Smack down at 7:15am

[Bagg-it Tag-it]

To all you newbies--I used to visit and post here in the early days and haven't been here much in a couple of years. Business has heated up and my boy is busy with Scouts and my turkey hunting has been curtailed. The season here in TN started on March 30 and today was my first day in the woods.

Haven't been in the groove and got to the woods late. It was basically getting light as I opened the vehicle door and all of a sudden I was hearing gobbles from multiple locations--locations that normally don't have turkeys. I had time to basically throw on my gear, last second decision to grab my pretty boy, and sprint down the logging road to set out the decoy. I crawled out in the field and placed Pretty Boy out on a rise where he could be seen from about three directions and put a couple of hen decoys in a semi circle around him.

Went over to the treeline and set up. Turkeys were gobbling all around. I was less than 100 yards from the truck. One of those rare magical turkey hunting moments. First I worked one gobbler, then another...it was tough to figure out which one was working or would come in. I was doing the gobble call and cutting. The closest of the gobblers got bored but I felt like the furthest one was hot and bothered and I could just picture the ground he was on and what he was doing and so I started in on him. I crawled in his head. When he wanted me to talk--I shut up. When he got lonely and bored--I hit him with cutts. When he wanted me to run to him, kept quiet. Finally he couldn't take it anymore and I caught movement coming around the corner of some trees. He was blown up and coming in at a trot. When he marched right up to Pretty Boy I have him a faceful of Hevi 6. Looked down at the watch and it was 7:15. Was an old three or four year old bird with 11 1/8" beard, 1 1/4" spurs and just a hoss. One of those days where you feel like you don't deserve it but it all comes together anyway. I've been on cloud 9 all day.

My set up. This is the last thing he saw.

[DirtNap647]

congrats

[captin_hook]

Awesome! Love those spurs! 

[hookedspur]

Nice Bird !!!

[WV Ridge Reaper]

Gotta love days like that,Nice bird!

[tomstopper]

Congrats on a very nice bird.....

[101st501]

Awesome...Had a day like that yesterday!!

[Shakey Jake]

Great tom, congrats!

[renegade19]

Nice bird.  Welcome back!

[eman375]

Nice Gobbler!  Who says you didn't have a plan?  It worked out just fine.  Welcome back...

[land cruiser]

Great comeback ) nice bird too!

[trkycaller]

congrats!

[Bagg-it Tag-it]

Feels great to be back in the woods and posting here too. Hope you all have had a great season so far.

[boomer]

Congrats!!

[rempumpman]

First, congrats on a super fine bird and a great story to go with it;

2nd, life is tough and I well know that a man has to keep busy to keep the bills paid and the family going but somehow in someway, never get too busy that a hunt like this passes you by..........