Turkeys
- Thread starter adoc65
- Start date
Mountain Mule
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- Joined
- Nov 18, 2021
- Messages
- 191
TheGrayRider
Well-known member
Merriam’s gobbler. Corson County, South Dakota. Happy hunting to all, TheGrayRider a/k/a Tom.
jpc01101
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- Joined
- Jan 14, 2021
- Messages
- 980
Quick video of the double, I got his shot and then Dad said "that other one came back" so you can hear the pump...bang, LOL
Pucky Freak
Well-known member
Well, heck. Nice to see everyone out having a good time!
Too much going on in my life: Normal busy spring yard work. I couldn’t get what I needed to start taxes until 3 days to the deadline, and then I had to go back and amend 4 past returns b/c I discovered that I screwed those up. 3/29 started urgent job of replacing all the motor mounts on my wife’s car, which went fine. Then I found where it was leaking a bit of oil from the valve cover, so I might as well fix that while I’m at it…
…22 days later still at it, old brittle parts doing me no favors. Sleeping dogs are best to left lie. Quit in the garage last night at 2 AM after a clean 20-min test drive, hopefully the last
I did try and hand it off to the mechanic at one point and they quoted 1k. Wife has my truck and I’ve been commuting on my bicycle.
Then there’s my bow. Decided to tinker around just before turkey opener - shortened draw length 1/2”, crank up the lbs, new sight. This AM after 2 hrs sleep I’m out to the shooting range. Decided on 2 pins, 20 and 35. Five yd at zero, 10 yd 1” high, 15 yd 2” high, and 25-30 yds shoot the gap between the pins. Topped off w/ a short trip beneath the dam where something big zipped off my line and hung me up on the rocks
Tomorrow I’m GOING to hunt!
Too much going on in my life: Normal busy spring yard work. I couldn’t get what I needed to start taxes until 3 days to the deadline, and then I had to go back and amend 4 past returns b/c I discovered that I screwed those up. 3/29 started urgent job of replacing all the motor mounts on my wife’s car, which went fine. Then I found where it was leaking a bit of oil from the valve cover, so I might as well fix that while I’m at it…
…22 days later still at it, old brittle parts doing me no favors. Sleeping dogs are best to left lie. Quit in the garage last night at 2 AM after a clean 20-min test drive, hopefully the last
I did try and hand it off to the mechanic at one point and they quoted 1k. Wife has my truck and I’ve been commuting on my bicycle.Then there’s my bow. Decided to tinker around just before turkey opener - shortened draw length 1/2”, crank up the lbs, new sight. This AM after 2 hrs sleep I’m out to the shooting range. Decided on 2 pins, 20 and 35. Five yd at zero, 10 yd 1” high, 15 yd 2” high, and 25-30 yds shoot the gap between the pins. Topped off w/ a short trip beneath the dam where something big zipped off my line and hung me up on the rocks
Tomorrow I’m GOING to hunt!
338win
Well-known member
- Joined
- Sep 19, 2015
- Messages
- 520
Returned from a state that that I have been hunting since the early 00’s. Unfortunately the days of hearing 15-20 birds in a day are gone. Now I walk 4 to 5 miles each outing to locate birds. Most that I hear now are 4 or 5 over several square miles.
Morning 1: hike out through the valley in NF that is generally reliable to find a bird. I don’t strike any birds in the drainages that usually have something. I hike east out of the valley and through a low saddle. Find recent gobbler tracks in old logging road on east side of saddle. Move SE along ridge to high point to listen. Strike bird due N across valley 7am. Walk ridge back NW then follow north side of ridge to move NE towards bird. Get inside or 50 yards but he is moving/gobbling on old road cut towards where I crossed the low saddle. I can’t call because there is no tree to setup on. He passes by and I setup once he sounds 150-200 yards away. I start calling from a good position. He gobbles a lot but clearly is henned. Eventually he gets faint and lose track. Wind picks up to 15 mph. It’s now 9.
I move along the ridge to get to the highest point to my south, almost step on a timber rattler on my way. Jump 2 deer. Get to top. When wind dies down, rip on my pot call. After a few tries I hear one very faint about 800 yards to my SW. I basically jog along the ridge tops to get closer. Get to 400 and draw a few lines to zero in on the point hes on. Use the ridge to get to the point where he is at. Setup within a 100 yards just behind the crest. He comes in close enough for the air to shake but won’t commit and I can hear a 2nd bird “behind” him somewhere. Wind is ripping and I stop calling. When he drifts off I repo to my north and call. I can hear him faint. He has dropped down on a bench that runs around the whole valley basically. I move down to overwatch the bench. I crow call and he hammers wayyyy closer than expected. I’m getting my crow call into my pocket as he steps out in the trail at 55 yards. I think he busts me but have no shot yet so I yelp and he half struts and gobbles. He takes a few more steps and I lean right to get a clear shot and send a load of 9s. Bird down at 1130.
Scout a new area in the rain and wind that evening. Hear one on NF but weather has other plans.
Next morning:
Hike out of the valley to my south and walk ridge N-NE. Hear bird on roost exactly where I originally heard the bird I got the day before. Run the ridge out and get on an old trail as close as I can without getting busted. He gobbles hundreds of times but won’t leave his saddle to come up to me. 2 are gobbling across a drainage at him. I move 4 times trying to get on his level and entice him in. He eventually moves away to an old logging road system on a bench. I keep my distance. An atv hunter moved in. He is owl hooting to the birds and calling. I stay slightly higher than the bird so I can keep following. Eventually the other 2 birds meet up with the original one. All 3 are gobbling together on a point 450 yards from where he started. The ATV starts and drives down the road in the valley below the birds. They all shut up like a switch turned off at 830. I walk to top of the windy ridge so I can call in sick from work because I’m going to sit on these birds all day now.
I move back to the saddle where he was roosted. An old trail goes down from the saddle and there is a bench/trail below it. It has lots of sun exposure and grass around it. I assume any turkey is going to use that at some point. I sit by a beech with an old dozer pile next to it. Basically a ground blind over watching the bench they are using to move around the mountains. I text my wife an update around 950. My gun is resting on the dirt mound oriented towards the bench. 950-55 I hear deliberate scratching in the leaves and it screams turkey. I get the gun to my shoulder. A Jake appears at 30 yards(I thought one of the 2 gobbling together sounded Jakey). I can see a bird closer but can’t tell what it is. I watch it and eventually see a beard swinging. Before I can shoot, it lays down in a brush pile behind a tree at 20-25 yards. I got the safety off and wait minutes for it to eventually stick its head out. Soon as it does I send another load of 9s.
I have no idea what caused this insane amount of good luck. I have been out on 6 trips to the woods and filled 4 tags in 2 states. Normally this is like 1/5 or 1/10 trips to get a bird.
Morning 1: hike out through the valley in NF that is generally reliable to find a bird. I don’t strike any birds in the drainages that usually have something. I hike east out of the valley and through a low saddle. Find recent gobbler tracks in old logging road on east side of saddle. Move SE along ridge to high point to listen. Strike bird due N across valley 7am. Walk ridge back NW then follow north side of ridge to move NE towards bird. Get inside or 50 yards but he is moving/gobbling on old road cut towards where I crossed the low saddle. I can’t call because there is no tree to setup on. He passes by and I setup once he sounds 150-200 yards away. I start calling from a good position. He gobbles a lot but clearly is henned. Eventually he gets faint and lose track. Wind picks up to 15 mph. It’s now 9.
I move along the ridge to get to the highest point to my south, almost step on a timber rattler on my way. Jump 2 deer. Get to top. When wind dies down, rip on my pot call. After a few tries I hear one very faint about 800 yards to my SW. I basically jog along the ridge tops to get closer. Get to 400 and draw a few lines to zero in on the point hes on. Use the ridge to get to the point where he is at. Setup within a 100 yards just behind the crest. He comes in close enough for the air to shake but won’t commit and I can hear a 2nd bird “behind” him somewhere. Wind is ripping and I stop calling. When he drifts off I repo to my north and call. I can hear him faint. He has dropped down on a bench that runs around the whole valley basically. I move down to overwatch the bench. I crow call and he hammers wayyyy closer than expected. I’m getting my crow call into my pocket as he steps out in the trail at 55 yards. I think he busts me but have no shot yet so I yelp and he half struts and gobbles. He takes a few more steps and I lean right to get a clear shot and send a load of 9s. Bird down at 1130.
Scout a new area in the rain and wind that evening. Hear one on NF but weather has other plans.
Next morning:
Hike out of the valley to my south and walk ridge N-NE. Hear bird on roost exactly where I originally heard the bird I got the day before. Run the ridge out and get on an old trail as close as I can without getting busted. He gobbles hundreds of times but won’t leave his saddle to come up to me. 2 are gobbling across a drainage at him. I move 4 times trying to get on his level and entice him in. He eventually moves away to an old logging road system on a bench. I keep my distance. An atv hunter moved in. He is owl hooting to the birds and calling. I stay slightly higher than the bird so I can keep following. Eventually the other 2 birds meet up with the original one. All 3 are gobbling together on a point 450 yards from where he started. The ATV starts and drives down the road in the valley below the birds. They all shut up like a switch turned off at 830. I walk to top of the windy ridge so I can call in sick from work because I’m going to sit on these birds all day now.
I move back to the saddle where he was roosted. An old trail goes down from the saddle and there is a bench/trail below it. It has lots of sun exposure and grass around it. I assume any turkey is going to use that at some point. I sit by a beech with an old dozer pile next to it. Basically a ground blind over watching the bench they are using to move around the mountains. I text my wife an update around 950. My gun is resting on the dirt mound oriented towards the bench. 950-55 I hear deliberate scratching in the leaves and it screams turkey. I get the gun to my shoulder. A Jake appears at 30 yards(I thought one of the 2 gobbling together sounded Jakey). I can see a bird closer but can’t tell what it is. I watch it and eventually see a beard swinging. Before I can shoot, it lays down in a brush pile behind a tree at 20-25 yards. I got the safety off and wait minutes for it to eventually stick its head out. Soon as it does I send another load of 9s.
I have no idea what caused this insane amount of good luck. I have been out on 6 trips to the woods and filled 4 tags in 2 states. Normally this is like 1/5 or 1/10 trips to get a bird.
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