Swamp gobbler getting the best of me...

[Ricochet]

As posted in my team's thread on GON:

Saturday:
This morning looked like it was going to start off with a bang! However, the Tom I found gobbling on the roost flew down near me and crossed in front of me, but never gave me a shot and disappeared (I think he flew over a slough to hens). So, I was battling with other hens for his attention and it appeared they won. I at least got him to gobble hard a few times.

The rest of the morning was slow and I setup in another location where I saw a big Tom and hens last weekend. Well, nothing showed up by 11AM but then I heard some gobbling across the road in the swamp. So, I relocated there and got busted by some Jakes or Toms. They were running from my right to left and I don't think either of them was the Tom gobbling further to my right. Maybe they were - if so they closed the distance really fast or the Tom saw me as well. Ugh! Then the wind really started gusting pretty bad and my day was done.

I'm going to try my luck again in the same locations tomorrow morning.

Sunday:
I was in the same spots this morning. They were gobbling hard on the roost and there was virtually no wind, so I heard at least 5 separate gobblers sound off all around me. Of course, most of them were just off my lease. This is definitely a good spot, but I will need some luck with where they decide to roost i.e. closer to our side of the lease. I just need to figure out better places to setup on them. I think I have a plan...we'll see if it works this week...I'll be out there tomorrow morning before work.

The late morning spot was a bust - no gobbling at all!

Today:
I couldn't get a bead on that gobbler again this morning...dang hen took him away from me (off property) again!  The forecast looks bad tomorrow morning, so I'll be back after him on Wednesday.

[ElkTurkMan]

Stay with it JP, your luck will change.

[harvester]

Good Luck JP, keep after them, should be anytime. Sounds like you got a real good spot if you can get the birds to cooperate. 

[Ricochet]

Thanks y'all!  I'll get him eventually - I'm going to go there every other hunt or day in order not to pressure him too much.  This swamp hunting is difficult.  I have done it a few times in GA with no success, but luckily my lease here has far more gobblers.  It's just hard to find a good dry area at times here.  

It's very interesting hunting in the swamp - I could hear the steady hum of mosquitoes this morning...kind of weird.    Thank goodness for Thermacell!  

Luckily,  it's not all swamp on my lease!  

[harvester]

You could look online at aireal map or topo map of your lease to get a better idea of how the swamp looks and find out where the higher places are in the swamp. That way you won't waist alot of unnessisary time in not ideal locations. Just a thought.

[Ricochet]

You could look online at aireal map or topo map of your lease to get a better idea of how the swamp looks and find out where the higher places are in the swamp. That way you won't waist alot of unnessisary time in not ideal locations. Just a thought.

Yeah, I need to find a good topo map...the aerial maps don't help much with the dense hardwoods there.  Of course, if I can find some pine patches...that is higher ground.  I can see why these gobblers are in this one area...it's a nice large swampy area for them to roam around in.

[harvester]

You could look online at aireal map or topo map of your lease to get a better idea of how the swamp looks and find out where the higher places are in the swamp. That way you won't waist alot of unnessisary time in not ideal locations. Just a thought.

Yeah, I need to find a good topo map...the aerial maps don't help much with the dense hardwoods there.  Of course, if I can find some pine patches...that is higher ground.  I can see why these gobblers are in this one area...it's a nice large swampy area for them to roam around in.

try out acme mapper.com

[Ricochet]

You could look online at aireal map or topo map of your lease to get a better idea of how the swamp looks and find out where the higher places are in the swamp. That way you won't waist alot of unnessisary time in not ideal locations. Just a thought.

Yeah, I need to find a good topo map...the aerial maps don't help much with the dense hardwoods there.  Of course, if I can find some pine patches...that is higher ground.  I can see why these gobblers are in this one area...it's a nice large swampy area for them to roam around in.

try out acme mapper.com

Ah, cool link - I have never used mapper.  The topo shows the spot right in the middle of swamp...so it is accurate.  I wonder how they charted all of that back there.

[mfd1027]

Man, sounds like my kind of hunting!!  I love swamps.    Like you said tomorrow morning looks rough so it'll probably be Wed. before we get after em again.   I'm always shocked at how turkeys will walk rt. through the water.    Yep,  thank God for Thermacell's .   I'm on my second fuel cell already.   You'll get him just keep after him.   

[Ricochet]

Man, sounds like my kind of hunting!!  I love swamps.    Like you said tomorrow morning looks rough so it'll probably be Wed. before we get after em again.   I'm always shocked at how turkeys will walk rt. through the water.    Yep,  thank God for Thermacell's .   I'm on my second fuel cell already.   You'll get him just keep after him.   

Yeah, the swamps are cool and different terrain. I haven't seen them walk through water yet, so I figured they would avoid water as well.  I did watch 3 Jakes fly over a small slough last week and I think that Tom flew over a bigger slough on Saturday. I guess it depends on the bird and the amount of water - it will be cool to watch them more as the season goes on.

[mfd1027]

I'm not talking knee deep stuff but know they don't mind getting their feet wet.  They'll walk through 2-3" just as fast as they will dry ground.     Don't you love the way a gobble sounds in there?   It's sounds like an amphitheatre or echo chamber.   

[Ricochet]

I'm not talking knee deep stuff but know they don't mind getting their feet wet.  They'll walk through 2-3" just as fast as they will dry ground.     Don't you love the way a gobble sounds in there?   It's sounds like an amphitheatre or echo chamber.   

Cool, I figured it was real shallow stuff.

It sounded awesome when that bad boy on Saturday hammered at me a few times - he was about 60 or less yards away!

[Ricochet]

I won today - I got the best of one of them.   

[harvester]

  good job