Metro Turkeys

[vern]

I remember 10 years ago it would be very rare to see a turkey around the metro area. I would only see them on trips to SE Minnesota or Iowa. Now I've seen them 3 weekends in a row & I hear them all the time. I've recently seen them in Eden Prairie, Nine Mile Creek in Bloomington, Fort Snelling State Park & even Lake of the Isles near downtown Mpls! I was fishing around one of the islands last Sunday when I heard a gobble. It didn't take long to see a turkey strutting through the woods about 50' away. Very cool. Is everyone else seeing & hearing as many metro turkeys as I have? - Vern

[buzzsaw]

These turkeys were over by my place in Lakeville, near Orchard Lake.

[vern]

Nice pic Buzzsaw. I've got a funny video of a turkey chasing my truck through downtown Chaska a couple years ago. It chased my F-150 for about 2 blocks while pecking at the tires. I'll try to post some still shots. - Vern

[fishface5]

Only buzz! Nice.

[Lunker]

I had a funny experience on the Legion Gun Range down in Elko. We and others were sighting in our deer rifles, when all of a sudden this turkey comes running right down the path of the 50 yard targets. We all stop shooting, but all of us scope in to see this crazy thing as it runs out to the main path that leads to the 100 and 200 yarders, and runs up that path all the way until out of sight. We were all a little shocked. It was brave.

[EBass]

I saw one a house down from mine in Brooklyn Center a couple weeks ago before going to work in the AM. Also saw a pair near my girlfriends around Tonka. Not around the lake, just the town. I believe there are a few in Wayzata to.

[MNmikew]

I was shooting trap at Metro gun range in Blaine last wed. and there were about half a dozen turkeys just out of shotgun range struttin away like we werent even there. Blaine has a pretty good flock now but your also starting to see them getting hit by cars

[cheektowaga]

I worked down in Cottage Grove off of 70th street for a few years and there are a LOT of Turkeys in that area. Lot of decent chunks of woods left...for now.

[buzzsaw]

Heres a few pictures from today...

then my Golden Retriever chased her up in the tree!!

[vern]

Very cool Buzzsaw. I did some fishing on Lake of the Isles yesterday and saw another turkey like I saw about a month ago. It was probably the same bird but it was on the other island this time. He was standing on an overhanging limb and I was able to get within 15 or 20 feet of him. I almost always have a camera with me but not yesterday. I could have taken some great shots. Pretty cool seeing a bird like that within the shadows of downtown Mpls. - Vern

[Benny]

We have them roaming around Coon Rpids now as well.There are about three or four that I have saw around the Foley,University intersection.Saw one right by the VFW off Hanson and Coon Rpids BLVD as well.

Benny

[vern]

Here's the crazy turkey from a few years ago. He chased me for a couple blocks before he turned his attention to another pickup truck. The video was really funny.

- Vern

[Blaze]

There was one that hung out at the intersection of Cty 81 & 169 in Osseo a few years ago by the railroad tracks. I believe he was half whacked like the one Lunker saw at the gun range - maybe they were cousins? Suicidal turkeys...

Anyway, I affectionately named the dork "Frank" and laughed as he ran up and down the shoulder of the road in rush hour traffic freakin out at the cars. It only took 2 days for Frank to become a flat pile of feathers on 169. A little "thinning of the herd", eh?

I have also seen about half dozen hanging along the tracks there again, so there's definitely a population in that area.