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My season in review

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Urban_Hunter

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Tried with everything I have to get my daughter on a bird this year. Had us in the right position at least five times where fate just saved the old birds. Got busted by coyotes twice with gobblers on the move in our direction, got busted twice by other hunters… all on WMA. Had an opportunity for her to take a Jake but had her wait because Tom's were close, only to get outsmarted or outlucked. A lot of decoy talk on here, and I stand by saying they sure didn't help me any this year. Don't think I even saw a bird look at my decoy, our closest calls were after abandoning the decoy on the flydown.

Had 1 day she couldn't go with me and of course the stars lined up. Almost regret it. She's tried so hard and trudged through the rain, mud, hills and hollers right there with me. 4 Toms with 1 hen and I snuck in close enough to have one come running out to me while I was challenging the hen with some aggressive clucks. Feel like I've learned 1000 lessons this year but know no more than last. Those public land birds will sure humble a man.

I'll leave you with this, I cherish every minute chasing these birds with my girl. I know I'll soon miss these times more than any, and I'm thankful to have the opportunity to soak them up.
 

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Love the last pic of her sleeping :D !

It's just me, but I probably would have let her take the jake. But, I understand why you didn't.

I have a pic of my youngest daughter with the jake she killed (her only turkey, as she soon moved on to other interests). Her smile shows that she doesn't care if it's a jake or not.
 
PalsPal said:
It's just me, but I probably would have let her take the jake. But, I understand why you didn't.
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Man I regret it! It wasn't that I didn't want her to take a Jake, we were decidedly going to take the first opportunity… it was just the worst possible scenario. Pretty big group in the field, Tom was gobbling his head off and following the hens right to us. The Jakes I initially thought were hens, we weren't even paying attention to them. All of a sudden the entire group takes to the sky and flys right over our head. Two guys in the opposite corner of the field with binoculars.

In hindsight, I shouldn't have been tunnel visioned on the gobbler and let her just take one of the jakes.
 
Thanks everyone. For a 9 year old she's about as hard core as they come. I sometimes forget how hard I hunt and what a challenge it is to keep up, but she just tags along without complaint. She's absolutely ate up with it. Good buddy of mine mentioned it this year to her, that he's proud of her for sticking in there because I'm not easy to hunt with… he's right. She's up at 3am for the hour drive and cold boat ride just to trudge through the swamp and get setup in time, and then asking if she can skip school the next day because we got so close lol.

She's pretty excited with how the season went, ready to get after whatever is next in season now. Out of town this weekend so it looks like the turkeys evaded her… for now. Overall an extraordinary season, just hate I couldn't get her on one.
 
Urban_Hunter said:
Thanks everyone. For a 9 year old she's about as hard core as they come. I sometimes forget how hard I hunt and what a challenge it is to keep up, but she just tags along without complaint. She's absolutely ate up with it. Good buddy of mine mentioned it this year to her, that he's proud of her for sticking in there because I'm not easy to hunt with… he's right. She's up at 3am for the hour drive and cold boat ride just to trudge through the swamp and get setup in time, and then asking if she can skip school the next day because we got so close lol.

She's pretty excited with how the season went, ready to get after whatever is next in season now. Out of town this weekend so it looks like the turkeys evaded her… for now. Overall an extraordinary season, just hate I couldn't get her on one.
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It's easy to Monday morning quarterback it. Sounds like it was an exciting hunt that she will never forget. Seems we remember more the ones that got away anyhow.

It also sounds like she has the "it" factor to stick with it. That is a blessing, because none of my 3 girls did.

My main goal, if I were you, is to try to find some private land before next year. Find a good location, check property owner maps, and knock doors. Maybe even have her tag along as bait :D !
 
Specializedjon said:
She'll remember the TIME with you more than the result of the hunt. You are a blessed man. Soak it up brother. You're doin it right.

Love the sleeping picture. I've got a few of those deer hunting with my boy.
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Now that Im older with a kid of my own I can promise you this is true. All those memories I have with my grandfather are pure gold.
 
Urban_Hunter said:
Overall an extraordinary season, just hate I couldn't get her on one.
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Seems you have much for which to look forward.
Enjoy the journey!

Also, I suspect if you ditch the decoys, your odds of her killing one will be just as good or better, without the hassle of decoys. I experimented with decoys for years, and concluded I had better odds without them.

One potential exception on the decoys:
The sitting hen (no legs).

When I take a novice hunter, I sometimes will "hide" a sitting hen because doing this will often provide a much better "show" (much more time spent "playing the game" as Setterman would say), but most significantly, provide more opportunities for a clean head shot (no pellets in breast).

A standing hen decoy, with or without a male decoy with it, will often repel whatever sees it.

The trick with the sitting hen is to place ("hide") it where a longbeard is unlikely to see it BEFORE he's already within good range. When he sees it, he will typically stick his head up (i.e. better shot opportunity), then begin putting on a much better and longer "show".

Want to emphasize this is not drawing in a bird, but instead helping to "hold" that bird longer within close range, i.e. more & better "show", better opportunity for clean head shot. And, just as with a standing decoy, the gobbler will often come no closer once he sees that decoy. In real life, the hen usually goes to the gobbler once they're in visible proximity to each other. This is the main reason so many in-coming gobblers "hang up" just outside shooting range, often just turning & walking away if they see a decoy.

But even using the sitting hen is not without liability, and I typically do not do this when I'm hunting by myself and/or mostly running & gunning.

The main liability comes from placing & retrieving the decoy, where it's much easier than most seem to think to be seen by a distant turkey (especially when they're on the roost). It is, however, a tactic on small properties (where you can be running around but are smarter to stay put) that can be an asset in enhancing a clean killing shot opportunity.
 

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