2010 Spring Contest Braggin Board = Post story & Pictures
04-20-2010, 02:28 PM
#21
Super Moderator
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2003
Location: Indiana
Posts: 7,182
I had a very good hunt in Missouri. I called in this turkey and he brought a friend with him. Could have been a double kill had my buddy been with me. I started out hearing 8 toms. Before fly down I got their attention with some soft tree yelps thep once light enough I did a fly down cackle. So the birds were on a dead run across the field to me. I yelped with the mouth call and they would stop and triple gobble at me. Then they would strt running again. Well they decied to circle my location. Once they circled they came out into a waterway to my left. They second bird began strutting and I thought ok your the dominate one so I cutt aggressive at them. The strutter raised his head and the rest is history. He weighed 22lbs with 1in spurs and a 10in beard.
04-20-2010, 04:45 PM
#25
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: North Louisiana
Posts: 3,050
Went to Texas to the LBJ Grasslands to hunt for a few days. Sunday was a bust. It rained all day and all I saw were two hens. Monday I struck a gobbler. He was gobbling his head off. I couldn't see him but could tell he was moving in on me. Everytime I called, he gobbled. He finally cleared some brush and I got my first look at him. He was strutting and gobbling hard. By the fan, I could tell he was a large jake. His tail was almost rounded. I sat there and pondered on what to do. The weather hadn't been good, and I'm hunting public land. I decided to take him, thinking this may be my only chance while here. When he got about 20 yards, I let him have it. I guess you could call him a super jake. He weighed 16 lbs. 6 oz. and had a 6 inch beard. He looks like a wet rat in the picture, but he was actually a very nice jake. This morning, Tues., I got a tom to gobble on roost. I could hear the hens, so I knew it was going to be tough. When they flew down, of course they went the other way and he went silent. I got up and circled around them to try and cut them off. It worked, almost. I cut them off, but as I was rouding some brush, there they were. The gobbler in full strut with three hens. The gobbler didn't see me, but one of the hens did. She started putting and the gobbler came out of strut ready to bolt, but he was too late. I sent a load of Rem. Wingmaster HD's his way and he went down. The shot was 43 yards. He is a beautiful tom, weighing 22 lbs. 6 oz., a 10 inch beard, and matching 1 inch spurs.
04-21-2010, 06:02 AM
#27
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: East Central, Ohio
Posts: 1,226
Opening Day Success
Went out Monday morning for the opener. Had the big bird that I have been watching come in to 25yds with two hens and one of them had a 5-6 inch beard. First one I have ever seen. I'm not sure if he seen me move or what but he spooked and started walking away from the decoys. Guessed him for 30yds and let the bullhead fly. Missed to the right of his head and took a couple back feathers off. He took off and I thought my morning was over. Heard a couple more birds in the distance, so I kept calling about every 5 minutes. At 7:55 had this bird come in to my setup. Instead of a bullhead, I sent a 3-blade Rage at him and took out both hips at 30yds with a passthru. He only made it another 40yds after the shot. FIRST BIRD WITH A BOW!!!
18lbs 9 inch beard and both spurs are 7/8
Went out Monday morning for the opener. Had the big bird that I have been watching come in to 25yds with two hens and one of them had a 5-6 inch beard. First one I have ever seen. I'm not sure if he seen me move or what but he spooked and started walking away from the decoys. Guessed him for 30yds and let the bullhead fly. Missed to the right of his head and took a couple back feathers off. He took off and I thought my morning was over. Heard a couple more birds in the distance, so I kept calling about every 5 minutes. At 7:55 had this bird come in to my setup. Instead of a bullhead, I sent a 3-blade Rage at him and took out both hips at 30yds with a passthru. He only made it another 40yds after the shot. FIRST BIRD WITH A BOW!!!
18lbs 9 inch beard and both spurs are 7/8
04-24-2010, 02:09 PM
#28
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Michigan
Posts: 1,673
Hey guys, just shot this bird yesterday morning at about 9:18am here in Hemlock, MI.
The day before, I worked a nice tom for about 2 hours, only to pass up a 17 yard shot because of a small amount of grass/branches in my shooting direction. He spotted me, and putted away. After thinking about it later, I should have shot it because im about 95% sure I would have gotten it. But its that feeling most "responsible" hunters have about waiting for a nice, clean shot. I was pretty heartbroken. But....the Lions drafting Ndamukong Suh later made me feel a little better!!
Anyways, the next morning, I had a hen come out to my Pretty Boy/Pretty Girl setup and a tom gobbling behind me. I couldnt get him to come out and later realized he was probably courting a hen based on how he would gobble and wait a few minutes to gobble again.
Well, I saw him about an hour later, 15-20 yards away, and sure enough, he was with a hen, strutting around. Just as i pulled my gun up to shoot, he walked into some thick part of the woods. I was 5 seconds too late. He strutted in back of me for a while and finally headed out to a field and walked off the opposite direction of me, 100 yards away. I thought it was over.
But..
He did a complete U-Turn. And came back with a hen in my direction. He was still in back of me in real thick stuff, but there was a very small spot where, if he walked there, I just might be able to get a shot. Well, after coaxing him enough (I think), he walked in that "window", and I let him have it. This was my 6th tom since ive started turkey hunting in 2000, and it was my biggest. Out of the 5 before, not ONE has been over 20 pounds, or 9" beard. Well, this bird was a milestone in both categories.
21#
10" beard
7/8" spurs
Mossberg 835
Jellyhead Choke
Nitro H517 shells
The day before, I worked a nice tom for about 2 hours, only to pass up a 17 yard shot because of a small amount of grass/branches in my shooting direction. He spotted me, and putted away. After thinking about it later, I should have shot it because im about 95% sure I would have gotten it. But its that feeling most "responsible" hunters have about waiting for a nice, clean shot. I was pretty heartbroken. But....the Lions drafting Ndamukong Suh later made me feel a little better!!
Anyways, the next morning, I had a hen come out to my Pretty Boy/Pretty Girl setup and a tom gobbling behind me. I couldnt get him to come out and later realized he was probably courting a hen based on how he would gobble and wait a few minutes to gobble again.
Well, I saw him about an hour later, 15-20 yards away, and sure enough, he was with a hen, strutting around. Just as i pulled my gun up to shoot, he walked into some thick part of the woods. I was 5 seconds too late. He strutted in back of me for a while and finally headed out to a field and walked off the opposite direction of me, 100 yards away. I thought it was over.
But..
He did a complete U-Turn. And came back with a hen in my direction. He was still in back of me in real thick stuff, but there was a very small spot where, if he walked there, I just might be able to get a shot. Well, after coaxing him enough (I think), he walked in that "window", and I let him have it. This was my 6th tom since ive started turkey hunting in 2000, and it was my biggest. Out of the 5 before, not ONE has been over 20 pounds, or 9" beard. Well, this bird was a milestone in both categories.
21#
10" beard
7/8" spurs
Mossberg 835
Jellyhead Choke
Nitro H517 shells
Last edited by kdsberman; 04-26-2010 at 07:03 AM.
04-26-2010, 05:40 AM
#29
Giant Nontypical
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: Chatham, Ohio
Posts: 8,834
Yesterday afternoon, me and Isaac set up a blind on a ridge-top logging road where we have seen alot of birds in the past. I got in early, and around 6 AM, a gobbler started gobbling off to my left. About 10 minutes later, another one started hammering behind me. Then the hens started up. I did some soft tree yelps and sat tight. After all the birds pitched down, the woods went quiet.
At about 7:30, i got out of the blind and headed southwest, towards another ridge. I sat where i could see a ways, and hit my Primos Jackpot call with my Wood Wise striker a few times. After a few series of cuts, i had a gobbler and a hen go off to my left a few hundred yards. I got up and made a quick ninja sneak through the woods towards the birds.
I found a decent tree where the ridge-top got skinny (about 70 yards across). After a few clucks, a few cuts and some purrs, i had a gobbler go off at about 70 yards down over the hill. A few minutes later, i saw 2 red heads pop up at 50 yards. I brought my binos up but couldn't tell if they were Jakes or Gobblers, and after they scanned the horizon, they went back down over the hill. At this point i was getting a little impatient, so i clucked loud, did some sharp cuts and followed it with some high pitched yelps.
Boom!
A gobbler went off 60 yards to my right. This is where i knew i had to make a decision, i could stay the way i was, and risk not getting a shot to my right but stay in position for the birds i did see before, or i could move.
I went with the move. I spun around the tree, and put out some cuts foll wed by a few purrs. He couldn't resist. About 5 minutes later i saw the white head. He was coming in SLOW and silent, taking a few steps and looking around. I know if i would have had decoys he wouldn't have came in, these birds are pressured and very call/decoy shy. The fact that he couldn't see the hen was too much for him, and he eventually came out on the logging road at 20 yards. Click...BOOM!
He went down, started thrashing and i knew it was over.
The euphoria of finally getting that bird of my own was one of the best feelings i ever had in the woods. Ive called in alot of birds for my friends/family, but ive never called my own in until today.
http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a1...n/DSC06344.jpg
Me and dad scoring him:
As he looked live:
I had the camera with me in the blind, but i didnt get him on video when i moved. And yes, he is a shotgun bird. Also, the big double beard is still alive, ill be going after him on Friday morning.
At about 7:30, i got out of the blind and headed southwest, towards another ridge. I sat where i could see a ways, and hit my Primos Jackpot call with my Wood Wise striker a few times. After a few series of cuts, i had a gobbler and a hen go off to my left a few hundred yards. I got up and made a quick ninja sneak through the woods towards the birds.
I found a decent tree where the ridge-top got skinny (about 70 yards across). After a few clucks, a few cuts and some purrs, i had a gobbler go off at about 70 yards down over the hill. A few minutes later, i saw 2 red heads pop up at 50 yards. I brought my binos up but couldn't tell if they were Jakes or Gobblers, and after they scanned the horizon, they went back down over the hill. At this point i was getting a little impatient, so i clucked loud, did some sharp cuts and followed it with some high pitched yelps.
Boom!
A gobbler went off 60 yards to my right. This is where i knew i had to make a decision, i could stay the way i was, and risk not getting a shot to my right but stay in position for the birds i did see before, or i could move.
I went with the move. I spun around the tree, and put out some cuts foll wed by a few purrs. He couldn't resist. About 5 minutes later i saw the white head. He was coming in SLOW and silent, taking a few steps and looking around. I know if i would have had decoys he wouldn't have came in, these birds are pressured and very call/decoy shy. The fact that he couldn't see the hen was too much for him, and he eventually came out on the logging road at 20 yards. Click...BOOM!
He went down, started thrashing and i knew it was over.
The euphoria of finally getting that bird of my own was one of the best feelings i ever had in the woods. Ive called in alot of birds for my friends/family, but ive never called my own in until today.
http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a1...n/DSC06344.jpg
Me and dad scoring him:
As he looked live:
I had the camera with me in the blind, but i didnt get him on video when i moved. And yes, he is a shotgun bird. Also, the big double beard is still alive, ill be going after him on Friday morning.