Liv4Rut
Active Member
Well everyone I finally outsmarted a turkey that had outsmarted me the last 3 times I have chased him around a ditch that couldn't be more than 50 yards wide and 200 yards long. First off I gotta say, if you want to shoot turkeys, don't move to Mason City Iowa
The first time I saw him I was out driving around in a rain storm hitting every little public area on the map trying to figure out which ones might have a turkey in it. I spotted this guy on the edge of a cornfield about 300 yards out. I honestly couldn't even believe there was a turkey in this spot, there is nothing around for miles. I pulled in the parking lot, threw on my 3d leafy suit, grabbed the bow and was going to try to stalk him. I eventually got to where he was but he wasn't there. So I thought I would sneak around the creek and see what was on the other side of it. Of course he was on the other side of it and he spotted me and took off running. I dropped to my knees and hit the slate call. He stopped and looked for a second and then ran back into 50 yards. I couldn't get a shot and eventually 2 hens flew up in the biggest tree in the ditch and so did he. I couldn't hunt in the morning so I waited for another day.
The next time I went after him I thought for sure I could get him. I snuck down the ditch and peared out in the field and there he was about 300 yards out. I got in the creek and went around the bend where there was a nice grassy area I thought I could call him into. I hit the slate and he instantly gobbled. For the next half hour it was non stop gobbles and I could see him getting closer. He now had to cross a little ditch and popped out at 70 yards. He saw the pretty boy and took off running. I kept calling and calling and eventually one of the hens came into my decoys. Then after a half hour, here came the other hen with him right behind her. She eventually got into the decoys as well and he wouldn't come closer than 80 yards. Again the hens flew up in the same cotton wood.
The third time I went after him I took only the gun and it was pouring down rain and windier than heck. I didn't see a thing.
So tonight I get there and there he is again in the corn field but when I got there I was greeted by a loud yell from a few fisherman. I knew the bird would spook from all the noise and sure enough he wasn't there. I remembered when I saw him in the field there was 6 or 7 crows harassing him. So I kept following the sounds of the crows and just knew he was out in this CRP field. There really was no where to set up or even try to get on top of him. So I just sat down against that big cottonwood that I knew the 2 hens would eventually roost in. I hit the slate call hard with no luck. The day before I went out and bought a $50 dollar slate call that I thought would be sweet but I didn't think it sounded worth a crap once I opened it. I grabbed it out anyways and let out a really loud high pitched purr. He lit up instantly, I hit him again with it, he lit up again but was closer. I shut up for a second and I see him running frantically towards me trying to get through the multiflora rose. He disappeared a bit and suddenly he was only 15 yards away on the opposite side of the creek below me. I held the bead on him and when he perked up his head I let him have it. It sure is nice to just have a few calls in your turkey vest and a shotgun in your hand sometimes. I sure am happy with him though, it has been a long season up here hunting almost every night and not seeing a bird of any kind. So I hauled him out and went to another spot before dark to see if there was anything gobbling. This spot is even more ridiculous and I didn't think a turkey would ever be in it, but I let out a few loud purrs with the old 50 dollar and one lit up right away. He must of gobbled over a 100 times in the 45 minutes I was there. I got him pegged for the morning so hopefully I can get him in bow range
This bird only had one spur that was 3/4 inch and had a 9.5 inch beard, and weighed 24 lbs.
The first time I saw him I was out driving around in a rain storm hitting every little public area on the map trying to figure out which ones might have a turkey in it. I spotted this guy on the edge of a cornfield about 300 yards out. I honestly couldn't even believe there was a turkey in this spot, there is nothing around for miles. I pulled in the parking lot, threw on my 3d leafy suit, grabbed the bow and was going to try to stalk him. I eventually got to where he was but he wasn't there. So I thought I would sneak around the creek and see what was on the other side of it. Of course he was on the other side of it and he spotted me and took off running. I dropped to my knees and hit the slate call. He stopped and looked for a second and then ran back into 50 yards. I couldn't get a shot and eventually 2 hens flew up in the biggest tree in the ditch and so did he. I couldn't hunt in the morning so I waited for another day.
The next time I went after him I thought for sure I could get him. I snuck down the ditch and peared out in the field and there he was about 300 yards out. I got in the creek and went around the bend where there was a nice grassy area I thought I could call him into. I hit the slate and he instantly gobbled. For the next half hour it was non stop gobbles and I could see him getting closer. He now had to cross a little ditch and popped out at 70 yards. He saw the pretty boy and took off running. I kept calling and calling and eventually one of the hens came into my decoys. Then after a half hour, here came the other hen with him right behind her. She eventually got into the decoys as well and he wouldn't come closer than 80 yards. Again the hens flew up in the same cotton wood.
The third time I went after him I took only the gun and it was pouring down rain and windier than heck. I didn't see a thing.
So tonight I get there and there he is again in the corn field but when I got there I was greeted by a loud yell from a few fisherman. I knew the bird would spook from all the noise and sure enough he wasn't there. I remembered when I saw him in the field there was 6 or 7 crows harassing him. So I kept following the sounds of the crows and just knew he was out in this CRP field. There really was no where to set up or even try to get on top of him. So I just sat down against that big cottonwood that I knew the 2 hens would eventually roost in. I hit the slate call hard with no luck. The day before I went out and bought a $50 dollar slate call that I thought would be sweet but I didn't think it sounded worth a crap once I opened it. I grabbed it out anyways and let out a really loud high pitched purr. He lit up instantly, I hit him again with it, he lit up again but was closer. I shut up for a second and I see him running frantically towards me trying to get through the multiflora rose. He disappeared a bit and suddenly he was only 15 yards away on the opposite side of the creek below me. I held the bead on him and when he perked up his head I let him have it. It sure is nice to just have a few calls in your turkey vest and a shotgun in your hand sometimes. I sure am happy with him though, it has been a long season up here hunting almost every night and not seeing a bird of any kind. So I hauled him out and went to another spot before dark to see if there was anything gobbling. This spot is even more ridiculous and I didn't think a turkey would ever be in it, but I let out a few loud purrs with the old 50 dollar and one lit up right away. He must of gobbled over a 100 times in the 45 minutes I was there. I got him pegged for the morning so hopefully I can get him in bow range
This bird only had one spur that was 3/4 inch and had a 9.5 inch beard, and weighed 24 lbs.
