2024 Killer B's Story Thread

[zsully]

Got back from Virginia and went straight into youth baseball coach mode and been getting back late from the fields the last three nights but let me tell you about the biggest bone head move and the 10 year old girl who bailed me out.

Went down to hunt with Travis. For weeks he had been telling me how bad his daughter Riley wanted to hunt with us. I tried to convince him that I would honestly be just as happy to come down spend time in the woods and let her be on the gun. Neither of them would have any of it. Day one started off on fire. We were set up on a bird who started gobbling in the dark around 6:00 and didn't stop for more than 2 hours. I thought for sure patience would kill him. That is until I heard a four wheeler on the neighbors coming down the property line, four wheeler stopped, a hunter rips two of the most awkward fly down cackles I've ever heard, bird runs away and four wheeler drives off. Two Jake's played in front of us for about another hour and the wind kicked up and we never were able to get on another bird.

Day two starts in that early morning fog where coffee is more important than anything. Grab coffee and run out the door. 40 minutes in to an hour drive I realized my mistake. I left my gun and vest at the house. While I wanted to scream profanities for such a bone headed move I just made the suggestion that Riley be on the gun. I mean the fact of the matter is she didn't forget her gun. That little lady insisted that I hunt with her gun and no matter how much I tried there wasn't any changing her mind. So off we went and we started brutally slow. 1 gobble off the roost, a three mile hike which she handled like a champ, brought us back to the truck with no gobbles and little hope. We decided to move to a new spot  and sit for the last hour and a half. Honestly it was warm and I was alright with a mid morning nap in the woods. Before we set up we bumped a hen. Not the end of the world but not ideal either. We decided we would wait for 30 minutes to let things settle and start calling around 11. Well at 10:35 I was texting a_jabbo about what an idiot I am when I looked up and saw a gobbler standing at 35 yards!!!! Well now I'm in a predicament because the borrowed gun I have is leaning against the tree to my right. This bird was cautious, he wanted nothing to do with the decoys and it felt like he looked way more than he ate. Patience and a little wind helped me get away with the movement to get the gun up and shouldered (left handed). I figured if he popped out from the pine tree between us I'd be in position to shoot. Naturally I needed him to go left and he went right. So now I had to turn and shift back to shouldering the gun right handed. I made the move when he got behind some brush and as he started to leave I had one small lane through the brush. When he stepped in his head came up to look for the last time. That little gun knocked him flat at 40 yards and he never flopped. In all honesty if I didn't have that light little 301 with the shortened stock I don't think I would've been able to make the shot and good grief the excitement and celebrating in the woods we shared was amazing!

Day three was just about as slow of a start as day 2. We had one bird fire up around 7:30 on the next hill over so we tried to make a big loop. Well the turkey zigged when he needed to zag and all the sudden we found ourselves out of the game. Not much happened the rest of the morning and I had to scramble to make the 6 hour drive back to Pa before baseball practice started. Over all a great trip and I'll never forget the time where a little girl saved the day and allowed me to kill a turkey. Thanks Riley and Travis! This was a hunt I'll talk about for a long long time.

[JeffC]

Congrats again and thanks for the story, wishing great Turkey karma to Mrs. Riley! Great to have friends that just enjoy the experience as much as the kill.

[Mossyguy]

Sounds like a fantastic time...and it sounds like a little girl will grow into a fine turkey hunter! 

[twyatt]

Great stories and congrats to all of those with successful hunts!   

Zach, it is always a pleasure having you here my friend.  I think if it was up to Riley she'd have you move in with us, lol.   Sorry the hunting was so slow, this week has continued to be brutally tough.  I can't ever remember an opening week so slow. 
While I was part of that whole story, I enjoyed the read and remembering those fun times.  I can't wait to come up there in a few weeks.

[Tom007]

X2, congrats to all!

[Mossyguy]

Today I ended my season with about 12 days left. Last year I took a bird on this property and today was the first chance I had to hunt it again. This morning the weather was windy, overcast with rain moving in but according to the radar I might be ok. I left the house at 5 heading to my listening spot...and smacked a bobcat with my truck about a mile down the road.

There was an excavator parked where I listen so I climbed on it and waited for daylight. As expected I didn't hear a peep. After about 20 minutes I decided to walk the road in hopes of hearing one or finding some sign for later on.

I didn't find much sign so at 9 a.m. I worked my way back towards the truck. When I got to this curve in the road I slowly peeked around and saw two gobblers at the other end about 150 yards away. I crawled up to the edge, hid behind a tree and yelped twice. They both stretched their necks up and one bird decided that was all he needed and took off at a dead sprint towards me! I guess the second bird didn't want to get left behind so he took off right behind his buddy. Obviously at this point I've already clicked the safety off and I'm just waiting to see what happens next.

At 50 yards they stop for about 10 seconds and take off running again. At 30 yards they put on the brakes but they are right next to each other and I don't want to shoot because I I know I will get them both. It wasn't long before they separated and the left bird folded at the shot. The second gobbler runs a few feet, comes back to his friend, and proceeds to beat the brakes off of him(obviously a moot point)! After about 30 seconds it seems he's satisfied and walks off.

I rarely tag out and was able to do so this year but that is irrelevant. I got to hunt with my cousin after a more than 35 year hiatus, shoot a 6 bearded gobbler and got to see my dad shoot a big bird at the age of 74..life is good!







The road the gobblers were on

[JeffC]

Congrats on a great season! Season of great memories!!

[Yoder409]

Great final chapter on a great year, Mossy !!!!!

CONGRATS !!!!

[harleytom]

Congrats to all of you! Love hearing everyone's stories and playing it all out in my mind's eye. Thanks for sharing.


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[Hoosier2]

Indiana youth weekend was an awesome weekend for my cousins boys! I took one of his sons out and we had a weekend to remember.

Saturday morning we head out to the blind @ 6 am and got settled in. Had a good gobble 200 yards from the blind in the timber (hunting a half acre abandoned vineyard). We've coined this spot the killin field. The drive to the house goes right through it but for the last 6-7 years it has produced multiple strutters a year for me. 710 am we see the gobbler pitch down to ridge next to us 75 yards away and puts on a show for the next 2 hours before he makes a break and finally comes into the grass field. Full strut big beard just a big butterball. It took him 10 min to go from 40 to 25 yds. He wouldn't commit to coming in to the setup and the only window we kept open was pointed at the dsd Jake because I will swear by that deke. I finally made the move to open a crnr window real slow so he could see the bird. I think the bird would have come in to dekes eventually but my 2 hens were between him and the jake. I ask him once he comes out of strut put that bead on his head. 3...2..1 "kill him" BOOM I see the turkey start running off and saw the shot go over the bird it looked like. Bummed. Dejected. Gotta keep a 12 yo morale up.

This morning we went back in the field and an unsuccessful afternoon/roost hunt last night. But drinking coffee on the porch we heard 5-7 birds within 400 yards of the killin field and 2 were really close like the gobbler from yesterday we missed. We climbed in at 6:35 (thanks to bush light for the late start night before) at 6:55 we heard the birds hit the ground on our side of the ridge. They gobbled twice and I tell him get your gun up there headed to this field. GOBBLE. I peeked through a window and a white head coming out of the timber. Then the second one pops. "It's go time buddy, point that gun at the jake they are coming". Here they come running. I tell him let them get separated and kill one. (I had my jake at 9 yards) BOOM. No turkeys flopping but I was recording on my phone and they just jumped up and came right back to my jake. (I bought a savage 301 in .410 this year, threw a ff3 on it, apex ninja load...really happy with the 25 yard pattern). I'm like WTH I know this gun is dead on I shot it Saturday afternoon. Made scramble and dash to reload the single shot with 2 longbeards at 10 yards. Reload. "Get on one and kill him" BOOM. Turkey flopping. The second bird stuck around and whooped on him good for 5 mins then proceeded to go in full strut at the back of the field 35 yards away for an hour! (Indiana season starts Wednesday) I didn't want to climb out with him in the field and getting to watch a gobbler do what he does for an hour at 35 yards is worth more than the harvest to me. 27.1 lbs. 3/4" spurs and 10" beard. His first turkey ever!



Happen to get a nice surprise and find some morels in my secret honey hole. Fried up fine this afternoon with biscuits and gravy for supper.





Here is the pattern at 25 yards with that 410 and the ninja loads.



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[Yoder409]

Great stuff !!!

CONGRATS to the young man and kudos for stickin' with it.

27 lbs ??        You oughta be hunting with a .300 Magnum !!!

[JeffC]

Congrats to the young hunter, what a haul, monster Tom and Morels on the same day! Great read and pictures, thanks for sharing.

[twyatt]

Awesome! Congrats to you both

[zsully]

Congrats guys!!! Great stories and pictures.

I tried to harness my inner Delmar and snapped a pic on our early morning scouting mission. I think it turned out decent. With a little more practice I might just be coming for your title Delmar!

[Yoder409]

Great pic, Sully !!!!!!