Core Lokt
Senior Member
I pulled in the yard Friday afternoon thinking about the next morning’s hunt and the weather that was forecasted. Before getting out I called a friend just down the road to see if he wanted to come over and we would walk out back and see if we could get a gobble. It’s hit or miss back there because it’s only 5 ac with a 1 ac food plot that is bordered by plantation on 2 sides.
The morning before there was 3 gobblers roosted in the area. I hit the call at 5:45p, nothing. I hit it again a minute later and I thought I heard a faint gobble way in the distance but wasn’t sure. Hit it one more time and we both heard a gobble and it was way off. About 3 minutes later He gobbled on his own and a second gobble cut him off. I eased to the line where I can see 400 yds across a fresh burn and didn’t see them anywhere. I gave a few yelps and they both sounded off but over the hill and out of site. I eased back over to my buddy to tell him that they were at least 400 yds out of site and they may not make it to us. A few minutes go by and they gobble again and are a little closer it seemed. I yelp and the both cut me off.
I get him situated and tell him where they may enter the plot (first gap in the thick wood line) and that he is to shoot first and then I’ll try for the other if I get a shot. He is facing south, the turkeys are to the east and I go SW of him across the plot and set down on the edge in the bushes. His shot will be to the south and mine, if I get one will be to the east. We are both out of the line of fire from each other. I sit down and they both gobble and are inside of 100. These birds must have been running to us most of the way because it has only been 20 minutes from the first gobble.
A couple of minutes go by and they both gobble 15 yds to his east on the firebreak but too thick to see them. I know his heart is pounding because mine is. The whole time I was thinking about the distance they covered in such a short time. My gun is up and pointed at the trail I expect to see them enter the plot on. They both double gobble and were a little past the trail and then I see a white head bobbing up and down heading towards my buddy 35 yds across the plot from me but I can’t see the second bird due to the plot grown up in the middle. Little did I know the second bird was blown up spinning in circles while the first bird, the bird that I could see was stretched out looking.
I’m wondering when my buddy is going to shoot because the first bird is 25 yds from him?!?! What I didn’t know is that he was trying to let the second bird get across from me, we couldn’t see each other and I still couldn’t see the second bird. My safety is off and I hoped when he killed the first bird that the second would jump on it and I would kill it. Sounds like a great plan huh? Well, he shot and his bird went to flopping and then jumped up and he shoots again and his bird takes flight out of the plot so I stand to see the second bird running down the plot at 60-65 yds and it took flight as well. Both birds had what looked to be 11”+ thick beards hanging as they flew….
As I replayed the situation when my buddy’s gun went off it looked as his bird went to take a step and lowered his head as the gun went off. My buddy has been turkey hunting for 30+ yrs and is the one that got me into it. The first thing he said to me was “I was aiming too high and should have had it on his waddles.” I think the bottom part of the pattern it what just hit the bird knocking him down but not fatally wounding it by the way he flew off. No feathers were found either. From the first gobble to the shot was only 30 minutes…
Goes to show you that even a seasoned hunter has his moments on any given day/hunt….
Saturday morning rolls around and he and I are on some property that I have permission to hunt. It’s misting on and off and really cloudy with rain setting in by 9:30-10a. We didn’t get to the parking spot until 6:45 and it was still pitch black. We had a plan to go to a clear cut that was cut back in October. It was our first time there so far this season because the property owner’s son has been hunting it. He told me that he was going to another property and to go hunt the cut. He’s heard some birds and seen a couple but hasn’t killed any there yet.
We walk 50 yds from the truck and I gave an owl hoot and was cut off by a gobbler that sounded inside of 100 yds but 4-500 from the clear cut up on the pine hill. Right after he gobbled 2 other birds sounded off towards the cut. We decided to stay up on the hill with the closer bird. We sat for 30-35 minutes and listed to the three birds gobble over 50 times. Just after 7:30 we heard some hens make noise as they flew down so we joined in and the closer bird gobbled only once more and for the next 40 minutes we never heard or saw him or the hens. The other two were on the ground and gobbling every couple of minutes.
With the one bird silent and not being seen we agreed to go to the gobbling birds in the cut. It’s about 90 ac of hardwoods that will be planted in pines. We get to the edge and they are gobbling every other step it seemed but we couldn’t see them. We stood there for a few minutes and we spot them about 400 yds away in the middle of the cut walking/gobbling angling away from us and no hens in sight. A quick look through the binos showed both birds to have really good beards hanging.
We decided to move around and get more in line of the way they were going and setup and call. There was a thick edge that ran the edge of the cut that would give us the cover that we needed to make the move. It was about 75 yds long. We work our way around and they are gobbling the entire time. We get to the other side of the thick edge and just before we get there they quit gobbling. We peak around the thicket and don’t see them anywhere and don’t hear them as well. We set down and make a few calls with no answer. About 20 minutes go by and they gobble back across the cut and up in the woods where we think they were roosted. We call and nothing. 15 or 20 minutes go by and one of them gobbles again but further away and on another property. We sat there for an hour and called up a single hen and never heard them again. Not sure what happened to them to go from gobbling so much way out in the cut to disappear and go silent? Maybe some hens stepped out and took them back, maybe a coyote spooked them? We had a good thick block so I don’t think them seeing us was the problem.
Lightening started popping and the rain set in at 10 so we called it a hunt and headed to the truck. I guess hind sight is that we should have called to them before making the move to see if they had an interest and would make the turn. I heard more gobbling in those two hunts that I did the last 2 seasons it seems. Good times and we’ll be back at it soon.
The morning before there was 3 gobblers roosted in the area. I hit the call at 5:45p, nothing. I hit it again a minute later and I thought I heard a faint gobble way in the distance but wasn’t sure. Hit it one more time and we both heard a gobble and it was way off. About 3 minutes later He gobbled on his own and a second gobble cut him off. I eased to the line where I can see 400 yds across a fresh burn and didn’t see them anywhere. I gave a few yelps and they both sounded off but over the hill and out of site. I eased back over to my buddy to tell him that they were at least 400 yds out of site and they may not make it to us. A few minutes go by and they gobble again and are a little closer it seemed. I yelp and the both cut me off.
I get him situated and tell him where they may enter the plot (first gap in the thick wood line) and that he is to shoot first and then I’ll try for the other if I get a shot. He is facing south, the turkeys are to the east and I go SW of him across the plot and set down on the edge in the bushes. His shot will be to the south and mine, if I get one will be to the east. We are both out of the line of fire from each other. I sit down and they both gobble and are inside of 100. These birds must have been running to us most of the way because it has only been 20 minutes from the first gobble.
A couple of minutes go by and they both gobble 15 yds to his east on the firebreak but too thick to see them. I know his heart is pounding because mine is. The whole time I was thinking about the distance they covered in such a short time. My gun is up and pointed at the trail I expect to see them enter the plot on. They both double gobble and were a little past the trail and then I see a white head bobbing up and down heading towards my buddy 35 yds across the plot from me but I can’t see the second bird due to the plot grown up in the middle. Little did I know the second bird was blown up spinning in circles while the first bird, the bird that I could see was stretched out looking.
I’m wondering when my buddy is going to shoot because the first bird is 25 yds from him?!?! What I didn’t know is that he was trying to let the second bird get across from me, we couldn’t see each other and I still couldn’t see the second bird. My safety is off and I hoped when he killed the first bird that the second would jump on it and I would kill it. Sounds like a great plan huh? Well, he shot and his bird went to flopping and then jumped up and he shoots again and his bird takes flight out of the plot so I stand to see the second bird running down the plot at 60-65 yds and it took flight as well. Both birds had what looked to be 11”+ thick beards hanging as they flew….
As I replayed the situation when my buddy’s gun went off it looked as his bird went to take a step and lowered his head as the gun went off. My buddy has been turkey hunting for 30+ yrs and is the one that got me into it. The first thing he said to me was “I was aiming too high and should have had it on his waddles.” I think the bottom part of the pattern it what just hit the bird knocking him down but not fatally wounding it by the way he flew off. No feathers were found either. From the first gobble to the shot was only 30 minutes…
Goes to show you that even a seasoned hunter has his moments on any given day/hunt….
Saturday morning rolls around and he and I are on some property that I have permission to hunt. It’s misting on and off and really cloudy with rain setting in by 9:30-10a. We didn’t get to the parking spot until 6:45 and it was still pitch black. We had a plan to go to a clear cut that was cut back in October. It was our first time there so far this season because the property owner’s son has been hunting it. He told me that he was going to another property and to go hunt the cut. He’s heard some birds and seen a couple but hasn’t killed any there yet.
We walk 50 yds from the truck and I gave an owl hoot and was cut off by a gobbler that sounded inside of 100 yds but 4-500 from the clear cut up on the pine hill. Right after he gobbled 2 other birds sounded off towards the cut. We decided to stay up on the hill with the closer bird. We sat for 30-35 minutes and listed to the three birds gobble over 50 times. Just after 7:30 we heard some hens make noise as they flew down so we joined in and the closer bird gobbled only once more and for the next 40 minutes we never heard or saw him or the hens. The other two were on the ground and gobbling every couple of minutes.
With the one bird silent and not being seen we agreed to go to the gobbling birds in the cut. It’s about 90 ac of hardwoods that will be planted in pines. We get to the edge and they are gobbling every other step it seemed but we couldn’t see them. We stood there for a few minutes and we spot them about 400 yds away in the middle of the cut walking/gobbling angling away from us and no hens in sight. A quick look through the binos showed both birds to have really good beards hanging.
We decided to move around and get more in line of the way they were going and setup and call. There was a thick edge that ran the edge of the cut that would give us the cover that we needed to make the move. It was about 75 yds long. We work our way around and they are gobbling the entire time. We get to the other side of the thick edge and just before we get there they quit gobbling. We peak around the thicket and don’t see them anywhere and don’t hear them as well. We set down and make a few calls with no answer. About 20 minutes go by and they gobble back across the cut and up in the woods where we think they were roosted. We call and nothing. 15 or 20 minutes go by and one of them gobbles again but further away and on another property. We sat there for an hour and called up a single hen and never heard them again. Not sure what happened to them to go from gobbling so much way out in the cut to disappear and go silent? Maybe some hens stepped out and took them back, maybe a coyote spooked them? We had a good thick block so I don’t think them seeing us was the problem.
Lightening started popping and the rain set in at 10 so we called it a hunt and headed to the truck. I guess hind sight is that we should have called to them before making the move to see if they had an interest and would make the turn. I heard more gobbling in those two hunts that I did the last 2 seasons it seems. Good times and we’ll be back at it soon.
