I got home from S. Carolina yesterday afternoon. I didn't get any more gobblers, but had some exciting hunts. We have 2 properties to hunt up there. One of them I had scouted, but we've never hunted before until I went up this season.
I got up there late Saturday night. Overnight it started raining, so dawn was a washout. Later in the morning, the rain broke for a while, so I went out. A few uneventful hours later it started raining again, so I headed back to the camper. It rained all afternoon, all night, all day Monday, and into Tuesday morning. I was beginning to think I'd need a canoe and hip boots!!
Tuesday afternoon I went back out. I sat on the edge of a field figuring the turkeys would want to get out of the wet woods and dry out for a while. Wrong!! So I packed up to head to another spot I knew turkeys liked to hang around. I was slipping down some trails, checking each time before rounding a curve. I peeked around one curve and there was a gobbler walking away from me. I stuck a diaphragm in my mouth, knelt down and brought my gun up. I figured as soon as he heard me, he'd turn and come back. Wrong again! He stopped, looked, but then kept walking away.
I called to him again, with the same results. I don't know why he wasn't interested, but I wasn't going to let him just walk away. So I aimed for the back of his head, and dropped him at 45 yards!
After my shot, 2 gobblers and 2 jakes that I hadn't seen flew off. Guess that's why he wasn't coming, he was keeping up with his buddies. Odd that they didn't have any hens with them.
One spur was hooked just enough that I was able to find the right branch to get him to hang from one foot. Not a real limbhanger though.
But this pic served it's purpose. I had texted a friend a pic of my turkey, and he was busting my chops saying I shot a super jake. So I searched and found the right branch.
The next morning was overcast and humid. The birds weren't interested in being vocal. Didn't see or hear a thing. That afternoon I went back to the property I shot the gobbler at, didn't see or hear a thing there either. Thursday morning it continued to be overcast and humid. I walked the entire new property with seeing or hearing a thing. That afternoon I set up on a nice greenfield. The clouds finally parted, the sun came out for the first time in 5 days, and a nice cool breeze set in. It was a gorgeous afternoon and I had high hopes. My hopes ebbed as the sun sank. Oh well, it least it was a nice afternoon.
Friday morning was absolutely
awesome!!! 
The cold front had finally pushed through, it was crisp, clear and 38 degrees!
The gobblers were feeling it too!!
6 gobblers were roosted not that far apart, and I set out to get in amongst them before flydown. I was hustling down a trail, and almost to where I wanted to set up at. Then I forgot one of my cardinal rules and bumbled around a curve without looking first. I didn't figure it would matter, because the birds were still on the roost - I heard them!! Wrong again!! I stepped around the curve, and there was a gobbler standing in the trail 70 yards away.
He hadn't gobbled a single time and was on the ground while the rest of the birds were on the roost filling the air with yelps, cuts and gobbles. He walked away softly putting. I backed up and set up short of where I wanted to, but didn't want to risk bumping any more birds. I had left my dekes in the truck that morning, opting to go to the gobble. Wrong yet again.
Later I called in a gobbler that stepped out into the trail strutting 100 yards away. He was interested, but the woods were open enough that he knew he should have seen a hen. So I watched him for about 5 minutes, then he strutted back where he came from.
I scouted around a little on my way out, trying to piece together the puzzle of this new property. I came across a deer skeleton, and like I always do, I checked around to see if I could find antlers. Sure enough!! About 20 yards away from the main skeleton I found the head of an 8 point buck! I brought it back to the camper and added to the atmosphere of my hunt camp.
That afternoon I headed back out. I was headed down a trail, when up ahead I saw a hen come around a curve feeding. I quickly sank to the ground. Then another hen, and another joined her. Then a strutter comes up behind them. He was putting on his show while the ladies fed. Finally one of the hens gave in, and he hopped on for the ride. I watched all of this through my binoculars at 125 yards. The big boy went back to strutting, and the hens to feeding. Finally the hens started my way with the strutter following. Closer, closer, closer. As they closed the gap, I adjusted into a more comfortable position that I could shoot from. Closer still, they made it in to 75 yards. My heart was pounding!!
They milled around in the shade, as that afternoon had warmed up quite a bit. Then, as turkeys often do, they pulled a Houdini, exiting stage left. It was like they just vanished. After making sure they were gone, I headed to my destination.
I got back to the area where I saw those 2 gobblers at in the morning, which was near where they were all roosted. It was an uneventful, but beautiful afternoon. About the time I felt they should be headed to the roost, I hear drumming!! With my fire department
induced hearing loss, I knew that if I could hear drumming, he was close! I couldn't see him though. I figured he was at the next intersection, about 50 yards away and could see my decoys. I finally guessed right, but to no avail. He already had 4 hens. I spotted them as they walked off to the roost. He finally stepped into a clearing, and what a STUD he was!!
He was monster sized and had a thick paintbrush beard that literally drug the ground!!
I called to him, he stopped, went back into strut and stared at my dekes. His ladies didn't stop though, they kept heading to the roost. The big guy was torn, but he decided to follow his ladies and off he went. What a day, saw 4 different gobblers, and a lot of action. One more hunt to go.
Saturday morning was a little warmer, but still very nice weather. The turkeys liked it too. I heard 9 gobblers, and a whole load of hens that morning. The ladies were carrying on, and the gobblers hammered back their approval. They flew down, and kept gobbling for a while. I called and a hen answered. She was getting closer. I was hoping she had company with her. But she was by herself, and stayed feeding in my dekes for 15 minutes. Shortly after she left, 2 jakes came in. Finally they left. A while later I called and heard clucking and purring coming from behind me. A hen came in to view on my left, another, another, another........until 9 hens were cruising by. I figured for sure they had to have a gobbler with them. I was pumped, come on, step out!! But they were alone. About a half hour later, I see a hen coming in. It ended up being 4 hens. I was hopeful they were the same 4 hens who Mr. Big was following the day before. But they were by themselves too.
Finally I had to leave for camp, pack up and go home. Bad weather was moving in anyway. I cannot wait to get back up there and try it again, especially when more hens are on the nest. Got some things to do around the house, hopefully squeeze in a hunt or 2 here in FLA, then on Thursday I am flying out to California to hunt with a friend for a week! So it won't be until April before I can get back up to SC. Hope you guys enjoyed the story and pics.
