Ms. Wicked was a little ornery last season and bit me with her scope. But she got a new warm house this off season with a dehumidifier and safe from all.
Today was the first opening day in Alabama I wasn't leaning on the same tree waiting to hear the first gobble in the past 17 years. My friend is cutting the timber on the place. So new season, new plans, I headed to another piece of property with a chuffa patch on it. I planted it last June and the turkeys have been hammering it.
I wanted to get to the chuffa patch before daylight, but with the dense fog in the area, it took me 20 min longer to get there than I figured. I cut across a field and slipped into a creek bottom to get to the chuffa patch. I hadn't made it ½ way to the chuffa patch when the first gobbler hammered to my left. I told myself to keep walking. When another 3 strated up around me I said okay, why walk past birds when I have birds here. I got set up and with the first call I was answered by all the gobblers around me. Things then got interesting, there were several birds going crazy around the chuffas, but I was committed to these birds. One bird pitched down on the other side of the ridge to the field that I just crossed. He stood there gobbling in the field walking back and forth. All of a sudden I heard drumming behind me. I couldn't get spun around and just sat there looking out of the corner of my eyes and seeing nothing. All of a sudden the bird in the field walked back up on the ridge in front of me and hammered. He was close, but just needed to walk down the edge. I had the gun up and ready for him to appear. The next time I heard him 30 seconds later he was back in the field gobbling.
While all this was going on the gobblers at the chuffa patch were going nuts still. I waited another 10 min and then made the decision to head to the chuffa patch. The chuffa patch is located just past a large food plot on the other ridge so I headed up out of the bottom. I eased up and saw no turkeys in the food plot. Across the food plot the road goes straight and then curves. At the curve is the chuffa patch. I skirted the edge of the food plot and then just could not go any further without getting busted. I set up in a clump of trees like an island at the end of the food plot. My first call was answered by several gobblers. It sounded like they walked off the field into another bottom and I almost made the mistake of moving forward. I called one more time and they hammered just past the shooting house on the food plot. The first gobbler stepped into the road at the end of the food plot and looked around. When the second one stepped out I had the scope where the feathers meet the skin. The first one walked into the woods going back into the bottom when I squeezed the trigger and let Ms. Wicked speak. The gobbler went down and was DRT.
By the time I made it back to the barn the fog had settled in.
(http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c268/Beretta686/2012-03-15_07-38-05_572.jpg)
Chuffa patch. The dark spots that look like dead grass is fresh scratching.
(http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c268/Beretta686/2012-03-15_07-37-59_311.jpg)
(http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c268/Beretta686/2012openingday.jpg)
Congrats!
way to go awsome story :icon_thumright:
Congrats.. :icon_thumright:
Congrats
Way to go!
Cool story and congratulations!
Congrats!!!
Congrats
:fud: :newmascot:
Good Job! Congrats on all those gobblers you've got running around that place.
Great story and congrats on the success
Awesome bird and a great read. Congrats. :icon_thumright:
Great story, and a fine bird! Congrats!
good read. congrats on the bird :icon_thumright:
Great hunt! Congrats and thanks for the story. Got my heart rate up a bit!
very nice
congrats :fud: :newmascot:
:icon_thumright:
Great story, Congratulations!!
nice bird and good story sounds like a great place to have all those birds gobbling
i have a question about the chufa does that stuff last through the winter i understand that it's a sedge and figured the frost would knock it back until the next late spring early summer
:icon_thumright:
Congrats! Great story, makes me want to go to the turkey woods right now.
:fud: :newmascot:
Congrats :you_rock:
:z-guntootsmiley:
Very nice gobbler and great story,congrats!
Nice story. Nothing makes me happier that success on opening morning!
Quote from: gob09 on March 16, 2012, 07:29:33 AM
nice bird and good story sounds like a great place to have all those birds gobbling
i have a question about the chufa does that stuff last through the winter i understand that it's a sedge and figured the frost would knock it back until the next late spring early summer
The frost will kill the tops and then the turkeys and deer will find it. The turkeys found it in January. Once they figure it out they will tear it up. Rotate the fields every 3 years to keep the bugs out. Make sure there are no wild hogs in the area or they will destroy the field before any other animals find it.
:icon_thumright:
Nice Congrats
WOOHOO!!
Way to go Jeff!!
Sorry to read about the timber getting cut, but it shows you made the best out of it!!
Great bird and pics!!
God Bless,
David B.
Congrats and love the story!!!
Very nice!
:icon_thumright:
very nice....congrats
Congratulations
Congrats Jeff!! :icon_thumright: Glad Ms. Wicked bit the turkey instead of you!!! ;D