving it around like a strutting turkey. THe tom puffed up again and began walking my way.

I started crawling towards him some more, stopping occasionally to strut. I turned the fan around so the rear of the fan was facing the tom. As I looked between two feathers I could see he was getting closer. At about 40 yds, we were on the same level. The tom stopped to strut. Holding the fan, I moved it around like I've seen toms do and then with my mouth I made a a PFFT sound like the "spit and drum".

Through the little gap in the feather, I saw that tom turn blood red and he ran towards me and ran at me on a full sprint! I was blown away. I was holding the shotgun in my right hand on the ground. I clicked off the safety and pulled up the gun. As I raised the shotgun, I had to drop the fan to get my left hand on the foreend. The tom was at 5 steps!!! He quickly flared and in that moment of hesitation, I aimed very well knowing we were too close. I pulled the trigger and the tom rolled over!

I felt comfortable using this method because I was on private land, it was wide open, and I had already surveyed the area planning my attack.

I claimed my prize! I tried to find the shell for this shot, but I cycled the action instinctually and I couldn't find the hull in the alfalfa.