Shoot2Kill
Active Member
3 years ago was the last time I killed a turkey....that season I was the caller on 4 hunts in a row where a tom was killed by 8 am....the last two seasons I couldn't buy myself a bird. I spent mornings and evenings of our 5 day season doing everything I could to basically screw up every set up. 
2010.....redemption!
I had a 3rd season MN tag this year that started on Saturday. For the past 2 weeks I've gone out to a farm that's 3/4 a mile from my house as many times as I could in the mornings before work just to listen to them gobble and enjoy the time waiting for my season as you guys down in IA where already stacking them up like cordwood.
At sun up Sunday morning the 11th while I was out listening a lone gobble came from a pasture on the property just to the north of the 160 I usually hunt. I made my way over there as it was getting light and he was perched high up in a tree sticking out like a sore thumb....he gobbled at every single sound anything made out there...you know, one of those toms you just love to have in the timber because you're not wondering why he shut up.
The following Friday I drove by that field on my way to work and look who's out showing off 75 yards from the road...
Seeing this was making the wait for my season painfully slow! Last week my wife was out of town so I was a single dad for a few days and every morning we would go check these fields before heading in to drop him off at daycare. It wasn't until Wednesday of last week did I see anything on our quick trips over there....but starting on Wednesday the field just behind where the above picture was taken was the ol' gobbler strutting his stuff at 7:00 on the dot 3 days in a row.
After seeing him in the exact same spot 3 mornings in a row the quest for the birds over by the old crane (if you saw some of my trail cam pics) had changed....none of them were as predictable as this guy.
Friday afternoon I left work a little early and went and moved my blind to the treeline in the top of this last pic since the beautiful weather we were having was predicted to turn to total crap so I figured I'd just wait this cat out in the rain.
Here is the field looking to the north......where the bird was strutting on the side of the hill about 75 yards away every morning.
Saturday morning I fully expected to wake up to rain and wind and was pleasantly surpised when I woke up to a perfectly calm morning! I got settled in by 5:15 and waited for the show. The first (and turned out to be the only gobble) came at 6:00 on the dot and came from right by where the old crane is. It didn't bother me since the last 3 mornings I'd been out there scouting the gobbler above in the pic never made a sound on the roost so for one of the first times turkey hunting I wasn't second guessing myself.
Sunrise comes and everything out there was making noise but the turkeys...loons on the lake behind me, sandhills, mallards, geese, roosters, birds.....it was a perfect morning. I made some noise on the slate just to let anything that was on the ground know that there was a lonely hen around. At about 6:40 the sun that was coming up was covered up by gray skies and it started to drizzle.......the rain that they said was coming was just about there.....aaaagh! No worries though....that tom is gonna show I kept telling myself....why wouldn't he, he's been here for 3 mornings in a row, he's gonna show.........
6:48.....a hen pops out of the treeline to my left about 30 yards away....followed by 3 more....and then a thunderous gobble! Oh sh*t! I reached down for the gun, looked up and the ol boy was on a dead on sprint (as fast as a gobbler can sprint while strutting) and he drills the PB and knocks him off the stake! I'd never seen this before and couldn't believe it was actually happening! haha! One of the hens was puffing up and fanning too which was cool to see, she was right in the face of one of my hen decs! The tom was jumping up and trying to spur the crap out of PB and finally he came around from behind the dec and got a face full of turkey load. Game over. Tagged out at 6:49 opening morning......sweet, sweet redemption! It's been long time since I've had a plan work flawlessly. Before I could even get out of the blind to go check him out the skies had opened up and it was a flat out down pour! I grabbed the PB and put him in the blind, grabbed the tom and was home by 7:00. Perfect.
My son was just getting up and came out to check out dads turkey....I cannot wait for the day that he can sit in the blind with me.....just seeing him go nuts over it made me so thankful that I shot it on a monring when I could bring it home and have him be there.
Cat and the Hat PJs and camo.....with his own turkey....
Since my tom looked like a drenched rat and I wanted some decent pics with him I hung him upside down in the garage and put a big fan on him....a couple hours later he was all dried out and ready for a quick photo shoot during a break in the rain...
28 lbs on the dot! (dried out)
1.25" hooks on both sides
9 inch beard.
It couldn't have worked out any better....the weather was total garbage the rest of the weekend. Kind of bitter sweet though being done so soon....but I'll take it.
Wish I had another tag......this guy was looking for love this morning in the field just to the west of where I tagged mine.....and I don't know anyone that has a tag yet!
Sorry this was so long....it's been a while since I've made a harvest post on here so I thought I'd make it count. :way:
2010.....redemption!
I had a 3rd season MN tag this year that started on Saturday. For the past 2 weeks I've gone out to a farm that's 3/4 a mile from my house as many times as I could in the mornings before work just to listen to them gobble and enjoy the time waiting for my season as you guys down in IA where already stacking them up like cordwood.
At sun up Sunday morning the 11th while I was out listening a lone gobble came from a pasture on the property just to the north of the 160 I usually hunt. I made my way over there as it was getting light and he was perched high up in a tree sticking out like a sore thumb....he gobbled at every single sound anything made out there...you know, one of those toms you just love to have in the timber because you're not wondering why he shut up.
The following Friday I drove by that field on my way to work and look who's out showing off 75 yards from the road...
Seeing this was making the wait for my season painfully slow! Last week my wife was out of town so I was a single dad for a few days and every morning we would go check these fields before heading in to drop him off at daycare. It wasn't until Wednesday of last week did I see anything on our quick trips over there....but starting on Wednesday the field just behind where the above picture was taken was the ol' gobbler strutting his stuff at 7:00 on the dot 3 days in a row.
After seeing him in the exact same spot 3 mornings in a row the quest for the birds over by the old crane (if you saw some of my trail cam pics) had changed....none of them were as predictable as this guy.
Friday afternoon I left work a little early and went and moved my blind to the treeline in the top of this last pic since the beautiful weather we were having was predicted to turn to total crap so I figured I'd just wait this cat out in the rain.
Here is the field looking to the north......where the bird was strutting on the side of the hill about 75 yards away every morning.
Saturday morning I fully expected to wake up to rain and wind and was pleasantly surpised when I woke up to a perfectly calm morning! I got settled in by 5:15 and waited for the show. The first (and turned out to be the only gobble) came at 6:00 on the dot and came from right by where the old crane is. It didn't bother me since the last 3 mornings I'd been out there scouting the gobbler above in the pic never made a sound on the roost so for one of the first times turkey hunting I wasn't second guessing myself.
Sunrise comes and everything out there was making noise but the turkeys...loons on the lake behind me, sandhills, mallards, geese, roosters, birds.....it was a perfect morning. I made some noise on the slate just to let anything that was on the ground know that there was a lonely hen around. At about 6:40 the sun that was coming up was covered up by gray skies and it started to drizzle.......the rain that they said was coming was just about there.....aaaagh! No worries though....that tom is gonna show I kept telling myself....why wouldn't he, he's been here for 3 mornings in a row, he's gonna show.........
6:48.....a hen pops out of the treeline to my left about 30 yards away....followed by 3 more....and then a thunderous gobble! Oh sh*t! I reached down for the gun, looked up and the ol boy was on a dead on sprint (as fast as a gobbler can sprint while strutting) and he drills the PB and knocks him off the stake! I'd never seen this before and couldn't believe it was actually happening! haha! One of the hens was puffing up and fanning too which was cool to see, she was right in the face of one of my hen decs! The tom was jumping up and trying to spur the crap out of PB and finally he came around from behind the dec and got a face full of turkey load. Game over. Tagged out at 6:49 opening morning......sweet, sweet redemption! It's been long time since I've had a plan work flawlessly.
Before I could even get out of the blind to go check him out the skies had opened up and it was a flat out down pour! I grabbed the PB and put him in the blind, grabbed the tom and was home by 7:00. Perfect.My son was just getting up and came out to check out dads turkey....I cannot wait for the day that he can sit in the blind with me.....just seeing him go nuts over it made me so thankful that I shot it on a monring when I could bring it home and have him be there.
Cat and the Hat PJs and camo.....with his own turkey....
Since my tom looked like a drenched rat and I wanted some decent pics with him I hung him upside down in the garage and put a big fan on him....a couple hours later he was all dried out and ready for a quick photo shoot during a break in the rain...
28 lbs on the dot! (dried out)
1.25" hooks on both sides
9 inch beard.
It couldn't have worked out any better....the weather was total garbage the rest of the weekend. Kind of bitter sweet though being done so soon....but I'll take it.
Wish I had another tag......this guy was looking for love this morning in the field just to the west of where I tagged mine.....and I don't know anyone that has a tag yet!
Sorry this was so long....it's been a while since I've made a harvest post on here so I thought I'd make it count. :way:
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