WI Hunts

[NEWHunter]

The birds ended up being roosted up on the neighboring property, somewhere between 250 and 350 yards away. Given the wind direction and the interstate noise, hearing them gobble probably would have been a pretty tall order.

I’ve got a late season leftover tag that I’m not sure I’ll get a chance to hunt. Either way it’s been a great, albeit very short season. I’m thinking I need to dedicate a couple more days to turkeys next season.

A few more pictures from my daughter’s hunt. It was a picturesque morning.

 

[NEWHunter]

Here they come


It’s the 6th and final season here in WI and today is my first time out hunting for myself.

 

[NEWHunter]

Went in blind this morning and got set up plenty early. I was in the same spot I killed one late in the season last year. Shooting light was 4:45 am. At about 4:35 I thought I heard a gobble a long ways off. I decided to stay quiet and at 4:41 a crow started and was cut off rather quickly by half of a raspy gobble. He was about 150 yards out.

 

[NEWHunter]

Shooting light came and went and he gobbled sparingly. I called in his direction and it took some coaxing to get a response but he eventually gobbled back. At 4:57 he finally hit the ground and ten minutes later he and a buddy appeared 125 yards away. A minute later they were on their way over to take a look.

I thought a yearling buck was going screw things up as he had moved to 15 yards and he knew something wasn’t right. He was letting everyone know it, too. Turns out he might have saved the day as it forced me to stay statue still. A minute or two later a hen started talking up a storm not fifteen yards away. Her talking sped up the toms’ pace. And a minute later they were in the decoys.

 

[NEWHunter]

As you know from this thread we already have two birds in the freezer. I had given a lot of thought as to whether or not I’d pull the trigger if I got a chance. I decided I was going to be selective and unless I figured I was looking at spurs that were solidly over 1.5 inches, he was getting a pass. Well, I videoed these toms for almost 15 minutes and best I could tell I was looking at a two year old and a three year old. Alas, they got a pass.

I watched them screw around in the decoys for the next 45 minutes. I took several videos and tons of photos. Eventually they tried to breed both the DSD decoys. I have one video where I yelled at the Tom to get off my decoy. He listened and politely went back to strutting. All of this happened at about twelve yards.

 

[Treeshark]

Wow, that is a lucky bird- not too many guys would pass on that one! Nice writeup, sounds like a blast

 

[kansasdad]

Way more restraint than I would shown.

Turkey piccata, schnitzel, stir fry and carnitas are too good.

 

[NEWHunter]

Wow, that is a lucky bird- not too many guys would pass on that one! Nice writeup, sounds like a blast

Thanks. It was a good way to end the season. Makes me think I’m getting old to have passed. If there was such a thing as catch and release hunting, this was it.