Ontario Season So Far

[Green Trumpeter]

Opening Day
Started the season out overlooking a large field with my Dad. We heard one gobble early on behind us, which was expected after regular sightings of a tom on the property. Around 7:00 a bird stepped out into the field a few hundred yards off and began feeding. I let out a small series of calls and the bird quickly moved towards our decoys. Soon after it reached the decoys two more birds came running across the field to the decoys. All three birds were jakes. I had decided I would pass on jakes at the start of the season and my Dad never had a shooting opportunity as his gun was on his lap and a deer was staring us down at 20 yards for the entire half hour that the jakes were in the decoys. After the jakes moved on, we only saw deer the rest of the morning. I began to think that the bird we heard gobble in the morning was likely henned up in a small bush on the west side of the property.

Day 2
On the second day Dad and me were setup on another property overlooking a field with bush behind us. The birds began to fly down around 7:00 again and we had three hens around our decoys. After 45 minutes of little action, I had a bird gobble to my calls. As I was calling, he was increasingly getting closer to a point where he was under 100 yards behind us in the bush, however the hens then left the field and cut him off and pulled him away back into the bush.

Day 3
We were setup back in the spot we were in on opening day. Soon after legal light there was a hen calling close by behind us, then two gobbles, and then nothing. After a slow morning with no action, Dad and I decided to slowly move back into the bush with me calling every 75 yards until we reached the small bush where I believed the Tom was spending most of his time. We sat on a small ridge in a bush that buts up against the bush to the west. After half an hour of occasional calling, two hens came running in from a cornfield beside us. They became a little nervous as they approached us and backed off into the field. Minutes later the Tom was on the edge of the field where he spent the next hour strutting, travelling no more than 10 yards while his hens came back into the bush and walked around us. After an hour, the birds moved off into thick cover in the small bush that I believed they were using.

Day 4
On the fourth day, we switched back to the other property. Birds were gobbling like crazy and it seemed a sure thing that we would be successful. Around legal light, we heard the neighbour walk in and we believe they scared some birds off the roost as the gobblers suddenly went silent and were not seen or heard from again. However, there were still more birds around and by the sound of the gobbles, there was at least one jake roosted very close by. It wasn't long into the hunt when two jakes and a hen made their way into our decoys from the bush behind us. The birds were obviously nervous and began moving off. Dad raised his gun and fired... but all three birds flew away. A clean miss. Later on, I had a bird gobble to me and saw him walking towards us through the bush but he seemed to vanish. 45 minutes later I saw a bird in the woods behind us but I believe it either saw or heard us and moved off. It was likely the same bird and it had decided to circle around us and approach from behind.

Day 5
After a weeks break, we switched back again to the first property. My dad set up overlooking the field again but I moved into the bush where I believed the Tom would be heading off of the roost. When I first walked into the bush there were birds gobbling on the other side of a creek 100 yards to the west of me. 10 minutes after legal light I let out a small tree yelp on my slate call. The birds flew down but moved further away. I used my mouth call and did some excited yelps and cutts. They gobbled and I went silent. The birds continued to gobble and were getting closer. They stopped for a few minutes on the other side of the creek, still gobbling nonstop. I saw a white head come over a rise in the bush and a turkey was running at me. At 15 yards the bird stopped. It was a jake and now that it was a week into the season I decided to shoot. The bird dropped. As I stood up to retrieve the bird, I saw a large bird run away at about thirty yards. My guess is it was likely the Tom. I tagged the bird and met up with Dad for pictures.

It has been a great season so far; I hope Dad and I will be successful again soon.

[bbcustomboxcalls]

Nice job littlebuk!  I'm sure you and your dad will have more success this year

Bill

[beagler]

Congrats!

[MAKEemQUIVER]

Congrats on your bird and good luck the rest of season!

[DirtNap647]

congrats and good luck

[trkycaller]

congrats!

[surehuntsalot]

congrats

[tomstopper]

Congrats.....

[alloutdoors]

Congrats!

[Gold Spur]

Congrats on a nice bird!

[boomer]

Congrats!!

[RutnNStrutn]

Congrats on your bird and an exciting season thus far!! Good luck on the rest of the season!!