This season was...different. The virus everyone had to work around has changed almost every aspect of life, including increasing hunting pressure pretty much everywhere I went, but this was also my first season as a father. This has changed things in more ways than I could've imagined, from the guilt that came from making my wonderful wife do everything alone while I was traveling, to the exhaustion of two very demanding things happening at once. That being said, I wouldn't change anything for the world! Well, about the second part at least.
Like a lot of other people, the season began with cancelling trips. I had planned to head to Alabama and hopefully Georgia the first week of April, but with all of the uncertainty going on around the virus I changed my plans. I had a great trip to Mississippi last year and being several hours closer to home seemed like the right thing to do. So on the 25th of March, I drove down to MS and my 2020 season was officially underway.
I got to where I wanted to be about an hour before gobbling time but there was a truck parked 100 yards from where I was planning on parking. I hate hunting with a crowd so I backed out and made plans to check the spot later in the morning. I drove a mile or so away to hunt a different area. Since I didn't have as much of a walk, I took a 30 minute nap then started walking. As I was walking in, I heard a truck pull in but didn't think much about it because I heard them leave (I thought).
In another 10 minutes, I heard what I had made the long drive for. Two gobblers were roosted together with a third a couple hundred yards away. The woods were still super open so I couldn't get as close as I wanted, but set up within 200 yards of the duo. I let them get wound up then gave them a little tree talk. I didn't like being this far away, so just before I thought they should fly down, I did a cackle and then flew down again with just my wing. They hit the ground a couple minutes later and I could tell they were coming. They got on top of my ridge and started walking my way. They were gobbling and strutting and doing everything that turkey hunters love! I knew they would be in sight any moment so I kept my gun trained on the spot where I would have the best shot.
Once they got in sight, I could tell something wasn't quite right. I'm not sure what gave it away first, but I could tell what they were pretty quickly, body size, tail fan, short beards. They were two jakes with VERY convincing gobbles. I let them get 20-30 yards away and keep doing their thing. They kept gobbling and that got the third turkey fired up again.
The jakes had moved past me and I knew I needed to check to see where the other gobbler was at. I yelped, the jakes gobbled, then the other turkey answered. Perfect, he was over the ridge about 300 yards away so I could easily make my movBOOM...BOOM!
Remember when I said I thought that truck left? Apparently they didn't.
If whoever drives that truck is reading this post, I hope you missed. And your boots leaked. And a stick poked you in the eye on your way out. And I hope you see this next picture that happened an hour later.
After I got done cussing that guy (in my head), I went back to my original plan and that truck was gone. There is a big creek that I was hoping not many people cross with some beautiful woods on the other side. I was walking to that creek and thought I heard a gobble. I listened and I heard him again. I got closer and he was tearing it up all on his own. I got about 150 yards away, close to the property boundary and sat down. I could tell he was coming my way but not on an exact line. I was afraid he may miss me so the next time he gobbled, I cut into the back end of it with some yelps. He cut me off and then it was complete silence. I had a good idea he was coming so I just sat there without another call for about 5 minutes. Just when I started to question what was really happening, I saw him. I'm not sure what I saw first but I remember a red head and a long swinging beard. I sat down in this spot on purpose, I knew that if he came, he would be 40 yards when I saw him. He got in an opening and stuck his head up. I was going to let him keep coming but he started looking back and forth very quick, like he was nervous. I thought it was now or never so I swung, put my dot on his neck, and shot. He just hunkered down and walked away, obviously hit. My second shot didn't connect at all. I got up and walked towards him, made sure he got in an opening, and made the last shot count.
After looking back over the scene, I found out that he never got nervous, he had come to the edge of a small drainage I hadn't seen and was just trying to find a way across it. I was hoping all of that mess had gotten the jitters out of the way for the year!
I went to check a few other places for the rest of my trip and ran into a couple mouthy hens about noon so I had a starting point for in the morning. Well, I thought I did, I got there and there were two other trucks parked there so I went to where I had seen a hen cross the road the afternoon before. I didn't know anything about the location so I just listened from the road. A turkey started gobbling so I headed after him but soon, one started gobbling the other direction closer to me. I turned around and took off. I got extremely close to him for how open the woods were. I had him pinpointed and used the roll of a ridge and a thicket to get less than 100 yards from him. I had a spot picked out I wanted to make it to, but I got too nervous to try it. I gave just a few tree yelps with the hopes of keeping him facing me and being within range when he hit the ground. I heard him fly down and land within easy range of where I wanted to be, but I couldn't see him. I keep quiet thinking he would pop over the crest of the ridge looking for me. I heard a hen shortly after and figured out why he wasn't that concerned with me. The hen yelped a few times then cackled and pitched down into the creek bellow us. The gobbler quickly joined her and left me all alone. I threw my vest off and started crawling along beside them, hoping to get within range. He never would gobble at me but the hen would answer almost every time I called so I was able to keep up with them. I kept alongside them and knew they were getting close to the property line so I knew it was about time to make my move. I yelped and nothing. I cutt and nothing. I sat there scratching my head and decided to hoot one time. I did and he gobbled over the next ridge. I took off and got within range of the crest. I sat there for a minute and never heard anything so I yelped a few times, nothing. Remembering what happened yesterday, I stayed at the ready and less than two minutes later, he popped out from behind a tree and we saw each other at the same time. I knew it was now or never. I swung and shot. This time it only took one trigger pull and he was done.
I had to work that night so I was headed back home to spend some time before season and hopefully be able to find some turkeys around home. My wife and I had bought 30 acres earlier in the year that we plan to build a house on in the future. It is a pretty place for a home, but I was a little more excited for the potential turkey hunting on the place. I had gotten a few pictures of two gobblers and a week or so before season I heard one gobble easily 100 times one morning. I got off work the afternoon before Arkansas' opening day so I went out there to hopefully roost one and was actually able to. I knew almost the exact tree he was in and that was going to be very beneficial with the 20-30 mph wind forecasted.
I woke up and headed out, and they weren't lying about the wind! I got close to him and sat there swaying in the breeze until gobbling time. He gobbled and was a little further than I thought, I don't know if I was wrong or if he switched trees with the wind. I moved up and gave him a few yelps because I was afraid he would go to the bottom of the ridge to avoid the wind. It was quickly obvious that this was the turkey that liked to gobble. He answered me and just kept telling me how interested he was! He flew down and I shortly saw him at about 40 yards. I started to shoot but he never strutted and I wasn't able to see his beard. He worked past me and I figured that was it, but he stopped and kept gobbling. He dropped off the ridge a little so I was able to get 75 yards from him. I sat down and called and here he came. He got to about 30 before I could see a beard but was in a little brush. I usually try to make something happen as soon as possible but he showed me how relaxed he was by stretching and flapping his wings right in from of me. He got a little closer and I yelped to make him stick his head up. He decided to gobble instead and he acted proud of it so I let it be his last.
I also got to show my "future turkey hunter" his first turkey. He wasn't quite as excited as me but hopefully that will change before long!
A few days later I was able to hunt with my grandpa. He hadn't been having much luck so far but spooked a couple turkeys out of the roost the day before. He was standing by the truck when it happened so we figured they weren't bothered too bad and that would be a good place to start. We got there a little before gobbling time and shortly heard one. We started that way and started hearing at least one, if not two more gobbling in a different spot. We had almost gotten close enough to set up and we spooked a turkey out of the tree. It wasn't quite late enough but I cackled to hopefully calm any other turkeys that heard it down. A few seconds later, two more turkeys left the trees. It wasn't a good sign but the gobblers kept going so we set up anyway. Shortly after, a turkey started yelping so I answered every time it did. After 10 minutes of going back and forth, we realized it was a jake doing some of the prettiest hen yelps you've ever heard, just a little bit slow. I quit calling for a bit when we realized that and then a little bit later did a fly down. The two turkeys together flew down and we heard drumming shortly after. They stayed in one spot for a few minutes, but once they broke they came running, all three of them! They got within range, we confirmed they were longbeards, and my grandpa pulled the trigger. We could've doubled but I had put a one turkey limit on myself, which I quickly broke by stealing his gun away and doing some fighting purrs. The gobblers moved off but started gobbling again. They acted like they wanted to come back, but my grandpa's turkey started flopping enough that we were worried it wasn't hit good. We moved up to check and that was the end of that.
This is the second turkey I've been able to call in for my grandpa. Hopefully one day I can repay all of them he's called in for me!
That was pretty much all the action for me in Arkansas. I had drawn an Illinois tag but thought it was out the window with that state shutting down public land because of the virus. After double checking with a conservation agent, I found out National Forests were still open so I was headed up there shortly after!
I arrived early one morning and walked in a half mile or so. I heard four turkeys but the two that gobbled enough to get after were back towards the road and I had heard vehicles in that direction. I walked in further, never hearing anything and realized it was about to start raining. I barely beat the rain to the truck and decided it was a perfect time for a nap. I woke up about an hour later and the rain had stopped. I was going to go check some private fields that joined public but decided to look at a campground on my way to see if it was open. On my way, I saw a spot that I felt I needed to stop and call at, as fruitless as that tactic had been for me the past couple years. I made it back to the spot and made a few calls just as a plane came into hearing, but I swore I heard a gobble. I threw on my stuff and started walking in that direction. When the plane got out of hearing, I called again. I heard him for sure that time! I picked out where I thought he was and started in that direction. I stopped to double check the map and he gobbled just out of sight! I plopped down and got ready. I called to make sure he hadn't seen me and he assured me that he didn't. I saw him strutting through the woods a few minutes later and he looked huge. He was coming straight for me strutting and gobbling all the way. I was going to let him get as close as he wanted, but he stuck his pretty white head up at 35 yards and I couldn't take it any longer.
I headed back towards home to finish out AR and hunt Missouri with some friends. I hunted with a buddy for three days, and despite getting turkeys within range every day, one was never brought to hand. A few days later, I was with my grandpa again. I had found a spot that looked like no one was hunting the day before but we got beat there the next morning. We moved to some ground we were more familiar with, and shortly heard a turkey on the next ridge over. We started down the super steep ridge side and he told me to go on without him. He had just went through some work on his knees and didn't want to risk something happening. I hated leaving him but the decision was a little easier with a gobbling turkey in the other direction.
By the time I had made it over there he was on the ground but hadn't moved much and was still gobbling good. I got within 100 yards and yelped. He gobbled at me so I cutt back at him and I could tell he was on his way. He got closer and I heard him drumming above me, even though that's not the direction he started out in. This went on for a few more minutes and I gave him some light yelps. He was his own undoing when he gobbled and showed me that my ears were playing tricks on me. I moved my gun back around and a few minutes later he came over the ridge. I called to get his head up and he gobbled back at me. I'm starting to learn that that's a pretty good target.
That afternoon I was headed to TN. This late in the season I knew it would be tough but it was worse than I expected. It turned into a sight seeing trip and I only heard one uncooperative turkey over 3 days. It was still a blast though!
I was afraid that my season was over but I was somehow able to convince my wife that one more trip was a good idea. I headed to Wisconsin with plans to arrive early one morning and start hunting. I had a buddy that went up that afternoon and killed a gobbler an hour and a half closer to me. An extra 1.5 hours of sleep and knowing there was turkeys in the area was a welcome change!
We both headed out the next morning but neither of us heard a turkey. It turned out to be his anniversary so he headed home to be with his wife (I should take lessons). I eventually found a flock of turkeys on private that joined public with a gobbler that had no interest in leaving them to check me out. That was all I had to go on so that's where I started that next day.
Same story different day with him. He flew down and went the other direction. I set out to some bigger chunks of public further away but found them covered with people sign and no turkeys. I also noticed that I wasn't seeing nearly the number of turkeys on surrounding private so I went back to where I started and began knocking on doors. I got "no's" all the way around until I saw 4 gobblers and a hen on this piece.
I found the landowner doing chores and hated to bother him but I asked anyway. He said to go ahead and even turned down my offer of helping him. I set out to where the turkeys were but they were gone by the time I got there. I eventually was able to put eyes on them but they were going to other way. I looped around to where I thought they may be headed and spent an hour calling. Nothing happened so I backed out and made plans to come back to try and roost them.
I came back later that afternoon and watched the field. They never showed so I tried hooting at dark. Nothing. I was discouraged but I knew this was my best shot at killing a turkey.
The next morning found me exhausted so I hit snooze on my alarm for the only time this season. I remembered why I don't do that an hour later when I realized I didn't hit the snooze button! I flew to my spot and got dressed where I could listen. I never heard anything but went back to the field anyway. I was sitting there trying to put a plan together for the day, enjoying the nice weather when a gobble at 60 yards literally made me jump! I turned my head and he was in the field with me, but going the other way. I yelped and he came about 10 yards and that was all he would do. He knew he should see that hen so he stayed there and gobbled. He was to my right so I used some brush to swap the gun to my left shoulder. He started walking away so I took the only opportunity I figured I was going to get and he went down.
I was torn between staying to hunt for two more days and wanting to spend some time with my family. My wife had been a saint through all this and I knew she was ready for some help so I headed home. I ended the season in the most appropriate way I could think of.
This season was definitely one for the books, but I'm counting down the days until next March already!
