First Bama Bird...

[redleg06]

I feel like I'm officially an Alabamian today after pulling the trigger on my first turkey since moving to Bama this summer.  I moved over from Tx and was excited to see what these birds were all about.  I've hunted rio's all my life and I'd say that this ol boy fit the stereotype I've heard about with some tightlipped Easterns.  

I was with a buddy who'd never turkey hunted before on a track of 80 acres that he'd seen some turkey on while deer hunting. I was hoping we'd have a slam dunk on his first turkey hunt but  they werent going to make it that easy on us. We heard two gobbles all morning, both of them were from this bird, and it wasnt until right around 10a.m when I heard him drumming right inside the treeline on a food plot we were going to go check out. I was being real careful easing up on the plot and stopped on a logging road, about 40 yards from the opening of the food plot, to look and listen for anything that might be out there ahead of us and, sure enough, I heard what I was nearly sure was drumming so I set my buddy up, off the field, in the direction I was expecting him to come from (down the logging road) and I went ahead and backed up about 15-20 yards behind him because there wasnt a ton of cover between us and the edge of the plot in the direction we expected him to approach from and not many great trees to set up against and hide the two of us. Anyhow, We get set up, and the first call I make, he cutts me off from about 75yds away so I shut up. I could hear him moving toward us but could tell he was circling wide instead of working toward the logging road like I felt like he would. I could tell by the drumming and leaves that he was getting closer but couldnt see him with the thick brush in the direction he was circling. I scratched in the leaves and gave a couple of purrs and he fires off again and he was closer but still hidden by the brush. At this point, he'd moved so far around that it really put me in between the bird and my buddy so I went ahead and made a move to get turned like I needed to for the shot and, right on time, I see his tail fan blow up and see him poking along looking for us. He'd take a few steps, then strutt and look then repeat. A few weeks ago, I had some shoulder issues right before the season and the doctors told me that I can't shoot with my right arm like I normally would so the tangled brush was a challenge for my first attempt at killing one shooting left handed. It ended up working about like it should and he stepped into one of a few openings that I had a clean shot and when i stopped him with a cluck, that was all she wrote.... I'd killed my first Bama longbeard.




The scene of the crime:


The victory pose:

[MAKEemQUIVER]

Good job congrats!!!!

[pseshooter300]

Way to go

[JVA54]

    Congrats!!

[Hognutz]

Congrats on the nice Al. Ggobbler!!

[coyotetrpr]

 

[HARDCORE]

Congrats!   

I'm sure it's the first of many a Bama longbeards to take a ride in your truck.

HC

[Rio Fan]

Congratulations! 

[boomer]

Congrats!!!!

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk

[Wrangler95]

Very nice,congrats!

[Sand Man]

Congrats, but I don't know about all this face painting.  Travis teach you that?   

[dirt road ninja]

Congrats, I've read on here that there are no Turkeys in Alabama. Good luck with rest of your season.

[mnturkey]

Congratulations, looks like a nice bird.

[nctrkyhntr]

 

[eaglea1]

 :happy0064:Nice job