BrewCrew
Active Member
Lone Strutters (4th Season Opener Added)
I had been scouting a couple toms for a week before season on a farm that I had never actually even thought about turkey hunting in the 8 years I've deer hunted it. I was pretty excited to hopefully get an opportunity at one of these birds since it is a piece of ground with a lot of history with my friends, family, and myself so I went out 4-5 separate mornings and studied where they were strutting and coming out of roost from a distance. They were coming down to a picked bean field and strutting with a few hens and every morning there would be a few jakes or less dominant toms come in and they would battle royal. The toms were gobbling for over 2 hours after hitting the ground! Thought I had it made.
On opening day of 1st season I got to the farm at 0610 and slammed my truck door and heard two distant gobbles from our farm on the other side of the road - behind my truck! I knew from every morning prior that nothing was gobbling over there so I figured the afternoon before the toms had moved quite a distance for some reason. So I made the quick decision and crossed the road to a large open hayfield that has a very narrow ditch with a few big cottonwoods in it. I knew if I walked the creek I would likely get busted so I walked in the open hayfield while keeping my silhouette hidden behind a round bale. I posted up at the hay bale in open field and waited for fly down. One tom was about 100 yards out and the other well over 200. The one 200 yards away flew down to my side of the creek while the one 100 yards away flew down to the other side. I yelped and displayed the fan and had the tom at 200 yards immediately coming in on a run. At 60 yards he held up and the tom from the other side of the creek came across and went full strut and spit and drummed at 40 yards. I quickly changed my mind as to what tom I was now going to shoot! :way:
Meanwhile I'm lying on my chest about 15 yards ahead of the hay bale twirling the stickfan and the toms are working their way towards me. At 20 yards I released a swarm of lead at the strutter and he went into the dead turkey flop. The other tom actually wanted to beat on him but I didn't let that happen. The scouting definitely paid off as I harvested a very beautiful tom in very short time. My best guess is he is a 3yr old as he was sporting 1.25 inch spurs, 10 inch beard, and weighed in at 24.8 lbs.
Also, I never once saw or even heard a single HEN on this hunt!! That definitely dropped the difficultly level!
:drink2: Good luck everybody! :drink2:
**** 4th Season******
Decided to get a 4th season tag about 10pm on Tuesday night after a good buddy told me he had been seeing a big tom behind his parents house all alone and he knew where he roosted. So I hustled into town early in the morning, got my license, and made it to his farm just in time. Luckily, he joined me because I would have had a tough time without the help of his calling and running the decoy.
We watched the bird hanging from his tree from about 120 yards away, the wind was terrible and it was already to bright to make a move to where exactly we wanted to be. He decides to pitch out the opposite side of the ditch, as expected so we put the move on him and snuck through the creek bed and popped out. We ended up about 80 yards away and when he made visual with the fan it was all over. He came in full strut and we never even had to call. As he got to the edge of the field and the ditch met he busts into full sprint straight at us!! At only 15 yards he was not responding to my alarm putts and just kept on head bobbing into us, truthfully I was nervous about even taking a shot but I put it on him and unloaded 3 1/2 turkey mag and it did the job, and then some :grin:. I ended up sending him to jesus right around 0635! Another quick opener hunt and I won't complain! Its been a great turkey season as I have been fortunate to spend it with great friends and have had great success with all of them! I hope its a tradition that will not end soon! Take care everybody and good luck!
Sorry about the pics but with my buddy having to be at work by 8, we didn't get any other chance but with the cell phones!
Specs: Bird weighed 22.6 - Spurs - 1.25 1.375 Beard - 10.75
I had been scouting a couple toms for a week before season on a farm that I had never actually even thought about turkey hunting in the 8 years I've deer hunted it. I was pretty excited to hopefully get an opportunity at one of these birds since it is a piece of ground with a lot of history with my friends, family, and myself so I went out 4-5 separate mornings and studied where they were strutting and coming out of roost from a distance. They were coming down to a picked bean field and strutting with a few hens and every morning there would be a few jakes or less dominant toms come in and they would battle royal. The toms were gobbling for over 2 hours after hitting the ground! Thought I had it made.
On opening day of 1st season I got to the farm at 0610 and slammed my truck door and heard two distant gobbles from our farm on the other side of the road - behind my truck! I knew from every morning prior that nothing was gobbling over there so I figured the afternoon before the toms had moved quite a distance for some reason. So I made the quick decision and crossed the road to a large open hayfield that has a very narrow ditch with a few big cottonwoods in it. I knew if I walked the creek I would likely get busted so I walked in the open hayfield while keeping my silhouette hidden behind a round bale. I posted up at the hay bale in open field and waited for fly down. One tom was about 100 yards out and the other well over 200. The one 200 yards away flew down to my side of the creek while the one 100 yards away flew down to the other side. I yelped and displayed the fan and had the tom at 200 yards immediately coming in on a run. At 60 yards he held up and the tom from the other side of the creek came across and went full strut and spit and drummed at 40 yards. I quickly changed my mind as to what tom I was now going to shoot! :way:
Meanwhile I'm lying on my chest about 15 yards ahead of the hay bale twirling the stickfan and the toms are working their way towards me. At 20 yards I released a swarm of lead at the strutter and he went into the dead turkey flop. The other tom actually wanted to beat on him but I didn't let that happen. The scouting definitely paid off as I harvested a very beautiful tom in very short time. My best guess is he is a 3yr old as he was sporting 1.25 inch spurs, 10 inch beard, and weighed in at 24.8 lbs.
Also, I never once saw or even heard a single HEN on this hunt!! That definitely dropped the difficultly level!
:drink2: Good luck everybody! :drink2:
**** 4th Season******
Decided to get a 4th season tag about 10pm on Tuesday night after a good buddy told me he had been seeing a big tom behind his parents house all alone and he knew where he roosted. So I hustled into town early in the morning, got my license, and made it to his farm just in time. Luckily, he joined me because I would have had a tough time without the help of his calling and running the decoy.
We watched the bird hanging from his tree from about 120 yards away, the wind was terrible and it was already to bright to make a move to where exactly we wanted to be. He decides to pitch out the opposite side of the ditch, as expected so we put the move on him and snuck through the creek bed and popped out. We ended up about 80 yards away and when he made visual with the fan it was all over. He came in full strut and we never even had to call. As he got to the edge of the field and the ditch met he busts into full sprint straight at us!! At only 15 yards he was not responding to my alarm putts and just kept on head bobbing into us, truthfully I was nervous about even taking a shot but I put it on him and unloaded 3 1/2 turkey mag and it did the job, and then some :grin:. I ended up sending him to jesus right around 0635! Another quick opener hunt and I won't complain! Its been a great turkey season as I have been fortunate to spend it with great friends and have had great success with all of them! I hope its a tradition that will not end soon! Take care everybody and good luck!
Sorry about the pics but with my buddy having to be at work by 8, we didn't get any other chance but with the cell phones!
Specs: Bird weighed 22.6 - Spurs - 1.25 1.375 Beard - 10.75
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