*There's a Turkey in the Cul-de-sac*

Cletus T.

Senior Member
I wanted to share a turkey story that took place about 5 years ago. My Dad is a big-time turkey hunter and I always refer to him as “bird crazy”. I mean he’s the type of guy who will sit in his living room on a cold January day, decked out in all his spring time camo and making calls as he’s watching a Turkey Hunting DVD. My Mom really loves this too by the way! So there’s a little backdrop to the story and now here’s the meat and potatoes of it……………………





Me and my Wife use to live in Marietta when our son was just a baby. I was finishing up school at Kennesaw State and my Wife worked down there. My parents live up in Suwanee and we would drive up almost every weekend to see them. Well…..let’s be honest here…….we would drive up and let Mom and Dad watch our son and me and the wife would go to sleep! We were brand new parents and we worn out and we just wanted to lie down for goodness sake. Seriously though, my Mom and Dad were so very helpful and they still are today. I’m very blessed to have such wonderful parents. Anyway…… so the Wife and I and our new baby boy were heading up to Mom and Dad’s and my Dad wasn’t going to be there until a little later in the day. He had gone turkey hunting that morning in Greene Co. on some land that we owned at the time. So we pull up into the driveway and our son had fallen asleep and we wanted to keep it that way. So I crept in the drive and parked the car quietly. I saw something streak across the yard of the house that is kind of to the side of my mom and dad’s house. They are kids playing in their neighborhood all the time so I thought it was just a kid playing tag or something. There is also a small stretch of woods that comes up the side of his lot and I caught movement in the woods. I looked a little closer and low and behold…..it was a turkey, and he was bobbing his head right through this small patch of woods. I got so excited that I got a little loud in searching for the camera that was tucked down deep in the diaper bag. So I get to scrambling for the camera because the turkey is moving….now he’s not speeding through the woods but he’s not stopping. I finally get the camera and see that this bird has a beard poking out and it wasn’t a boss tom or anything but maybe a 2-year old Jake, but still, it was very exciting seeing a wild turkey in the sub-division.




I snap a pretty good picture of the bird, but I want to get closer and I want to get outside of the car and see how close I can get. Well…….we all know how a turkey can bust you from a mile away, much less 10 feet away and on top of that I’m trying to be in stealth mode and slip out of a car without being seen. Well….I get out fairly quiet and I start snapping photos but the bird has busted me and takes off running across the cul-de-sac and I start chasing after him. I never even got close. That bird was fast and he started high stepping across the road like he was “Prime Time” Deion Sanders streaking down the sideline after an interception. The turkey ran up the hill on the other side of the road and just like that he was gone. I stood there in the road and could not believe what my eyes had just seen. I stood there checking the camera to make sure I had hopefully gotten some good shots of this bird and guess who comes pulling up………my Dad! He had just returned from the turkey woods and I told him…… “Your not going to believe what I just saw”. First off, his hunt that morning was pretty uneventful. He didn’t hear a single bird though he did get to see the sun come up and the woods come alive on a beautiful spring morning. There was just no turkey activity. So I tell him the story of the cul-de-sac turkey and then prove it to him by showing the pictures. He couldn’t believe it, and he made the comment that he drives over an hour away to chase the ole longbeard and he comes back home and they are strutting in his front yard. It was too funny! Here are the pictures that validate the story! Hope yall like it!!

Cletus
 

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Wacenturion

Senior Member
Great pictures.....the first photo...what a great shot, beautiful pose by that bird.
 

Gut_Pile

Senior Member
cool story. love the pick of him prime timing it across the street!
 

bobcat

Senior Member
Cool story and great photos:D
 

Hawghead

Senior Member
good story..i had a similiar story but with deer..was standing in my driveway in my neighborhood, look next door and a doe runs into the neighborhood across the street..stood there watching her and about 2 minutes later..here comes a nice 8pt trailing her up with his nose to the ground..he saw me then bolted 3 doors down..stood there..then just walked off thru everyones yard.
 

trkyburns

Senior Member
That's pretty fun man. Those are some great pictures! Even though I have seen turkeys running more times than I care to admit, it is still one of the funniest things in the world. I liken it to a person running 20 mph without moving their arms at all!!
 

Cletus T.

Senior Member
Yea…..it always makes me laugh to see a turkey run but of course if he just busted me and I never got a shot off at him…..well……that’s not funny at all!!

Glad yall liked the story!
 
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