Basser15 Report post Posted May 10, 2008 What a morning in the turkey woods! After very little noise on behalf of the birds and a couple blown opportunities on my part opening weekend I was able to make it back out this morning to give them another try. And after exchanging some emails with Lance and doing the traditional internet sportsman courtship, we decided to meet for the first time this morning for a turkey hunt Now a little background on my spring turkey hunting exerience...these birds have been my nemesis! Been able to kill a few hens during fall hunts but I have yet to be on a successful spring gobbler hunt. They have always seemed to be one step ahead and the birds I have called in would always hang up. This morning changed all that. We located a couple gobblers up on a hillside well before sunup and proceeded to start the ascent to where these birds were roosting. Turns out there were 3 birds and all three were hot and making plenty of noise. We made it to a saddle and it sounded like we were close to where these guys were so we set up a couple decoys and Lance started his calling to let them know where to find us. At about 5:30 we could hear the birds fly down and within minutes the birds could be seen strutting up hill a little ways from us. All 3 were running around and strutting and putting on a show. I started getting nervous that they weren't coming any closer and had almost convinced myself that the next turkey that stuck his head into this little opening in the trees was gonna get it.....but I'm glad that didn't happen. One of the birds hopped over a log and started coming down straight towards the decoys and was shortly followed by his two buddies. These birds beelined it to my jake decoy and two were standing next to it wondering what they were going to do to it while the third was doing his strut thing. Well....10 yards is a little too close for comfort and I was starting to worry for the safety of my jake decoy so I decided to scare them off by firing a warning shot... As two of the birds ran or flew to my left, the third bird ran to the right and at about 30 yards got a good amount of #5's to the back of his dome! Guess I just wanted to make the hunt last just a little bit longer since 5:45 sounded a little early to be done Here's my first spring gobbler. 8.5" beard And my bird dog who doesn't seem too interested in a bird this big.... I do want to thanks Lance for tagging along this morning and helping me call this bird in. Great morning and I look forward to hunting with you again sometime! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Lance Report post Posted May 10, 2008 Here are some pictures I got off of the video I took of the hunt! Thought you all might like to see some action photos! When they finally could not resest the sweet calls any longer they practically ran in! Anyone notice anything about the bearded bird on the left? The three birds surround the jake decoy but are behind the tree from me. Rob is also on the other side of the same tree! 10 yards from the flock! This is the confusion after the kind "warning" shot! Here is Rob finnishing the deal as the tom tries to excape! Note the shell in mid air! And then the race to claim the bird as it flops down the hill before it looses too many feathers! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
daryl_s Report post Posted May 10, 2008 That's really cool. Looks like a lot of fun, congratulations. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jeepers creepers Report post Posted May 10, 2008 NICE PICS!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jimmer Negamanee Report post Posted May 11, 2008 Congratulations! That's a great bird. I also thought it was very sportsman-like of you to fire the warning shot. (It beats the "shoot and release" hunting that I do. ) And Lance, you are a pro. Finding the birds, calling them in and getting it all on film! Well done. If you don't sell that video to some outdoor channel it would be cool to post it. Thanks to both of you for this post. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Lance Report post Posted May 11, 2008 Any one notice the bearded bird that might be a bearded hen? I have seen allot of toms and some small jakes in my time and they all had the typical red head look and big waddle and all that the other two birds have. That bird had a big thick beard and maybe he just didn't have his blood pumping but it sure looks like a bearded hen? What do you guys think? Lance Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
matthewp45 Report post Posted May 11, 2008 Sure looks like a hen head but why would she be up front with the gobblers like that. Maybe she is a he-she. Transgender turkey's whats next? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TLH Report post Posted May 11, 2008 Oh, that is one of those Rosy O'Donnell Turkeys. They sometimes hang out with the guys and scratch their--well, ground! Nice job guys--congrats Basser buddy! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
WOODSAZ Report post Posted May 11, 2008 Great job Rob! Wish i could have been there. You guys got some great pics! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Basser15 Report post Posted May 11, 2008 Lance, thanks for posting those pics. You proved yourself a worthy hunt partner and can invite yourself anytime you want! Don't know if that bird was a he-she or not, but if my two other buddies with tags didn't bail out we probably could have found out! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Pissant Report post Posted May 11, 2008 Awesome......That's a great looking bird. That's also a great looking lab. Who's the breeder? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Non-Typical Solutions Report post Posted May 12, 2008 He-She +1 Congrats on the HE-HE and good to see there was still some snow on the ground........ Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Basser15 Report post Posted May 12, 2008 My dog Kade comes out of South Mounain Labs, which is more of a family with a hunting dog that they bred. But the sire has plenty of puppies hitting the ground all the time. If you're interested just let me know and I can get in contact with the owners and they can let you know about upcoming litters. Very loving dog and for as little overall time I've put into his bird training I think he's pretty good(he does have his AKC junior title). Little high strung sometimes but I think that adds to the drive....and he just turned 3. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
