megalomaniac
Well-Known Member
I had the best working south MS bird I've ever had this morning! Went with a friend to a 500 ac property right on the Pearl River in Marion county. The landowner said there were 5 gobblers using a 3 ac field in the middle of the property (the only open ground... the rest is hardwoods/pine devastated by Katrina and now so thick you can't see more than 5-10 yards through).
got out of the truck at 6am, immediately hear a gobble 150 yards away in the blowdowns... no way to get to him, he probably saw us park, so we worked our way down the open logging roads towards the small field 5 or 600 yards away. Get to the field, nothing. Walked a loop around 3/4 mile along the property calling every 300 yards... nothing. finally made it back to the start of the loop and got a gobble around 200 yards away. I cackled back and he immediately gobbled. Told my buddy that this bird was killable and we set up. We were where 3 roads intersected, the gobbler was down a lane that took a 45deg turn 35 yards out, so that limited our vision toward him. I posted us up with me calling and my buddy as the shooter in front of me. I've never had a bird so torn up in MS... I'd call, he'd gobble, then I'd cut him off. (Gosh, I love opening morning... you can call nonstop and the birds haven't wised up yet). I got him to come to 100 yards or so, gobbling the whole time. I then gave him the silent treatment for 5 min or so, then hit him again hard. He gobbled a little closer. Gave him some more silent treatment....
All of a sudden, he appeared in front of us making the turn in the logging road. Head neon blue-white, body completely puffed out in full strut. My buddy had his gun in his lap, not expecting him to come so soon. I wasn't sure he saw the bird yet, so I whispered for him to go ahead and shoot. I don't know if the bird head me whisper (I've never had one spook to a whisper) or if it was my buddy getting his gun up, but the bird saw something, broke strut, and eased back around the bend in the road.
Didn't end up with a bird, but I got all the good out of him without having to dress him. Overall was the best I've ever had a bird work in MS, probably gobbled back 55 or 60 times over 20 min. Darn birds down here usually gobble on the roost, then shut up once they hit the ground, never to gobble the rest of the day. When they come in, it's usually sneaking and not in strut. 100's of years of natural selection in our population has resulted in birds that just don't gobble much.
got out of the truck at 6am, immediately hear a gobble 150 yards away in the blowdowns... no way to get to him, he probably saw us park, so we worked our way down the open logging roads towards the small field 5 or 600 yards away. Get to the field, nothing. Walked a loop around 3/4 mile along the property calling every 300 yards... nothing. finally made it back to the start of the loop and got a gobble around 200 yards away. I cackled back and he immediately gobbled. Told my buddy that this bird was killable and we set up. We were where 3 roads intersected, the gobbler was down a lane that took a 45deg turn 35 yards out, so that limited our vision toward him. I posted us up with me calling and my buddy as the shooter in front of me. I've never had a bird so torn up in MS... I'd call, he'd gobble, then I'd cut him off. (Gosh, I love opening morning... you can call nonstop and the birds haven't wised up yet). I got him to come to 100 yards or so, gobbling the whole time. I then gave him the silent treatment for 5 min or so, then hit him again hard. He gobbled a little closer. Gave him some more silent treatment....
All of a sudden, he appeared in front of us making the turn in the logging road. Head neon blue-white, body completely puffed out in full strut. My buddy had his gun in his lap, not expecting him to come so soon. I wasn't sure he saw the bird yet, so I whispered for him to go ahead and shoot. I don't know if the bird head me whisper (I've never had one spook to a whisper) or if it was my buddy getting his gun up, but the bird saw something, broke strut, and eased back around the bend in the road.
Didn't end up with a bird, but I got all the good out of him without having to dress him. Overall was the best I've ever had a bird work in MS, probably gobbled back 55 or 60 times over 20 min. Darn birds down here usually gobble on the roost, then shut up once they hit the ground, never to gobble the rest of the day. When they come in, it's usually sneaking and not in strut. 100's of years of natural selection in our population has resulted in birds that just don't gobble much.
