snookdoctor
Senior Member
This morning I finally made the connection after getting skunked last year.
I moved to Franklin over 2 years ago, and turkeys are all over....if you are driving down the road. I have a gazillion acres of National Forest behind the house, and last year I guess they didn't like public land. Never heard a gobble, never saw a dusting or where they had been scratching.
Yesterday morning when I took the dogs out for their bidness, I heard that beautiful sound in the distance....gobbleobleobleoble.
I already had my stuff layed out, for weeks, so I ran inside and slipped into my camo fast as a fireman going down the firepole. I crossed the creek in the back and went about 70 yards into the woods before the turkeys made me sit down. I was at 2400', and they sounded about 2700' and 300 yards out. I hit the slate call and three birds blew up. I gave them a minute and hit the box call and all three went off again, with one getting closer. I sat about 5 minutes in silence when I saw movement in the brush about 70 yards right in front of me. He was coming in on a rope, until he stopped and decided to show off his purdy fan. I had my gun up and gave a couple soft yelps with the mouth call and that started him moving closer to about 40 yards, when he fanned up again. He strutted and spun for a minute, then started moving to my right through the brush. Another soft yelp and he angled closer, still moving to my right. I had 2 3/4 5 shot, and was in fairly thick cover, so I wanted a shot of 30 yards or less to make sure of a good hit. He kept moving closer, but still going to my right. He went behind a good sized tree, so I was able to switch shoulders for a left handed shot. When he walked into a fairly open spot, I gave him a louder yelp with the mouth call and he puffed up and stopped on a dime. BOOM!
It was a short hunt, probably about 20 minutes after I heard the first gobbles with the dogs, but it was pretty intense.
This is the first non Georgia bird for me. This mountain bird was 22 pounds, had spurs that were almost 1 1/2 inches, and his paint brush was about 9 inches, but had been worn off pretty good.
Thank you, Lord!
I moved to Franklin over 2 years ago, and turkeys are all over....if you are driving down the road. I have a gazillion acres of National Forest behind the house, and last year I guess they didn't like public land. Never heard a gobble, never saw a dusting or where they had been scratching.
Yesterday morning when I took the dogs out for their bidness, I heard that beautiful sound in the distance....gobbleobleobleoble.
I already had my stuff layed out, for weeks, so I ran inside and slipped into my camo fast as a fireman going down the firepole. I crossed the creek in the back and went about 70 yards into the woods before the turkeys made me sit down. I was at 2400', and they sounded about 2700' and 300 yards out. I hit the slate call and three birds blew up. I gave them a minute and hit the box call and all three went off again, with one getting closer. I sat about 5 minutes in silence when I saw movement in the brush about 70 yards right in front of me. He was coming in on a rope, until he stopped and decided to show off his purdy fan. I had my gun up and gave a couple soft yelps with the mouth call and that started him moving closer to about 40 yards, when he fanned up again. He strutted and spun for a minute, then started moving to my right through the brush. Another soft yelp and he angled closer, still moving to my right. I had 2 3/4 5 shot, and was in fairly thick cover, so I wanted a shot of 30 yards or less to make sure of a good hit. He kept moving closer, but still going to my right. He went behind a good sized tree, so I was able to switch shoulders for a left handed shot. When he walked into a fairly open spot, I gave him a louder yelp with the mouth call and he puffed up and stopped on a dime. BOOM!
It was a short hunt, probably about 20 minutes after I heard the first gobbles with the dogs, but it was pretty intense.
This is the first non Georgia bird for me. This mountain bird was 22 pounds, had spurs that were almost 1 1/2 inches, and his paint brush was about 9 inches, but had been worn off pretty good.
Thank you, Lord!
