Atchman2
Well-Known Member
A couple days before I took a 2 year old gobbler. Just taking that bird took the stress off the trip having invested so much money and time. I really wanted to take a mature gobbler this time, and I had four days to accomplish the task.
I shared my "hide" with this rabbit. I was going to shoot him for dinner, but then I named him "Rodney". As Uncle Si would say, "Never name your dinner-that is rule number one".
My brother and law and I felt that the place we were hunting had dried up. We were seeing fewer and fewer birds. Even the young birds were leaving looking for mates, food, honestly I don't know what they seek. All I knew is that we were seeing fewer and fewer turkeys every day.
That evening we started looking for more turkeys and roosts. On a hunch, we went back to an old "honey hole" where we have taken birds in previous years. Last year however, there were no turkeys there. They must have just moved back in though as we discovered the cottonwood trees loaded with turkeys. We didn't hunt there the next day without more scouting. We drove by again late that morning and discovered the wheat field full of turkeys strutting all over the place. This was looking good.
Vultures overhead..good omen?
We moved a couple of blinds into the field. My blind was near a telephone pole. Every time I'd been there turkeys seemed to hang out around this pole. I just felt it was a sure thing. My brother in law Kyle and my nephew Benjamin, were a few hundred yards to the west along a treeline. From previous experience we were in a great position.
Getting up really early the next morning we discovered that some time during the night the birds had moved. We don't know why, but there is a large coyote population near the roost and that may have done it. No matter it they were still there but further to the north. So our plan of having them fly down near our blinds was destroyed.
My blind wasn't in a bad position. I could see birds moving about, but they were just too far away. All at once a hen and gobbler appeared from the woods in front of me. I got to watch some serious turkey porn. After making moving shots on turkeys, I felt this was the best chance of getting a shot on a turkey that was still. I then remembered that I had loaned the rangefinder to the other group. I estimated the range at 50 yards. I had a tripod rest so a steady shot wasn't an issue. I put the 40 yard dot on the birds head thinking it would drop and hit him mid-chest. Well the range was even further than that and the shot struck near his feet and to the left. The wind was a factor for sure in the shot. Honestly it was a stupid shot, but with basically a benchrest shot, I felt it was worth a try.
We realized that we were in a bad spot. We moved the other blind down near this pile of tires near this big red barn There seemed to be turkeys around it all the time. I felt it was the perfect location. On top of that there is a ramp leading up to the top a field at the top. At night, the turkeys seemed to always come down the ramp.
Now I usally hunt with a friend that uses a bow. That was why we started using blinds and decoys. Instead of a bow, I built a hide from the fallen trunk of a cottonwood tree. Combined with my leafy suit, I was all but invisible. I built a few baffles into it of bark so that I could peak through the cracks and move without being seen.
So it was late that afternoon. The turkeys, which came down the ramp EVERY PREVIOUS DAY, flew down to our west. A couple of gobblers were scratching and eating in the woods. I was trying not to overcall, but they seemed more interested in eating than breeding. As they turned to go, I did a "purr" on my box call. The gobbler turned and I can tell by his body language he was coming my way.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V3pJ_vKXuik
At first I thought he was coming behind my hide, then suddenly he caught sight of my decoy and he made a line for it. With him moving so fast, I didn't have time to move my cameras or put my crossbow back on the tripod. I kicked the camera a little left and just held the crossbow in my freehands. When he crossed in front of me (less than 5 yards) I pulled the trigger. All I could see in the red dot sight was turkey! A loud POP, followed by a thunder of wings, told me I made a solid hit. He flew about 30 feet and expired. Tagged out in Kansas!
Not a monster, but a three year old bird. It had a 9.5" beard, but very small spurs. Our other birds had 1" spurs, but 6 to 7" beards.
Where he lay
He only went a few feet from the "hide"
The arrow broke off in the bird. We decided to cut open the chest to see where he was hit. Now that is what I call a "broken heart".
I shared my "hide" with this rabbit. I was going to shoot him for dinner, but then I named him "Rodney". As Uncle Si would say, "Never name your dinner-that is rule number one".
My brother and law and I felt that the place we were hunting had dried up. We were seeing fewer and fewer birds. Even the young birds were leaving looking for mates, food, honestly I don't know what they seek. All I knew is that we were seeing fewer and fewer turkeys every day.
That evening we started looking for more turkeys and roosts. On a hunch, we went back to an old "honey hole" where we have taken birds in previous years. Last year however, there were no turkeys there. They must have just moved back in though as we discovered the cottonwood trees loaded with turkeys. We didn't hunt there the next day without more scouting. We drove by again late that morning and discovered the wheat field full of turkeys strutting all over the place. This was looking good.
Vultures overhead..good omen?
We moved a couple of blinds into the field. My blind was near a telephone pole. Every time I'd been there turkeys seemed to hang out around this pole. I just felt it was a sure thing. My brother in law Kyle and my nephew Benjamin, were a few hundred yards to the west along a treeline. From previous experience we were in a great position.
Getting up really early the next morning we discovered that some time during the night the birds had moved. We don't know why, but there is a large coyote population near the roost and that may have done it. No matter it they were still there but further to the north. So our plan of having them fly down near our blinds was destroyed.
My blind wasn't in a bad position. I could see birds moving about, but they were just too far away. All at once a hen and gobbler appeared from the woods in front of me. I got to watch some serious turkey porn. After making moving shots on turkeys, I felt this was the best chance of getting a shot on a turkey that was still. I then remembered that I had loaned the rangefinder to the other group. I estimated the range at 50 yards. I had a tripod rest so a steady shot wasn't an issue. I put the 40 yard dot on the birds head thinking it would drop and hit him mid-chest. Well the range was even further than that and the shot struck near his feet and to the left. The wind was a factor for sure in the shot. Honestly it was a stupid shot, but with basically a benchrest shot, I felt it was worth a try.
We realized that we were in a bad spot. We moved the other blind down near this pile of tires near this big red barn There seemed to be turkeys around it all the time. I felt it was the perfect location. On top of that there is a ramp leading up to the top a field at the top. At night, the turkeys seemed to always come down the ramp.
Now I usally hunt with a friend that uses a bow. That was why we started using blinds and decoys. Instead of a bow, I built a hide from the fallen trunk of a cottonwood tree. Combined with my leafy suit, I was all but invisible. I built a few baffles into it of bark so that I could peak through the cracks and move without being seen.
So it was late that afternoon. The turkeys, which came down the ramp EVERY PREVIOUS DAY, flew down to our west. A couple of gobblers were scratching and eating in the woods. I was trying not to overcall, but they seemed more interested in eating than breeding. As they turned to go, I did a "purr" on my box call. The gobbler turned and I can tell by his body language he was coming my way.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V3pJ_vKXuik
At first I thought he was coming behind my hide, then suddenly he caught sight of my decoy and he made a line for it. With him moving so fast, I didn't have time to move my cameras or put my crossbow back on the tripod. I kicked the camera a little left and just held the crossbow in my freehands. When he crossed in front of me (less than 5 yards) I pulled the trigger. All I could see in the red dot sight was turkey! A loud POP, followed by a thunder of wings, told me I made a solid hit. He flew about 30 feet and expired. Tagged out in Kansas!
Not a monster, but a three year old bird. It had a 9.5" beard, but very small spurs. Our other birds had 1" spurs, but 6 to 7" beards.
Where he lay
He only went a few feet from the "hide"
The arrow broke off in the bird. We decided to cut open the chest to see where he was hit. Now that is what I call a "broken heart".
