The day just Started out crappy, I had a hard time getting out of bed, when I sat up everything was spinning and when I tried to stand my ankle gave out. I was having a hard time getting out the door, could not find anything i wanted and my body was just fighting me. By the time I pulled out of the driveway it was between 4:00-4:15 and I am normally in the blind by that time. On the way there I had a few deer run out in front of me, I was lucky the moon was so bright and I was able to see them a long way off and avoided hitting them.
So I got to where I was going to be hunting and started walking up to the blind and it must have been about 4:45 and I was able to see blue in the sky starting to appear so I headed right out. I got a tad bit nervous as on my way to the blind I got a strong order of skunk, I have had a few close encounters with skunks in the past including one lifting his tail in my direction three to five times. Luckily I was able to get to the blind without running into the little newspaper colored devil and without the use of my green light that I normally use.
I got all set up but did not bother to set up the decoys as I was running so late, I just got things arranged in the blind and waited to hear the toms start to gobble. They did not. The lack of gobbling really surprised me, I have been hunting the property for a few years now and have never, not even once had a day I did not hear at least one gobble. It did not bode well with me as I fear my late entrance had spoiled any opportunity I may have had to get a turkey.
As the sun came up I decided to send my GF a text letting her know that I had gotten there alright, something I do every morning after the sun is up enough that the light of the cell will not disturb the turkey. That was at 6:34 and there still had been no sound whatsoever. I was getting rather bummed.
A little after that a few deer came out into the lane-way and started to feed, I felt that was a good thing thinking that if any turkey were to come around they would see the relaxed deer and may let their guard down. Eventually the deer left and then nothing but silence. That went on for quite a while.
At 7:17 I sent a text to a friend commenting on how dead it was there and he replied that that way not good. I sent another text to my sister a minute later telling her my nephews had to come call for me with the calls Christopher Brumfield had sent me for them and then sat there and got bored as nothing was happening.
I did make a conscience effort not to call a lot as I have seen many people here post that when it is dead you should call sparingly, so I only called every half hour or so, but got no replies no matter what call I had tried.
I looked over and saw a pouch with a call I had not realized I had brought, a copper call with the American flag on it I had purchased from Jessie Jefferson of C4 - Crooked Creek Custom Creations. Using one of Neal's Rutland Diamond wood strikers I played a short series of yelps and the very first time I played that call I got replies above me and to my right immediately. I had one that was gobbling at me for some time but would not come down at first, he was kinda far but close to me at the same time if you know what I mean, lots of stuff he would have to go around before he could get to me.
I decided to gamble a little bit as I knew I had a little time and as he was coming from my right and I am right handed I did two things, I closed one of the windows that would be behind me as he approached so as not to silhouette myself as he came in and I carefully moved my chair so that I would be able to comfortably shoot in that direction.
I hit the copper call again and he sounded off again, and so did another gobbler and then I could see the first but barely, I turned the scope on the shotgun up to 4 and peered through it to be sure that I was seeing what I thought I was seeing (I had the netting up on my blind and it can distort your view a bit at distance) Sure enough he was standing there and he did display once, but then he went back up to the field he had been in. He would come down a bit but then go back up and this happened a few times. I had been trying to soften my calling on the copper call but with my hand problems that can be a bit hard for me at times.
While trying to decide what to do and looking in that direction I saw what I am pretty sure were 4-6 other turkeys run out of the woods going from left to right and into the other side of the lane-way.
I hit the copper call again and I am am really sure I heard about 4 toms sound off in different areas around me. I saw the one come back in again but he would not come down, that is when I reached for another call, my Apple wood and Mullberry made by Eric Crouse of Grizz Friction Wood Calls.
I used that call the first time and had an immediate response so I hit that call a second time and had several gobble around me again, so I waited a few seconds and played it again and that is when I saw two coming from where I had seen the first making a beeline coming at me at a steady run like a pair of Olympic track stars trying to find out which one would break the tape first.
I was able to set the call down and get my my gun up from my lap onto my shoulder and to the yoke I had to use to keep the front of the gun up (because of a torn tendon in my shoulder) all before they had gotten half way to me, this allowed me to check out their beards and choose which of the two I wanted to take. My biggest fear was that the sound of the safety going to the fire position would startle them and they would take off on me. I wish they had displayed but they did not really do that, the one lifted his tail to 3/4 strut but never beyond that and the second did not try to display at all.
I remember reading here of people misjudging distance when looking through the scope so I kept lifting my eye just to be sure they were as close as I thought, I was also trying to see the spurs but could not as the grass was a little to high.
I decided which one I wanted to take and waited for the second to clear him, they passed in front of each other a few times so I had to wait and they got a bit closer than I had realized, but when I finally had an ethical shot to take I took it, and he dropped like a ton of bricks, no flop or nothing, dead on impact.
Things started to fly through my mind, like jumping out of the blind and getting the bird, and all those other things you see on videos, but the biggest thought was turn that safety back on!
I sat for a few seconds, shook with excited joy and thanked God for allowing me to return to the woods to take part in this wonderful sport we all love.
I was sitting there a few minutes and then I got a surprise, he started to move a little on me, that is when I said hey wait right there buster and made like the dudes in the videos and got to him and stepped on his neck. In retrospect I am sure it was just nerves making him move.
I love that I had the time to stand there and look down and admire all the wonderful colors shown reflecting in the sunlight, I have never seen that, none of my friends hunt turkey, it was so amazing how they changed in the light. After he stopped moving for the last time I was able to see how beautiful and intricate the colors of his head were, the way the colors change on each bump of his head and how pretty that pale blue was and how robust that red was and I reached down and checked out the way the snood felt, it was just amazing to be able to stand there and admire this wonderful creature that God gave to us truly is. I am so incredibly thankful that God let me get back to this after not really being able to hunt for 17 years, it is such a glorious gift he has given us to be able to enjoy the world and the creatures he has created.
If there is one bad thing about this is that the dummy that I am I left the call that I made sitting between the seats of the van, that would have made things even cooler yet.
Thanks to all of you that have helped me get calls and have offered me advise this past year, it has been very much appreciated.
I do have this I took on my cell but it is not the greatest as the cell is not the greatest.
https://youtu.be/Gy9zHw4O4eg
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