<P style="MARGIN: 0px">This morning Mat and I had a tom gobble at 5:45. Around 6:30 he was on the ground but never would answer me. I was about 125 feet behind Mat. After an hour or more of silence I walked up to Mat></P> <P style="MARGIN: 0px"> </P> <P style="MARGIN: 0px">I did see a hen approach him at 25 feet behind a blow down. I had the gun up thinking he was pinned down and I was going to bust the tom. It was the hen. The hen started clucking and walked away. </P> <P style="MARGIN: 0px"> </P> <P style="MARGIN: 0px">Later I found out he lost track of the hen behind the blow down and thought it was a good time to raise his gun and adjust his pants and rear- end on the cushion. Looking back ahead he saw a big tom( later 10-12 inch beard) at</P> <P style="MARGIN: 0px">28 to 30 yards eye balling him from behind a tree. The turkey walked out and went into strut looking at him. He was afraid to move. The hen walked off with the tom following. A case of wrong move and bad luck.</P> <P style="MARGIN: 0px"> </P> <P style="MARGIN: 0px">Later we worked him again and his brother,Mark, hunting alone about 250 yards from us worked a tom for a long time with no luck. He had a hen fly down to the decoys and walk off, plus eleven deer walk by him. Walking out we had a tom gobbling to their foot steps but he crossed the road to other property.</P> <P style="MARGIN: 0px"> </P> <P style="MARGIN: 0px">A great morning but no tags filled. We were walking out at 10:30 so the boys could paintball this afternnon.</P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0px">We kind of had the same luck this morning.</P> <P style="MARGIN: 0px"> </P> <P style="MARGIN: 0px">I got an invite from a friend to hunt in Indiana this morning. We didn't hear anything gobble off the roost. He led us to a field surrounded by woods on all sides. I hit the crow call just below the rise into the field and a tom answered no more than 70 yards away. He didn't shut up for another hour. Gobbled at every that made a sound. We setup on the edge about 150 yards away and here he came. He went silent at about 70 yards and I knew, from past experiences, that he was sneaking in on us. I was sitting in a small draw and facing uphill. I only saw him once and that was at 32 steps, but the only part that I did see was the tip top of his bright white head. Looked like a little periscope sticking up in the air. He looked for a couple minutes and all I needed was 6 more inches of his head and I would have let it fly. BUT, it never happened and he went back to strutting an gobbling at the other end of the field.</P> <P style="MARGIN: 0px"> </P> <P style="MARGIN: 0px">In the meantime, we had 2 or 3 toms gobbling non-stop behind us during this whole ordeal. I flipped around and they too, closed the gap to about 70 yards, but, out of nowhere, a hen came out of the woods and led them ALL in the opposite direction. She even let out a couple of cackles, as if to say...HA HA HA. On the way out, we saw a huge Tom strutting his stuff for a lady friend on a hillside. WOW, he was gorgeous!</P> <P style="MARGIN: 0px"> </P> <P style="MARGIN: 0px">That was all we heard for the rest of the morning. Try it again in the morning.</P> <P style="MARGIN: 0px"> </P> <P style="MARGIN: 0px">A big Thanks goes out to OW Member, FireMedic40 for the invite. <IMG src="http://www.websitetoolbox.com/images/boards/smilies/thumb.gif" align=absMiddle border=0><IMG src="http://www.websitetoolbox.com/images/boards/smilies/thumb.gif" align=absMiddle border=0></P> <P style="MARGIN: 0px"> </P> <P style="MARGIN: 0px">Same thing happened happened the other day when I took him out to one of my spots. Bird was 30-40 yards out over the crest of the hill. When we tried and aggressive move towards him, we bumped him. Oh Well.</P> <P style="MARGIN: 0px"> </P> <P style="MARGIN: 0px"> </P>
<P>They are getting sharp in the last two weeks. </P> <P style="MARGIN: 0px"> </P> <P style="MARGIN: 0px">I did not mention it before, but I ask Mat why he did not shoot the turkey walking away. He told me he did not want to take a chance wounding it and was afraid to move with the hen so close. The first turkey he shot at age 12 on state ground(youth season) ran when he pulled up his gun, he flipped it and we chased it 200 yards before finding it. I have to give him a lot of credit! </P> <P style="MARGIN: 0px"> </P> <P style="MARGIN: 0px">By the way his older brother Mark, did not turkey hunt for three years. Now</P> <P style="MARGIN: 0px">he is a turkey hunting fool hunting on his own. Amazing when they grow up</P> <P style="MARGIN: 0px">and start experiencing all the sounds and experiences on their own. He has never shot one yet, but three years ago at the same time Mat got his, he had a big tom at less than 30 yards on state ground, sights on him saying to himself, one more step. His Mom tried to move and call to get the turkey to move one more step, actually spooking the turkey. Of course Mark never got it, never let his Mom forget, but he is fun to hunt with now!!. </P> <P style="MARGIN: 0px"> </P> <P style="MARGIN: 0px">Now he thinks he is a turkey expert telling Mat and myself we call to much at turkeys. It never ends!</P> <P style="MARGIN: 0px"> </P> <P style="MARGIN: 0px">I am going to try the same turkey tommorrow morning for a while before work.</P> <P style="MARGIN: 0px"> </P> <P style="MARGIN: 0px">Good luck every one!!</P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0px">If BShive invites you to his place in the mountains of West Virginia bring water, energy bars and rapelling rope!</P> <P style="MARGIN: 0px"> </P> <P style="MARGIN: 0px">There is a spot there that looks like the river in Indiana Jones Temple of Doom (2000' down)......in fact I think we happend upon the Temple of Doom, but that's a story for another post.</P> <P style="MARGIN: 0px"> </P> <P style="MARGIN: 0px">Thanks to you for the invite as well. This is a wonderful forum to meet good guys who share the same passons!</P>
