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first turkey

dante322

*Supporting Member*
5,506
157
Crawford county
We have picked up some new members lately, and I am interested in hearing some of their stories. Adding some more threads to the "first kill" forum sounds like a good idea.

I already posted my first deer story, so I thought I might drop the story of my first turkey. The story is in the turkey hunting forum somewhere, but I'll tell it again.

I actually went out for turkey for the first time in 2010. I had no idea what I was doing, so of course I came up empty handed that season. Before the following season, I did some research, watched some videos, asked some questions.... By the time the 2011 season came around, I was a bit more prepared.

My first morning of that season was uneventful. I met up with a friend from work, We set up in a spot where I had seen birds, but didn't get a response all morning, with a couple hours left in the day, we moved to a different place. As we were walking in, we had to walk up and over a small rise along the edge of a cornfield. When we got to the top, we spotted a huge longbeard strutting at the back edge of the field. We tried to move in on him, but he had already spotted us and was gone.

The following week, I set up on the same property where I had seen the longbeard the week before, but this time I set up closer to where I thought they were roosting. Again, no response. After a few hours, I decided to move around a bit. I was walking towards the backside of the cornfield from last week, only from the opposite direction. There is a winter wheat field bordering this cornfield to the south, and as I was walking up I spotted the same bird in the winter wheat. Again, he spotted me first and disappeared.

A little later in the morning, I met up with Huck and told him about that bird. He asked me if I wanted to hunt him. We decided, what the heck, might as well try. We did see the bird on the opposite side of the wheat field but couldn't get him to come closer.

The following weekend, I decided to hunt that wheat field. I had seen that bird there 2 weeks in a row at about the same time of day. Logic would say that he will be there again.

That morning started off bad. It was raining when the forecast was for sun, a late start, leaking boots... you get the idea.

I set up on the back edge of the wheat field. all morning long... Nothing. I was getting frustrated with the rain and had decided to pack up for the day. As I was getting ready to walk out I remembered an old box call that was in a pouch on my vest. My friend from work had given it to me a couple weeks before and I thought I might have ruined it by letting it get wet from the rain. I took it out, looked it over, seemed ok. Hit it a couple times to make sure it works.

YELP...YELP...



...GOBBLE!!!..

The gobbler hammered about 100 yards to my south west. My position placed me about 50 yards from an inside corner of the wheat field. He was coming from the woods along the back edge of the field, kinda caddycornered from me. I rushed to get my decoys back out, as I was doing this he gobbled again, closer this time.

I remembered a piece of advice I had picked up, don't call to get him to respond, call in response to his gobbles. He knows you are there, he expects you to come to him, if you don't, he might get frustrated and come looking. When he gobbles, call back to let him know where you are.

Keeping that in mind, I hit the call again before I sat back down. worked like a charm...

I had already walked away from the ambush spot I had, My new hurried setup was a little different. I didnt want to take a chance on getting busted in the middle of the field so I set the decoys up along the edge. The brush was really thick right here so i went down the edge a little ways, towards where he was coming from and found a spot where I could set up against a tree with an opening to the field in front of me. My decoys were about 10 yards to my left, but i couldnt see them, however, the bird would have to come past me to get to them.

As I was throwing together this makeshift set up, the bird continued to gobble, closer every time. Even though I was in a hurry, I made a point to call back after every gobble. By the time I sat down, he was maybe 40 - 50 yards away, coming up the edge toward my decoys. I couldn't see him because of the brush, but since I was facing south, his shadow was creating a silhouette on the brush that I could see just fine. As he approached the opening I raised my gun, and placed the bead just about where his head would be as he walked past.

He never knew what hit him, he stepped into that opening and ....BOOOM!!!!

I jumped up, jacked another shell, and ran out into the field to finish him. That's when I found out he had three other toms with him They looked a bit confused as they ran away.

There was no need to finish him off. The shot was from about 10 yards away and hit him square in the nugget. he was already dead, just didn't know it yet.

My first bird was a dandy 21 pounder, with 7/8 inch spurs and a 10 inch beard.
 

"J"

Git Off My Lawn
Supporting Member
56,739
274
North Carolina
Nice hunt there Dante.... I haven't done any serious turkey hunting in years and wasn't very good at it when I did try it lol... But that was before all the computer technology came around lol yeah it's been a while lol... But turkey season puts a damper on the bass fishing so I had too pick my poison lol
 

dante322

*Supporting Member*
5,506
157
Crawford county
But turkey season puts a damper on the bass fishing so I had too pick my poison lol

personally I never really got into bass fishing. mainly because there are so many different lures, and rigs. its quite confusing to me. I also prefer to eat what I catch and I can think of a lot of other fish that taste better than bass. maybe we'll hook up and you can give me some bass fishing pointers. I've got tons of lures, I just dont know how to use them.
 

Huckleberry Finn

Senior Member
15,973
135
A little later in the morning, I met up with Huck and told him about that bird. He asked me if I wanted to hunt him. We decided, what the heck, might as well try. We did see the bird on the opposite side of the wheat field but couldn't get him to come closer.

That was a week of frustration for me! That bird was at 35 yards and I could see him, but because of the multiflora in front of you, you didn't have a shot. I knew that bird was killable! I should have snuck further behind you and kept callin and he would have moved up right to your gun. I was pumped when you got 'em a few days later!