Next up LACIRE

[Spellnj3]

Congrats!!!  Always special when a youngster gets his 1st!!

Thank you, last year his cousin went with me and shot his first bird so I figured it was his turn this year, now he wants to go deer hunting too.

That's great!!   Better in the woods than on a game console.

[lacire]

Here's my story, a little late but I was beat and had to take care of some things when I got home.

My son and I drove up an old access road cutting through green rolling hills dotted in oaks. We'd stop every so often, get out, call and glass the open areas. Well above us and on a very steep incline we spotted three gobblers strutting in the sunshine, two on one little knob and one on another. With no way to approach them from where we were, we drove back and took another road that came out about a quarter of a mile above them. As we approached there was no cover for us to hide in only the grass, which was about 18 inches tall. My son inched forward until we spotted the two then dropped down and pushed our tom decoy forward over the crest (we were on private land and were the only ones hunting) and gobbled with his box call. The two gobblers turned and ran as fast as they could down into a large patch of undergrowth and disappeared. We were disappointed for a few seconds when over to our left we spotted a little black speck coming fast through the grass. The single boss gobbler was running up the incline towards us. Three or four times he stopped and fanned warning the intrusive decoy to get out. Between his blind anger and our camo hiding us in the tall grass he never new we were there. As he moved towards us I kept whispering "keep coming, keep coming", at sixty yards my son whispered "he's almost in range" at fifty yards I put my bead on him and at forty yards I whispered "I'm going to take him", my son said "don't shoot him, let him get closer", at thirty yards  I whispered " I'm going to take him", my son said "no, closer" and I waited through a long pause.......(having hunted many times with my son, I have total confidence that he knows what he's doing...  ) then he whispered "wait till he stops". In a couple seconds it looked to me like we were going to get jumped by this turkey and just then my son gobbled, this stopped him and he fanned out.... my son whispered "blow his head off" and I shot him point blank at fifthteen yards. The first limb hanger I've ever shot.

[JeffC]

Thats awesome Lacire, how many birds is your son responsible for this year, 2 for you, 2 for kids, ?? Congrats 

[lacire]

Thats awesome Lacire, how many birds is your son responsible for this year, 2 for you, 2 for kids, ?? Congrats

One of the land owners that my son knows usually has birds on his property every year. It's an easy place to set up a blind and walk the kids in for there first bird. We then make the little hunters and huntresses write a letter about there hunting prowess and think him for such a nice time. Very nice man and he always looks forward to seeing us.

[Spellnj3]

Awesome story!!

[lacire]

Awesome story!!

Well Spellnj3, it's mostly all true too . I believe this is the 3rd time I've sat totally out in the open in full camo and shot a gobbler, just staying very still with minimal slow movement; but without that decoy that bird would have never come in. I think it also helped that there was a light breeze blowing uphill and moving the grass back and forth, to him that must have really broke up our outline.

[JeffC]

Thats great that you have the kids show the owners some gratitude. I thought you said your son was a "guide", was more curious on how many birds he took and was involved in taking? You said you took your firs limbhanger?? need pictures, is it a upgrade to your score?? 

[lacire]

Yah, he was busy with some fishermen earlier so we only hunted a couple days, I'm the only turkey hunter he's guiding, I think our family bird count is five this year. My first limb hanger was my second bird that you already posted so there's no upgrade and our spring season ends this Sunday so I'm done, maybe back at it in the fall. The older I get the harder the hunt gets. If it wasn't for my grandson, I would have been happy with my first bird but I'm really glad I took him to get one too. He bought back the wing bones so I can show him how to make a call (he said he'll get school credit for it). Anyway, hope we can do this again next spring season. Everyone in the Scattered Flock take care and good hunting, lacire.