The team hunt fell apart at the last minute, and ryan ended up being the only one still coming, so that gave me some flexibility at hunting some other property since it was just us. As usual we started in the big swamp. The birds were right a few days before, and i had located a half dozen willing victims on several hundred acres within the overall property. I was very optimistic that this would be a blood bath. Well as luck would have it, or maybe I should say with turkeys being turkeys, that wasnt in the cards.
We started off at mid day as fast as we could get in the woods from the airport. We hit one of the spots and got a bird to gobble one time. After several hours of hunting, we had to get out due to the tide. I had planned the next morning to get after it again, but we would have to fight the tide. We gambled and got back in there. On the SLOW trip to my spot some other fellas decided they were gonna blow past us in their boat and proceeded to make an awful racket.....probably why they didnt end up shooting.
Well we got on two hard gobbling birds cross the property line right off the roost. our only hope was to call them across the line. After a little battle that didnt happen and another hunt was on. We did some cutting and running for a few hours without much luck. i decided to set up in an open swamp flat that produces late morning gobblers year after year for us. We sat and did some calling. I got an answer. A bird gobbled and was coming. We got four gobbles and the last one was 125 yards out. We got ready and sat and sat, and sat. He never showed. Not sure what happened. We had to get out about 3 due to the tide and we were spent.
I thought about it and suggested we go to another property of mine. it was gonna rain so we decided to get there a little late and only hunt a half day. i wanted to show Ryan the town and needed to get my new drivers license. Anyway we got on a bird 100 yards off of a field. Two hens came in the field and the bird was hammering in the tree. He would not however answer my calls. i wasnt worried, I figured he had some hens. He was after all 100 yards away on the edge of the field that already had two hens in it. The owner of the property told me he had seen two gobblers with hens in that very spot. i thought it was on. Long story short, that bird never showed, and we never found him. We decided to move a little. We ended up bumping a strutting gobbler about halfway through the property, and then jumped a hen in an upper field. We scouted around a little and found fresh sign coming and going where we saw the strutter. It was time to leave, and had started raining again, but we had a solid plan for Saturday.
Saturday as we discussed the battle plan, we decided we would test the first gobbler at the lower field, then get set up near the strutter. We would get there earlier than the day before. We got there, and gobbler one did not gobble, so we didnt waster time getting to our set up. On the walk in, we found more new sign and tracks since the rain. They were right there were we had jumped the gobbler. Old and new tracks confirmed they were gonna be there. Well, we set up at the intersection of four roads, shaped like a + symbol. It was an awesome set up, all the sign lead to this spot. The birds should show and it should be a blood bath. The birds have been gobbling on the roost at around 640 AM. We settled in about 8, but had yet to hear gobbling. All of a sudden around 815 the world lit up with gobbling birds. 4 or 5 of them. they were all in the direction we expected them to be, several were headed towards the upper field were we expected them to come. They shut down around 930, and again...would not gobble to my calling. No problem, henned up birds, we knew their pattern and they would show. Well wait and wait and wait we did...then around 11 a hen cutt 5 times just up the road where we had jumped the hen the day before....oh man its about to be on. i called and nothing, about 11:40 a gobbler hammered it where the hen was...again just as planned, though later than expected. Again i yelped a few times and nothing. We settled in knowing it wouldnt be long. At high noon here come two gobblers on a dead run down the road to my DSDs...oh man oh man. They stop at 60 yards and cut the corner of the roads off. Away they went in a trot towards my truck. Whatever, they were on a mission. We decided to head to the truck for lunch and see where these boys had headed.
At the truck i peaked my fat head into the lower field and turkeys scattered about 150 yards away from us...about 8 of them. 1 PM. tracks had gone right behind the truck. Well now a pattern was emerging. We decided hey, they will come back through...lets sit em out again all evening. We headed back to the spot with drinks and food in tow. One very small detail, it was HOT and HUMID. We looked like we had jumped in the river with our clothes on. When we sat down we felt the need to have a cold drink, and air our feet out so the boots came off and we were chilling. no sweat 2:30, the gobblers we were after had come through, they wouldnt be back until later that evening.....well we were right, but dead wrong about OTHER gobblers. We had a beast of a gobbler walk right into us while we were chilling. He busted us about 60 yards and were got out of dodge. Let me tell you that sitting on your butt from 3 to 8:30 at night and only seeing misquitos is an experience i never want to have again. I dont normally hunt like that, but i owe it to my guest to get him a bird...no matter the situation. I think Im allowed to say it SUCKED though. I do believe Ryan would agree.
Now at this point we are heading into Sunday, we discussed several plans of attack. I just couldnt get past the fact that we knew turkeys were coming from the upper field. After some truck discussion we both decided to change our game plan from the evening ride before. i knew how the birds came in that field and we knew they were coming from there..so we need to sit there. If they were in a corner where we couldnt work them, then we would retreat and try to wait them out again from the day before. On the walk in, one started hammering it. We took a slight detour to see if he would work. We heard some hen cackles, but once again despite fierce gobbling, the bird would not answer a call. He shut down after about 15 gobbles, we heard 4 or 5 other birds further off. One was coming from the upper end of the upper field, but way further away. We got up there in a hurry and settled in. i got a hen to come in right where i expected them to come from. She spooked and got out of dodge...however she went towards the upper end of the field towards that one gobbler we heard. I have failed to mention that part of our discussion from saturday was that we needed a jake decoy. I looked for my decoy but couldnt find it, so I brought a fan and tied it to a stick.
We sat for an hour and my butt just couldnt take it. I was squirming bad. While I was squirming I had called and Ryan heard a bird gobble fairly close. I didnt hear it. Once again we waited and waited...nothing showed. I had enough, and so had Ryan. i wanted to go check the upper field out to see what sign was up there. As we walked, there were some tracks, but not what I was expecting after seeing the birds coming from up there. We got to the back of the field. at the back of the field is a road that leads to my buddies trailer. There is about a 15 acre field at his trailer. Years ago, gobblers used to strutt on a slight rise (Id call it a hill but you mountain boys would laugh) Its about 2 feet higher than the rest of the field.
I saw a strutt bowl and some gobbler and hen tracks walking down the road. I instantly knew we needed to check it out. What do we have to lose. Only a few hours left. We walked down the road and started to peak out head in the field and Ryan motioned to stop. there was a hen in the field heading out way at about 45 yards. She looked spooked and it didnt help that two gray squirrels were alarm chattering at us. Ryan was scanning with binos. We were stuck, and whispering that we needed to get back just in case. Out of no where a crow hammers, and the man unleashed the most beautiful gobble I have heard in years. Thank you Lord for hearing my prayers. I knew instantly we could not spook this hen. Ryan was looking at her and said she isnt looking our way. With the reflexes of a ninja.....yeah I know more like the ninja Chris Farley played in that movie, but none the less ninja skills, I started backing away. Ryan did to.
I had been scanning the situation and right next to us was an old brush pile that had trees growing out the top, fence post pile and some sheet metal. We had to get behind it so the hen wouldnt see us. I envisioned us backing up to it, the hen coming down the road and the gobbler following shortly after. We started getting set up, but had lost focus on the hen. Well she heard me in the leaves and was on the march. Ryan was still on the edge of the road. She had walked in to about 10 yards and we were about to be busted. Ryan laid down on the ground face first and I just stood with my face tucked to my chest. She started got on the road and came about 15 feet from Ryan and knew something was up. She spooked and ran back in the field towards the gobbler. When she did, i was hidden behind the burm, so I looked at the gobbler to see what he was doing. Amazingly he was more worried about being king of the hill. By the grace of God, the hen took a sharp right and entered the woods right next to us.
We quickly formulated a plan. Ryan was to take my fan and belly crawl. I was to use my ninja skills and belly crawl to the top of the berm. I need to be able to see what the gobbler was doing and be able to call and let Ryan know. I made it up and Ryan started crawling. i gave the bird some cutts and he belted out a gobble, and looked our way. he went back to strutting so i hit him again with some cutts. He looked back, and about that time he must have seen that tail fan. I see him break down and start that crazy run they do when its time to fight. He came on a dead run but I lost sight because he ran behind the trees growing on top of the berm. I got ready i knew He was dead or I needed to be ready to shoot at a spooked bird myself. probably 5 seconds past but it felt like 10 minutes. Nothing was happening so I yelped and then that glourious roar of Ryans 870 broke the silence. The 5 day curse was lifted. My guest had scored. Hooping and hollering commenced and I started to roll, trip, stumble my way off the berm. Ryan was stomping on that bright red head and the gobbler was just digging up the field with his legs kicking 500 mph. Now me being all about the spurs, thats all I was worried about. What kind hooks does he have man....come on lets see them. Ryan lifted the bird up and all you saw was beard....I mean beard after beard after beard. Man what a bird. I grabbed him and knew we had a big one. I knew he was 20lbs. This story could go on much more about all the bragging and back slapping we did, but I say we let it end right here. A beautiful,perfect kill. A story book ending. A bird and hunt Ill never forget.
Im very proud to be part of this hunt with Ryan. Im glad I could be his guide and he was my guest. Congrats Ryan.
